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Week of Nov 1
- What must it be like to meet famous people like Jane Fonda, Angelina Jolie, Manute Bol? What is the downside to the celebrity?
- Why does he think he was given the Christian name Valentino?
- Waiting is a central theme in this book. Compare the waiting in the emergency room with the waiting in Kenya and the waiting to get into college.
- When Valentino is tied up and left alone finally in the apartment, he tries in vain to make enough noise for the Christians downstairs to hear him. How is this like the many times the boys think the US will save them?
- What is it like to receive charity? How does it make a person feel?
- Think of the boys in the drama group and how the teacher calls them all Domenic. The boys laugh about this, but how is it similar to the January 1 birthdays?
- After Valentino is in the US for a while, he said, “Enthusiasm for us has dampened.” How does he continue to go on?
- Why does he tell his story over a 24 hour period?
The idea of the teacher calling all of the boys in the drama group Domenic is similar to that of the communal January 1st birthday because it is almost a sign of their lost identities. They have been given a birthday that they all have to share and now a name that they all are expected to answer to. Why they all have the same birthday is questioned by Valentino when he first reveals that fact. It almost seems that the only reason they were all given that birthday was because it was easier for those assigning the date not because it was a date that all of the boys found to be particularly important. They have become a collective group with a common identity within the United States. At times they are seen as a group and not as individuals with different stories and backgrounds. Being called by the same name does the same thing by saying "You are all the same to me."
ReplyDeleteI believe that meeting celebrities must be both exciting as well as nerve-wracking. I believe that often times people are very nervous around celebrities as they are very idealized by the media and thus it can be frightening to meet celebrities. However it can also be exciting, especially for those in a situation like Valentino's, as meeting with celebrities mean being able to raise more awareness for others in situations like his own and thus being able to further help out his country. The downside to the celebrity, as seen to some extent in the book, is the lack of privacy and the people who want to see you, meet with you etc. as a result of the increased awareness for the cause.
ReplyDeleteValentino spends a lot of time trying to gain the attention of his Christian neighbors so that they can help get untied. In his perspective, this seems like a very plausible idea; that someone will come to his aid. However, an environment like an Atlanta apartment building is very different from anywhere in Sudan. In an apartment building weird noises are heard all the time, and most people won't open the door to someone else's room just because there is a slight banging noise. It shows the difference of cultures; everyone is much more independent in cities in america.
ReplyDeleteWhat must it be like to meet famous people like Jane Fonda, Angelina Jolie, Manute Bol? What is the downside to the celebrity?
ReplyDeleteTo meet a famous person would probably be really amazing and exciting. Sure, you would be nervous because you know so much about them and they have never met you, creating almost a regal persona. The downside about it is that we know so much about them. Stalkers are always coming. They have no private life at all. Overactive fans are always swarming them, following their every whim.
What must it be like to meet famous people like Jane Fonda, Angelina Jolie, Manute Bol? What is the downside to the celebrity?
ReplyDeleteTo meet famous people you always get that funny nervouse feeling in your stomach right before you see them, and you start to think if they are how you think they are, or if they are a different person then you thought. Its also very exciting that your seeing someone that everyone knows. The down side to being a celebity is that you are always in the spot lite and anything you do is scrutinized. Everything you do is also probably on film or being taken of my paparazzi.
Waiting is a central theme in this book. Compare the waiting in the emergency room with the waiting in Kenya and the waiting to get into college.
The waiting in Kenya to go to America was much like the waiting to go in college because its exciting but still uncertain at the same time. You don’t know if you will get in you don’t know what it will be like there if you do.
When Valentino is tied up and left alone finally in the apartment, he tries in vain to make enough noise for the Christians downstairs to hear him. How is this like the many times the boys think the US will save them?
This is like the many other times he thought that the us would save him in the way that he thinks if he can just make enough noise or get enough attention that the U.S. will automatically come to his need because they will see it’s the right thing to do. But life isn’t always chosen by whats the right thing to do and U.S. will go in its own interest.
What is it like to receive charity? How does it make a person feel?
In some respects the people could feel thankful that they are being helped by someone, but on the other hand they might feel ashamed that it has come to them having to except charity in order to keep going. Maybe that they lost their ability to support themselves.
Think of the boys in the drama group and how the teacher calls them all Domenic. The boys laugh about this, but how is it similar to the January 1 birthdays?
This boys are all slowly losing their identity and who they really are. They are fisrt all given the same birthday, not because that day was special in any way to anything but because it wa easier when documentation was being made for them. They are losing the people who they really are. They are losing that indivudual status and just being seen as a group of the same.
-Meeting a famous person is a big deal. Generally, people are excited and nervous and sometimes uncontrollable. Regarding Valentino’s first time meeting Angelina Jolie, it was different however. I believe he wasn’t any more excited than meeting any other person who was interested to help. After seeing her, Valentino confirms that he can understand why she is famous in America. And perhaps her popularity can support global awareness for Sudan. Nevertheless, Valentino did not react in the manner many Americans or fans would react if they were face-to-face with a celebrity. The downside to the celebrity is the constant watch from media or generally the public eye. Celebrities are too often stalked, celebrated, or criticized for pointless reasons.
ReplyDelete-Valentino thinks he was given the Christian name Valentino because this name was significant to Father Matong, the priest who gave Valentino this name. Father Matong explained who the initial name Valentino belonged to. He was a saint who prayed seeking after God and helped the jailer’s daughter get healed of blindness and was therefore beheaded. Father Matong prophesied that Valentino, like Valentino the saint, has the power to make people see. Valentino will remember his life and its trials and bring light upon his dark story.
-In all of the situations whether Valentino is waiting in the emergency room to get treated, waiting in Kenya to board a plane to America, or waiting to get into college to get education and return back to his family, the common question is he actually waiting for something that will come, that can be in his reach if he waits a while longer? I believe, in all of these situations, Valentino is helplessly waiting. There is no guarantee, there is no action. Valentino hopefully expects and continued to wait in all given situations. Fortunately, he finally recognized there is no value, action, or difference if he waited any longer. Hence, he makes that first active decision to go home from the emergency room. He also pondered less about whether his name will be on the board to come to America. And lastly, he did not wait to take action after his college education instead conducted his own project to do something and bring about change.
-Because the neighbors downstairs are Christians, Valentino had more hope that they will come to his aid and rescue him from the danger he was in. Likewise, because the boys thought very highly of US and its involvement in wars, many assumed the US will save them from their nightmarish life.
-Receiving charity can create multiple emotions. The immediate relief of having our needs met stirs emotions of gratitude and gratefulness. However over time, the one receiving the charity may begin to feel helpless and hopeless, thus, turning these negative feelings into emotions of anger and aggression. In Valentino’s case, he did not act on his negative emotions but clearly admitted disliking the feeling of always being helpless and having to extend a needy hand to others. He wanted his people to be able to stand for themselves.
-The boys, in my view, do not have an individual identity. They are either the Lost Boys or refugees from a third perspective. Hence when creating their files to come to America, the large number of refugees were assigned the same birthdays either to simplifying the task of entering the same information or easy memorization. No importance was given on their individual birthdays. Surely there are reasons such as many do not know their birthdays, however the crucial point is that they were categorized together even in the slightest of manner such as entering birthday information. In the same aspect, the drama teacher gave no attention to even get to know the names of her students. She had merely categorized them under the same situation and therefore gave them a single identity.
-In my perspective, Valentino has changed drastically. Before he was patient and waited for the future to come so that he may graduate college and go back to see his family. However, in order to continue through the difficulties he is taking action. Instead of waiting to graduate college to pursue his dreams of changing things in Sudan, he organized a group of people and built schools. And instead of waiting to graduate college and then see his family, he got on a plane and flew to Marial Bai to see his family. Valentino is taking action of his own life instead of waiting for others to allow him to do anything. Even though he has changed his behavior, he still encounters tragedies, and for these he pray in order to get carry on. Valentino genuinely says that he will have it in his heart to understand the situations and forgive God for the things he allows.
ReplyDelete-Valentino is illustrating his struggles and goals that reoccur on a day-to-day basis. By escaping Sudan and the miseries he faced, he did not truly escape the trials of life that follow where ever you are in whatever situation.