Thursday, November 20, 2014

Characterization

We have been working on characterization this month. Talk about what characterization is and how the author of the book you chose made your favorite character come to life. Make sure you put first name only and proof read your work. Nothing will be posted if there are a lot of mistakes. You have worked very hard on these responses, so you should want to pass in your very best work. I can't wait to read all of your responses!

13 comments:

  1. This month’s theme was characterization. Characterization is how the author develops the characters in the book and how the reader sees them. The book I read was Losing It by Erin Fry. The main character in the book was Bennet. What makes Bennet great is that he stands out from the other characters and he is kind. He doesn’t have a mother he had a father that had a stroke. He had to go to visit him all the time. His way of standing up to the bullies was running cross country. My character is very smart, although he can be a little bit lazy. My character comes to life by not being afraid to stand up for himself. By doing his best no matter how many times, he was called fat.
    Indirect characterization is how the author tells us about the characters feelings. An example of that is when Bennet says he was going to pee on Luis. When Luis grabs a knife from his pocket, and Bennet says “what the heck am I suppose to do? Really pee on him? Run? Scream?” That is not telling you what he is going to do it, but you can kind of tell that he is scared. It would be indirect because the author doesn’t say Bennet is scared.
    Direct characterization tells us how he is exactly feeling.
    An example of that is when Bennet is at the cross country meet with his friends, and the coach asked him if he was ok, and the book says “I nod. But I’m not good. Not at all.” That is telling you that he dose not feel ok.
    I recommend this book to everyone. It was an amazing book. My favorite part was at the end, not just because the book was over but that I could not wait to see what happened. If you read this book I hope you enjoy.

    Olivia

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  2. The tittle of my book that I read is the The Ghost Sitter by Peni R. Griffin. This story is about a ghost named Susie who died in a firework accident. One of my favorite characters is Susie the ghost. The author makes a lot of good characters. Characterization is what the character is all about and understanding how the author creates their character.
    Susie makes a good character for this kind of story. Since this is a horror book, she is a ghost that helps young children. Susie is a sad, playful, helpful, and a nice character. The author shows us that Susie is nice when she says,“ I’m dreaming right? she asked. This is all a bad dream, and I want to wake up now!” This is an example of when Susie realized that she was a ghost.
    Direct characterization is when you know how exactly how the feels in the story. The author shows us that Susie is feeling hurt by saying, “ Poor little thing, said Mama.“She’s all worn out.” Susie stopped, her feeling hurt. Mama said, “Never interrupt! This is telling us that Susie is feeling sad.
    Indirect characterization doesn’t say exactly how the character is thinking, feeling, or acting. One example of this is, “Susie floated back from the hug- did she know how cold she made people? – a puzzled frown flickering across her happy face.” This means she was happy to see and give her big sister a hug again.
    I really enjoyed this book because I like ghost stories. I recommend this book to people who like ghosts too. This book is a great book to read.

    Brady

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  3. My book Dork Diaries by Rachael Reene Russell, has an interesting character. My favorite character is Nikki Maxwell because she is very normal unlike the other characters in my book. Characterization is understanding how authors develop their characters.
    My character Nikki Maxwell is an amazing person because she is determined to complete any goal set for her. Nikki is very dramatic by going “OMG!!!” And OMG means oh my God and Nikki also says “SQUEE!!” and in Nikki’s point of view SQUEE means that she is very excited but she says SQUEE instead of I’m so excited. My character comes to life because she is caring, and considerate. She tries harder and works through anything.
    Direct characterization is when the author tells you exactly how that character is feeling, such as “I have never been so embarrassed in my entire life.” Nikki was embarrassed because her little sister Brianna and Brianna’s hand puppet Penelope burnt the holiday Christmas cookies and Nikki’s face was plastered on front of the Daily bugle.
    Indirect characterization is when the author leads you to how the character feels by their actions. Such as, “Mom is just standing there like a mannequin with a strange look on her face.” When this happened Nikki was sitting at the dinning room table eating dinner and mom was thinking about when Nikki was five and baked holiday cookies with her mom and was thinking that Nikki and Brianna could make the Holiday cookies for their friends and family.
    My book was not interesting to me because Nikki makes everything sound so dramatic and I don’t like it where books are like this one because all Nikki talks about is boys, and evil mean girl. But I still recommend this book for others to read if you like things that are dramatic.

    Tiesha

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  4. I read The Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. My favorite character is Sunny Balalaire. Characterization means understanding the development of characters and how the author describes them.
    My character is great because she is always saying random things that mean something else because she’s a baby. Also, she stands out because she is always doing funny things that make me laugh. Like she bites things at weird times. She is furious because, “When sunny saw Count Olaf she bit his ankle” Said Violet. She is also very silly and little. Sunny comes to life by doing things in the book that I would do or say. She acts like she’s older than she actually is like me. Also, she becomes friends with people / reptiles quickly.
    Direct characterization means we know exactly how he/she feels, the author tells us directly, and you can’t miss it!!!! Two examples of direct characterization are, “Sunny has four very sharp teeth, and she bites everything.” Also, “Speaking in fragments was how Sunny spent most of her time, words like bax.” Which probably meant something like “I’m nervous about meeting a new relative.” And eojip, which meant something, like “I would be thrilled to bite enormous length of rope into small, workable pieces”.
    Indirect characterization means the author leads you to understand the character by their actions. Two examples of indirect characterization are, “Sunny screamed very loud when she got bit hard by the incredibly deadly viper.” Which is a snake in the book and also, “Sunny started biting Count Olaf very hard and furiously on his ankle.” Count Olaf is the bad guy in the book.
    In conclusion, I found this book to not be as interesting as I thought it was going to be. The author did not get my attention or make me want to keep reading. The author did have funny characters in this book though. I would not recommend this book for others to read.


    By Jordan

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  5. The book I chose is Brian’s Winter. It was written by Gary Paulsen, and the character I chose is Brian. What I think characterization means is how the author shows the reader what the character is like and what they do. What makes a good characters what they do and how they do it.
    Adjectives that describe my character are dirty, afraid, ripped up clothes, and torn up shoes. My character comes to life because the author describes the character and the animals as if they where in front of me. A quote I found that describes him as if he was annoyed he said, “Not again-not rain . . .”
    I enjoyed this book very much because Brian is surviving in the woods alone. If you like survival books then you should read this book

    Coreyna

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  6. I read the book Diary of a Wimpy Kid Rodrick Rules, by Jeff Kinney. My favorite character is Greg. Characterization means how authors develop and understand their characters.
    Greg is a funny character. One of my favorite quotes is when he was five:
    “You’re gonna grow up and get married to some ice cream!” “Ha!” My character is great because he’s funny, and all he wants to do is play video games. My character comes to life by jumping into a pool and deliberately sinking to the bottom. Greg sunk to the bottom because his mom forced him to do swim team, and he was at a swim meet and there was a gun that the guy shot off and he didn’t know that the gun was a starter gun, so he was thinking that “Where is that bullet going to go?”, so he deliberately sunk. Another example is Greg gets shoved down by Rodrick is Greg’s older brother.
    Direct characterization means the author is telling you directly how the person feels about someone. Here are two examples of direct characterization. “I HATE you Gramma.” He said this when he was five because Greg’s Gramma wouldn’t him have ice cream before dinner. Another example is “We didn’t make the cut, and that’s kind of embarrassing.” At Greg’s school they’re doing a talent show and he was doing a magic show with a 2nd grader and they didn’t make the cut.
    Indirect characterization means the author isn’t telling you directly how the character is behaving. Here is an example, “So every night I’d sneak down stairs and pick a little piece of the gingerbread house.” This means he is sneaky and he wants gingerbread or he’s hungry.
    I would really recommend this book to anyone, because it’s funny. I really enjoyed this book. It’s one of my favorite books.

    Abby

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  7. The book I read was Athlete vs. Mathlete by W.C Mack. W.C Mack really makes me know what type characters they are. Characterization is understanding the characters and how the author develops them. My favorite character is Owen the athlete
    Direct characterization is when the character states how their feeling. An example of direct characterization is when Owen said, “I’m sorry I was such, a jerk, I was…” “I was jealous.” Owen was being mean and rude, but he was trying to apologize. The author wanted you to know how he was feeling about his actions. He was trying to be nice and felt bad for what he did. Owen was eager for his brother to forgive him.
    Indirect characterization is when the reader is given hints to the characters feelings. Earlier in the story, Owen was annoyed that his brother was trying out for basketball. He thought he was the athlete and his brother was the mathlete. When Owen and his dad were watching the basketball game, Owens brother came down and his dad asked him to watch the game with them. His brother started to talk about some of the players on the team. The indirect characterization was that Owen “rolled his eyes and shoved some popcorn in his mouth.” The author shows that Owen is annoyed with his brother.
    When Owen was at the park, high school kids asked him to play because they were short a player. That never happens. Owen was shocked. Once Owen was warned up and after he made a basket, Matt said, “nice” slapping Owen on the back saying, “You’re a though kid.” “I like it.” Owen just grinned.
    I love my character because we both ply basketball. I recommend this book to people who like reading rivalries. I recommend this book to read. This is one of my favorites.

    Bella

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  8. The book I read was The Battle of The Labyrinth, and the author is Rick Rordan. My favorite character was Percy Jackson the main character. The meaning of characterization is to understand your character through the author’s perspective.
    I think what makes a good character is someone who is brave, smart, and caring most all of the time. This describes Percy because he cares. If someone gets hurt, he will step in to help. This brings me to my next adjective willing to do anything to help, an example is. “Are you hurt, I will get help immediately! I think what makes a character to life is a brave, and caring. Both of them mixed make a perfect character.
    Direct characterization is when the narrator tells you how the character feels. An example is: “He was really just a boy who got dragged into all of this fighting.” What happened was they were all fighting but Percy was sad and the all realized that he was just trying to help.
    Indirect characterization is how the character interacts with others. An example is. “She wanted to find him, he rolled his eyes as if nothing was wrong.” Basically what happened was someone was coming for him he just did not care any more he had practically given up.
    I enjoyed this book a lot, because it has a lot of action, but all of the action has a story behind it.
    I would give this book a 4 out of 5 because it is a little hard to follow, but when you start reading it for a while it’s very interesting. I recommend this book to someone who likes action with a back-story.

    Bo

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  9. My book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling. She really describes George Weasley. She also really describes everybody else in the book. Just like me he can almost make a joke out of everything. An example of this is “ Anybody can speak troll Hermione all you do is point and grunt.” said George. Characterization is learning how the author describes everybody in the book.
    I like George Weasley since he is funny, confusing, clever, tricky, and friendly. George is a tall teen, with red hair, loud clothing, and is always with his twin brother Fred, who are both in their sixth year at Hogwarts. The author shows George is eager when he says, “How big did his tongue get?!” asked George eagerly or when he is secretive when he says ” He cant keep avoiding us forever” whispered George.
    Direct characterization is when the author tells exactly how the character feels. J.K. Rowling uses this a lot through out the book. For example, “ No thanks I had enough at the feast-“ he is telling you he had enough to eat at the feast.
    Indirect characterization is how the characters interact with others and not saying it directly to the reader. One example of this is when George is talking to Harry, Fred, Ron, and Hermione, while playing cards. This quote shows George feeling upset because Luto Bagman paid them in fake money. J.K. Rowling says, “ George sighed deeply and started dealing out the cards again.”
    This book was so much fun. It was like a roller coaster (minus the roller coaster). I recommend this book to people who read “ Percy Jackson” by Rick Rordean. I also recommend this book to people who like fantasy. This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. If you want to learn more about George and everybody else read the series. Who knows, maybe you will like it?

    Theodore

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  10. My character is Merlin from King Arthur and Knights of the Round Table by Roger Green. Characterization means the description of what the character looks like, acts like, and in a movie sounds like. What makes a character great is when the author describes their character very well. A few adjectives for Merlin are wise, clever, smart, all seeing, and confusing. Proof for this is when Merlin says to King Utifis to hide his son and not to tell anyone the birth.
    There are many examples of direct characterization in the book, but I’ll just mention two. The first example is when the archbishop says, “Merlin, people say you are the wisest man in all the world.” Another example of direct characterization is when the author says, “Merlin grew worried.”
    In this paragraph I’m going to put four examples down for indirect characterization between Merlin and Vivian. My first example is when the author says, “Merlin smiled and took the ring.” Another example is “Merlin looked and realized Vivian wasn’t as innocent as she looked.” The third example is ”Merlin looked steadily at Vivian.” The fourth and final example is “The enchanter brought us here, but how will he provide shelter in the change of season?”
    I really liked this book and I recommend it to you. I would recommend to those who like action adventure stories. It has a lot of that.


    Colin

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  11. The book I am reading The Adventures Of The South Pole Pig by: Chris Kurtz. To me characterization means making a memorable character in a story, movie, or play. For my book the character that I picked is Flora. She is a pig that is adventurous because she likes going on new adventures Brave because she sticks up for her brothers, imaginative because she always has a plan. She is also very nosey and curious because she likes to know what is going on with everyone. Direct characterization is telling who your character is. Here is an example of direct characterization. The farmer said to Flora, “Why are you out of your pen, little piggy?” This describes my character as a pig. Flora didn’t like that because she was on an adventure, so she ran. Indirect characterization is not very much detail an example of indirect characterization is: A thrill went from Flora’s shoulders down to her hooves. One more example of indirect characterization is, “Don’t get on her bad side Neisse can still kick when she is angry.” If I could rate this book I would give it four stars. I would recommend this book to both boys and girls, if you like adventure books.

    brenna

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  12. I read Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell. The main character in my story is Nikki.J.Maxwell. This is a great book to describe characterization, as Nikki was a very colorful character, filled with too much drama, which made her special. To define characterization, I believe that you have to have an understanding of the character through the author’s description of their personality, style, opinions, and actions.
    My character, Nikki.J.Maxwell is a simple but colorful person who I can picture in my head. She is shy, silly, dorky, imperfect, and natural. Although I am not a girl, I get the ideas thoughts, and questions she has as being a new person in middle school, along with being in a new school . I have wondered the same things Nikki has. She is very easy for me to relate to as we are almost the same age. What makes her come to life is the following: the description of her clothing and hair each day helps me to picture what she actually looks like. I under stand her thoughts about her parents embarrassing her all the time when really they are trying to help the way her feelings are hurt happy, sad throughout the story some changing all in the same day.
    The author lets us know in a few ways “when I wrote with my long purple pen, it made me fell avant-garde and special” the author is having Nikki actually tell the reader how she is feeling. One incident where Nikki ended up being seen getting out of her fathers work van, and her arch enemy, the most popular girl in school seeing her now knowing it was Nikki’s an exterminator and drove with a gigantic roach on his van she states “I can no longer live this this way I want to crawl in a hole and just disappear.” The author is telling us he sadness she has. In other instances the author is telling us know Nikki thoughts by describing her actions, such as how hurt she felt when she fell in the cafeteria by describing the spaghetti sauce on her shirt, the milk on her pants looking like she went to bathroom in her pants, and how she took the time to scrub it off and borrow a sweater to hide the stains. We know she was hurt even she never tells us it is described.
    The author lets us understand what kind of person Nikki is by telling us in several ways that: Nikki cannot shop at the mall and she wears cloths from other stores like Wal-Mart where the more popular group of kids would never go. The way Nikki’s stomach would have butterflies and she would stutter when she was around Brandon, the supposed love of her live. One of the lines that is repeated itself over and over in the book is all the things Nikki says to people when she is hurt and angry screaming at the top of her lungs and then it is stated that she just kept it all in her head so no one else could hear her. Just as we think just as we think she is going to let some one have it. It is revealed that she is just thinking it inside her own head and no one can hear her.


    By,
    Finn


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  13. My book, Return to Del, is the eighth and final book in the series Deltora Quest. The author of Deltora Quest is Emily Rodda. Characterization is when an author creates a character. The character I enjoyed the most in Deltora Quest is Leif.
    My character Leif is a good character because the author made him stand out by making him act in a certain way. Leif is such an overwhelmed, demanding, strong, smart, and brave character. This makes him stand out more than the other characters. Here’s an example of how the author shows those. “Dazed Leif climbed to his parents side. As he knelt embracing his mother and bending to his father.” This means he is affectionate.
    Another example of direct characterization is, “Noiselessly the companions stole out of the clearing.” Direct characterization is when the author shoes what the character is doing or thinking directly.
    Indirect characterization is when the author is not being direct when they describe what the character is doing or thinking. Here’s an example. As Dain is revealed as a trader, “His twisted face was hardly recognizable as that of the delicate modest boy Leif had known so long.” This shows that Leaf is very confused.
    I recommend that you read this book. I would give it five out of five stars. It’s a really good book that’s exiting and interesting.
    John

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