A
Different Kind of Hero
By: Ann R. Blakeslee
Blakeslee,
Ann R. A Different Kind of Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997.
9-143. Print.
Summary:
Renny Sholto is a 12 year old boy who
lives in 1881 in the United States, he is originally Irish. Renny’s father
works in Miners’ Chance and is a miner. Lon, Renny’s father is supposed to be
the strongest miner in town, if anybody gets in his way he’ll beat him up.
Renny goes to a school that is made up of one class; he studies with people who
are a few years older than him and a few years younger. His teacher Mrs. Steele
is very strict, if the class does something wrong she’ll hit them with a ruler.
One day an unexpected visitor came to class, it was a Chinese boy called Wong
Gum Zi, for short Zi. Zi and his father
stayed in Miners’ Chance, but had a hard time living. Mrs. Maynard was the one
taking care of the Chinese family and she asked Renny to make Zi feel
comfortable, and take him home from school everyday. Zi was bullied and called
names by other students, and even by adults. Students would hit him and refuse
to befriend him. Renny was the only one who accepted Zi and made him his best
friend. Everyone went against Renny, even his father because he befriended a
Chinese. More and more Chinese came to camp and all the miners wanted them to
leave, so they made a revolution/strike. Will this revolution succeed? Will the
Wongs stay in Miners’ Chance and will the Chinese leave? Will Renny and his
father talk again? Read the book to find out.
What is the historical setting? Research the actual history of the
time and write a brief comparison.
The historical stetting of the novel is in the year 1881, in a
camp/village called Miners’ Chance. This camp is in the United States and was
full of Irish miners. On page 23 it stated, “His
English was better than most of ours in the log schoolhouse that April
day in 1881.”
Actual History:
The actual history setting was when the Chinese began emigrating from
China to the United States during the late 1800’s. At first the Chinese who
emigrated were a very small group, but after a few years, many more Chinese
moved to the United States. There was a lot of racism coming from many
European- Americans. The Chinese tried to fit into the new lifestyle. When
Chinese women came to America they did many bad things, they were the ones who
began prostitution. It made it harder for Chinese women to enter the United
States after the government knew about what’s happening.
Novel
History:
In the novel it is a little bit
different because not a small group of Chinese moved to the United States, only
two people did (Zi and Mr. Wong). In the book the Chinese population did start
growing, and European-Americans were racist. Page 60 in the book shows racism
of Chinese. “ The kids showed how they
felt about having to go to school with the Chinese boy by teasing. They
made lunchtime and recess a torment, buzzing around Zi’s ears like hornets. Sis
started it. “Would you like a lemon pastry, China boy?” she asked.
Before he could answer, she mashed it in his hair.” On page 106, it shows how the Chinese
population grew in size. “ More Chinese
had come like Da feared they would if Zi and his Da got to stay.” Corruption
started to happen in the States because of the Chinese, just like in real life.
On page 106 it shows this kind of corruption. “Gambling. The Chinese kind. They call it Fan-tan. And there’s pretty Chinese
ladies.” Corruption from Chinese also shows on page 107, “They were ousted for cheating their
patrons. And selling opium.” In the book it shows that the Chinese were
also selling drugs!
MLA Citation:
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 60. Print.
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 106-07. Print.
What is the effect of the historical setting(s) on the characters,
plot, or theme?
This historical setting had an
effect on the characters because of the way they act towards others. In the
book the characters coming from America didn’t accept the Chinese because the
Americans saw them as intruders. On page 22 and 23, Miss Steele was talking to
the intruders. She said, “What do you
want? What you ask is impertinent! Impossible! She waved him away with her
ruler. We want no Orientals here. Get along now, both of you.” The
characters weren’t accepting so they started bullying the Chinese, and racism
began. Some miners working in Miners’ Chance started being a part of the
corruption, they started to gamble. On page 106, Renny was talking to one of
the miners. “Miners waited out front.
“What’s going on?” I asked one of them.
“Gambling. The Chinese kind. They call it Fan-tan. And there’s pretty Chinese
ladies.” He smiled, swinging a bag of gold dust. “Too bad for you. Kids can’t get
in.” This shows the corruption happening to the miners. The historical
setting has an effect on the plot because it made the plot more lively and
realistic for me. It was realistic because the author used the historical
setting in a way that makes you feel that you are in the story. She uses
matters like bullying that happen in every day life. The historical setting is
in 1881 when the Chinese immigrated to the States. The author uses this setting
in her plot, and describes in detail what happens to the Chinese. It shows how
the Chinese built tents and spread inside Miners’ Chance. On page 105, it
proves that the Chinese built tents. “Overnight
a bright ten had been raised up there. Little flags fluttered along its top
edges.”
MLA Citation:
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 22-23. Print.
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 105-06. Print.
There
are three main characters in “A
Different kind of Hero”:
Da/Lon
Sholto:
Da/ Lon Sholto is Renny’s father because
Renny calls Lon/Da (dad). Lon is a very tough and strong man. If someone gets
in a fight with him he’ll beat him up no matter how big the person is. For
example on page 11, “ Da struck with his
left, hitting the other in the face. The man shook his head and blinked but one
eyelid hung shut. Da crashed his right to the man’s stomach. His opponent
thrust back. Da whipped his face…” Lon is considered to be the best miner
and everyone likes him. This is shown on page 12, “ The miners hoisted him on their shoulders and carried him of toward
Irish Gulch.” They find him very strong, no one can mess with him. Da wants
Renny to be tough, and not scared. On page 47 Da tells Renny, “ You shamed me tonight letting Finn drag
you off in the street.”
Wong Gum Zi:
Zi is a very bright Chinese student.
He moved with his father to the States, and he is eleven years old. He is a
very smart boy because he is the only one in class who does arithmetic problems
perfectly. On page 70, “ Zi was figuring
out on his abacus.” “I am figuring my arithmetic problems,” he said. Zi was also very good at English and he
practiced a lot, for instance on page 100 Renny said, “Mrs. Maynard gave it to him so he’d not waste school time. He
practiced his English in it.” He is also a very nice and friendly person.
This is what Zi told Renny and his mom on page 50-51 “
We have come to express me and my father’s thanks that your son stood by me
yesterday and has agreed to befriend me.”
Renny:
Renny is a twelve-year-old Irish boy
whose father works in the mine. Renny is very sweet and kind hearted. His
father always tells him to toughen up.
Renny is afraid to hit people because he thinks it’s very bad. Renny
says on page 62, “I already know how to
fight, Da”, I told him. “I’m good at it. But I don’t like hurting people.”
Renny is also a very friendly person because also on page 62 he stated, “ Yet a friendship started up between me and
Wong Gum Zi like none I’d had before.” Renny befriended Zi even though all
his friends were against him. He was very friendly and nice to Zi.
What are some of the author’s characterization techniques?
Some of the author’s characterization
techniques are dialogue.
Renny talked a lot throughout the story and he expressed his feelings and thoughts.
On page 47, Renny was sad because he was having a fight with his dad. He said, “Da, he’s way bigger than me. I wailed.”
In this quote it shows that Renny is not being able to face his Da, this
indicates that he is afraid of him. The author also uses a beloved pet for a main character, which is Zi. Zi had this
bird since he was living in China, and took it with him to America. This white
raven reminds him off his previous history when living in China. This raven
talks, so Zi always communicates with it. On page 52, Zi explains how he got
his bird. He says, “ I found her back
home in China. She fell from her nest. Or perhaps the ravens thrust her out
because she is an albino. My father says birds either worship their albino’s or
peck them to death.” The last characterization technique I am going to talk
about in the book is action.
All of the characters moved around in this novel, and they did things that are
big and little. For example the author shows Lon Sholto tough because of his
actions. He beats up whoever is in his way. As I said stated previously, on
page 11 Lon was fighting. “ Da struck
with his left, hitting the other in the face. The man shook his head and
blinked but one eyelid hung shut. Da crashed his right to the man’s stomach.
His opponent thrust back. Da whipped his face…”
MLA Citation:
· Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 47. Print.
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 52. Print.
·
Blakeslee, Ann R. A Different Kind of
Hero. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 1997. 11. Print.
From
what point of view is the story told? How does that point of view help develop
the main character?
The story is told from first person point
of view. Renny the main character is taking about his life in 1881, he talks in
first person singular so (I, and my). First person point of view is used
throughout the book, yet I’m going to give two examples. On page 75, Renny
says, “I asked, how come you have
it? Knowing as I spoke it might be a useless question.” The second
example is, “ There was this kid as I
said. Everybody took against him. It dint seem fair, nobody speaking up for
him. So I did.” Page 46. This point of view helps develop the main
character in the book because it can show you what the main character is
feeling, what he likes or dislikes, and it shows you what the character thinks.
In that way you can directly know the traits of the character.
Theme:
I believe that the theme in “A Different Kind of Hero” is
friendship. I think it is friendship because Renny proved to be an amazing
friend to Zi, and even a best friend… Renny fought for Zi, he stayed by his
side, and walked him home from school everyday. For me that indicates true
friendship. Even though everyone including his father went against him, he
didn’t stop his friendship with Zi. On page 62 Renny says, “ Yet a friendship started up between me and Wong Gum Zi like none I’d
had before. And though most everybody was set on stamping it out, it kept
growing.” This quote shows the friendship between Zi and Renny, it shows
that whatever people say Renny will stay friends with Zi! That is why I think
friendship is the theme!
Reflection:
I think this book matters because it
shows how people in the 1800’s weren’t accepting of other nationalities. So for
example The Irish and Americans weren’t accepting of the Chinese. The ‘so what’
of this book is that you should follow your instinct. The author uses
techniques to keep the reader enthusiastic and active. I really truly enjoyed this book because most
of it is about true friendship. I liked how the author described Renny and Zi’s
friendship, even though Zi was Chinese. I loved how Renny didn’t care about
what others said, and stayed by Zi’s side no matter what. Renny’s dad says that
he should toughen up because he’s very weak, but I think that Renny is already
tough because he fought for Zi and didn’t leave his side. Although Renny was
losing his friends by befriending Zi, he stayed confident and strong. I would
recommend this book to boys and girls because it fits both genders, and I’d
recommend it to people who like reading about history. I also would recommend
it to people who like reading about friendship. This book is very important to
think and talk about because it shows how people in the 1880’s were racist, and
not accepting (as I said previously). It is also important because it teaches
you to follow your instinct. For example, in this book, Renny has been made fun
of by his friends when he befriended Zi, but Renny followed his instinct and
wanted to befriend Zi no matter how and why. I saw myself as Renny in this book
because I usually follow my instinct. I am friendly and sociable like him, and
I don’t like hurting people. I would rate this book a 9/10 because I enjoyed it
a lot and it was very intriguing.
Vocabulary:
1) Vexed:
Page: 43
Part of speech: Adjective
Definition: Something annoying or irritating
Sentence from book: But Da waited, looking vexed at the
commotion us kids caused.
Sentence: I
was vexed by the sound of my brothers screaming.
2) Splintering:
Page: 64
Part of speech: Noun
Definition: Sharp fragments
Sentence from book: It struck the bird, splintering the
window.
Sentence: The
splinter was very sharp it made me bleed.
3) Gulch:
Page: 65
Part of speech: Noun
Definition: Ravine/ Narrow deep valley
Sentence from book: I searched our gulch after supper.
Sentence: There was a very deep and narrow gulch
that I was going to fall in when I went to the mountains.
4) Hue:
Page: 78
Part of speech: Noun
Definition: Relating to color OR type/kind
Sentence from book: There’d be a hue and a cry like to raise
the dead and one sad boy taught a painful lesson.
Sentence: The hue of the flower was very bright
and nice.
5) Menacing:
Page: 84
Part of speech: Verb
Definition: To be someone’s threat
Sentence from book: You’ve no cause to come menacing me when
I’m dong my duty.
Sentence: My brother keeps on menacing me when I
hit him.
Bibliography:
"Chinese
Americans." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
No comments:
Post a Comment