1. Warming up with commenting on each other's blogs (click HERE for your blogging buddies):
For the first 10 minutes of class, please spend time reading the blogs of the other people in your group (see list above); try to leave detailed comments on at least one Color of Water blog of every member of your group. Focus on their most recent entries.
If you're not sure what to write, here are some ideas:
- Give a specific compliment on something they wrote or how they phrased it.
- Answer a question they posed.
- Offer a follow-up question to something they pondered.
- Offer a different way of thinking about something.
2. Enjoying our final discussion of The Color of Water: Rotating fishbowls (click HERE for yesterday's fishbowl group prep sheet)
3. Wrapping up with big take-aways: What do you understand better or differently after reading this book?
4. Reviewing List 3 tone vocabulary words
HW:
1. The rough draft of your memoir is due this Friday, March 3. It should be 2-3 pages at that point and will receive and attempt and completion grade + feedback.
2. If you fell behind on your Color of Water journals, or you need to make up a blog from a missed discussion, please take care of that this week (before we start Gatsby).
3. The final draft of your memoir and our coffeehouse reading will take place Thursday, March 9.
1. The rough draft of your memoir is due this Friday, March 3. It should be 2-3 pages at that point and will receive and attempt and completion grade + feedback.
2. If you fell behind on your Color of Water journals, or you need to make up a blog from a missed discussion, please take care of that this week (before we start Gatsby).
3. The final draft of your memoir and our coffeehouse reading will take place Thursday, March 9.
Hi Elle
ReplyDeleteI think power within a family comes from who has the money. At least the person who brings food to the table and provides for the family has more respect and with more respect comes more power
ReplyDeleteI agree what what you're saying. I think the person who works the hardest for a family deserves a lot a respect because without them the family would be a lot worse off.
DeleteI can agree with this because some people see money as power. This thought will also transfer over into their family life.
DeleteI agree with this because when Ruth's husband died, and she was barely making any money, she did seem to lose the power. James starting skipping school, drinking, and smoking weed, and some of her other kids just ran away. I think when Ruth felt hopeless after her husband died, their entire family lost hope.
DeleteI agree that more respect comes more power but I don't necessarily agree that power comes from the one with money. For example, for my family, my mom has more power even though my step dad is the one that is bringing money to the family. I think it has to do with who you get along with and respect more, not just money.
DeleteEven then though, money doesn't determine that. For the most part the most powerful person in the family is the one who works the hardest throughout life which is the one who will make the most money. Like Mrs. Leclaire is saying, the way Ruth works is by a silent power. She may not overwhelm people with power but she shows the idea of power as one that is earned from acting and showing rather than telling. Showing is setting an example, telling is commanding with no direction.
DeleteThe book ends by saying, "Now that's what you call power." (pg. 278). All Ruth did was say "I want to eat." and it set off a chain reaction. Power doesn't come from money it comes from respect, hard work, and dedication. I'll go back to my showing vs telling idea. If you ever watch documentaries about some of the best professional athletes out there, you'll never hear someone say, "Oh they never worked." Usually they say something along the lines of I never saw him take a day off, he never rested or cheated himself and his team, he always did the right thing, etc. This is why they are so respected and well though of because they do all the little things right. This allows them to earn the respect of their teammates, coaches, fans, media, and whoever else. I think Ruth has displayed all these qualities which is why her children respect her so much.
DeleteIn regards to the color of water, when we first see Ruth in the book, you see exactly who she is. You see the treatment she gives her children and how she carries herself but you don't see much about what made her. Water is very transparent and you can see through it yet, you don’t know what it is made of until you learn that information. I think her kids might see ruth as “ the color of water” as we never see her change the way she is. What are your thoughts???
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very interesting idea and it makes a lot of sense. Water can take many forms (gas, liquid, solid) and I think as you read the book you kind of see these three phases of Ruth.
DeleteI agree that her kids could have seen her as "The Color of Water," in the book Ruth also mentioned that God was the "Color of Water." So, they both could be transparent.
DeleteI can agree with this metaphor. Ruth is also like water in the way that she goes wherever life takes her, overcoming obstacles as she encounters them.
DeleteGreat close readings...I hadn't thought of the title this way. Makes much more sense now.
DeleteWhat makes someone powerful in their family? Responding to this question, I feel like the power in the family comes from the provider, the worker, the one who brings in the money and food.
ReplyDeleteI think that being powerful in the family is having the ability to choose whatever you want without having anyone really fight you about it.
DeleteI see it as whoever ascert themselves the most. Because I seen kids who treat parents like trash and this they are in charge. I have seen when the younger sibling has more power so I think it depends on the family.
DeleteI think that being powerful in the family is taking care of one another but being able to do what you want and not having anyone stop you
DeleteI agree with Will and Blake. I think that power comes from the family members who bring in the money and provide for the family. But at the same time I can agree with Riley too. I also agree with what they said in the inner circle that a lot of the time we act the way our parents act.
DeleteOn page 253, when James was talking about Ruth's church, he said "...[Ruth was] a stranger in the very church that she started in her living room." So, what do you think it would feel like to be a stranger to something you began?
ReplyDeleteI wonder if being a stranger in her old church is actually a form of healing for Ruth. She seems more comfortable in this place as a stranger.
DeleteWhat makes someone powerful in their family is what they do to help others. This is because Ruth raised 12 kids on practically no money and she still managed to put all of her kids in the position to be successful.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this, I don't think someone who brings in the money necessarily has the power. Just like Ruth who basically didn't have any money and had respect from her kids.
DeleteIt goes back to the idea that they respect their mom because they see her work her tail off for them. I know atleast for me, when I'm playing baseball and someone tells me to do something yet they never do it I see them as a dictator and weak. There's a way to earn power and respect and Ruth displays this by the way she raises her children.
DeleteFor the most part I feel like power in families come from who was/is the most successful financially and relationship wise.
ReplyDeleteI think power comes mostly from hard work. Being financially stable requires intelligence and hard work. And keeping up a steady relationship/reputation takes a lot of hard working.
DeleteI agree with Mrs. Leclaire when she said that it is amazing that she got all of her kids into good colleges. It was even harder for her to get them into colleges because of the time period that they lived in.
ReplyDeleteVery true. The work has to come from the children but Ruth definitely gave them the discipline and motivation to do it.
DeleteI feel like to be powerful, you kind of have to be on that daily grind. connecting this to the show shameless, its kind of the same thing with the oldest sister going through that daily grind to get all these kids through a tough neighborhood and school.
ReplyDeleteI agree because usually the harder you work the more respected you are. So you have to always put in effort to be recognized as better than others.
DeleteHeroism is in the small, daily decisions you make. If there's one thing you remember from this class, I hope it's that.
DeleteAlso the fact that the mom had confidence in her kids regardless of how helpless she seemed at times. It was the balance between being strict enough on her kids while at the same time letting them go off and make their own mistakes.
ReplyDeleteOne of my big takeaways from the book was how people find themselves. I am a firm believer that life experience is what shapes us most in our lifetime and I think this book shows the development of a human.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with Alex. I too believe that the things that happen in our lives will shape who we are. Not all the time, but sometimes.
DeleteI think to go into more detail our lives are more shaped off of our life experiences in which we fail. Failure is what makes us who we are. Just how James' failures during the time in which he was a part of the "Corner," made him who he is.
DeleteHow much of Ruth's power came from not only her home life, but from her religion as a whole?
ReplyDeleteI think her religion gave her a lot of confidence and that helped her with power a lot.
DeleteNot knowing how to use your power is a way that you will lose your power because people will doubt you and not listen to you when you're doing all these things that sort of shame yourself.
ReplyDeleteOn Pg. 283 and pg. 285 James says: "She'd had no problem walking into the synagogue. (283) "She was standing in front of the synagogue entrance, staring up at the doorway from the sidewalk, lost in thought, the rain billowing into puddles around her." (285)
ReplyDeleteAnd on pg. 92 James asked his mom "Am I black or white?" and Ruth replied "You're a human being."
Do you think that race and religion are similar? How are they different in terms of someone's confidence?
Great question. Two of my best friends growing up were Jewish, but they classified themselves as "culturally Jewish" (not "religiously Jewish"). I think race and religion are all part the larger umbrella category of culture.
DeleteI think power comes purely from personality. Some people are born leaders, while others are followers. Ruth was clearly a leader, she had to be. When it was James turn to lead, he realized he wasn't a leader.
ReplyDeleteOn Page 267 James kept quitting all his jobs that he got why do you think he did it?
ReplyDeleteThere's different ways a person could have the power in the house. For example Ruth's dad had the power in his house because he was strict and had his own ways. He was kind of the dictator of the family, he had complete control of his family and no one could change that. Ruth has the power in her family because of how she provides for her many kids with no money. Because she gives them care they give them respect in return like Alex said. And the more respect you have the more power you have in the house.
ReplyDeleteThat's very true. There are different ways to get power, and Ruth and her dad got power in different ways. He was cruel and mean, but also provided the money, so he had the power. He had no respect, but he had power. Ruth was kind and paid her children with support and love, therefore she got power, with full respect.
DeleteI feel like Ruth struggled with power a lot because she grew up knowing power as fear. She feared her father and obeyed him because she was afraid of him. I think she had a hard time gaining power among her children because she couldn't find another method that was more effective then fear.
ReplyDeleteI agree because her family almost always put her down and didn't respect her as much as they respected the rest of the family. So this causes a struggle for power for the rest of her life.
DeleteYes--way more power in showing vulnerability than in inducing fear, I think.
DeletePower in a family can be earned by the relationships within that family. Power can come from just being there for a family member when they need it. I think that idea is very clear in this particular book.
ReplyDeleteI agree. When you are there to support a family member, they will be happy to support you. But if your not there for a family member, they wont be there for you.
DeleteI think that power in the family mostly comes from respect. You can tell that James respected Ruth from the way he writes in the first chapters. On pages 67-68 James talks about what a disaster their house was "Our house looked like a hurricane hit it." While their house may be chaotic, James still acknowledges that Ruth is doing a wonderful job as a mom. However, when her husband died, she started not caring. She would just stand by the sink spaced out for hours. When Ruth lost respect for herself, James lost respect for her as well. This is when he began skipping class, drinking, and smoking.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this, its very easy to respect someone who seems like they have it all figured out and put together but as soon as you can tell something is off, like Ruth not even respecting herself, that makes it way harder to maintain that respect.
DeleteYou bring up a good point. I never realized that the two events, Ruth giving up, and James making bad decisions, were connected. When he started making bad decisions, do you think it might have affected one of his younger siblings?
DeleteHaving a Biracial family was hard for Ruth with all sorts of questions from her kids asking her why she is white and they are not. It also became a problem when they went to church, and asking why Jesus was white. Ruth wanted to get across the fact that race does not matter in her household or her life. To help Ease the minds of the kids about their thoughts on race, she tells them that God does not come from a certain race and he does not have a certain color, but he is a spirit and is the color of water.
ReplyDeleteI think that the stress that she put on them about both race and religion helped them see everyone eye for eye. Ruth did a very good job of letting her children choose what they wanted.
ReplyDeleteRuth hadn't stepped in a synagogue in years but she recognized the way it shaped her and raised her. This is interesting because the purpose of this entire book is James exploring the way Judaism shaped her into a strong woman because of all the hardship her parents intense Jewish faith brought upon her
ReplyDeleteThis is a big part of a lot of people's lives. Where they become the most powerful is when they embrace how their past shaped them, and they don't hide their past
DeleteMaybe she doesn't want the race thing to happen to the kids but I feel like there really isn't a way to stop that
ReplyDeleteI think Ruth is much like Oscar's mom in, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close." Oscar's mom had lost her husband and was raising a very challenging kid all on her own. Also the fact that she trusted Oscar on his journey to find out more about his dad. She wanted him to fail and succeed and without him knowing it she was by his side the whole entire journey.
ReplyDeleteWow. Great connection I can definitely see that now<3
DeletePerhaps the unconscious decision to teach these two books is based on my desire for you all to appreciate your mothers. :)
DeleteI don't agree that we are the total products of our parents. They want us to do all these cliche things like going to the same college and doing all the same stuff but everyone goes on their different paths.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you because my parents both went to Heritage and I didn't go there, and neither of my parents went to college but I do want to go to college. There are similarities between parents and there kids,but there are also differences.
DeleteI feel like Ruth didn't even want to think about race. Whenever James would ask her about race she would treat it like an silly subject and would quickly dismiss it all together.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Henry. I agree that Ruth didn't want to think about race but I also think that race didn't matter to her. I think she may have seen everyone equally regardless of their race.
DeleteWhat does race have to do with power? I think during these times, being white was a lot easier, but if you were black and strong enough to fight the prejudice, you will survive and be more powerful than any white person.
ReplyDeletei think there is a stereotype of whites always having much more power than blacks, so it made life hard being a black during this time. But blacks have to stand up for themselves and being strong which I think gives blacks power
DeleteI like what you said about a black person surviving and being more powerful than any white person. I feel like in during this time, if a black person was strong and was willing to stand up for themselves, it intimidated white people. They were always used to black people being lesser and giving up easily.
DeleteThis is a good question. There is a side to both that are so different. I agree that blacks learned pretty quickly that you have to be strong to survive. And that was what it was like, they needed to survive the hate and prejudice that they received. Power and race were so important to learn how to balance their lives.
DeleteOn page 253 the second paragraph it takes about Ruth's past “Her memory was like a minefield”. This paragraph reminds me of when we talked about repression earlier in the year. I think she had repressed her past so much that when James wrote this book it help her in ways that she never thought could happen. She had a chance to talk about her past and now people can read about it and lets people know what she has been through.
ReplyDeletei completely agree with this statement. i notice how they are talking about the past and when they get into comparing the ministers to her father. pg 253 "she compared them to my father, but really there was no comparison"
Deletei completely agree with this statement. i notice how they are talking about the past and when they get into comparing the ministers to her father. pg 253 "she compared them to my father, but really there was no comparison"
DeleteHow does James and Ruth entering a synagogue in the epilogue tie together the loose ends about religion in the book? I think its interesting that while Ruth believed in Judaism, she could not enter a Protestant church. But now that she is a Christian, she can enter a synagogue. What does this say about the two religions?
ReplyDeleteI think after all the pain her strict upbringing brought her, she now realizes that hate and discrimination based on religion (or race for that matter) is not okay. Her parents couldn't stand anyone that wasn't Jewish, and that caused her a lot of pain in the long run, so she is pretty much saying she doesn't want to be like that by finally entering a synagogue. She is saying she is done with discrimination, especially since she raised her kids to love all so strictly
DeleteA lot of us have brought up that power comes from respect. Ruth's father clearly had all the power in his household, but did Ruth respect him? She seemed to fear him and hate him, not respect.
ReplyDeleteI think that Ruth respected him out of fear. She could not enter the Protestant Church at her graduation, because she respected and feared him and his beliefs.
DeleteI think that fearing someone gives them lots of power. By fearing someone, you are reactionary. You wait for them to make a change, and you react to it.
DeleteI don't think anyone respected her father everyone seemed miserable there and all his power was from fear but the mothers power is from respect.
DeleteUsually we think of power as respect nowadays but also throughout history fear has given people power. For example Hitler kind of put a fear into the world and people saw that he had power because of this.
DeleteJames says: "My mother is the only individual I have ever known who has been in the process of moving for 10 years straight" (268). In what ways (other than physical) was Ruth "moving"?
ReplyDeleteRuth was moving from place to place, and each new place brought her new relationships, love, and hardships. She was physically moving, and each physical move brought a movement within her heart and a movement within her future
DeleteI think Ruth was moving mentally as well. So much has happened to her in the past 10 years, she is probably constantly processing everything.
DeleteI think that the best way Ruth could control her family was to not have to worry about it. On page 189, James realizes that his mother had been pushing all of her children away. She was always sending them places away from home so that she wouldn't have to deal with them. James noticed that she didn't cry when he left. Almost like he was one less problem to worry about.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 25 the book talks about how much Ruth has done as a mother, "In running from her past, Mommy has created her own nation, a rainbow coalition"(pg. 277). I think this statement is so powerful, because it shows that she has made so many different children, that are all different. Not just as in how all of her grandkids will have different shades of skin, but they are all so different, and she was able to raise all of them.
ReplyDeleteI find this really cool too, even though she went through many hardships she was able to raise all her children very well.
DeleteI agree with Korbin its not forgetting your past its building on what your past has taught you.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Alex and Korbin. I also think that we learn from our mistakes and we learn from other people's mistakes.
DeleteI agree with Grant. Watching the fruits of your labor become something may be scary, but it's important to let them go. And also very exciting.
ReplyDeleteI thought that the book was interesting but I think there is a better book that displays power. For memoirs though and the project we are working on I think its a good book.
ReplyDeleteI think it is because it shows good life morals and the way that people at the time could overcome racism and become something great.
ReplyDeleteGoing along with the inner discussion, I think that she didn't cry because even knowing that she raised them well, James didn't have a very great childhood, and she knows that once he leaves he can make a life for himself and do great things.
ReplyDeleteI think it's hard to discuss because it's so different from my life. I'm not black, I don't live in the south or New York, or Delaware. I don't have an abusive father, or tons of siblings. So trying to relate to this book is a stretch.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is good to read during American Lit. It is perfectly paired with us writing our tribute memoir. It was helpful to read before I started writing mine, because it helped me see what a good memoir is like.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is worthy of being taught, especially along with a memoir unit. It provides an interesting format idea for writing.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Garrett, this book was very helpful for our own memoir. It is a perfect example of what ours could be like. It gives us insight on what key stories and different artifacts that we could bring into our own memoir.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is worth teaching because it did help give me an idea for my own memoir that we are writing in class.
ReplyDeleteI think that this book is good for American Lit in different ways. The book was good and I liked it. I think it has good lessons in it. Definitely opens your eyes a little.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is really good for our memoirs because it makes us look back on the hard moments with this person and all the things that we regret. For me, I always took my Grandfather for granted and when he died I was filled with regret for not knowing him better.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if its not worthy to teach but discussions were much harder to have and I don't feel like I can relate to this book. But it was a good book.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Discussions were very difficult, because I think everyone has a different take on this book that is difficult to explain to others.
DeleteI think this a very good book to read during our Junior year of high school. As Ethan said, we can see the "teen aspect" that most books aren't able to capture. Also, this book has a lot of life lessons for people preparing to become adults.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is excellent to teach because it shows two different perspectives about how people grew to develop into better people for life. I can't say that it would be a book that would pull me in though. There was never a time where I would get lost into the book and just read.
ReplyDeleteI think it was a good book and the build up of background knowledge helped me understand the book more.
ReplyDeleteI think not understanding exactly what power is, is powerful in itself. The book provokes so many ideas and different ways of thinking that I think is helpful. I think today in society the idea of power is someone who rules, tells, commands not one who shows, examples, and displays what they want. It's easy to respect someone who always does the right things which you see in this book and that comes from someone who is very silent and not outgoing like the stereotypical person in power. It's also a slap in the face of reality that I have it so good and my issues are hardly even scratching the surface compared to others. I think it's a nice wake up call as we enter into a position of "power" as seniors.
ReplyDeleteI think this book is good for what it's for. As tributes go this book was very good and I think this book is perfect for this unit. I don't think I would read this in my free time but I'm glad we read it in class.
ReplyDeleteI feel like this is a good book to teach for memoirs, but a lot of it isn't very personal because things in the book, like racism, definitely are not as present as they used to be.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jacob I think that starting with "im dead" was a really good interesting lead in to the start of the book.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think the symbolism is with this beginning hook? Do you think that it just had to do with her being emotionally unattached or do you think that it has a deeper meaning?
DeleteMichael Sullivan
I feel like it really shows how she had to turn her life around and she had to go through the worst to get to the better part.
ReplyDeleteI agree
DeleteI definitely agree with Jacob. It really just solidifies the mom as a character.
ReplyDeleteI think she says "I'm dead". because her identity has changed so much. As we learn more about her and her life, we are shown how much her life has changed and how much she has lost in her life like her family.
ReplyDeleteI think the book began this way to have like a start to finish, the beginning of the book was to show that how much she changed and her life's story
ReplyDeleteTo answer Kenny's question I think she says "I'm dead" because she has had to forget her whole past life in order to start a new life and become a new person so when she says she's dead she means her old personality not her physical self.
ReplyDeleteI think he was able to learn from her mistakes and help her and himself grow from it.
ReplyDeleteI think the author putting im dead at the beggining of the book is showing that at the beggining she is dead but through the book she changes and she is not her old dead self anymore
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment and would like to add that the old part of her is dead so there is no way for her to be whole again.
DeleteMichael Sullivan
I think the authors past shapes help shape who he is by him learning more about himself and understanding why his life is the way it is.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this because who the people are in your past or the just the people before you can have a huge influence on who you are or will be
DeleteIn the book he says “ I had to find out more about who i was, and in order to find out who I was, I had to find out who my mother was. (C25 266). It was necessary for him to know his mothers past and understand why she is who she is, so he could find out who he was.
ReplyDeleteReplying to Diego's question, I really enjoy the quote "I had to find out more about who I was. And in order to find out who I was, I had to find out who my mother was... It was a devastating realization, coming to grips with the fact that all your live you had never really known the person you loved most," (page 266). I think this realization was hard for James because he feels like he should have known who she was sooner since they were so close.
ReplyDeleteYes to Lindsey's comment on the inner circle. Nobody makes it through life alone. This is the narrator's chance to say "thank you" (just like your tribute memoirs are a chance to thank someone for the role he/she has played in shaping your life).
ReplyDeleteTo go off of what Isabelle said, I agree. I think the thing he cared most about growing up was his mother and seeing her change so much and learning how she grew up really transformed how he saw the world.
ReplyDeleteOn page 92, James asks his mother "Am I black or white?" to which she responded with "You're a human being". Throughout the book, she has never drawn attention to their race. How do you think this has affected their lives positively and negatively?
ReplyDeleteMichael Sullivan
I think this is a really amazing attitude for her to have and to teach her children because that way they grow up and know that no matter what race they are they are still important
DeleteI think the kids now realize that its their turn to take care of their mother, just like she did when they were young and couldn't fend for themselves
ReplyDeleteI think the kids taking care of ruth is a direct coorelation to ruth taking care of her mom
DeleteMaking their mother proud, is probably important to them, but at the same time they are self driven, and they want be successful.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Diego's question, I wonder if anyone every said thank you to the grandmother when she was alive. Did she achieve any power?
ReplyDeleteI think the grandmother is important in that passage because she helped shape james's mother, just like his mom helped shape the person he is today
ReplyDeleteI like to see this theme in the book. I wonder how james and his siblings will help to shape their own children
DeleteFeel free to include any questions or topics that you didn't get to talk about when you were sitting in the inner circle!
ReplyDeleteI think growing up James could never decide who he connected with and who he belonged with but as he grew up and learned about his mother more he began to start identifying himself.
ReplyDeleteI think his mother was a big part of finding himself but also writing this book I think may have helped him understand what had gone on in his life and help him realize things about himself
Delete“Ma was so hurt she resolved never to go back there again, a promise she broke again and again, braving the two-hour subway and train commute from her home in Ewing, New Jersey, to sit in church, the only white person in the room, a stranger in the very church that she started in her living room.” pg 253
ReplyDeleteDo you think she continued going back to that church because no matter how much she wants to let it go she can't because it’s the last piece of her husband she has left?
Yes, I do think she kept going back because it the was the one place that reminded her of her husband and she didn't want to leave everything about him behind and forgotten.
DeleteJust an observation, but I thought the photos a few pages in and a few pages near the end were really cool! I just feel photos in a memoir, like this, add to the story
ReplyDeleteI agree whole heartedly. I think that pictures enhance any story you read because instead of having to imagine what things look like you can actually see the people or things that are being written about
DeleteAlso, just a reminder that you want to be blogging consistently throughout discussion. :) Keep those fingers a-typin'
ReplyDeleteOne thing that this book showed me that was awesome, is that she Ruth had totally different kids. Even with tha, Ruth had different kids, and different grandkids, and as tough as it probably was during that time, she found a way to raise them all, and she raised them all pretty well also.
ReplyDeletethis has absolutely nothing to do with what the inner circle is talking about but in the acknowledgements and thanks section he ends it with the verse from Proverbs, 3:6. why do you think he ended it like that?
ReplyDeleteOne thing that I kept saying in my blog was how important the chapter titles were, and the role that they played in the book. I thought that James McBride was trying to show to us readers what things were like for him compared to what things were like for his mom. What is the deeper meaning that McBride is trying to show to us?
ReplyDeleteI think each chapter had so much content and important points within them but the chapter title always related back to something within in the book and I think the chapter title was related to whatever he felt like was the most important piece within the chapter
DeleteOn page 251 it says "He left behind no insurance policy, no dowry, no land, no money for his pregnant wife and young children, but he helped established the groundwork for Ma's raising twelve children which lasted thirty years."
ReplyDeleteDo you think that leaving no money behind was worse for them?
Of course money could have helped their situation I think, but better she showed her how to be a parent to these kids no matter what and what she should and can do to take care of them. They didn't have money and all their kids went to great colleges and ended up having good careers.
DeleteI'm sure it made things harder for them but she was able to make it work so in the end it didn't matter as much as we would imagine it to me in this time period where it would be very close to impossible to raise a huge family on virtually nothing
DeleteI think that the impact of his mother never answering the questions James had about his race made him more inclusive to others becasue he was never called black or white he was just a person.
ReplyDeleteNever though of it like that, but I completely agree!
DeleteI think the fact that the mother always went around the topic of race, made him confused and contributed to the loss of identity. I think if she had told him to embrace his color he wouldve known more about himself
ReplyDeleteAnother scene that display's Ruth's power as a mother was on pg. 103, when she gets in an argument with the shop owner about the rotten milk, "Still holding the milk in her right hand, she turned around and flung it at him like a football." I bet it's times like these that cause her children to show respect towards her, thereby giving her power.
ReplyDeleteto claires question. I think its because he was younger and it was such a powerful quote to him at the time and it is something that hes always remembered
ReplyDeleteOne reason why McBride's grandmother plays such a major role in his revelation on page 229 is that the stories we tell ourselves form our identities. As McBride learns more about his grandmother's past, he adds her story to his history. In this way, McBride's grandmother plays a role in shaping McBride's perception of himself.
ReplyDelete@Claire I agree his race did shape who he is because he always asked his mom why her appearance is so different compared to his friends mom. Also how he saw the black panther and was afraid of his mom he saw how people looked at people by their race
ReplyDeleteDiego brought up a beautiful point. Although we can fight about it, we can all just agree that water and god give life.
ReplyDelete“See, I didn't think he was going to die. I had no idea, but he knew, because he named you and he’d make remarks like, “I know the Lord Jesus Christ will take care y’all should anything happen to me. Don't worry, Ruth. Just trust in God.” I wouldn't hear of such talk and would make him stop.” pg 242
ReplyDeleteDo you think she really didn't know he was going to die or she just didn't want to believe he wouldn't die because she felt she couldn't go on without him?
I think that this might have been a part of denial, because she really didn't know what she would do without him.
DeleteI think that the mother is the most powerful character in the book because she always had a major influence over James and all of his siblings.
ReplyDeleteThe most powerful character in the book is his mom, because she inspires her kids to be successful and teaches them their values that will impact them later in their lives.
ReplyDeleteI like the quote "...from dark-skinned to light-skinned; from black kinky hair to blond hair and blue eyes. In running from her past, Mommy had created her own nation, a rainbow coalition..." on page 277. It show cased what Ruth had done; she had merged the gap between white and black in a time where that was hard to do.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this Jack. She, despite the danger and isolation it brought to her,raised her kids and married a black man. Race never mattered to her, the only thing that did was the integrity of their character. It makes you wonder how different life would be if everyone had the same views as her.
DeleteI would also that the mother is the most powerful character in the book, she has had a huge impact on everyone in her life- in a good way
ReplyDeleteI think the point that Mrs. Leclaire brings up is really good, the mom has so much power in the book but she never uses it for bad.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Diego's comment about how water symbolizes rebirth and I think that James used that symbolism to create the chapter title.
ReplyDeleteMichael Sullivan
Answering Claire's question, I think that it is important that this book is titled "The Color of Water" because the color of water doesn't really matter in this book, just like how the color of people's skin shouldn't matter either
ReplyDeleteI really like Mrs. Lecalaire's point. Ruth to me just seems like a little woman but it's nice that her kids recognize her for her hard work and they love her and respect her so much even if they don't say it.
ReplyDeleteWith the theme of power, pg 294 "She wakes up each morning with a smile, saying, "Im blessed," or "Thank you, Jesus," or "I hold on to God's unchanging hand." This quote to me shows how strong she was and all of the bumps that she had to cross through her life, that she is still a very happy person, and is still going strong after everything she has gone through.
ReplyDeleteI liked the idea that Ruth gained her influence passively and wasn't expecting praise or anything. She just did her own thing and people saw that and respect and love her for it.
ReplyDeleteI think when you do the right thing and believe in being a good person enough this can happen for you just like it did for Ruth.
Delete"Faced the ghosts of her pasts" 272
ReplyDeleteI really liked this, and I feel a lot of people can learn something from this. I feel in life, if you have any any kind of problem, big or small, you have to face it eventually, instead of running your whole life. If it has haunted you for so long, ( like Ruth ) you will get closure from facing it.
I agree expressing your feelings helps a lot and she didn't tell anyone about her past until now and has faced it again and got closure from it
DeleteHe added the Mom's everywhere, because every Mom is always their kids number one supporter, and Jame's realized how much his mom helped him through life, and kind of credits her for helping him get to where he is today.
ReplyDeleteTo Maddys question about moms: I think that all moms make a great impact in life and work so hard no matter what their race, religion and how much money they have and they deserve all kinds of praise for all they do in return
ReplyDeleteI think that moms make such a huge impact in a kids life. They works so hard. His family started in the book as very poor and seemed kinda lost but now at the end of the book everything has turned out and she has gotten her kids through college and great school
ReplyDeleteTo Maddy's question: Ruth obviously gave up a lot to raise James and his siblings, and it's good that he recognizes that. But it's extra great that he can recognize that pretty much all moms do that. He's thankful for his mom but he's also thankful for every mom.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Diego said about how all moms have something in common no matter what race or religion and that is that they all work really hard. I also wonder how James' life would have been if his dad were the one who were around.
ReplyDeleteI think the most powerful character is obviously the mother because she struggle so much in life from a strict father to her dying mother and husbands. She also so strong because she doesn't care what people think about her, she's okay with being her self and believing what she wants to believe. She doesn't see race as most people during that time did. She got criticized and made fun of but it didn't bother her.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this book, I had a better understanding of the importance of role models. It has made me look at life from a new more appreciative way and believe that this book should be taught next year.
ReplyDeleteMichael Sullivan
I agree with Ashleigh. I think that in lots of families the mother gets a lot of the attitude and complaints and have to deal with what feels like a lack of appreciation so its nice that he dedicated to book to mothers everywhere because they might realize that no matter how they feel their kids do appreciate them in one way or another
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this book because there were some parts that were relatable and that always makes a book easier to read. This topic interested me as well.
ReplyDeleteThis wasn't my favorite book but it wasn't bad. I like the ideas it has about religion and race but some parts were boring. I liked James's parts a lot more than his mom's because they were a lot more relatable and easy to follow. I did like that he shared both his mom and his stories because it was interesting to see the comparison. I don't think it deserves one of the three spots.
ReplyDeleteI think that this book is really deep and has a lot to it but I didn't really look forward to reading more of it like in extremely loud and incredibly close. I think its a great book but I think that if there are only three books that can be taught there are better options.
ReplyDeleteI think that this should definitely be one of the three books that you teach in this course, because it connects different races and different religions, and as an american lit course it shows many different aspects of life.
ReplyDeleteI liked the book but sometimes I didn't relate to it on a personal level because I haven't gone through struggles with race or anything like that. I still found it interesting though. I liked the historical part of it and one part I was able to relate with was how important James' mom was to him because I'm kind of the same way.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the book and thought it was good, at time I did get a bit bored with his life as a young kid. I think the book has a lot of good lessons, whether it takes one of the three spots I'm not sure if I'd give it one because it was good, but I was expecting a little more from it. For me, I like to read but I'm not as big of a fan of having to annotate or blog about it because whether I mean to let it or not it distracts me because I have a side focus of looking for quotes.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a cool book. Most stories from this time are not the happiest, so to read this and see there story was a breath of fresh air.
ReplyDeleteSure this book had some dark moments, but to see how James and Ruth battled through there own demons, to live a good life was really cool.