Stage Two

The second stage has finally come to Tris and her other opponents. It is said that no one can prepare for the second stage, and that is very true. For this stage, each person is hooked up to the same machine that determined what faction is suited best for them. But this time, they will be injected with a substance that will soon provide a hallucination (basically a simulation). In this simulation, they will be in a situation that involves their fears. Everything they encounter will try to haunt and scare them. In one of Tris's, she is drowning in a tank. Each person takes 4 of these tests over next week. They are ranked by the amount of time it takes them to calm down in the simulation, which allows them to come back to the real world. After all of the simulations are over, the ranks are put up and Tris is first.

     The reason Tris is first is because she is Divergent. This allows her to change the simulations and escape them quicker than everyone else. I believe this will benefit her in the long run, but also hurt her. If you are Divergent and they find you, you are immediately killed. It doesn't tell you why but I predict that the Divergents are capable of doing something dangerous, such as overthrowing the government. Right now, I think that Tris will find other Divergent people and they will work together to figure out why being Divergent is so dangerous. Also, I believe the government will discover them and they must fight them in order to survive. She can't just be Divergent and then have nothing happen because of it. There has to be something big about being Divergent, and I'm very curious to find out what it is.

Krista Ramsey: Coach Stands by Charged Kid

     A young kid in high school is forced to go to court after trying to rob a market with halloween masks and a fake gun. Though his basketball coach, Jesse Cheatham stood by his side as knew that the kid could be a real role model if he was pushed to do the right things, and he understood that he had to show the kid he was needed, and not unwanted.
   
       The line I like best in this column is where Krista says," But maybe what they need most of all is to realize they're needed." This line speaks out to me the most because it really helps me understand why this kid's coach is standing by his side. He knows that the kid has two sides, a very good one and a not so good one. But he knows that if the kid is looked out for, he will be a role model in his society and change the way people look at him. But in order to do this, you have to let him know that he's important to you and that he's needed. I believe this line changes how the reader views the story and the choice the coach made on standing by his athlete's side.

     After reading three of Krista Ramsey's columns, I feel she has a very unique writing style. She can write about a sad or serious story and make the reader feel very emotional, and she can also write a happy or funny column that makes the reader smile or laugh. Either way, she is very good at engaging her readers and convincing them about what she believes. Though, she also has a writing style that lets the reader come up with their own strong opinion about the column. As I said before, she can make her columns range from very serious to extremely uplifting. In her column about kids and technology she says," The kid who used to walk home from school looking at houses and trees now rides home staring at a screen not much bigger than his hand." This quote makes me feel very sad because it is very true, and I can relate to it. In her column about Peyton Manning and Russel Wilson she says," Probably half the population sees this as a problem and the other half, a blessing." This line allows me to form my own opinion, which is that I feel people should dress up more when they're supposed to, but I also believe people should be able to express themselves in anyway they want. And finally, in the column I chose, she says," But maybe what they need most of all is to realize they're needed." This line shows why the coach is standing up for his player and it makes me change my view on the whole situation.

     Three questions I have:

1. How long have you been doing this for?

2. What would you say your writing style is?

3. Overall, what is your favorite thing about your job?


     Link:
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/opinion/columnists/krista-ramsey/2014/03/29/krista-ramsey-desales-market-robbery/7071067/

Initiation

After making it through their first day in the Dauntless faction, they soon learn it will not be as easy as it looks. There are 24 people who chose Dauntless, but only 10 will get in. To get in, they must go through initiation, which involves fighting, teamwork objectives, and other challenges like knife throwing. They will each be individually ranked on their performance through initiation, and the top 10 are in. As the days go along, it is easy to tell that Tris is having a hard time. She is losing her fights and having trouble finding her inner strength, but that soon fades away. The first team objective they have is a paintball war. They are split up into two teams, and each team gets to pick their location, which is within a radius of a mile or two. Tris and her group decide to put their flag by the Ferris Wheel. For the first hour nothing happens, and they are starting to get impatient. Though, Tris comes up with a strategy that proves she has potential. She climbs the ladder of the old ferris wheel until she reaches the very top. From there, she can see everything, including the other team's location. She tells her team and develops and plan. Within 10 minutes, her team has won. She proved to everyone that she is a valuable player.


      As the initiation goes on, I feel Tris will continue to find more inner strength and use it to rise the top. After the paintball game, she begins to have confidence, and even beats one of the top girls while fighting. I have two theories about what will happen after  initiation. My first is that Tris will rise to the top, pass initiation, and become a very important person in the Dauntless faction. My second theory is that she will not make it through initiation. This means she will become faction less, unable to do anything. Though, I think she will find more faction less people like her, but not just regular people. I think she will find more "Divergent" people while wandering, and they will learn how dangerous it is to be Divergent. I am very excited to read on into this book.

The Decision

It's finally time for Beatrice to decide what faction she will choose. During the ceremony, a child will be called up and given a knife, and with that knife they must cut themselves and spill the blood into the bowl of the faction they choose. When Beatrice walks up, she hesitates, and then out of nowhere chooses Dauntless. Everyone in the crowd is shocked. After reading this part I immediatly became shocked as well. The Dauntless is the most feared group. They are the strongest and protect the society from the outside. Most people in the Dauntless faction have tattoos, piercings, and short/black hair, though it's up to them how they look. Dauntless is personally the faction I dislike most. They are not my style and I don't feel I would fit in.

I was very curious on how Beatrice would adapt to her new faction. She did not seem like someone who would fight the outside and have piercings and tattoos. Though, she has seemed to adapted quite well. She has started wearing her own clothes that she likes, makes relationships with other kids who have chosen Dauntless, changed her name to Tris, and even got a tattoo of three birds that represent each member of her family. In one week, her family is allowed to visit her. Though, I do not think the visit will happen. I feel her parents do not want anything to do with her after she chose to be in a different faction. Even though Tris seems to be doing pretty good right now, I feel that soon things will become hard and she must dig deep inside her to fight those hard things.  

Beginning of Divergent

     The book I chose to read for my independent reading book is Divergent. The main character in this story is Beatrice Prior. She is a very thin, pale, blond-haired girl, that looks very young, though she is sixteen. Just from reading the first few chapters, I learned that Beatrice is a very curious girl. She is always questioning things and always thinks about things more than other people do. As the story goes on, I predict she will play a big role in her society, even if she is seen as a bad person. The story is in a future society that is isolated from the outside world. They have people guarding the walls at all times. After reading, I made a connection with the book, The Hunger Games. Both of these books have a very controlled society and they are both isolated from anything outside. I'm glad that this book reminds me of The Hunger Games it was one of my favorite books.

     When a person turns sixteen in Beatrice's society, they take a test that chooses what faction they go into. This will ultimately determine the rest of their life; their job, salary, location, etc. It starts out with Beatrice at school, getting ready to take her test. When they call her name, she walks into a mirror room, where she is hooked up to a machine and given a liquid. She then is in another world, put in simulations where she must make a decision, and these decisions determine her life. After the test, the person with her explains how she is different. She made choices that no other person has made, making her not fit for just one faction. This type of person is known as "Divergent". They are seen as very dangerous. I predict that she will soon meet other "Divergents"and they will try to accomplish something that will change their society. I also feel that they will be seen a bad, rather than good. I am very excited to read on in this book.