Eggs
After reading the short story "Eggs", I find that the six-year-old child in the story is very pitiful and yet, naive. At only six years old, she has to experience the feeling of being looked down upon by people living under the same roof as her. Her mother was so poor that they had to live in a relative's house. The child had hardly eaten eggs and played with real dolls too. She could only play with paper dolls made by her mother.
Unfortunately, her already hard life was made worse as her cousins, Molly and Beng Beng, were extremely arrogant and often made fun of her as a beggar. These children have become like this probably because they were taught badly by their mother. According to the story, they were told by their mother that the child and mother were beggars living off them. From this, we can see that Molly and Beng Beng's mother was the one responsible for their negative thinking. She despises the child and her mother, as her own living conditions are much better. Thus, we can conclude that she is one without compassion for those poorer than herself.
Fortunately, poor families like the one in the story are receiving help from the government and they can rely on themselves for a living. With jobs to provide for themselves, poor families will not be despised and looked down upon anymore.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Reflection : Lottery ( To be assesed for ACE )
Lottery
After reading the short story "Lottery", I find that the story reflects on some of the people nowadays who are also addicted to lottery. Ah Boh, a compulsive gambler, is a domestic helper who earns a meagre income. However, she spends all the money she earns on lottery, to the extent that she does not even have a savings account and her mother starves sometimes.
One loses money nine out of ten times one gambles. However, Ah Boh clearly does not understand this. She is blinded by the dream of one day strking it rich with big stakes. This is obviously a dream that is impossible to attain. If lottery could make one rich overnight, would there be a need for work? Everyone would just gamble everyday and lose money.
Furthermore, as a result of the unachievable fantasies of these compulsive gamblers, old folks suffer from their actions too. Ah Boh's mother has to go and work in a coffee shop although she is already seventy. Although Ah Boh has the intention of supporting her mother, she is still hoping that she would win a lot of money, before renting a better room for her. However, whenever she won some money, she still spent it all on lottery the next day.
I would look at gambling as a vicious cycle ; when one wins a little money, he would become bolder and place higher stakes, till the day when he finally loses all the money he has. Unfortunately, at that stage, regretting is futile already.
After reading the short story "Lottery", I find that the story reflects on some of the people nowadays who are also addicted to lottery. Ah Boh, a compulsive gambler, is a domestic helper who earns a meagre income. However, she spends all the money she earns on lottery, to the extent that she does not even have a savings account and her mother starves sometimes.
One loses money nine out of ten times one gambles. However, Ah Boh clearly does not understand this. She is blinded by the dream of one day strking it rich with big stakes. This is obviously a dream that is impossible to attain. If lottery could make one rich overnight, would there be a need for work? Everyone would just gamble everyday and lose money.
Furthermore, as a result of the unachievable fantasies of these compulsive gamblers, old folks suffer from their actions too. Ah Boh's mother has to go and work in a coffee shop although she is already seventy. Although Ah Boh has the intention of supporting her mother, she is still hoping that she would win a lot of money, before renting a better room for her. However, whenever she won some money, she still spent it all on lottery the next day.
I would look at gambling as a vicious cycle ; when one wins a little money, he would become bolder and place higher stakes, till the day when he finally loses all the money he has. Unfortunately, at that stage, regretting is futile already.
Reflection : The Taximan's Story ( To be assesed for ACE )
The Taximan's Story
After reading the short story "The Taximan's Story", I find that the taximan is a rather friendly person. Nowadays, most taxi-drivers just remain silent throughout the journey while driving their customers to somewhere. In the story, it is shown that the taximan talks with the customer as though to a friend. Authentic singlish, however, is shown in his words and sentences.
He points out that young people nowadays are rebellious and deceive their parents often about having activities in school when in fact, they are outside having fun. Young people smoking and taking drugs in coffee shops are a common sight. Some young schoolgirls even go out with American or European tourists just for the sake of money. Even after 1 a.m, the taximan still receives many customers at hotels and such places. This reveals what the schoolgirls have been doing.
I also feel sad and sympathetic for the taximan. He drives customers around all day, and even has to entertain the customers by talking during the journey. This is extremely tiring, and he only earns a small amount of money each day. However, his daughter is out there in coffee shops fooling around with tourists to have money. The taximan is out there working so hard while his daughter, instead of studying hard, goes out to fool around. The taximan must have felt heartbroken when he found out this sad truth ; he beat and scolded his daughter afterwards, probably as a way of venting his anger.
In my opinion, young people from poor families have a higher chance of commiting these acts. Those from poor families like the taximan's daughter would find that they have not enough pocket money to buy their own things, thus finding such ways to get money. However, they have approached the wrong method.
After reading the short story "The Taximan's Story", I find that the taximan is a rather friendly person. Nowadays, most taxi-drivers just remain silent throughout the journey while driving their customers to somewhere. In the story, it is shown that the taximan talks with the customer as though to a friend. Authentic singlish, however, is shown in his words and sentences.
He points out that young people nowadays are rebellious and deceive their parents often about having activities in school when in fact, they are outside having fun. Young people smoking and taking drugs in coffee shops are a common sight. Some young schoolgirls even go out with American or European tourists just for the sake of money. Even after 1 a.m, the taximan still receives many customers at hotels and such places. This reveals what the schoolgirls have been doing.
I also feel sad and sympathetic for the taximan. He drives customers around all day, and even has to entertain the customers by talking during the journey. This is extremely tiring, and he only earns a small amount of money each day. However, his daughter is out there in coffee shops fooling around with tourists to have money. The taximan is out there working so hard while his daughter, instead of studying hard, goes out to fool around. The taximan must have felt heartbroken when he found out this sad truth ; he beat and scolded his daughter afterwards, probably as a way of venting his anger.
In my opinion, young people from poor families have a higher chance of commiting these acts. Those from poor families like the taximan's daughter would find that they have not enough pocket money to buy their own things, thus finding such ways to get money. However, they have approached the wrong method.
Reflection : Adeline Ng Ai Choo ( To be assesed for ACE )
Adeline Ng Ai Choo
After reading the short story "Adeline Ng Ai Choo", I find that Adeline is a filial yet foolish student. She does not want to disappoint her parents as they hope for her to achieve good grades for the examinations. According to her diary, she is afraid of failing because it would cause her father to be ashamed in front of his friends who have smart children. Her mother also says that she will die if Adeline does not pass the examinations. Thus, Adeline is under a great amount of pressure to get a passing grade, also shown in her diary.
Adeline's father tells her to study three hours each day in the room, but this is not the way to ensure she gets good grades. She should occasionally take a break, so that she can concentrate on studying later. Three hours of studying might backfire and cause her to have too much stress. Yet, her father does not understand this and thinks he is doing the right thing for Adeline. Even after her death, her parents still do not realise the cause of her plunging to her death. Instead, they blame her for her own death.
What I disagree most with them was a sentence they said," We've done all we could as parents, so you've got nothing to reproach yourself with." This is an extremely irresponsible sentence to say, as they have obviously not tried to understand Adeline's needs and just drive her to do well in studies. However, I find that Adeline is also too rash ; she took the plunge just because she was refused one mark by her teacher to get a passing grade. Do grades really matter that much, more than her own life?
After reading the short story "Adeline Ng Ai Choo", I find that Adeline is a filial yet foolish student. She does not want to disappoint her parents as they hope for her to achieve good grades for the examinations. According to her diary, she is afraid of failing because it would cause her father to be ashamed in front of his friends who have smart children. Her mother also says that she will die if Adeline does not pass the examinations. Thus, Adeline is under a great amount of pressure to get a passing grade, also shown in her diary.
Adeline's father tells her to study three hours each day in the room, but this is not the way to ensure she gets good grades. She should occasionally take a break, so that she can concentrate on studying later. Three hours of studying might backfire and cause her to have too much stress. Yet, her father does not understand this and thinks he is doing the right thing for Adeline. Even after her death, her parents still do not realise the cause of her plunging to her death. Instead, they blame her for her own death.
What I disagree most with them was a sentence they said," We've done all we could as parents, so you've got nothing to reproach yourself with." This is an extremely irresponsible sentence to say, as they have obviously not tried to understand Adeline's needs and just drive her to do well in studies. However, I find that Adeline is also too rash ; she took the plunge just because she was refused one mark by her teacher to get a passing grade. Do grades really matter that much, more than her own life?
Monday, March 9, 2009
Reflection : Lamb to the Slaughter ( To be assesed for ACE )
Lamb to the Slaughter
After reading the short story "Lamb to the Slaughter", I find that it is a very interesting story about murder and how the murderer, Mrs Maloney, avoids suspicion and destroys the murder weapon, the leg of lamb. Usually, the evil does not escape the eyes of law in the end. However, Mrs Maloney has proved this fact wrong by not being exposed although she had commited a sinful act.
Mrs Maloney kills her husband because of her shock and anger over her husband, Patrick Maloney's betrayal. Her husband even tells her to not make a fuss over this as it would affect his job being a policeman. However, even if Mrs Maloney is landed in such a sorry plight, this does not give her a reason to murder. She did not think before she acted. It was only after she murdered her husband that she started to worry about her unborn child should she get caught by the police.
Despite all this, I must still say that Mrs Maloney was a smart and cunning person. She devised a plan to cover up for her actions. First, she went to the grocer's to buy some groceries, pretending to be perfectly fine. She already knew at that time that the police would take down his statement if she told them she had gone to buy groceries. Thus, she gained an "alibi" to prove that she was unaware of the fact that Patrick had died.
After that, when Mrs Maloney called the police and they came, she changed from a murderer to a weak and frail woman who was grieving over her husband's death. This contributed to the police sympathizing with her. However, her main motive was to destroy the leg of lamb. She led the policemen into eating the lamb as supper, taking advantage of their hunger. This was the flawless plan Mrs Maloney devised.
To conclude, I feel that Mrs Maloney should face the music of her actions, and not escape just to protect her child. Besides, the police would not prevent the unborn child from coming into this world, I believe.
After reading the short story "Lamb to the Slaughter", I find that it is a very interesting story about murder and how the murderer, Mrs Maloney, avoids suspicion and destroys the murder weapon, the leg of lamb. Usually, the evil does not escape the eyes of law in the end. However, Mrs Maloney has proved this fact wrong by not being exposed although she had commited a sinful act.
Mrs Maloney kills her husband because of her shock and anger over her husband, Patrick Maloney's betrayal. Her husband even tells her to not make a fuss over this as it would affect his job being a policeman. However, even if Mrs Maloney is landed in such a sorry plight, this does not give her a reason to murder. She did not think before she acted. It was only after she murdered her husband that she started to worry about her unborn child should she get caught by the police.
Despite all this, I must still say that Mrs Maloney was a smart and cunning person. She devised a plan to cover up for her actions. First, she went to the grocer's to buy some groceries, pretending to be perfectly fine. She already knew at that time that the police would take down his statement if she told them she had gone to buy groceries. Thus, she gained an "alibi" to prove that she was unaware of the fact that Patrick had died.
After that, when Mrs Maloney called the police and they came, she changed from a murderer to a weak and frail woman who was grieving over her husband's death. This contributed to the police sympathizing with her. However, her main motive was to destroy the leg of lamb. She led the policemen into eating the lamb as supper, taking advantage of their hunger. This was the flawless plan Mrs Maloney devised.
To conclude, I feel that Mrs Maloney should face the music of her actions, and not escape just to protect her child. Besides, the police would not prevent the unborn child from coming into this world, I believe.
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