Comparing "Lost" and "Lord of the Flies"

 

Sawyer from Lost

Jack from Lord of the Flies, a violent, power hungry pre-teen, and Sawyer from Lost, a manipulative con man, are similar because they both represent chaos and disorder in their civilizations.



Jack from Lord of the Flies

Right as Jack [Lost] begins leading the civilization and preparing them for war against “the others”, another civilization on the island, Sawyer tricks Jack and cons him out of all of their guns. Sawyer’s manipulation causes the civilization to panic, thus creating chaos. Sawyer is a con man and can never change his ways. Another woman on the island, Kate, tells him that he wants people to hate him. Kate’s assumptions are correct, and Sawyer says that he’s a bad guy and will never be capable of doing anything good. Jack Merridew [Lord of the Flies] causes chaos when he breaks away from Ralph’s, the leader of the group, civilization and forms a second tribe. Matters only get worse when Jack’s tribe begin acting even more savage than before and start hunting Ralph.

The chaos and disorder that Jack [Lord of the Flies] and Sawyer create cause civilizations to fail.



 

Lost Season 1 Trailer

Maggie Stiefvater “Linger:” Caught Between Two Worlds

Reviewed by Izzy Westerman

Imagine being lost between two worlds: the humans and the wolves; your one true love on one side, and your destiny on the other.

In Shiver, the first book in Maggie Stiefvater's heart racing Wolves of Mercy Falls series, Grace and Sam's relationship formed. It strengthened even more when Grace cures Sam of being a wolf, making him permanently human. In it's riveting sequel, Linger, Grace becomes ill, causing Sam and her friend Isabel to become extremely concerned. They fear she's turning into a wolf. Meanwhile, Cole, a new wolf, struggles to shed his human skin and escape the life he desperately wants to leave behind.

Maggie Stiefvater continues to build a powerful relationship between Sam and Grace, as well as goes more in depth with Grace's relationship with her immature, irresponsible parents. She also creates a new intriguing romance between Isabel and Cole. This fresh young love is really captivating and interesting because Isabel and Cole’s

personalities are so similar, even though their back stories are completely different.

Stiefvater did an excellent job using vivid imagery and figurative language: "I stepped out and stretched my hands as far as they could go, closing my eyes until I felt like I was falling. In between gusts of wind, the air around me felt like the same temperature as my body, and it made it seem like I had no skin at all, like I was suspended, a spirit" (Stiefvater 170). Her strong diction and word choice makes it hard to put the book down. The point of view switches throughout the book between Cole, Isabel, Sam, and Grace. This is really helpful to know what the characters are thinking and to see how different their opinions are on the same subjects and ideas, as well as how they really feel about each other. For example, in multiple parts of the book, Isabel rejects Cole and gives him the idea that she’s playing him and really despises him, but her thoughts reveal that she’s actually falling for him: “It was like the first time I’d met him all over again. Why did I let him get to me? What was wrong with me?” (Stiefvater 122).

Linger was very well written, however, at times the swap of point of view could be confusing. In some chapters it went from Grace, to Isabel, back to Grace, then to Sam. It can be hard to keep track of who was narrating.

Overall, I thought Linger by Maggie Stiefvater was extremely well written and an excellent addition to the Wolves of Mercy Falls series. If you enjoyed the first book in the series, Shiver, then you’re sure to love its extraordinary sequel.

Stiefvater, Maggie. Linger. Scholastic Inc. 2011

Malcolm Gladwell Chapter Response

What stood out to me was the fact that we can have such strong biases and not even realize it. A message I took away from the chapter is to think more carefully about my decisions and to stray away from common biases.

We should consider this chapter while determining leadership because the Warren Harding Error is a great example of how our implicit decisions effect our government. I don't think that you can completely undo your unconscious biases, but you can definitely try to become more aware of them and strive to make them decrease. Some  qualities of a good leader are bravery, determination, open-mindedness, perseverance, courage, and morality.

My results for the IATs were a moderate bias favoring whites and no bias towards men and women/ career and family. My results didn't surprise me too much, considering I grew up in a white family with 2 full time working parents.