Honors English Deibler 4

Prompt #1

What Mark witnesses is far more serious than anything I have witnessed in my entire life, let alone in my first ten years of life. When Mark saw that man being brutally murdered by the Tsotsis, it would be enough for anybody to truly contemplate the real meaning of life, and how insignificant one person really is. I am adamantly against suicide for it is a truly selfish act, and this is no different. However, with what Mark has been subjected to in his life so far is at least an understandable reason as to why he would commit such a heinous act. Between unwarranted police raids and brutal murders right in his backyard, it is enough to send anyone over the ledge.

After seeing such a brutal murder, Mark began to wonder what his purpose is on life. He began to descend into a deep depression and became incredibly introverted. He wondered whether anybody loved him or would even miss him if he was gone. In thinking about that so much, he began to convince himself that the world would be a better place without him, and truly, who could blame him? At the meager age of ten, Mark was SERIOUSLY considering taking his own life and he almost did.

While I know that I would definitely not have the courage to cause myself pain or attempt suicide, if I were in Marks shoes it is probably something I would have also considered. To say that Marks life is unfair is an understatement. He has never been treated justly by anybody he has ever met. Even his mother can be rather unfair. What’s worse is he has absolutely no outlet for all of this pent up rage that is building insider him. At least, that’s what he thinks until his mother convinces him that he would be missed dearly and he is loved very much. Marks reasons for committing suicide were not fueled by selfishness, but by thinking that he has absolutely no point on this Earth. If there was ever a just cause to commit suicide, this is it. Of course, we know now how wrong he actually was. He has changed many lives and I know without doubt that by reading this book he has changed mine as well.

Prompt #2

“The teachers descended on me like starved vultures out of the sky. They commenced the savage beating, taking turns whenever ones hand got tired. I fainted. They revived me, only to whip me some more. I spent an entire week bedridden, unable to sit up or sleep. For the rest of my primary school years I seldom, if ever, cut school for any reason. Even when I was gravely ill, I would crawl to school, and the teachers would send me back home.” Pg. 161. I find this passage to be one of the utmost significance because if Mark had never been whipped, he would have never gone back to school. If Mark had never gone back to school, then who knows what could have happened to the rest of his life. While reading this passage I felt terrible for Mark and even wished that the teachers would let up on him. I realize now that if that was the only way to keep him in school, then it was probably worth it.

Prompt #3

1. How will Mark ever go to a university or get out of Alexandra with still very little money and only a meager education? How did he end up in the United States?

2. Do you think Mark will still be resentful towards his father even after he grows up, or do you think he will learn to forgive his father and even appreciate him for shaping him into the person he is now?

1. Is a dystopian society presented in a more effective manner through a non-fiction text or a fiction text?  Explain your response, citing specific examples.

A dystopian society would be presented in a more effective manner through a fiction text. I believe this because terrible things that happen in fictional circumstances are impossibly bad. For example, in real life there is probably not a cult/town that pulls a lotto name twice a year just so they can stone the “winner.” Imagining that you were in that position where you were about to be stoned just because a bit of bad luck is probably more wildly unfair than being beaten because your pass book is not in order. Of course, in Kaffir Boy we know that the circumstances are real and that they actually happened when we read them so at first we think that those events represent a dystopia more effectively.

But just pretending like both of those were real situations, I would definitely prefer to be beaten up by a police officer I didn’t know about a crime I did not commit than be stoned to death by malicious adults, children, and even family that I had known for my whole life. At least in one of them I make it out alive. Also, in the fictional circumstance, I would have participated openly and proudly in the dystopian society, even egging that behavior on. In Kaffir Boy, Johannes never gives up who he really is. At least in that non-fictional setting he was able to remain true to himself, which is probably one of the most important aspect of our very existence. So while Kaffir Boy represents an incredibly effective dystopian society, I would rather live there where I would have a chance of a better life due to hard work that I earned rather than have my life snuffed out unexpectedly by the people I loved.