end of book analysis

After finally finishing The Soloist my opinion for the most part changed throughout the book. At first I was eager to read it and then as I progressed it began to bore me. Then toward the end I really took a liking to it and learned to appreciate the much bigger picture that I seemed to be overlooking. I was for some time in the mindset that this book didn’t have much meaning except to talk about a reporters experience with a schizophrenic homeless man. Then, I began to see the bigger picture. This was how one person can completely change the way you look at life and the way you set your priorities. This is what Nathanial did for Steve.

Sometimes they need another person to believe in them before they’re confident to believe in themselves.

This was a quote taken from the book that really stood out to me. As we all know Nathanial was schizophrenic, and for a mentally ill person he came a long way without medicine with the help from Steve. When it got rocky and Lopez really though there was no getting through to Nathanial, he still stayed and helped Nathanial with everything he had. Even when Nathanial screamed to Lopez telling him never to come see him again Lopez still went back because he knew Nathanial needed that person that wouldn’t give up and believe in him.

I think another reason Lopez stuck it out so long was because Nathanial really made an impact and changed his life as well. I feel as though Lopez never put that much effort into anything as much as he did with Nathanial. We rarely read or hear about someone helping and caring about another person’s life as this book provided. It really made me realize that not everyone has it so well, but with a little help it’s possible to bring happiness to a once shattered life. This is definitely what Lopez did with Nathaniel. If it wasn’t for Lopez, Nathanial never would get off the streets and never be as happy with he music as he is now. Lopez was a blessing for Nathaniel, and as much as Nathaniel did not show it and had he outbreaks deep down he knew it. This is why in my opinion he became as successful as he did without medicine.

Since this story is a bout a man who has schizophrenia I decided to do a little research on my own on this disease. Schizophrenia is a severe brain disease. About one percent or two million people develop this disease during their lifetime. In men, symptoms usually start in the late teens or early twenties. For woman, symptoms usually start in the twenties or early thirties. Symptoms of this disease include hearing voices, seeing things that in reality aren’t there, believing people are reading their minds, controlling their thoughts, or planning to harm them. Unfortunately, most patients suffer with this illness throughout their lives. In estimation, one in five people recover completely. Hallucinations and illusions occur commonly. Also, delusions are common as well. Delusions are false personal beliefs such as the belief of being cheated on, harassed, or poisoned. Schizophrenia also affects a person’s ability to think straight. Some may begin to attempt to commit suicide as a result of having this disease. In the story Nathanial most likely has paranoid schizophrenia. Which are hallucinations and suspicion of others. The reason I did this was to be more educated of what Nathanial deals with throughout his life. By knowing this I feel more connected with Nathanial and his problem. It is easier to relate to him and what he goes through.

            Lopez’s articles seemed to be about different social issues that he strives to gain the cities input. I feel that he would not write about something where he could not gain people’s opinions. For example in the article “Money For Stadiums but not for Schools”, Lopez has many different opinions and he made sure they were from a broad range of people. He made sure that the people he interviewed about the topic were from different social and age groups. The purpose of writing this story “The Soloist” in my opinion was to show how sometimes one of the most remarkable stories are overlooked. Who would think that a homeless man would have such an extraordinary story? Most of us, even writers would overlook a topic like this thinking there would be no impact.

            Lopez seems to write about issues of people less fortunate. In his book, Nathanial has an illness that can ruin a life. Even with this illness, Lopez found the extraordinary skill in this man. His writings are mainly for awareness, from writing about a person’s life to writing about funding money for schools. They are all about letting people know what social issues are going on and try to make people step out of their bubble. I feel as if he writes to influence people to do what they believe in and to show that no matter what obstacles will be in the way, it is how you act when faced with them that matters.  The story itself is definitely an autobiography and biography. It falls into these two categories because he talks about his life and his experiences along with the life of Nathanial Ayers. He chooses to write these stories in first person point of view. This in my opinion is so that his readers can understand his reasoning’s and thoughts as they go along.

            The Soloist is definitely a story like no other. Sometimes we are faced with biographies that are not that as interesting as a fiction book would be. With this book it is not the case. Lopez introduced this story in such a way that it attracted more than readers. It has become a major motion picture. While writing this I honestly do not think that Lopez believed it would ever become this big of a success as it did. From his past stories I feel as if his dream finally came true. People all over are exposed to a story different from any other. 

As I began reading The Soloist, I felt as though this book was not going to keep my interest. Well, as I continued to read I was proven wrong. The first few chapters seemed not quite interesting in my opinion but as I read on I began to hold a sturdy interest. Although I am not that far, (chapter 7) I seem to have a good understanding of the relationship growing between Nathanial and Steve Lopez. If you may not know Nathanial is a homeless man who suffers from a disease called schizophrenia. This disease is non curable and his living situation does not makes conditions any better. Steve Lopez, as a writer for a newspaper was looking for his next story. Never imagining it would involve a homeless man with such an extreme talent. Nathanial is an amazing musician. This story is definitely very different than what I have read in the past. Most stories we read in English are fictional, so this was a shift of content. I was a little worried at the beginning because biographies usually do not interest me, but after reading more of the story, I felt less discouragement and more enjoyment.

I am eager to find out more about Nathanial’s past and how he wound up in such a negative situation. I hope to find this information as I further my reading.

The Catcher in the Rye was definitely a type of book that I do not read often. Some may feel the book has no point or meaning, since it is just about a young man’s experiences. If you look deeper you will see so much more of the purpose of this book. Throughout the whole book we see life through the eyes of Holden Caulfield, a young man who has just been kicked out of his school, Pency Prep. The teenage years are most confusing and filled with different experiences. I think the author did a great job while writing in truly becoming the character and being able to write in a teenagers mindset.
What I enjoyed best about the book was the way the author had Holden go off into his own thoughts about certain things. For example every story was in his point of view, so all we ever got was his perspective on things. Another thing I also caught onto was at times in the story he repeated his words quite a bit when he wanted to emphasize something. I really enjoyed that because I was able to tell when he really felt strongly about a certain matter.
Holden seems to go through life not worrying about the future or his present actions. His attitude is pretty much an “I don’t care” one. When he got kicked out of Pency he pretty much did not worry. He thinks that no matter what happens to him in life he will wind up perfectly fine. This on the other hand is not always the best way to live. He seems to worry about none of his actions and doesn’t think much of the consequences. For example, after he left Pency he traveled to New York with only a little money to last him a few weeks. He did not think ahead on what would happen after his money ran out, but only on the present situation. When he finally ran out of cash, he relied on his sister to help him out until he figured out what he was going to do. This is not always the best mindset as you can see.
For some reason I feel that Holden somewhat wanted attention. He seemed to be a smart boy, therefore his own choices made him become expelled from all his schools. In a way I feel he was sort of jealous of his brother D.B and wanted his family to appreciate him as much as they did his brother. He was a successful writer and in a way that may have made Holden quite jealous. So, his actions of always getting in trouble set off why I came to this conclusion.
Something else I enjoyed about the book was how at some points Holden would tell a little story about things that did necessarily pertain to what was actually going on. For example he talks about a story of when he was at one of his schools of a boy who committed suicide. Now this actually didn’t necessarily pertain to what was going on but none the less it was very interesting. Also, getting a bit of background of all the people he encounters makes me as a reader feel as if I know them as well.


I'd like to be graded on how good my description of the book is. Also my ideas and how well I gave details should be considered. Grammer should also be included but not to big of a percent.

Over the past week or so the eleventh grade has read a short play called “Death of a Salesman.” This play was one that held my attention and gave me great interest. I think what I liked about it so much was that it wasn’t far fetched or imaginary. It was a story about a normal, middle class family and the problems they face. What I liked was that these problems are ones that families in real life also face despite the time period. For example, Willy Loman suffers from all timers. This is a realistic disease that many senior citizens live with everyday. Another example is that Willy had a few issues with his sons. No family is perfect, and not all problems are resolved. The author ended the play without a happy ending, which in my opinions was the best way since not many problems in real life always get resolved.
Willy was always trying to make his life a bigger success then it already was. Willy had big plans for his remaining future. Those dreams were unrealistic to everyone but him. This is my opinion is something that many people are faced with in real life also. We let our minds get ahead of ourselves and believe in things that are not always possible to obtain. This man did not want to face his reality, and instead his mind controlled him with old memories that he wished to relive.
I think the author wanted his readers to realize that even though the times periods are different and things have changed, certain things will always remain the same no matter how many decades pass. Clothing and style may change but the way families grow, and problems they face, and what happens with age will always remain the same.

Over the course of seven weeks i have been posting my writing's on a website called blogger instead of the original google group. In my opinion this blogger is a great idea for the student body. At first I was alittle doubtful about the whole idea because I was so use to just handing in my work but after using this blogger a few times I realized it was alot easier and overall better. The website allows everyone to read each other's work and respond with their opinions. In previous years, I was not able to see any piece of writing except for a limited amout in my class. Now, I am able to go on blogger and read all writings, especially those in the other 11th grade. This form of submitting work is defenitly differnt from any other way I have submitted work. In the previous years everything was done on paper. I feel this blogger is a defenitly an easier and better approach to english writing. This writing has defenitly changed the community between classes. By having this blogger I am able to see other classmates opinions, and their writing skills. This broadens my knowledge of all the diferent views of topics. One flaw of this blogging is that we are required to comment on each other's blogs. Now overall it is a good idea but I do not know how to keep track of how many I did. That could affect my overall grade because we get marks for it. It would help if there way a way to keep track. That is pretty much the only negative issue I have found on the blogger. Using this blogger I have found it to be more relaxed rather then worrying about handing work in on time or accidently forgetting to bring the work it. During the week we are able to focus on more issues and have more open discussions and at the end of the week we reflect that in our blogs. I also like how my peers are able to comment on my blogs. This helps me to become a better writer because i get to understand any flaws i might have. Also, I get to see if any others have the same opinions as me. To sum up, my overall opinion of this blogger is defenitly positive one. I hope to continue this form of writing in the future.