The first theme is lost of innocence. Ismael was a young
boy that was introduced to war at the of twelve. He had seen the gruesome results from the rebels attacks and experience the lost of
friends. In the book it is stated that he joined the Sierra Leone military at
the age of 13, which he proclaimed was the end of his childhood. At first the
Rebels traumatized
Ismael by what they do. It was not until Ismael
was set to go invade a rebel camp that he had lost his innocence and became a
killer. A tent-mate of his was killed, which gave him the strength to kill a man. After
that fueled by anger and blood
lust, he killed everyone he saw at sight. Not only had he become a
killer he had also become addicted to drugs like marijuana. Ismael also claimed
that he can not remember anything good about his child hood afterwards. Other
than not remembering his good childhood, he also has flash backs of violent
memories.
The second theme is hope. A theme that isn't very big, but significant to the story. Hope represents Ismael's ability to go forward. He was told by his father that when he was little that if he stayed alive there is hope for a better day and something good will happen. "If there is nothing left in the destiny of a person, he or she will die. "(pg. 54) . He was able to hold onto his fathers words, and pull through with all the horrible things put upon him. He know that life will end when he runs out of good luck, so he is not afraid to move on.
The last theme is fear. Which is one of the big themes in the book. Any child that had grown up in Ismael conditions should be afraid. He lost his family and lived in very dangerous circumstances, where he could have possibly ended up dead. Whenever Ismael went to a new village with his group, residents would accuse them of being rebels. Which may have caused harm to the boys. Where Ismael is there is no place to call home, no one to go back to if he is afraid. He is also afraid that there will be no place called home that he can go to in his future. Like every other rebel refugee there is no escape from the past. They say its easier to remember fearful/bad moments than happy ones.
These themes are not the only themes that can be found in the book, there are many more as well. Ismael's lost of innocence, hope, and fear, were what made this book. With out these themes there would no experience, story, anything!
The last theme is fear. Which is one of the big themes in the book. Any child that had grown up in Ismael conditions should be afraid. He lost his family and lived in very dangerous circumstances, where he could have possibly ended up dead. Whenever Ismael went to a new village with his group, residents would accuse them of being rebels. Which may have caused harm to the boys. Where Ismael is there is no place to call home, no one to go back to if he is afraid. He is also afraid that there will be no place called home that he can go to in his future. Like every other rebel refugee there is no escape from the past. They say its easier to remember fearful/bad moments than happy ones.
These themes are not the only themes that can be found in the book, there are many more as well. Ismael's lost of innocence, hope, and fear, were what made this book. With out these themes there would no experience, story, anything!
Questions:
2. Can you make any connections with A long way gone to other books that have similar themes? (If you can't think of any think of books we read in class and relate to those!)
3. What would you be afraid of the most if you were in Ismael's situation?
4. Which theme can you relate to? (If not is there anyone close to you who you can relate themes with)
5. What theme do you think was most obvious to find in the story?
6. Has there been a time that you lost hope? (If its personal please don't answer)
[fixed some typo's]
1. I think the theeme of "loss of innocence" plays the biggest role in the book because his childhood was cut short so soon, and he was subjected to experiences that not many children have gone through. The whole book basically shows Ishamel's loss of innocence, and how he was forced to grow up so soon.
ReplyDelete2.The book I can make this connection with is Lord of the Flies, because its major theme was also loss of innocence.
3. I would be afraid of dying, or being forced to kill those close to me by the RUF.
4.I can relate to theme of hope because it has helped me pull through dark situations in my life, and I know what it's like to have found the inner strength to hold on.
5.The theme that I think is most obvious to find is fear because it is present in the book from the very beginning. Fear has always been an everyday part of Ishamel's life, and is more an everyday feeling.
1. The theme of the book is war, and trying to find safety. Since the book describes Ishmaels troubles on how life of a child soldier is, it shows the rigid connection between child and innocence.
ReplyDelete2. another book I could relate to is Craig Kielburger's book about Free The Children. Instead of a child soldier in Sierra Leone, it was about a child labourer in India working in a sweatshop.
3. What I'd be the most afraid of is "what if i don't get to see the sunrise of tomorrow? Wake up and know my life will end the very next day".
4. The theme I could relate to is loss of innocence. Not only because every soldier soldier grows up to be a killer, but also because its the same for any adult that brain washes a child to do something bad in life. Ex) Child soldiers, child labours, child sex-slaves etc.
5. The most obvious theme is fear. Everyone is afraid that they may be killed or taken away. They struggle to live everyday hoping life would change but it doesn't. They just have to hope they live to see the next sunrise.
1. I think loss of innocence is the most significant theme in the book. I think it sticks out more than the others because Ishamel has to grow up so quickly, and has to becvome independent very quickly.
ReplyDelete2. A book I can make a connection to with the theme is definitley Lord of the Flies. They remind me of eachother because the theme of loss of innocence are really present in both novels.
3. If I was Ishamel my biggest fear other than dying would be to be caught by the rebels. I wouldn't want to be caught by the rebels because of all the awful things they would make me do.
4. I think one of the themes that anybody can relate to is fear. Whether its something big or small, we've all been scared of something. So, I think one is really relatable to anyone.
5. To me, the theme that is the most obvious in the book, is the loss of innocence. I think this theme is so obvious because Ishmael is alone or with other boys while he is running from the rebels. He has no adults or anything to guide him through the situation. So, I think Ishmael having to mature and grow so fast, really makes that theme obvious in the novel.