Sunday, September 14, 2014
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Focus on the setting of a novel you've read (any novel, in any language, just not the one you'll be presenting to the class). What sort of "world" is it? How large or small, open or restrictive? What are its rules, values, beliefs, and customs? Do the characters fit comfortably in their world or are they in opposition to it? Is this shown to be a good or bad thing?
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In "Angel" written by L.A Weatherly, the scene takes place in our world : on Earth, around the year 2010. The plot focuses specifically on the USA.
ReplyDeleteBut angels have invaded Earth, and they set up dictatorships, subjecting the population to their power. Despite promises of angels as what they would offer a better life we realize that their system prohibits liberties and enslaved the population. The population is sorted by "class". Their living conditions depend on their "classes".
Many people are revolting.
The world of "Eragon" is a fantastic and imaginery world. There are three differents peoples (elfs, nains and humans) and they are no really in a good relationship because they don't have the same traditions and way of life. A terrible king is controling the kingdom. It's very strict and there are lots of poor people so the heroe is in opposition to it. I think it's a good thing because it's the topic of the book, a heroe who is gathering everybody against a society that he doesn't like. It's a very large and open world, and it happens magic things in it.
ReplyDeleteGAUTHE Maëlys
I wanna talk about a serie of fantastic books : "Percy Jackson". The story is focused on two part of the population : half-gods and gods of Greek and Roman mythology. The characters don't fit comfortably in there world because they live in the real world like us so they have to hide their powers and identity. I think it's a bad thing for us because it's very difficult to conceal themselves and blend in the mortel world.
ReplyDeleteIn "La Guerre des Clans" by Erin Hunt, the setting is quite different : you see the story through the eyes of a cat. The story takes place mainly in a forest where multiple clans of cats live (but there are also cats without clan). In those clans are anarchies: there's always one cat who rules everythin. The other cats who are lower in the anarchy need to accept the decisions of that one cat (or be rejected).
ReplyDeleteAll cats fit really well in the forest, the plains where the rivers are. But when they go outside of this heaven where humans and their creations are, they are really scared and know they can't approach any human, any road, any car..
And on the first pages, there's a small map of their small world which they love.
HEIJNEN Jinte
everything*
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ReplyDelete"Kwaad Bloed" is a dutch book in which a teenager has to go to a catholic boarding school because of her sister. The character doesn't fit comfortably in her world because there are lots of rules to follow and it's a really restrictive world (she can't go outside the school yard, she only sees her family once a month, ...). And because it's a catholic school, she has to follow the values, rules and beliefs of the Bible, but she wasn't raised like that, so it's really hard for her to adapt herself.
ReplyDeleteI want to tell you about the settings of the book "The Lovely Bones" in which they are really important and different. The story begins in the 70s and ends 20 years later (it's the story of a family). Then, on one hand, it takes place in the suburbs of a North-East American little town, in a quiet middle-class neighbourhood and especially in the family's house. It's so quiet and normal that it was nearly obvious that something was going to happen: someone is killed. On the other hand, the main character is remembering the past and watching her family from heaven where she can see everything happening on Earth. Heaven is a strange and Earth-looking place without any sin but she can't have everything she wants; for example she can't meet her dead relatives until the end of the book. Esteban RENAUD.
ReplyDeleteIn "Chocolate mafia" by G.Zevin, the story takes place in New-York, in the year 2083. In this city ruled by crime and poverty, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is extremely rare, and water is preciously rationed. Anya Balanchine, the main character of the book, is the daughter of the biggest leader of chocolate mafia. She doesn't fit comfortably in her world, because she represents reluctantly a dangerous enemy for the government. In my opinion, this is a good thing because she's in opposition against a corrupt society, which hasn't got any values.
ReplyDeleteEmma Wallengren
In "Divergent" by Veronica Roth, the settings are really important, since the first page, we embark in a post-apocalyptic Chicago. The world where the scene takes place is divised in 5 factions, based on people's personalities and behaviors. The only "rules" are to obey without saying a word. But the main characters, Tris and Four aren't part of those factions, they are "Divergent" and because of that they will fight to discover all the mysteries of the world they live in..
ReplyDeleteIn "Tara Duncan" by Sophie Andouin-Mamikonian, the story takes place in a parallel of two world : Earth and the Other World. It's the story of Tara (the main character) and all her friends in a lot of adventure ! It's a humours, loving, magical and adventural story writes in our time. She will have to go throughout many danger to prove who she is, to stay alive and discover who is the man behind Magister, her worst enemy ...
ReplyDelete*through
DeleteIn my book "pirate latitudes" by Michael Crichton the story takes place in the Caribbean Ocean in the late 17th century.It's about the English captain Hunter and his expedition to Matanceros in Spanish waters.It was quite adventurous.
ReplyDeleteThe story of ‘The Eagle of the Ninth’, by Rosemary Sutcliffe, is set in Great Britain but in the Roman times, so it describes a clash of two different cultures: the structured, authoritarian Roman civilisation and the old, mysterious Celtic one. It spans from the Roman south of England to the North of Scotland, so the landscapes are very varied, (organised towns, old forts and rugged, wild moors). The main characters are a young roman officer and his English slave, and their journey takes place in Scotland, in places that are strange to both of them, and which are not always to their advantage.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the book Marcus, the roman officer, is in opposition with the British land and culture, underestimating its power and beauty and longing for his own farm back in Rome; this is presented as a bad thing, however, as by the end of the story he loves England, and settles down to live there with an English wife, completely reconciled to the traditions of the place.
Delete" The Emerald Kinghts" ( Les chevaliers d'emeraude) I didn't finished the book yet and I started it a loooong time ago so my memories are not to fresh but the story is about elfs, fairys and wizards which takes place in an imaginary continent which is called Enkidiève. The princiapl character is named Kira, the child of the emperor, the purple child in the role of protecting the wearer of light, she is overprotected by all the kinghts..... There are many weird creatures such as giant Bees, Dragon horses, Golden Dragons, Black and red dragons, Jerianeth Evil, Gods, Ebaras and so on ...! Anyway, is a weird land with weird characters of many colours
ReplyDeleteI want to talk about Vango, by Timothée de Fombelle. In this book, we travel around the world with Vango, who is chased by the police and who is looking for answers about his past. Vango is very young when he has to het away from the police for something he hasn't done. He is lost in this big world so he climbs on the roof of the buildings, because he feels better on top of the world, than when he is part of this world.
ReplyDeletePauline DESCUBES
*has to get
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ReplyDeleteAlice in Wonderland, written by Lewis Carroll, takes place in two different worlds: the first one is our world on a bright, sunny afternoon during the 19th century.
ReplyDeleteThe other and main world, called Wonderland, is Alice's mind. She is dreaming of a fantastic world where strange things happen. We are seeing this world through the eyes of a child so the descriptions are not really precise : it gives to the story a dreamlike atmosphere.
I recently finished reading the Gone series by Michael Grant. It's the story of a small town, Perdido Beach, in the United States. At the start of the series, a very peculiar world is created: for some unknown reason, all people over the age of 15 disappear, and what's more, a huge barrier appears around all of the town and its surroundings. Perdido Beach is stuck inside a huge bubble... And they can't see what's happening outside.
ReplyDeleteThe world in the story is a very small one. Stuck inside what they will come to call the FAYZ, their little universe, the children will quickly let anarchy reign.
It will be up to a handful of kids to rebuild a 'political' system and answer the questions : what is happening ? When are we going to get out of here ?
I really liked this series and thought it would be a good example of an unusual setting...
Tom CONTI-LESLIE
In the book that i'm actually reading wich is " l'Inheritance " from Christopher Paolini ( the fourth and final novel from the "Eragon" series ) the story take place in Alagaësia ( a fantasy world ). Into the books, the main characters are travelling around the whole fictitious world and that world is actually unimaginably big. But the author know how to make incredible description without "rambling on".
ReplyDeleteThat's why I actually love this book and I recommend it to everyone who like fantasy.
Charles
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ReplyDeleteI've read "The Landlady" by Roal Dahl. The world he presents is a really small world because he focus on the story of a man who is in a pension. There he met his landlady who appears more strange each minute. Moreover, this world is quite restrictive : he just write the story of the man and there no link between the story and any issues from that time. In this text there are no rules, he speaks about insanity and how people could be under the appearances. The character seem to feel comfortable but we feel incomfortable because we feel something's wrong. He's in opposition with this world because he is innocent and something will happend to him, the result of the woman's insanity. It is shown to be a bad thing because the author shows that we don't know really who are people just by seeing them. Plus, in this novel we don't expect the end, the fall which is really frightening.
ReplyDeleteThe "Grisha" trilogy by Leigh Bardugo is one of the best high fantasy books I have ever read. In the first book, "Shadow and Bone", the setting is presented in a confused way, and I didn't really get the world entirely until I was well into book 2. It's set in a world that's not ours, Ravka, but the traditions, the words and the cover of the book make me think a lot of Russia. In this world, there are two "races" that live together : Grisha and humans. Grisha are like humans, only more beautiful, perfectly beautiful, actually, and they have powers (there's a really complicated list of types of Grisha : some control metals, fire, some can make you look younger...). Everyone knows humans are inferior to Grisha, it's just a fact. The land is ruled by a fat human king, theoritically, but really it's the Darkling who's in control : the most powerful Grisha of all, who commands darkness. The way L. Bardugo introduced Ravka's culture amazed me. In the beginning, you sense one thing is important : the I megalith gap between Grisha and humans. But as the series goes on, it's hardly interesting anymore. What you get to see, especially in book 3, is how the desperate are the people. They're all losing hope, when danger is never far away. So what do they do? They hang on to religion. Any religion, really. They need to believe in something, because hope is all that is left for them. It's a very interesting theme, religion, and it gets scary in the third book, when the protagonist becomes a living Saint, worshipped by a desperate people who are losing reason, for most. Some also get into wars when times get hard. This series is unlike anything ever read, it's unique and magical : all I'm asking from a high fantasy read. I loved the setting... And I recommend this trilogy if only for the Darkling (the villain, as you might have guessed), a fascinating character. Well developed characters, amazing world building, a unique writing style : Grisha is one of my favorite series, in my opinion what high fantasy should look like.
ReplyDeleteThe book I wanted to talk about is the Chronicles of Narnia. In this series, we follow the adventures of siblings. During a game of hide and seek, the youngest girl (Lucy) discovers a wardrobe which transports her to the world of Narnia, full of magic, mythical beasts, where animals talk. Progressingly, the siblings will each play a role in the history of that world. In Narnia, the siblings encounter characters and ideas from both Greek & Roman mythology and foreign fairy tales. Basically, the kids are called by a lion, Aslan who asks them to protect Narnia from evil and restore the throne to its rightful line. In the whole series, the reader sees that the children are willing to do what they are asked and fit perfectly to this magical environment, thanks to their curiosity and courage.
ReplyDeleteVanille LESEUR
"The mortal Instruments" written by Cassandra Clare, is a fantasy book. Most of the story takes place in Brooklyn, New York where the protagonist, Clary Fray, has lived since she's a child. But one day she discovers that there is another world that humans can't see, and that she's a part of it. She's a shadowhunter, part human and part angel, and the shadowhunters' purpose is to kill demons. Another group exist in this world, the downworlders, part human and part demons, like vampires, werewolves, warlocks and fey. The Shadowhunters always thought themselves better than downworlders. A few hundred years ago, the Clave, the government of the Shadowhunters, signed with the downworlders the Accord : laws kipping them from killing eachothers. The villain, called Valentine, hate the downworlders and says that if they have demon blood, they should be all killed like demons.
ReplyDelete"The Fall:CHERUB 7" is a police science fiction novel. The first 50 pages take place in Aero City in 2005. James Adams is sent to find information on a crooked businessman. But the operation is a disaster because James' partner kills the suspect. After many efforts James comes back to the Cherub Campus (where the novel takes mostly place) in England where all of the agents live when they are not on a mission. Unfortunatelly, there is no proof that James did not commit the murder so an investigation is put in place. This novel is a emotional roller coaster because the readers know who committed the crime but James is betrayed by everybody because he is risking to loose his job at Cherub if no elements are found to prove he's not guilty.
ReplyDeleteThibault FERVEUR
I read "The Lord of the rings: The ship of the ring" written by J. R. R. Tolkien, and it's the first volume of a "trilogy" (J. R. R. Tolkien didn't like to call his work a trilogy) "The Lord of the rings". It is set in world of the Middle-earth,where all the creatures live, some in peace, some not. The creatures are for example hobbits, elves, dwarves etc. The first volume talks about journey of the fellowship, which is formed by two humans, Aragorn and Boromir, one elf, Legolas, one dwarf, Gimli, one wizard, Gandalf the Grey and four hobbits, Frodo, Samwise, Peregrin and Mriadoc. It's formed in Rivendale, the residence of half-elves. Then, almost at the beginning, the fellowship is parted by death of Gandalf. Everyone has to find his own way to reach the goals, and it's very difficult. Read it and try to understand!
ReplyDeleteAnna Pejšková
“Bambi”, by Félix Salten, is a book about a roe deer, Bambi, who discovers the world he is living in, step by step. The story takes place in a forest, but we are made conscious of an outside world, His world (His referring to the higher danger, He, who can be everywhere, and can kill anyone whenever He wants). In the forest, everyone lives in harmony with each other (even if we remark the presence of a hierarchy, based on the imposing presence of the animals), but as the danger from Him is everywhere, prudence is the watchword. The characters fit very well in this world, everyone living his life and discussing it with the other inhabitants. Except for His presence, it is a very happy place. The only exception being the old prince, who lives as a recluse, who doesn’t speak and mixes even less. He will take Bambi under his wing and teach him how loneliness is the key to surviving in the forest.
ReplyDeleteKavi Ashta