Interview with Nicolas Des Innocents
Q: How did you feel when you first saw Claude?
A: I felt that I had seen something not real, like an illusion. I had never seen a girl like that pretty before. I wondered why I have never seen her. My heart started to pound when she first came into my sight.
Q: Where did you get the idea of the story of unicorns which you told to Claude and the maid?
A: My mom once told me the story. I was very little then. I didn’t like hearing about it but my mom kept on telling me and I regret that I didn’t listen to her carefully because every girl falls in love with me when they hear that story.
Q: Did you miss her too when you didn't see her for few days?
A: Of course I missed her. But I was busy drawing the designs so I didn’t have any time to think about her that much. I knew that Claude missed me so much and I was very happy with it.
Q: Did you decide to design unicorns just because Genevieve asked you to?
A: Well, yes. Partly. I could feel the sadness in her eyes and I wanted to do whatever she wanted. I also wanted to give a “present” to Claude who will be getting it later. Madame said that Claude like unicorns, so I thought it would be a perfect present.
Q: What do you think would have happened if someone else saw you and Claude under the table?
A: I knew that I would be in a big trouble. But I didn’t want to think much of it. There couldn’t have been a chance better than that to be alone with her.
Q: Weren't you scared you would lose your job being with a nobleman's daughter alone?
A: Of course I was! But as I said, I didn’t want to lose her. There was a big wall between us, but I wanted to make it disappear.
Q: Did you really think that your design was perfect?
A: Yes, I did in fact. I’ve put everything on the design as I could. I’ve never tried hard on my work. It doesn’t mean that I didn’t do my best on my other works, but I mean it was my best work out of all.
Q: Do you think you really fell in love with Claude? Or is it just because she is pretty?
A: It is true that I like pretty girls. But this time, I think it’s much different from other girls. I think I really fell in love with her. And she is also pretty.
Q: Do you think you can handle designing the tapestries which you have never done before?
A: I like to challenge knew things, and I would never let myself fail. Master and Leon seemed to be satisfied with my works so far, so I don’t have any problems on that.
Q: Why did you put Claude and Genevieve in your designs?
A: It was Madame who asked me to draw the unicorns so I put her on one of the drawings. I wanted Claude to know that I cared for her and Madame told me that later, Claude would have it.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
The Giver, TRJ #1
WRITER'S CRAFT(characterization)- Who is Jonas?
Jonas is the protagonist of this novel. He seems like the other peers his age, but he has special abilities. At the Ceremony of Twelve, he gets an unusual job which is The Receiver. The Receiver is supposed to receive memories from the past for wisdom from the previous receiver, The Giver. Jonas was chosen to be the new Receiver because he had intelligence, integrity, and courage, which a Receiver must have. When the Twelves start to go to their work, Jonas meets The Giver which he has only seen once before. Jonas’s life starts to change totally when he starts receiving the memories from the past. Within a year of training, he becomes extremely sensitive to beauty, pleasure, and suffering, deeply loving toward his family and the Giver, and fiercely passionate about his new beliefs and feelings.
The old people, the criminals, and the babies who doesn’t seem to adapt to their society are supposed to be released and the citizens thought that the people who were released was sent to another society. But one day, Jonas was so curious about how babies are released so he asked The Giver if he could see releasing a baby for himself. The Giver shows him a video of releasing. Jonas, too, thought that releasing was a very comfy ceremony. When Jonas sees the video, he sees his father, the nurturer, injects the baby’s forehead and after a second, the baby dies. Jonas was so shocked by this and he decides he has to do something about it. Maybe Jonas was too brave to be The Receiver, since The Receiver has to restrain himself after seeing all of those memories of the past, but Jonas decided to live the society and go look for Elsewhere, where he thought things might be different.
Jonas is the protagonist of this novel. He seems like the other peers his age, but he has special abilities. At the Ceremony of Twelve, he gets an unusual job which is The Receiver. The Receiver is supposed to receive memories from the past for wisdom from the previous receiver, The Giver. Jonas was chosen to be the new Receiver because he had intelligence, integrity, and courage, which a Receiver must have. When the Twelves start to go to their work, Jonas meets The Giver which he has only seen once before. Jonas’s life starts to change totally when he starts receiving the memories from the past. Within a year of training, he becomes extremely sensitive to beauty, pleasure, and suffering, deeply loving toward his family and the Giver, and fiercely passionate about his new beliefs and feelings.
The old people, the criminals, and the babies who doesn’t seem to adapt to their society are supposed to be released and the citizens thought that the people who were released was sent to another society. But one day, Jonas was so curious about how babies are released so he asked The Giver if he could see releasing a baby for himself. The Giver shows him a video of releasing. Jonas, too, thought that releasing was a very comfy ceremony. When Jonas sees the video, he sees his father, the nurturer, injects the baby’s forehead and after a second, the baby dies. Jonas was so shocked by this and he decides he has to do something about it. Maybe Jonas was too brave to be The Receiver, since The Receiver has to restrain himself after seeing all of those memories of the past, but Jonas decided to live the society and go look for Elsewhere, where he thought things might be different.
The Giver, TRJ #2
TURNING POINT
When Jonas was Eleven, he waited sincerely for the Ceremony of Twelve. At the Ceremony of Twelve, every Eleven becomes a Twelve and each gets a job. Jonas was interested in every job so he wasn’t sure what he would get for his job. When he gets The Receiver for a job, everyone was surprised by that and Jonas himself was confused.
I think the turning point for this novel is when Jonas gets his job for The Receiver because his life changes forever by this job. Being The Receiver made Jonas special from his friends. He had to receive pain which only he and The Giver have. When he starts receiving memories from The Giver, he sees things which he cannot see in his society.
If he didn’t become The Receiver, the story of this book would have been totally different. Because he became The Receiver, he found out the irony of his utopia and tries to change things.
When Jonas was Eleven, he waited sincerely for the Ceremony of Twelve. At the Ceremony of Twelve, every Eleven becomes a Twelve and each gets a job. Jonas was interested in every job so he wasn’t sure what he would get for his job. When he gets The Receiver for a job, everyone was surprised by that and Jonas himself was confused.
I think the turning point for this novel is when Jonas gets his job for The Receiver because his life changes forever by this job. Being The Receiver made Jonas special from his friends. He had to receive pain which only he and The Giver have. When he starts receiving memories from The Giver, he sees things which he cannot see in his society.
If he didn’t become The Receiver, the story of this book would have been totally different. Because he became The Receiver, he found out the irony of his utopia and tries to change things.
The Giver, TRJ #3
FIVE-STAR QUOTE
“Sir?” Jonas said shyly.
“Yes? Do you have a question?”
“It’s just that I don’t know your name. I thought you were The Receiver, but you say that now I’m The Receiver. So I don’t know what to call you.”
The man had sat back down in the comfortable upholstered chair. He moved his shoulders around as if to ease away an aching sensation. He seemed terribly weary.
“Call me The Giver,” he told Jonas.
-from page 87, The Giver
This passage is my favorite quote in the whole book. This quote doesn’t affect the story or the theme but when I read this part, it thrilled me. At first, I thought why Jonas’s job was The Receiver because I thought it should be The Giver since the title is The Giver. After reading this passage, I understood why Jonas was The Receiver. I don’t have a special reason why that quote is a five-star quote, but it made my goose bumps come out when I read it.
“Gabe?”
The newchild stirred slightly in his sleep. Jonas looked over at him.
“There could be love,” Jonas whispered.
-from page 129, The Giver
I chose this quote as a five-star quote because it shows a streak of hope for Jonas. Although it was a suffer for Jonas to know that everything in his world wasn’t right after receiving the memories, he had obtained a little bit of hope that the world could change the way it used to be. Jonas knows that his family’s and friends’ “love” aren’t real. He knows that they just feel that way because they are supposed to. He wasn’t sure that how he can make the colors, grandparents, memories, and love true but he was sure that somehow things would change. This passage tells us that there is going to be a change in Jonas’s daily life.
“The worst part of holding the memories is not the pain. It’s the loneliness of it. Memories need to be shared.”
-from page 154, The Giver
This one I selected as a five-star quote because I thought everyone would agree to it. It would be sad if I had no family or friends to share my precious memories with. The Giver must have felt the same way and also felt that things must change. The Giver thought it was hopeless for things to change but after Jonas came to receive his memories he thought there might be a way.
“Sir?” Jonas said shyly.
“Yes? Do you have a question?”
“It’s just that I don’t know your name. I thought you were The Receiver, but you say that now I’m The Receiver. So I don’t know what to call you.”
The man had sat back down in the comfortable upholstered chair. He moved his shoulders around as if to ease away an aching sensation. He seemed terribly weary.
“Call me The Giver,” he told Jonas.
-from page 87, The Giver
This passage is my favorite quote in the whole book. This quote doesn’t affect the story or the theme but when I read this part, it thrilled me. At first, I thought why Jonas’s job was The Receiver because I thought it should be The Giver since the title is The Giver. After reading this passage, I understood why Jonas was The Receiver. I don’t have a special reason why that quote is a five-star quote, but it made my goose bumps come out when I read it.
“Gabe?”
The newchild stirred slightly in his sleep. Jonas looked over at him.
“There could be love,” Jonas whispered.
-from page 129, The Giver
I chose this quote as a five-star quote because it shows a streak of hope for Jonas. Although it was a suffer for Jonas to know that everything in his world wasn’t right after receiving the memories, he had obtained a little bit of hope that the world could change the way it used to be. Jonas knows that his family’s and friends’ “love” aren’t real. He knows that they just feel that way because they are supposed to. He wasn’t sure that how he can make the colors, grandparents, memories, and love true but he was sure that somehow things would change. This passage tells us that there is going to be a change in Jonas’s daily life.
“The worst part of holding the memories is not the pain. It’s the loneliness of it. Memories need to be shared.”
-from page 154, The Giver
This one I selected as a five-star quote because I thought everyone would agree to it. It would be sad if I had no family or friends to share my precious memories with. The Giver must have felt the same way and also felt that things must change. The Giver thought it was hopeless for things to change but after Jonas came to receive his memories he thought there might be a way.
The Giver, TRJ #4
WRITER'S CRAFT(foreshadowing)- What could happen to our world, similar to Jonas's world, in the future?
Jonas’s world is a futuristic society where everything is the same and people in the society only does what they are told to do. They wear clothes depending on their ages, they eat the same meal, they ride the same bicycles, they can only see black and white colors, they don’t have any memories of the world before their society existed, and they can’t make choices of their own, and so on. Also, people couldn’t choose their own family. Even though it feels tight, this world is a utopian country for those living in the society. They had no pain and there weren’t any discrimination. The people in the present time would never be able to live that way, and Jonas and his friends won’t be able to survive in our world either.
When I read this book, I thought that this could happen to our world somehow: the sameness, no memories, and no choices. There is no pain in Jonas’s world, because they basically don’t know anything bad, but nor happiness. Although there is no pain in the society, I would not live there because it would be depressing to live in a society without happiness. Well, for people in Jonas’s world, they were able to live through their life because they didn’t know what happiness is, but they would have been living without any true meanings of life. It’s like living without any destination because the government gives you everything you need to live, but the government controls everything, even the lives of people. From these thoughts, I realized how important how one’s personality and individuality is.
Jonas’s world is a futuristic society where everything is the same and people in the society only does what they are told to do. They wear clothes depending on their ages, they eat the same meal, they ride the same bicycles, they can only see black and white colors, they don’t have any memories of the world before their society existed, and they can’t make choices of their own, and so on. Also, people couldn’t choose their own family. Even though it feels tight, this world is a utopian country for those living in the society. They had no pain and there weren’t any discrimination. The people in the present time would never be able to live that way, and Jonas and his friends won’t be able to survive in our world either.
When I read this book, I thought that this could happen to our world somehow: the sameness, no memories, and no choices. There is no pain in Jonas’s world, because they basically don’t know anything bad, but nor happiness. Although there is no pain in the society, I would not live there because it would be depressing to live in a society without happiness. Well, for people in Jonas’s world, they were able to live through their life because they didn’t know what happiness is, but they would have been living without any true meanings of life. It’s like living without any destination because the government gives you everything you need to live, but the government controls everything, even the lives of people. From these thoughts, I realized how important how one’s personality and individuality is.
The Giver, TRJ #5
PREDICTION
At the beginning of this book, when Jonas took his apple to his house, he saw something unusual from the apple. First when I read this part, I didn’t understand what the author was talking about so I read it again and again. Later, at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas sees the same thing with the apple for the faces of the people sitting in front of him. I thought at this point that Jonas had a special ability which an ordinary person can’t have; I thought that Jonas was seeing the future. I had a strange idea that Jonas was seeing what would happen next within a second or two, or maybe he was seeing a deja vu. It happened again to Jonas with his friend Fiona’s hair. I thought I had made a pretty good guess on this but later, The Giver tells Jonas that he was seeing the colors. I could have never thought of the fact that people in Jonas’s society couldn’t see colors. I think it was brilliant for the author to think that way. Even though my prediction wasn’t right, my predictions were sensible. I think no one could have guessed that it was the colors which Jonas was seeing.
At the beginning of this book, when Jonas took his apple to his house, he saw something unusual from the apple. First when I read this part, I didn’t understand what the author was talking about so I read it again and again. Later, at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas sees the same thing with the apple for the faces of the people sitting in front of him. I thought at this point that Jonas had a special ability which an ordinary person can’t have; I thought that Jonas was seeing the future. I had a strange idea that Jonas was seeing what would happen next within a second or two, or maybe he was seeing a deja vu. It happened again to Jonas with his friend Fiona’s hair. I thought I had made a pretty good guess on this but later, The Giver tells Jonas that he was seeing the colors. I could have never thought of the fact that people in Jonas’s society couldn’t see colors. I think it was brilliant for the author to think that way. Even though my prediction wasn’t right, my predictions were sensible. I think no one could have guessed that it was the colors which Jonas was seeing.
Monday, February 26, 2007
The Giver, TRJ #6
CORRESPONDENCE
A few weeks ago, I finished reading Fahrenheit 451 and the protagonist in the novel, Guy Montag, corresponds with Jonas. They have a lot of commons. Guy Montag lives in a society of lies too. Montag thought that he was happy with his life, but after he meets a girl he rethinks about his life. Later, he finds out that he has to change things, too, as Jonas did.
Montag’s world is a futuristic society too. He is a fireman but he burns books instead of keeping the fire out. The concept of fireman has changed since when the books were started to ban because people thought they were no use. Montag thought that it was a usual thing to burn books but he finds out that there are no true feelings against his wife and his friends. Also, as Jonas, he realizes his life have been meaningless through all the happy times he had thought he had. Later Montag runs away from his society, resisting from the government. But Montag couldn’t change anything by himself, there was a war and his country was ruined so Montag and his friends go to the land and plans to start a new society of their own.
I really think that Jonas and Montag are similar. They first seemed to be enjoying their life but they realize there is something wrong in their society. Then they try to fix it but end up just running away from it. But I think they are really brave to stand out for their own thoughts instead of only listening to what others say.
A few weeks ago, I finished reading Fahrenheit 451 and the protagonist in the novel, Guy Montag, corresponds with Jonas. They have a lot of commons. Guy Montag lives in a society of lies too. Montag thought that he was happy with his life, but after he meets a girl he rethinks about his life. Later, he finds out that he has to change things, too, as Jonas did.
Montag’s world is a futuristic society too. He is a fireman but he burns books instead of keeping the fire out. The concept of fireman has changed since when the books were started to ban because people thought they were no use. Montag thought that it was a usual thing to burn books but he finds out that there are no true feelings against his wife and his friends. Also, as Jonas, he realizes his life have been meaningless through all the happy times he had thought he had. Later Montag runs away from his society, resisting from the government. But Montag couldn’t change anything by himself, there was a war and his country was ruined so Montag and his friends go to the land and plans to start a new society of their own.
I really think that Jonas and Montag are similar. They first seemed to be enjoying their life but they realize there is something wrong in their society. Then they try to fix it but end up just running away from it. But I think they are really brave to stand out for their own thoughts instead of only listening to what others say.
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