Posts filed under 'Faith-Based/Religious Element'
“The Brothers Karamazov” Student Reviews 2009
The following reviews by COHS students are on “The ” by Fyodor Dostoevsky.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Pages: 776
Reviewer: Michael T.
The book begins with Alyosha dedicating his life to religion and the highly respected monk Zosima who he will study under. Alyosha is the youngest of three brothers and a very benevolent character.. The oldest is Dmitri the middle is Ivan. Ivan is a very logical character and he struggles with morality throughout the story, not being able to accept the evil in the world and the idea of a benevolent good at the same time, though he wishes he could and flips back and fourth between the ideas many times. Dimitri is a very sensual and impulsive person, but through the progression of the book he begins to regret his past ways, especially the many love triangles he was involved in: him, Ivan and Katerina and him his father and Grushenka. The ladder of these two affairs leads to the climax of the book when he is wrongly accused of patricide. This is also the tipping point for Ivan, when he is confronted by Smerdyakov he is told that it was actually him who committed the murder, using Ivan’s own logic to justify it. This leaves Ivan in a state of confusion. Dmitri is found guilty, and sentenced to 20 years hard labor in Siberia, something the finally confirms him to the man he was trying to become.
The Brother Karamazov was a truly inspirational and thought provoking book. It posed many questions that I have already been struggling with. Things such as: do good and evil exist, and how do you define them? What is morality? Does god exist and if he does is he malevolent of benevolent? Not only was the content good, but the presentation was nothing less than respectable, the extreme character development and vastly deep and dynamic characters made items of everyday life seem philosophically deep as it offered new insight into them from three completely different perspectives. Though it was a little hard to follow at times the plot never dragged and it most certainly makes my list of top ten books.
1. The author of The Brothers Karamazov wrote the novel in order to show the classic struggles and burdens that man is encumbered by throughout his life; good versus evil.
2. The theme of this novel is the classic struggle between good and evil and the complications that ideas like freewill and religion can impose on this struggle.
3. This central theme is developed by several very dynamic characters, at the center of which are the three brothers. The story is told through the eyes Alexei Fyodrorvich, or Alyosha as he is called, though he is not the narrator. He is a man of very pure and kind hearted ideals, while his brothers, Dimitri and Ivan, are more sensual and logical respectively. And through the trials that these brother go through the theme is presented.
4. The main issue the book raises is that of morality and religious faith, a question of logic versus reason. This is to push the question of what these thing mean to a persons life, is it better to be logical or faithful? The book clearly sides with faith.
1 comment June 2, 2009
“Crime and Punishment” Student Reviews 2009
The following reviews by COHS students are on “Crime and Punishment” by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Genre: Fiction
Pages: 542
Reviewer: Alejandra M.
Raskolnikov kills two people and robs them. Later on he is speaking with the murderers and faints so the police start to suspect him. He calls off his friends wedding and later falls in love with the bride-to-be. His friend Sonya tries to make him confess and it works. Raskolnikov is taken to the prison in Siberia and Sonya moves to the town outside the prison. After he is freed Razumikhin and Dunya are married for a short while. Then he realizes his true feelings for Sonya.
Crime and Punishment was an interesting book because of the issues. At the same time it was hard to know what was happening. Even though I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had hoped I would still recommend it to friends because of the entertaining story.
1. Dostoyevsky’s purpose for writing Crime and Punishment was to show that people can change overtime.
2. The theme of Crime and Punishment is to think about the consequences before you commit the action.
3. The way the author shows changes in the novel is very slowly; with an increase in tension.
4. The main issue that Crime and Punishment raises is: is it correct to cause someone psychological pain? The way the author solves the issue is by punishing Raskolnikov years later.
1 comment June 2, 2009
“Mistaken Identity”
“Mistaken Identity” by Don and Susie Van Ryn and Newell, Colleen and Whitney Cerek with Mark Tabb
I must have been in hiding in 2006 because I don’t remember this story from the news at all. However, it is so bizarre, the fact that it is true boggles the mind. I think you’ll race through this memoir of two families (despite the fact that the writing isn’t great) because your disbelief will keep you turning the pages.
Whitney Cerak and Laura Van Ryan were students at Taylor University, a small, Christian college with campuses in Michigan and Indiana. Both are victims of an accident that killed five of the six students in a school van. One girl, who lived, was thrown 50 feet from the accident and sustained traumatic brain injuries. She was identified as Laura Van Ryn by someone from the university. For five weeks, the Van Ryn family stayed with their daughter round the clock, helping her to recover. Until she wasn’t their daughter anymore. She was actually Whitney Cerek. Laura had died in the accident. Whitney had lived. Imagine the pain for both families—Whitney’s family had already had a funeral and was grieving, believing she was dead. Laura’s family was posting a regular blog on her progress. Now they needed to understand that she had never made it through the accident.
What sustains both families is their faith. In a world where such a situation just sings LAWSUIT, the families don’t lay blame and look to God to sustain them. The book includes many examples of others who are so moved by the families’ faith, that their own faith is renewed. You’ll enjoy this on many levels—the strangeness of the story, the dedication of both families. And if stories of faith inspire you, these families will renew your belief in the goodness that is possible in the worst of times.
Add comment February 12, 2009
“And You Invited Me In”
“” by Cheryl Moss Tyler
I’m writing a blurb on this novel not because it’s got terrific writing, but because the story is one I’ve wanted to read—or at least see available—for a long time. I’ve often thought about the moral dilemma it presents and how various parties would react.
One of the protagonists, Alex Marshall, is a gay man dying of AIDS in 1994. In the 1980s, as a young man, he ran away from home and his community of fundamentalist Christians in Hallton, Wisconsin because he couldn’t face them and the truth about himself. After a period of wildness, he settles down with his partner, Scott, and becomes a lawyer who is active in the gay community. Other than at his father’s funeral, he hasn’t seen his family members since he left for Atlanta.
Annie Whitley, another of the book’s protagonists, is Alex’s sister. She’s shocked when he calls her out of the blue, and asks her to care for him as he is dying of AIDS. Her church and community hold a stance of keeping away from bad influences—and they regard Alex as just that. Yet, Annie had always loved her brother and believes that a Christian should have unconditional love for others. With this in mind, her husband encourages her to go care for Alex.
The novel details Annie’s discomfort in living with a gay couple and the gay couple’s discomfort in living with someone who judges them as sinners bound for hell. Both parties soon recognize how important they are to one another, how much they love one another. With this, Annie decides to bring both Scott and Alex back to Hallton. The community squares off—those who oppose this, believing the devil is taking over Annie’s goodness, and those who are there to support Annie, remembering how they loved Alex when he was young. And, of course, other secrets of the town’s most upstanding members start to come out.
So, this is a good story about opposing values and how people can accept one another without necessarily condoning one another’s behavior. (FYI—there’s nothing in here that’s beyond a PG-13 rating. Very mild stuff, intended for conservative Christians.) The one problem I had with the novel is that, frequently, the characters talked as though they were reading paragraphs from an essay. That is, they were just mouthpieces for the two philosophical points of view, and didn’t sound like real people. Overall, though, it’s worth reading as it deals with the basic Christian tenets of reconciliation and forgiveness.
Add comment January 8, 2009
“Same Kind of Different as Me”
“Same Kind of Different as Me” by Ron Hall and Denver Moore with Lynn Vincent
Ms. G here at COHS recommended this book to me because it was so moving that she couldn’t put it down. It’s quite a tale—and I think you, too, will be moved to tears.
Author Ron Hall is married to a woman who cares so deeply for others that her story is pure inspiration to the reader. Debra Hall’s willingness to not only feed and clothe but befriend the homeless shows us what true faith can do—it knocks the patronizing ego right off the shelf and helps us see the real person we are connecting with. Debra’s faith is the force that lets her recognize Denver Moore as a man for whom God has big plans.
Denver was a homeless African-American who came to the Union Gospel Mission for meals, but who kept himself apart from others and trusted no one–with good reason. Denver grew up in the American South not only under Jim Crow laws, but as a sharecropper—which translates as a sort of modern slavery. He lived in a place that time left behind, where he works land he doesn’t own and owes money to ‘the man’ for bare essentials. He never went to school; being illiterate, there seems to be no escape for him from desperate poverty. (There’s a story of racism in the book that will chill your bones, but I don’t want to give away the whole book!)
Denver and other homeless people start referring to the Halls as “Mr. and Mrs. Tuesday” because they work at the homeless mission every Tuesday, unlike most folks who are just holiday volunteers. Soon Deborah is spending many days each week helping, organizing outing, and more. Denver’s faith is revived through Deborah’s actions.
When tragedy strikes the Halls, the tables turn and Denver’s friendship helps them keep their faith. As Denver says, using fishing as his metaphor, true friendship isn’t a catch-and-release program. It’s for keeps.
When your teacher asks you to read a biography or memoir, pick this one up and see how ordinary people overcome extraordinary obstacles.
Add comment December 4, 2008
