Week 7 Post B

I thought this book definetly had its ups and downs, but was mostly pretty fascinating. At the start of the story the book it got a little boring, since the author was just giving descriptions of the setting in London and Oxford University. Then towards the middle and towards the end of the story of the action picks up and the story becomes more interesting. My favorite aspect of the story was the involvement of the altehiometer which is the "golden compass." With this devise Lyra was able to go back into time see into the future and even learn about things in the present.

In the end of this book, Iorek brings Lyra to the mountaintop where her uncle, Lord Asriel has taken Roger, and Lyra battles Lord Asriel for her best friend. She and Roger struggle free from him, but Lord Asriel still manages to seperate Roger from his daemon. The sky is torn open and Lyra can see into another world. Mrs. Coulter then asks Lord Asriel to come to the new world with him, but he is only interested in finding the "Dust" and destroying it. Mrs. Coulter refuses to come, but Lord Asriel decides to walk away into the other world. Lyra decides that if Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter hate Dust, then it must be a good thing, so Pantalaimon and her decide to go and look for the source of Dust. They leave Roger’s body in the snow on the mountaintop and walk into the new world. This ending was a little disappointing, since I wish it ended with Lyra getting rid of Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel. Although the story was fairly good I don't think it should have had this ending, since it leaves room for a sequel. I think the author should have had an ending that was more satisfying and ended all the commotion, not just start the chaos back up again. For this reason and the fact that it was a little boring at the beginning I would rate this book 3 out of 5 stars, since I enjoyed the action in the middle and end.

Week 7 Post A

Vocab:

feeble(282): physically weak, as from age or sickness.

abating(283): to reduce in amount; diminish.

Figurative Language:

1. "She heard a noise, something scraping on rock, which sounded like fingernails on a chalkboard"(283). This similie is just used to tell the reader how the scraping on the rock sounded.
2. "The cool breeze was as refreshing as an ice cold class of water"(290). This is also another similie, which is used to say how cooling the breeze felt.
3. "The steep cliffs glared fiercely at Lyra"(293). This quote shows how scary the cliffs were to Lyra, who is afraid of heights.

Quote:

"Behind them lay pain and death and fear; ahead of them lay doubt, and danger, and fathomless mysteries. But they weren't alone"(351). This is the last sentence of the book that wraps it up by Lyra and Pantalaimon walking into the sky, where "Dust" is suppose to be and they figure it is a good thing, since Lord Asriel does not like it.

Theme:

The hero always prevails over the villain.

Week 6 Post B

The book just keeps getting better and better. Lyra meets a man named John Faa, who is the leader of the Gyptians, who are a group that are working against the Gobblers and protecting children from being taken. He tells her that her she was the illegitimate child of Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter. He also goes on to tell her that Ma Costa nursed her as a baby. Lyra is overwhelmed by this thought and is also thankful to Ma Costa. This is a crazy twist to the story, that helps everything make more sense adds to the action. This makes a lot of sense as to why Lord Asriel was so mean to her, not only because he was just in general an evil man, but also because he wanted the Gobblers to take her away and get rid of her, since Lyra is "illegitimate." This also makes sense why Mrs. Coulter was so nice to her, she was part of the whole plan and wanted to draw Lyra in and then let the Gobblers take her.

Lyra is now living with the Gyptians who are working to put an end to the Gobblers. Mrs. Coulter along with the General Oblation Board are searching for Lyra, who is hiding with the Gyptians.

This section of reading ends with Lyra learning how to use the altheiometer, which is the "golden compass" with the help of Fardem Coram. With this device, Lyra is able to predict the future and learn anything about the past and future. If Lyra is able to hold on to this device, the Gyptians should have no problem getting rid of the Gobblers and saving all the innocent lives.

Week 6 Post A

Vocab:

incessant(116): continuing without interruption.

munitions(120): materials used in wars.

Figurative Language:

1. "I hope you en't going to let thoughts of mercy and gentleness hold your hand back from striking and striking hard, and delivering a mighty blow to the heart of that infernal wickedness"(121). This hyperbole is used to exaggerate the action that must take place in against the corrupt masters at Oxford University.


2. "To strike a day too soon is as bad as striking a hundred miles off"(122). This similie is simply used to say that the group must strike right on time otherwise their whole scheme will be ruined.


3. "Sophonax was as sleek and healthy and beautiful as Farder Coram was ravaged and weak"(126). A similie is used here to describe Farder Coram and his daemon's appearances as complete opposites.

Quote:

"But I'm learning how to read the althiometer, too. It's coming clearer every day! You're bound to need that--bound to"(124)! This quote is significant, since the althiometer is the "golden compass" and it is obviously significant in this story and Lyra is now learning how to use it

Theme:

Magic is a powerful utensil.

Week 5 Post B

The last section of reading was a lot more action packed and interesting. I'm starting to actually get into the book, finally. This section started with Lyra having just escaped from the party Mrs. Coulter hosted at Oxford University. She feels free for the first time, but soon realizes that she must face the real world which isn't a walk in the park either for her. The author, Phillip Pullman also portrays society as a whole as corrupt and evil. This reminds me of European history, where Prince Machiavelli shares this belief that it is human nature to think badly of others. I disagree with this theory, since it seems to me that at least in sociey today most people care for others and there aren't as many "bad" people as in Philip Pullman's imaginary society in this story. There are just a handful of people in society today that are "bad" to the extent of Philip Pullman.
Lyra and Pantalaimon meet a friendly man named Tony Costa who helps them by rescuing them by a band of slavers. This is one of the few trustful people that Lyra meets throughout this story. Hopefully, Lyra will continue to run into these good samaritans and her life will continue to improve. Also, i'm still yet to find out about the golden compass.

Week 5 Post A

Vocabulary:

tweed(94): a coarse wool cloth in a variety of weaves and colors.

platoon(96): a small unit of police fore.

Figurative Language:

1. "Before she could go out on deck, the outer door opened and Ma Costa came down, swathed in an old tweed coat on which the damp had settled like a thousand tiny pearls"(94). This similie is used to describe the "tweed coat."


2. "Helping Mrs. Coulter had been all very well, but Pantalaimon was right: she wasn't really doing any work there, she was just a pretty pet"(98). This metaphor is used to say that Lyra had to move on her life and get away from Mrs. Coulter, because it wasn't helping her get any where.


3. "The low island and the Zaal were humped blackly against the light, like the clustered buildings around"(100). This similie is simply used just to describe the setting.
   

Quote:

"What you're most like is marsh fire, that's the place you have in the gyptian scheme; you got witch oil in your soul. Deceptive, that's what you are, child"(100). I just think this quote is interesting, because I picked deception as a theme in the previous blog post and I said that Lyra is needing to become more and more deceptive in order to survive the corrupt society that she lives in.

Theme:

An important theme that is definetly present is innocence and the unfairness of life.

Week 4 Post B

After this section of reading my I found my prediction of Lyra's life improving, was shown to be false. Mrs. Coulter turned out to be another typical, corrupt and evil adult figure in this story. At first Lyra is thoroughly enjoying her new life with Mrs. Coulter. Mrs. Coulter treats her well with great luxury and Lyra's favorite part is all the new clothes Mrs. Coulter buys her. This turns out to just be a plan to draw in Lyra and for her to trust Mrs. Coulter, even though she shouldn't. When Lyra first meets Mrs. Coulter she falsely reads Mrs. Coulter to be a truly warm-hearted kind figure, but Pantalaimon isn't so sure about her daemon, the gold monkey. This is a foreshadow that the author Phillip Pullman uses to show that Mrs. Coulter doesn't mean well to Lyra after all.

Lyra finds out about Mrs. Coulter's true self at a party that Mrs. Coulter organizes for her company friends. Lyra overhears guest talking about Dust and the General Oblation Board, which Lyra finds out is a code name for the Gobblers, who are responsible for the disappearences of various students.

At the end of this section of reading, Lyra runs away from the party and escapes into the city with Pantalaimon, where she feels "free." Hopefully, the "golden compass" can save Lyra from her misery.

Week 4 Post A

Vocabulary:

anathema(95): a person or thing detested or loathed.

emanation(85): an act or instance of oringinating.

Figurative Language:

1. "Mrs. Coulter had given her money like sweets, and although she had spent it lavishly, there were still several sovereigns left, which she put in the pocket of the dark wolfskin coat before tiptoeing to the door"(88). This is a similie that is used just to show that Mrs. Coulter gave Lyra an enormous amount of spending money.


2. "There was a tangle of narrow streets between there and the Royal Artic Institute, which was the only place Lyra was sure of being able to find, and into that dark maze she hurried now"(89). This metaphor is used to describe the "tangle of narrow streets" as a "dark maze." This helps the reader visualize the streets better.


3. "At a crossrods near the corner of a big department store whose windows shone brilliantly over the wet pavement, there was a coffe stall: a little hut on wheels with a counter under the wooden flap that swung up like an awning"(90). This is another similie used to describe how the counder under the wooden flap came out of the hut on wheels.

Quote:

"I told you, he's a murderer. It's his profession. He's doing a job tonight. I got his clean clothes in here, 'cause he's usually all covered in blood when he's finished a job"(95). This is an example of Lyra being deceptive. She encounters a creepy guy when she runs away from Mrs. Coulter and lies to him and says her father is a murderer, so she can get away from the guy. This is also important, because it shows how Lyra must be deceptive, in order to survive this corrupt society.

Theme:

A theme of deception was present in this set of reading.