The Day The Leader Was Killed (53-103)

Summary

          Well finally the leader died, around the last few pages. It was so random, Muhtashimi was watching the television and all of a sudden it went blank. The announcer said Sulayman Mubarak was fine, then injured, then dead. I felt no sympathy because the page he died was literally the same page that he was introduced. However, I don't think that the title was for Sulayman Mubarak, the President. Instead I think the title was meant for Anwar Bey. The same day that Sulayman Mubarak died Anwar Bey died, and it was because Elwan killed him. Elwan was so caught up in the heat of the death of Anwar Bey that he tried to get retribution for Randa. Right, I forgot to tell you that Randa and Anwar Bey got married. Even though Anwar Bey is twenty years older they got married. They got divorced over their honeymoon because Anwar Bey invited some of his friends and they were drinking. So Randa got angry and wanted a divorce. Anwar Bey was not angry at all he was saying that there was a misunderstanding and they could fix it. I thought they could too, I mean he said he was a man who never got angry. It was a shock to me that everyone was on her side and thought what Anwar Bey did was very disrespectful, Elwan was one of those people and that is why he beat Anwar Bey to death.

Quote

          “Had you not given up on the matter…” (Mahfouz 68).

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          This quote is exactly what I am thinking. Even though Randa has just divorced Anwar, Elwan is still ‘in love’ with Randa and wants her to know. He just will not give up. Even when he is locked up in prison for killing Anwar, when he gets out he knows exactly what he is going to do first and that is to go to Randa. Elwan’s grandfather says that he will give his house to Elwan and Randa because he knows that he will not live by the time that Elwan gets out of jail. So, Randa and Elwan will live happily ever after, at some point. The real question lies in why Anwar’s sister wanted to cover up Anwar’s murder? Was it because she wanted to inherit his part of their fortune? But I guess I will never know because this book was a novel.   

The Day The Leader Was Killed (1-52)

Summary
          When I see the words "The Day The Leader Was Killed", what I think of is a leader who will be assassinated. However, my novella is not that kind of story. So far, the main characters are, Muhtashimi Zayed, Elwan Fawwaz Muhtashimi, and Randa Sulayman Mubarak. Elwan and Randa are supposed to be married, but the only thing stopping them is money. They both come from under privileged families who do not have much money. Muhtashimi is Elwan's grandfather. The way the novel transitions is that is goes from the grandfather, next chapter Elwan, then next Randa, and it continues in that pattern. Their point of view was first person. By the end of the first section that I read, Elwan decided to finally end the marriage.

Quote
          "Keep well, sir," she says as she leaves (Mahfouz 24).

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          I think this is a perfect quote to explain the book so far because nothing seems like it has a deeper meaning. Maybe it is because the novel is so short. When ever it is just Elwan and Randa speaking, everything is so monotone. When Elwan says "I love you" I don't believe it. It's not like he even says those words exactly. He says "I care deeply for you", that can mean anything. The most depth comes from Elwan’s grandfather because he only speaks in quotes. Maybe that is why Muhtashimi says that he fears for the younger generation.

The Devil in the White City (218-342)

Summary

          It is weird how some things in this book are brought up, it makes me remember that this is a history book. For example, at one point says that that a mam named Walt wanted to build a fantasy paradise and his son would take notice, and I was amazed because than I remembered Walt Disney. To mention historical moments the fair finally has a main structure that might be able to beat the Eiffel tower. They were over with ridiculous ideas such as an eight thousand foot lodge with a restaurant on top. They constructor of the structure would be a man named Ferris, can you guess what he was going to build? Of course a Ferris wheel, first of its kind. The only question is, is there enough time? There I'd only a little over two months left to finish.
          On the other hand Holmes is married for the third time. This time Homes was smart in order to hire a fake minister and no witnesses. It was to a woman named Minnie who I'd not that easy ob the eyes and little to no neck. Even her sister wondered why such a handsome charming mam would choose her as a wife. Is it any surprise that she had cloaked a large inheritance from the death of her uncle. Holmes did all the right things. He wooed her with letters and bike rides. He always chose all the same types of women, those who he thought seemed needy. Minnie was perfect because she is needy and would cry when Holmes would leave Boston for Chicago.

Quote

          "The White City had drawn men and protected them; the Black City now welcomed them back on the eve of winter with filth, starvation, and violence" (Larson 323).

 

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          This is an important quote because it shows that when the Fair was first being built everyone thought that it was such a good thing because not only was it going to open a lot of jobs for people who were choosing to move to Chicago in large numbers, but they were not called the windy city for nothing. They honestly thought that they were not going to out beat any other Exposition but they would set a new height and therefore were very pompous. Then after the fair closed and all the humility that was left from the murders of H. H. Holmes, there was nothing to be proud of. There was only unemployed people left.  

The Devil in the White City (168-218)

Summary

         Holmes is still up to no good and people are starting to notice, and he has also begin selling skeletons. After Julia and her daughter disappear people begin to talk about it but are too afraid to say anything under the Holmes roof. So now he beefs a new secretary and she its a  young tall blond. Her name is Emeline Cigrand and has as much charm as Holmes does. She has made heart friends in the hotel such as the Lawences, but she thankfully does not live in the hotel. Of course Holmes aready promised to marry her early into the relationship. I commend her for knowing the true personality of Holmes, fiercer out did not save her. She wanted to move back to Illinois with her parents, but Homles had other plans for Emeline.
          Holmes had another business on the side which was to sell skeletons. He knew no one would question where he might have gotten the skeleton because medical schools and institutions were so despite to get their hands on them for study. They were willing to dig up graves in order ro get skeletons, so of course they would except any donations given. It is unfortunate that the next skeleton given was Emeline. Holmes have the body to a friend he knew would be able to take off the skin off the body. The friend recorded that the skin of the body seemed to have been pulled back from the stomach up to the forehead.

Quote

          "She seemed delighted with the anticipation of a visit to them" (Larson 186).
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          This quote that Ms. Lawence comments on is about the way that Emeline felt about being able to go home to her parents. It was unbelievable that she would just up and marrya random man that she never before mentioned. It was also weird that when police men found out that there was a foot print inside of Holmes vault. It was supposed that Holmes put an acid in the vault to refuce oxygen and locked someone inside. The tried to get out with their foot and stained the steel.

The Devil in the White City (110-167)

Summary

          There is fewer than twenty six months left to go until the grand opening. Burnham and his architect have no idea what their main structure will be. There are honestly so many people and committees that are formed that I can not keep track of abounds names besides now the two main characters, Burnham and Holmes. There is also one character that seems very harmless and passive at the moment, and his name is Patrick Eugene Joseph Prendergast. He is an Irish immigrant who is a strong supporter of of a man named Harrison for mayor. He is declining mentally and I do not know what he is capable of after Harrison had lost his election. Back to Burnham, it seen as though the fair will never be finish because of two things, people getting sick missing deadlines and bad weather. Olmsted seems out of everyone to be the next to end up like Root. He is always out with a stomach or headache. He had to travel all the way to Europe in order to clear his head.  He is the landscaper so he can not be replaced so late in the fair. The second reason why out was going to be nearly impossible to finish the fair is because of bad weather. The forms in Jackson Park are so fierce that as soon as a building is almost two thirds of the way finished the buildings would be destroyed along with months of work. Due to the fact that they had limiting time after buildings were destroyed, buildings were recreated not up to code.

Quote

          "We are now organizing a special interior decorative and architectural force to handle this part" (Larson 157).

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          This quote that Burnham said is an important because it shows why the fair was destined for failure. That reason was because too many people were about of it. It was hard to keep track of every single group organized.since Burnham wasn't able to keep tract sometimes things did not turn as though he wanted them to, such as the woman's building that was open to public opinion.

The Devil in the White City (62-109)

Summary
          The results are in and Congress decided to hold the world fair in chicago. Of course Burnham and Root was put in the head of the archiect department. They had to choose other architects to help them build a whole city in a deadline of about two and a half years. They decide to call upon eastern architects, which offended his native ones. It made them feel as if they were saying that Chicago child not do it on their own. It took them a while, but they decided to hold the fair at Jackson Park because it had something that no other exposition had, they had Lake Michigan. For H. H. Holmes, he re-married (he grew about from his first wife abd changed his name). He also owned a drug store. With his persuasive nature he was a very successful businessman. He also seemed like he would be a great father because he was always caring with others. He would ask if people would lend him their babies and play with them. I found nothing seriously wrong with him, I would have married him myself. Until, the previous owner of the store mysteriously decided to live on California says Holmes. Still, Holmes and the architects seem to get closer. He gets the best idea. Across the street from his drugstore is an empty block that he decides to build a hotel, a hotel that will host people going to the world fair. As he built the hotel he does not contact an architect. He dose not want anyone to know the real reason why he wants to build the hotel. He hires workers and laborers from newspapers, and to make sure they do not know what they are creating he fires them, or makes them quit before they get the chance to be paid. What he really wants to do is lure wo,en into his hotel, andkill them in secret rooms and burn them in the incinerators.

Quote
          "Holmes returned to Eaglewood and promptly forged Belknap's signature tp a second note for the same amount, intended to use the proceeds for his hotel" (Larson 87).

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          This is a key quote in the reason why Holmes got away with so much bad things. He is able to forge checks, murder for insurance, build incinerators in his basements with no questions asked. Holmes is able to sweet talk his way with the ladies anad buy the men a dinner and cigars and they always forget what it was they wanted to confront him about.

The Devil in the White City (1-61)

Summary
          This book seems to be divided into two main sections. One section is for two archiects named Daniel Hudson Burnham and a southerner named John Root. These two meet through Burnham'sf father after he had failed both the Harvard and Yale admissions test. They decided to make a company together. Burnham was the one who closes deals with his blue eyes and charm. While on the other hand, Root was the one who draws the plans for buildings. They became great archiects in Chicago. They became famous for building the first skyscrapers that the world had ever seen. At the time they were a city full of dirt, black smoke, and sewage. The city was re-named the Black City. With such a title, it was amazing that they wanted to host the next world fair, the World's Columbian Exposition. Chicago wanted to host it in their city because scribe wanted to match Paris's world exposition where they had revealed the Effile tower. Chicago thought they would be able to Paris and for their arrogance was re-named the Windy City. The World's Columbian Exposition was not the only thing that Chicago had to worry about. They also had ro worry about a man named H. H. Holmes. He is a persuasive man with deep blue eyes. He was able to charm his way out of any situation, even murder. It seems like these two groups of people get closer and closer as the story line goes along.

Quote
          "Outside yet another train rumbled through the intersection" (Larson 37)

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          To me this is a very important quote. This is important because it what makes Chicago such an interesting place to hold a World's Columbian Fair, because of the growing population. Everyday people would get off the train looking for work, especially young women. People were able get away with robbery and murder (a perfect place for Holmes).

True Grit (177-224)

Summary
          In the end Tom Chaney is killed. This is with the help of Labeef's meticulous shooting. I know it does seem weird that I am talking about LaBeef like he is the good guy, but it is true he saved Mattie's life. After Chaney spots Mattie he is in charge of watching her. He must have still been mad that Mattie cracked one of his ribs with her pistol because he began straggling her. Even though Mattie was on a high cliff, Labeef was still able to get a good range. This was not the end of this story.
          Mattie fell down a ditch. where she found a dead body. One reading the book would think. "Oh, its only a dead body. What dose it matter that Mattie is tangled upside down in some old roots?" Of course because as Mattie tries to undress the dead body, rattle snakes begin pouring out of the body. As Labeef brings down a rope, Rooster was not given enough time and Mattie was bitten on the arm. It showed how important Mattie was to Rooster as he tried to suck the poison out of Mattie's arm. When this did not work out well he tried to travel all the way back to civilization to find her some help. After the horse gets tired he runs the rest of the way with Mattie in his hands.
         Now all in all, I can say there were a few differences from the movie from now and then. For example in the beginning of the movie you would ask yourself the question, who is this black man with Mattie. In the book it is said. The man is Mattie's servant in a way. He was supposed to get Mattie To the county and safely back home, of course he failed. In the novel he actually has a part. Like when they are getting off the train and someone begins calling him bad names. I feel that reading the novel exposes more than the film, because with the film you can miss small things.
Quote
          "I tell you I can do better than that" (Portis 198).
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          People are very competitive. They are always trying to out do each other. That is what Rooster thought he could do. he thought that he was better in every way, this includes shooting. So he challenges LaBeef to a shooting contest. It blows up in his face when he can barely shoot a biscuit thrown into the sky.

True Grit (77-175)

Summary
          In this third of the book we are introduced to a fresh new character. His name is Mr. LaBeef. He is a Texas Ranger who is also looking for Mr. Chaney. Apparently Chaney has committed a crime in Louisiana. LaBeef wants to bring him back to Louisiana so that he could be tried and hanged. Mattie completely protests because she wants to kill Chaney herself, so that he knows that he is paying for the crime of the murder of her father. LaBeef can not let this happen because for the findings of Chaney is the only way that he will get paid. the fact that both of them are boarding under the same roof makes this situation all the more worse. There is a point in the novel where Labeef watches her sleep, and confesses that he would have stole a kiss, but she is too young, sick, and unattractive. Instead he would rather give her a few licks with his belt.
          He finally gets the chance to give Mattie those licks when she follows him and Rooster to find Chaney. Of course with her fresh and stubborn self she actually criticise Labeef's methods, and practically his manhood. So he gets off his horse and puts this fourteen year old girl on his lap and begins her punishment. Rooster does nothing to stop Labeef. I think it was a test to see what exactly Mattie was capable of because after the whooping does Rooster decide that Mattie can tag along. 
Quote
          "Yes, I heard about all them departments. What side was you on?" (Portis 158).
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          I think this is an important question to ask. I think it is important because in the old west I don't think there were any sides. I think that everyone was trying to benefit themselves, and make money. This made it hard for people to be able to trust each other. For an experienced man like Rooster to travel with Mattie and LeBeef may have been a big deal because he is used to doing things on his own. That is why he did not allow Mattie to travel with him in the beginning.

True Grit (11-76)

Summary      
          Well, now I can definitely tell you that Manohla Dargis was telling the truth. The film absolutely follows the same story line as the film, almost word from word. In this section of the novel Mattie meets Rooster and asks for his help in finding her father's murder, none other than Tom Chaney. Of course Rooster doesn't listen as Mattie makes her case of the reasons she wants to tag along with him. He claims she she go home and take care of her mother and siblings. Mattie says that she has already told her mother that she is seeing a man about the ponies that have been left over after the death of her father. This leads to one of the most funniest part of the book for me.
          Mattie goes to the man that sold her father the ponies. The ponies are no longer any use to her or her family so she wants a refund for them. The man finds no reasons why he should give a refund back. In all honesty Mattie was not trying to get a refund for her families needs , but the reason she wanted the money was to pay Rooster for his services. In the end Mattie not only got a refund back but she also got a new horse and a saddle. This showed that she had a way with twisting words. However, to me it showed me that she was a good negotiator.
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          "I will inform them myself," said I. "Who is the best Marshall they have?" (Portis 31).
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          To me, This quote explains Mattie's cunning personality. This is because Mattie always wanted to do things on her own. She wanted to stay in the county on her own and she wanted to kill Tom Chaney on her own. This was not a possibility. No matter what she needed help. She would not have a horse if it was not for the help of her fathers money. She would not have known how to locate Chaney without rooster's navigational skills. She knew this that is why when people did not want to help her she went to a better person.

New York Time Review of Film

          This review of the film True Grit is by Hailee Steinfield and Jeff Bridges of the New York Times. Their title is "Wearing Braids, Seeking Revenge". This is the ideal title because it describes Mattie. She wore braids everyday and every scene of the movie. As a mentioned in my last post Mattie was seeking revenge from a man named Tom Chaney because he killed her father.
          The first thing that caught my eye about this review is that it said that Rooster will win an award for the fat one eyed man. I may not have liked the film as much as I thought I would, but I think that is definitely an accurate statement to make because not only did he keep to his drunken habits but he did it while be extremely hilarious.
          The reviewers comment that everything revolves around money. Everything does revolve around money because first of all that is the reason that Mr. LaBeef is after Chaney, he is expecting a huge reward. The same for Rooster. The reason that he is looking for Chaney is because he is being paid by a fourteen year old girl. In the beginning of the story Mattie has problems with boarding because she does not have enough money, so she has to sleep in a room filled with dead bodies.
          The reviews mention that this story is not about only a fourteen year old girl but also her elder self. This is true because at the beginning of the the film we hear the voice of an older women telling or reflecting on a story. Then comes the woman's childhood. Then we see the woman's present life as she concludes her story. This means that this story was told in dual narrative. I can assure you that it was not as great a dual narrative as To Kill a Mocking Bird, but still the same.
          Hailee and Jeff claim that the film follows the same story as the novel, but I'll be the judge of that. I'll keep you posted.

To read this review please click on the following website:  http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/12/22/movies/22true.html?pagewanted=1

The Film

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          Keeping in mind the I had to take the SATs last Saturday, I watched the film True Grit at Loews theater. I got home around 10: 30 pm. If one were to ask me whether it was worth the loss of sleep I would have to tell them no. the movie did not seem like the commercials. The commercials make it seem like it is a hard core revenge film, but that is not the case. In fact this film seemed like a pure comedy. 
          This story line begins with the old man on trial for the murder of another men. Everyone in theater laughed when they saw this one eyed man unable to articulate, or even recollect these murders that he is being accused of.
          The young girl travels to Arkansas, where the old man was, because she had to deliver her fathers body back home to her mother and younger siblings. However, this girl wants to stay to avenge her father. She is angered when she finds out that another ranger is hunting down her fathers murderer, Chaney. She wants the murder to die because he killed her father not because he committed a crime in another country, and she wanted Chaney to know that.
          They travel into Indian Territory in order to track down Chaney, with the sorry excuse for a Texas ranger, Mr. La beef. They tried to ditch Mattie in the beginning of the journey but she is a very persistent young lady who knows what she wants.
          Waking up in the morning, Mattie went down to a river to retrieve some water. Low and behold, there was Chaney right across the river. Now I would expect that this was supposed to be the most emotional scene in the whole film but it was an extremely funny one. There was Mattie unable to carry a gun, and there was Chaney saying that he remember her like an old babysitter would.
          These film movement were outrages. By outrages I mean that there were specific angles the camera was positioned in during certain scenes. for example during the scenes were they rode on their horses together, it was an over the shoulder shot. Shots were the it seemed the viewer was right over the persons shoulder, listening in. During the scenes there was shootings they were high angle shots. Shots were the camera pointed down. I liked these shots the most because they were also long shots. The people hide on hillsides to try to catch the enemy by surprise. Now that I think about it these shot were also point of view because it seemed like people in the theater were trying to aim too shoot the enemy.