Literary Terms
Crisis- noun. turning point; a stage in a sequence of events at which the trend of all future events, for better or worse, is determined. An example for this could be when everyone at the party is running around frantically because the cops were coming.
Climax- noun. culmination; the highest or most intense point in the development or resolution of something. When she gets raped could be the climax.
Resolution- noun. the act of resolving or determining upon an action or course of action, method, procedure, etc. When everybody found out Melinda called the cops which led to her friends not talking to her could be an example.
Metaphor- noun. a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance. “I am BunnyRabbit again, hiding in the open.” This means that Andy makes her feel defenceless and in danger.
Simile- noun. a figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared. When Mr.Freeman keeps telling Melinda to “be the tree” can be an example.
Vocabulary Terms
Indoctrination- verb. to instruct in a doctrine, principle, ideology; to imbue with a specific partisan or biased belief or point of view. "If I ran a high school, I would include stuff like this in the first-day indoctrination."(pg. 172)
Momentum- noun. impetus of a nonphysical process, such as an idea or course of events. "The friendly momentum keeps Rachel/Rachell and Andy walking all the way to the end of the hall."(pg. 150)
Symmetrical- adj. characterized by or exhibiting symmetry; well-proportioned, as a body or whole; regular in form or arrangement of corresponding parts. "This one is not perfectly symmetrical."(pg. 196)
Delinquency- noun. wrongful, illegal, or antisocial behavior. "Cutting-edge adult delinquency."(pg. 163)
Discussion Questions
1. Mr. Freeman tells Melinda, “Nothing is perfect, flaws are interesting.” He’s literally talking about drawing a tree but what do you think he really means?
What I think Mr. Freeman is telling Melinda is to not worry about trying to make everything perfect because nothing in real life actually is. Sometimes imperfections are a good thing and can lead to something better. “Scar it; give it twisted branch- perfect trees don’t exists.” The quote is trying to get at that imperfections are good because it can make something better than it really is, or than we accustom seeing them.
2. David is a true friend to Melinda, but he tells her something she may not want to hear. He says that people have to speak up for their rights, referring to the suffragists. What should his words mean to her?
His words should finally give her the courage to speak up, to tell someone what really happened. Or she could ignore his words and keep hiding what happened and not tell anyone what happened.“But you got it wrong.” The quote is when he's telling her that the suffragettes were all about speaking up for their rights and beliefs. He's proving she needs to speak up for herself and not stay silent.
3. Melinda’s father explains to her that the arborists are cutting of disease and damage to make it possible for the tree to grow again. How can the pruning of the tree be compared to Melinda’s life?
It could apply to Melinda because it could mean you have let go of the past to get on with your life and finally begin to heal. Melinda shouldn't have to live with the burden for the rest of her life, she should let go in order to finally give herself the chance to be happy.“Worry #64: flying tree limbs.” The quote means she has a lot of things she worries about, so she needs to stop worrying and finally live her life the way she wants to.
Journal Topics
Is school a place where you can really say what you think?
New Tech is a place where you can say what you think, but of course some things have to be censored. It does give you more freedom to speak your mind with discretion for other people.
Have you ever felt like there were two “yous” fighting inside of you?
When haven't I felt like there were two mes fighting inside me? I think if someone is sane, then there must be some sort of disagreement going on inside them. It's not crazy to have arguments with yourself, I think it's perfectly normal.
