Tuesday, June 21, 2011

COLLEGE ENGLISH 1014 SUMMER(2011) POST 1




Answer the questions below.
1. Why did Ms Gruwell have the Freedom Writers study the Holocaust and meet Holocaust survivors?
2. How did the Freedom Writers relate to Anne Frank? Give examples

27 comments:

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  3. The reason for Mrs Gruwell telling the students of the Holocaust and making then read the book of the Holocaust was to help to relate to their situation since it was almost the same situation that they were going through as the people did back then, so that they would feel that weren't the only ones that went through situations like them.

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  4. Well, I think that Ms. Gruwell had the students study the Holocaust, because the Holocaust was mainly about race and discrimination against the Jews, and the Freedom writers did the same thing. The blacks discriminated against the white and against the Asians, so with that they could have related to their story. She also wanted them to meet survivors for them to share their stories with the writers. Their stories of injustice, discrimination and people not understanding and not caring about them all of which the freedom writers felt and believe.

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  5. The Freedom writers related to the story of Anne Frank on so many levels. They saw many similarities to her story and their story. For example Anne Frank mentioned in her book that she felt looked down upon and discriminated because of the way she looked, this was the same way the writers felt. Because of the color of their skin and where they came from that they weren’t good for nothing.

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  6. well in reading the book some of them thought it was very interesting in knowing the facts and about the similar situation that they were in but some of them weren't too happy when they found out about Ann Frank at the end of the book even though they could relate to her since they were in a similar situation and example of this is where Eva came to Mrs Gruwell and cried and told her that she hated the book and her, Mrs Gruwell, because she thought at everything was going to be fine but then Ann frank died and that mad her angry knowing that that could happen to them living in the similar situation.

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  7. The Holocaust was the destruction of ethnic, racial, religious group. In this scene Ms. Gruwell realized that her class, composing of various racial groups, was separated. They were involved in gang, they trusted no one, they lived a life feeling there was no justice. Ms. Gruwell felt that letting them read Holocaust it may help them to unite and realize that they are not alone, others had experience far worse than what they are experiencing in their time.

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  8. Ann frank lived in an assimilated community as with the freedom writers. Compared to Ann frank most of these students has been arrested and convicted, they had experience death in their life whether a close friend or family member. The lived a life always fighting to survive.

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  9. I think the reason why Ms.Gruwell made the students study the Holocaust is because the Holocaust is a about the killing out of the Jews because of discrimination. The student were going through the same thing, their cultures didn't mix and they were against each other. Hence the Holocaust showed them the result of being racial. Also I think the reason why she made them meet the Holocaust survivors is to make them give them their life experiences while going through the Holocaust.

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  10. Anne Frank related a lot to the Freedom Writers because of what they both went through. She and the students both went through discrimination, drive by shootings, attacks by gangs and many more. Anne Frank and the students world seem to have just crumble around them.

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  11. In the movie freedom writers the teacher, Ms Gruwell, had a class of what could be classified as juveniles. She tried different methods of teaching to get through to the students which was unsuccessful then she finally tried relating to the students through books written by authors who had the same experiences as theirs, for example providing them with the opportunity of meeting Holocaust survivors. Ms Gruwell had the Freedom Writers study the Holocaust and meet the Holocaust survivors as a way to show them that they, the students, can make a change in their lives despite the challenges and obstacles they faced on a daily basis. (2) The Freedom Writers related to Anne Frank in several ways. A few being that they grew up in almost the same kind of surrounding filled with gang violence, racial discrimination and abuse. An example of this was when Eva got upset while reading the book because Anne had died and because of this she thought that she too was going to end up in a situation like this since their lives were similar in more than one way. Once again reffering back to the life style that they both lived.

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  12. 1.Ms. Gruwell did have the Freedom Writers studied the Holocaust and meet Holocaust survivors to change her students toward an orthodox perspective of life, not only by observing tolerance in nearly all things but also to understand that compassion should have its place no matter what negative or abject lines are drawn. Meeting the Holocaust survivor concluded that no matter how violence and hatred have their ways, care, love and passion still rule in the heart of the mortal enemies.


    2.Anne Frank was a Jew, who was fighting for survival during the World War II and was able to get help from whom she had considered as enemy. The Freedom Writers had once dwelled in hatred and violence and a young teacher in Ms. Gruwell helped them out.

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  13. 1. Ms.Gruwell had the students known as the “Freedom Writers” study the Holocaust because it was mainly an issue of racial prejudice and discrimination, which was clearly shown in the class room. The students were divided by their race and ethnicity and because of that they didn’t socialize but instead mock the other racial group. Moreover, when an incident occurred in the class the teacher related it to the Holocaust movement which was about the persecution of the Jewish people. Ms. Gruwell felt that by the student being aware of the situation they will be able to learn that by killing or “wipe out” a particular race it affects innocent people and changes nothing about the ongoing violence. By her allowing the students to meet the survivors of the holocaust they were able to relate to the everyday struggles of survival due to their personal experience. In addition the survivor’s story can be use as a stepping stone to changes regardless of the difference in ones ethnicity.

    2. The freedom writers related to Anne Frank not only because she was a person of their age but also because they could have related to the situation Ann Frank was in. Anne Frank had to hid from the constant surrounding of the violence like most of the student grew up in and also one student also because each student was being discriminated in their own way as well as Anne Frank. Take for instance the Asian guy drawing a picture of the African American boy. They each felt look upon just as Anne Frank did.

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  14. 1. Ms. Gruwell had the freedom writers study the holocaust because the holocaust was about racial tension and discrimination of people and the denial of rights. In the era of the holocaust the Jewish people were deemed inferior and were treated unfairly due to their race and beliefs. Therefore when Ms. Gruwell read the journals of each of her students she realized that each of them had a terrible past of discrimination. Then Ms. Gruwell decided to have the freedom writers study the holocaust and meet the holocaust survivors so that the students could flash back on their own situation. The survivors explained that after all the unfair treatment made them strong and although their rights were denied they managed to survive the era of the holocaust. Ms. Gruwell’s intentions were to make each of her students realize that their mentality had to change for their future and to become better citizens. Ms. Gruwell wanted each student to respect themselves and to respect others without looking the skin colour.
    2. The freedom writer relate to Anne Frank in the way they grew hiding of reality and the fair to confront the consequences of fighting for respect. Anne being a Jewish had to be cautious by hiding herself in a secret place where she wrote her thoughts in a dairy she had since she was thirteen years of age. In her dairy she wrote the horrible life of racial tension and discrimination her family suffered. Before she managed to finish her book her family was discovered. She was hoping that someday her dairy would be published. Anne Frank had to grow up in an environment where she experienced the destruction of her family yet she survived through her dairy where she wrote all her inner thoughts and could have expressed her anger for the unfair treatment in the era she lived in. For example Eva had a nightmare when her father was innocently sent to jail for being accused of a murder he didn’t do. As a young girl Eva witnessed the murder of a neighbour. Her father went to assist. When the police came Eva’s father was blamed because of being filled with blood and having the dead body in his arms. At the age of 15 Eva had to become an adult and to survive the horrors of the real world. Another student of Ms. Gruwell experience the dead of his younger brother when the young boy shot himself accidentally with a gun he had just got to show his older brother. This particular student had lamented all his life in jail for something he didn’t do. His mother despised him for the dead of his younger brother. Each of these families was destroyed for unreasonable mistakes. Just like Anne each student had to survive the horrors of their past and make the best to become better people and do what is right. Anne expressed herself in writing and so does the freedom writers had to do to get out the anger of their past.

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  15. Obasi U. Egbuta 22/06/11

    My Answer
    1. The reason why Ms Gruwell want the freedom writers to study the Holocaust and meet the Holocaust survivors is for them to picture the story of her high school student that had being into gang, and had gang violence experience. Also how she humble herself and listing to their true life stories: and determine to handle their present situation carefully; by exercising patience with the student, tolorrect their bad behavior and figure out how to teach them without abuse them or put-up the attitude of racism. The experience she had with her student: although initial stage, it was hard. Actually, she was just about given up; at a point, she decided to face the situation with determination. One of the strategies She used was trying to overlook what people says about them, even what they say about themselves. As a passionate teacher, she demand change from her student, at a stage: they starts reacting positive to the point of becoming friends to each other including Ms Gruwell.Actually,Mr Gruwell was successful because: she refused failure, defeat and was determined to make a difference in her student lives which at last, she achieved it.
    2. The freedom writers relates to Anne Frank by comparing the story of the high school student gang life style and their past violence experience they have to Anne Frank story book. Example: they face death and survived it, also was discriminated just like Anne Frank. I also support Melonie because Anne Frank and the student had similar experience like discriminated and death survival.

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  17. Well to my understanding Mrs. Gruwell made the freedom writers(stubborn students)to meet the holocaust survivors because they felt that everything that had ever happened to them by any chance has to do with the color of their skin. Just a quick flashback, the blacks hated the Japanese or Chinese and even the whites, so does the japanese, latinos and the rest. So what they felt in them is some kind of racial feelings mixed with the gang life they all grew up with up. So the point is by meeting the holocaust survivors they get the point that it's not only them (blacks, latinos, chinese, japanese and the rest) who went through rough experiences like the one they had but that even the whites did and that is basically what life is about, we all get hurt.
    To answer the second questions, the freedom fighters related to her in a rude manner out of ignorance before she got the chance to change them, because they felt like she doesn't know anything about them, like she is some perfect white lady who doesn't have to worry about the hood and things like that, and because of all this they felt the least thing they would do is to give her their respect.

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  18. 1.) Ms. Gruwell had the Freedom Writers read about the Holocaust and meet with the Holocaust Survivors since both experienced discrimination, death, killing and racial indifferences. Both the Holocaust Survivors and Freedom Writers life-stories were related on gaining respect, identity and a place in society.
    By having the Freedom Writers meet the Holocaust Survivors both were able to grasp reality and share their experiences and help in understanding that each other were not alone.
    2.) Anne Frank and the Freedom Writers were both in the same situation since their lives were surrounded by violence, killing, death and discrimination and a sense of lost of identity. No direction for future growth and opportunity to excel beyond their surroundings. As in the case of Eva bursting out with tears of fear that her life was coming to an end as she relates to the story book she was reading. Life is not fair to all .

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  19. Mrs.Gruwell intercepts a racist drawing of one of her students and uses it to teach them about the Holocaust. She teaches them about holocaust,because their lives were all about racism, through her faith in her student and her enthusiasm to them she wanted them to understand what it is or what it is like. Firstly, the freedom writers thought they knew everything and they are right in everything, but they are living a life that is similar to holocaust. Their life is all about violence, discrimination and hatred. Their lives are about destructing human lives by racism. So, she wanted them to know that racism is a dangerous way of carrying out life. She wanted them to understand life and the things that are best, that one day they would die they can be someone that the good things they had done could be grave in people’s heart. When she teaches that, she gradually begins to earn their trust. Mrs.Gruwell wants them to meet holocaust survivors to give them examples and to have the holocaust survivors to speak to them about their experience so that they understand it more clearly.

    Mrs.Gruwell had the freedom writers read the story of Anne Frank and they were very interested in reading here story, because they compared it to their life. Their life was really related to Anne’s story because the main theme is racism. In the story of Anne, she was killed because she was a Jews so then it’s due to racism. The freedom writers relate their life to hers because their life is about killing one another due to race and ethnicity. For example, the students segregate themselves into racial groups in the classroom, Chinese one side and black descent at the other side also in the beginning they don’t like Ms.Gruwell aswell because she is a Caucasian. Not only does Ms. Gruwell meet disagreement from her students, but she also has a hard time with her department head, who refuses to let her teach her students with books she wants. Fights break out too. Another example is by discriminating themselves by drawing one of their classmate with a big nose and a thick lips.

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  20. 1a. Ms. Gurwell had the freedom writers study the holocaust and having them meet the holocaust survivors’ because, she learnt about their life style and can relate it to the holocaust when she read the student’s journal. In this she saw a path to get the students to learn to be respectful and appreciate life.
    The students had a mentality of pure hatred and violence which they experienced in their life and neighborhood and had to face their enemy at school. Ms. Gurwell spoke to them of their actions to one another and highlighting the holocaust in relations to their behavior at school. The students were unable to identify what was a “holocaust”. Ms. Gurwell used this to her advantage and had them study and meet one of the survivors in person who told them about her life growing up as a child which caused the students to realize that they have not seen anything worse than this survivor. In addition to this the students also learnt about life, the students realize that they are not the only one that faces these situations everyday and war is not the solution to their problems.

    b. The students were able to relate the Anne Frank in a way of listening interpreting and imagine the treachery that she had to go through, all the invasion, kidnapping killing and separation from their families. Many of the students had experienced times like these but even if all combine it is nothing compared to the holocaust both in numbers and sadness. Anne Frank explained her survival and a recovery to a better life, the students were at a start of adulthood and realize that Anne Frank was still a child experiencing intense violence brought on by the holocaust and they were teenagers simply fighting with one another. She explained to the students what she did to survive.

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  21. 1) Ms. Gruwell (Hilary Swank) had her students study the holocaust after a very serious incident in the class. A paper was being passed around in class with a drawing of Jamal (Deance Wyatt) showing him with extremely large lips, which in turn was saying that he had really big lips because he was black. Finding the drawing very offensive she started to tell the students about the holocaust. She explained that this same kind of racial discrimination that was being showed in the classroom and in the school was the same kind that started the holocaust in the first place. Just as they had gangs throughout the school that bullied and fought against each other, there was a gang that bullied others in the holocaust. She explained that this specific gang felt that all other races were inferior to them. They were especially against the Jewish race and started to draw pictures of Jews having very large noses and saying that they were not good enough to be treated as people.
    She had her students study the holocaust to show them just how serious racial discrimination can be and how it can do much more than hurt the feelings of others. It could also result in the death of many innocent people. If everyone felt that the other race was inferior to their own, then there would be no peace. She also had the students meet survivors of the holocaust to show the pain and cruelty they suffered because of this type of discrimination. The students also got to realize by meeting the survivors that they were ordinary people just like them, who were mistreated for there racial features. Her sole reason was to show them, that not because they came from a different race meant they were that different from each other, and hating each other would only keep them at war and eventually they would end up dead.

    2) The freedom writers related to Anne Frank in many ways. The mere fact that she felt that her life was at risk everyday just like them made them very interested in the book. The students felt that they were living in a war zone everyday, as it was survival of the fittest. They also related to the book because Anne Frank was going against the norm of every one. Anne Frank helped Jews during the holocaust by hiding them, even though she knew that if she were to be caught she would be killed. In the same way the students were going the norm by becoming friends with other races in their class, until they eventually felt as if they were a family. Upon meeting the author of Anne Frank she said something that touched the students, she told them that she did what she did not because she had to but because it was the right thing to do. This especially touched Eva because she knew she was a key witness in a murder. Thus upon going to the court she told the truth although it meant her friend would be prosecuted.

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  22. Jessica Eliesen 22/06/11

    1.)Ms Gruwell had the Freedom Writers study the Holocaust and meet the survivors, because of an incident that happened in the classroom. She wanted them to see that what they think is bad; they don't know the half of it. Despite what she heard of the students and how they acted, Ms Gruwell believed in them and tried her best to change them for the better. She had them watch videos and documentaries of the Holocaust so they can get an insight of the war and destructions the people went through. They saw all the gangs and how they destroyed homes and entire neighborhoods because of simple little arguments over color of skin and race. After watching and relating to some of the stories the students saw things from a different point of view. They realized that no matter the color or race everyone deserved a chance in life. After this the students started to share their true feelings and come together as one, which made Ms Gruwell proud of herself.

    2.)The Freedom Writers could relate to Anne Frank because most of them were going through the same battles she had as an adolescent. They grew up with the feeling of emptiness and anger because they feel that they knew their future. They are involved or part of drive-by shootings, random attacks and gang wars. The journals Ms Gruwell had them write reminded them of how Anne wrote in her diary, of her daily struggles. It allowed them to share their personal feelings, share the tensions, mindless violence and sadness that surrounded them. As one of the students says in reference to their diary, "It's something to leave behind. We were here. We mattered." Just like Anne Frank. "Anne Frank understands our situation," says Eva, one of the Latina girls. So totally identified is she with Anne that when she realizes that Anne dies, Eva is outraged and feels personally betrayed. "Why didn't you tell us that she dies?" she rails at Erin. She was mad at first but one of her classmate “Marcus” explained to her that she doesn’t have to die like Anne. And when they found out the woman who helped the Frank family was still alive, they raised money to transport the woman so she could be a guest speaker at the school. They saw this woman as their hero, but she told them "I was not a hero". "I was an ordinary person. All I did was do the right thing. But you are heroes everyday. You are turning on a light in a dark room."

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  23. 1. Ms. Gruwell have the Freedom Writers study the Holocaust and meet Holocaust survivors was to let the Freedom Writers to understand that they are not the only one whose having the same experience that they are facing in their life time. Through the study of Holocaust, Freedom Writers found a common ground. It is that they were facing the same problems which are discrimination. To let them realize that they are not alone to let them courageous to face any challenge in their life.
    2. The Freedom Writers relates to Anne Frank by having the same main theme racism. They both experienced discrimination, and violence which are always happening in their surroundings. For example: they been through survival and death in everyday life. Also in the case of Eva bursting out tears that her life was coming to an end as she relates to the book she was reading. It shows that life is not fair to all.

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    1. Hi Chia te Chen
      I really agree 100% about the holocaust was to let the student know that they were not the only one in the holocaust situation so to let them know they were not alone through this great struggle on them. The meeting of the holocaust made these students understand what life is about.

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  26. 1.Mrs Gruwell (Hilary Swank)had the freedom writer who was referred to as the student, study the holocaust because she wanted to understand more about the life these students was living and why they were a pessimist rather than an optimist. She had the student meet the holocaust survivor because she wanted them to know that they were not the only ones going through the situation and wanted them to also know that they are people going through the same situation they were in. By allowing the students to meet the holocaust survivor it made the student aware that they need to make a change because when you think your life is the worst they are always someone living life much harder than you.

    2. When the student was reading Anne Frank book, a book she wrote about her life she had to face and how she survived. These students thought of her as their hero so they had fund raising to pay for Anne‘s transportation. She came and was telling the students about the life she had to face. One of the students told her that she was his hero and she said “No the hero is in you”. She gave encouraging words that made these students think real hard, to do the right thing to make a positive change in their life. Eva sending her boy friend for the murder of the owner of the grocery shop and another student reuniting with his mom.


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