Week 2- Entry A

Vocabulary

(p 93) languorous- (adj) languid, lacking in vigor, slow

(p 99) calliope- (noun) instrument like an organ with whistles sounded by steam or compressed steam

Appeals

1. (p 63) “Inside, Grandfather, Douglas, and Tom saw him tinkering, make a minor adjustment here, eliminate friction there, busy among all those warm, wonderful, infinitely delicate, forever mysterious, and ever-moving parts.” The adjectives at the end of this sentence are emotional appeals. Just reading the words makes me feel them.
2. (p 92) “Ladies, I know you’re both vigorous. You look it. Eighty years.” The salesman is using the emotionally appealing word vigorous when trying to sell something to two old women.
3. (p 92) “The storage batteries are fully charged and ready now! […] You recharge it every night in your garage.” The salesman now uses a logical appeal when selling the Green Machine.

Quote

(p 104) “The colored windowpanes on the little round windows, have they always been there? […] I never saw them before today. On the way walking through town I looked up and there they were. Doug, what was I doing all these years I didn’t see them?”

Life passes by quickest when you’re not paying attention, and then before you know it, it’s too late. Pay attention to the details in life when you have a chance to. Notice the flowers in bloom. Count the cracks in the sidewalk. Savor the taste of the first ice cream cone of the summer. In the fall, the flowers will wilt. Someday, the sidewalks will be replaced. When summer ends, you won’t taste ice cream until the next summer comes around. Time can pass you by if you aren’t taking the initiative to notice things.

Theme

Things are ever changing. In the novel, things move on even though characters want them to stay the same. An old woman, Mrs. Bentley, finds that children don’t believe she was young once. At first she’s angry and dwells on her past, but she realizes what matters is the present. She throws away objects from her childhood and begins living her life to its fullest. She realizes she must change to be the person she wants to be. Another instance of change is when Douglas’s friend, John, must move away. He doesn’t understand how things can change so quickly.