Tuesday, October 7, 2014

FLASHBACKS...

The story is told in the present and Artie shows the memories as flashbacks. How does he transition from present to past? Is the PRESENT VLADEK similar to or different from the FLASHBACK VLADEK? Explain with details form the story.

33 comments:

  1. Vladek transitions time by telling his war flashback's while talking to Artie. Present Vladek is much more assertive and in control versus the flashback Vladeck. When Vladek was in the war, he was much more willing to conform to what the other prisoners were doing. Although he refused to volunteer for the German work force, he willing listened to the officers while in the Prisoners of War Camp. He was willing to listen and do as he was told in order to keep himself safe. When speaking to the officer on the train he was very brave to admit he had no papers- he could have been killed for it. The present Vladeck is always in control- Artie is 30 years old and Vladeck still threw his coat away. SH F.H.S

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    1. I think the transitions from the flashbacks to modern time really keeps the story interesting. Instead of just hearing about one thing you get to focus on two things. PF R.E. LEE

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    2. I agree, it keeps your interested on what's going on in both scenarios. SH F.H.S

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  2. Artie and his father sit down and talk about his fathers life before the holocaust. It jumps back and forth from present day to memories of his dads life back in 1939. One minute Artie is taking notes on his fathers life and the next minute your in a flashback of his fathers life in the war. Artie's father back in 1939 was more obeying to other people. If someone gave him and task to do he did it because that's all he knew. Vladek did what he thought he had to do to survive. He was just a young man and just took rules from everyone. Vladek is sorta the same from the past but he does what he wants to do now. When he was in the POW camp he obeyed orders but after the holocaust in present day, he just does. Like when his son was leaving he couldn't find his coat. Artie's father Vladek threw it out. The way artie's father acts now was not like when he was a young man back in 1939.
    CD F.H.S

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  3. The story transitions from present to past back to present, by using flash backs. The flash backs are being told by Vladek. During his flash back in this chapter he tells about his time in the war. I think present day Vladek is more in control of his life, in the past Vladek would more so follow what others are doing then what he would want. When they are captured and put in the prisoners camp, he wants to go to work instead of rotting in the camp. He would not go by himself, but then most of the men decide to go. In the past he would not do what he wanted, so i believe present Vladek is different then past Vladek. Vladek was scared in the past, he was scared he would be killed if he did not obey the rules of the camp, but now since it is the present and he is free he feels he is in control. A way he shows control is when he throws Artie's coat out, even though Artie is a grown man. TL FHS

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    1. I agree that Vladek is in more control now than compared to before. It makes sense that someone would feel that way after living in fear of surviving.

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    2. well worded. Nice way to put it. And I agree it is more clear.
      CD F.H.S

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  4. The chapter starts out in the present where they are having dinner. Then from there Artie and Vladek went in the living room where all the flashbacks occurred. At one point Artie was smoking a cigarette in the house and got ashes all over the carpet. Vladek got upset with him because he didn’t want to clean it up. This happened right after his flashback of working at a stable and being forced to make it spotless in only one hour which was nearly impossible. Present Artie is obviously older and has more freedom than flashback Artie but I believe he’s still scarred from the past even if he wants to be a different person. He’s so adamant about Artie eating all his food and not making a mess probably because of experiences in the past. EM F.H.S

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    1. I like how the story relates the past to the present. Vladek still has strong memories from that time. Which, if i had been through that I'm sure I would have pretty strong memories too. Going through that would be a tough thing to forget, ever. PF R.E. LEE

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  5. Everyone uses flashbacks to relive a moment or tell a story. In this book, many flashbacks are used. Artie is smoking a cigarette in his fathers living room, the ashes fall on the floor.Vladek gets angry with him because it flashes him back to when he was working and had to make everything completely spotless. It was forced labor. Also, Artie in the beginning of the chapter is putting his food to waste. This also frustrates Vladek, he flashes back to when his mother made him eat every last bit of his food because times werent easy. I believe that present Vladek is a lot more confident in himself and assertive. He is no longer controlled but feels as if he is. He relives the past everyday. Artie is trying to leave and get his coat but Vladek threw the coat out. This is how the flashbacks work and how present Vladek is different than past Vladek. JW FHS

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    1. I agree with you. At the beginning Artie was putting food to waste. Which frustrates Vladek.

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  6. The story reverts from present day to flashbacks by either Artie inquiring about his father's past or using something from present day to revert back to it. For example, Artie's father is talking about how they had to clean the stables when he realizes that Artie is ashing on the carpet and makes him clean it up and relates it to the stables. Also in the beginning of the chapter, when Vladek tried ranting about Mala, Artie interrupted and asked him to tell him about when he was drafted. Young Vladek and old Vladek are obviously different by his age but also present Vladek feels safer in his environment while flashback Vladek was scared in his surroundings. AR F.H.S

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    1. I agree with you. Vladek does feel safer in his environment while having his flashbacks he was scared.

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    2. I disagree, I find Vladek was much braver during the war. SH F.H.S

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    3. I agree with Soph in the fact that Vladek is more brave during the war. PB FHS

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  7. Artie visits his father more often and they sit down and talk about his dad's life during the holocaust. Artie is taking notes and then all of the sudden your in one of his dad's flash backs. I honestly think that vladek is more in control of his life then before because during the holocaust nobody is really in control except for the nazis.
    M.S R. E. Lee

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  8. The transition between current time and flashback is made by instantly when Artie is talking to Vladek. When Vladek starts to talk about the past is when this instant transition is made. I feel like current day Vladek is a little bit more in assertive and in control while past Vladek was not in control and was forced to do labor. In fact it shows that some of the practices Vladek had while in forced labor still remain intact, liie when Artie was dropping ashes on the carpet and Vladek made him clean it and related it to when he was forced to clean things spotless
    Dylan Hogsett R.E. Lee

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  9. Vladek tells Artie about his experience during the Holocaust with flashbacks. His flashbacks are interrupted when something bothers him. For example, Artie gets cigarette ashes on the carpet and he stops telling his story to tell Artie to clean it up. I think present and past Vladek are different. Obviously something like the Holocaust would change someone. Also, when your wife commits suicide, that would also change you. I think that is why he is so mean to Mala. He misses Anja.

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    1. I agree with you. Enduring the things he did seems like it would make him channel his frustration into something. He has high expectations of everyone around him and has even more in himself than now than in his past.

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  10. The story tells Vladeks experience during the beginning of the Holocaust through flashbacks. Mostly of life just before and in the ghettos. Vladek had to sneak around a lot at the risk of being caught. The story switches from flashbacks and real life events to keep it interesting. Artie is told to clean up the ashes from his cigarette, I think that's because during the Holocaust Vladek was forced to clean. PF R.E. LEE

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  11. The difference between Vladek past and present is the way he approaches everything. Present day Vladek is assertive and let's his presence be felt even if he is not in the room. An example would be when Artie is looking for Anja's diary and he spills a few papers on the floor. Mala knows she would never hear the end of that from Vladek. I feel that he is in control now because he feels like it is his fault that Anja committed suicide. Past or flashback Vladek isn't as self-reliant.

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    1. I agree that Present day Vladek is more assertive compared to flashback Vladek. PB FHS

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  12. The story explains Vladeks experience right as the Holocaust started. The story is told by flashbacks at first. After a while it changes from flashbacks to real life. It gives it a really interesting feel. It has so much emotion.

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    1. It really does give a more interesting with the usage of flashbacks. Also I think it makes everything realistic because usually when people tell stories there's other things going on in the present that can be distracting. EM F.H.S

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  13. The flashbacks represent the difference between the past and the present and the way Vladek approaches everything. in present day, Vladek is very assertive and lets his presence be felt. past or flashback vladek is not assertive or as self-relient as he is in the present. Nbk Robert E, Lee H.S.

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    1. I agree that it represents the difference between past and present and I think that's a good way of showing it. You can definitely tell that the present Vladek is more assertive. EM F.H.S

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  14. I think that Vladek is different because to me, it seems like in the present he is giving little messages to Artie about things that he learned of back in the war. Also it seems like he was more shy back in the past than he is in the present.CB Lee HS

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  15. I think Vladek changed a lot from the past to the present. He was more passive in the past while now in the present he's more outspoken wants to be in the spotlight. He wants his presents known even if he's not in the room.

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  16. Present Vladek, in my opinion is different than Flashback Vladek. I think that Present Vladek is more outgoing and willing to talk about things compared to the Vladek in the flashbacks. Also Present day Vladek is a lot more assertive than in his Flashback.
    PB FHS

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  17. Vladek’s character in the flashbacks as opposed to his character in the present is different in my opinion One distinct characteristic that was displayed in the past was how brave and heroic he was. Vladek is always looking for opportunities to help himself and Anja. Vladek, with all odds against him, manages to survive through the deadly circumstances. But his present day self is almost a different person compared to his courageous young version of himself. Obviously, he could not be as strong as he was before with his illness limiting his physical condition. The man who convinced his wife to not commit suicide was different from the man who married Mala. Perhaps it was the death on Anja that changed his mindset. (123) CAA STA BLOCK 1

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  18. The story is transitioned from past to present using flashbacks by explaining how life in the war was, what kind of person he had to be, and how he was changed after coming out of the camp. I could immediately tell that he was very brave and didn't fear what was in store for him when the Nazis asked for his papers and he straight-up said he did not have them. In other words, the Vladek back then was or had the behavior of a teenager; brave, confident, risk taking, and nonchalant. However, the modern-day Vladek was very different; he was much more organized and giving commands to others for their good. I believe this was the result of two factors; 1. Anja's suicidal death. 2. Like war, the Holocaust definitely changed many lives drastically. (135) GC STA BLOCK 5

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  19. Throughout the novels, we get to see a visualisation of the past through Vladek's flashbacks. The majority of the book is shown with pictures of the past and is interrupted with something causing Vladek to loose his concentration such as Art spilling ashes on the carpet or Vladek loosing track of his pills. We return to the past with Art reminding his father of the story or the beginning of a new chapter. Throughout the story, Vladeks overall behavior is constant with his past and present. To me, he seems to have the same behavior and reactions from the past to the present. (103) STA JC Block 1

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  20. Artie would transition from present to past that he and his father will talk about the stories about the present and would transition into the past. The past would start a little intro and get into the whole thing. It is not just like present story and transition right away into the story, which would make it more confusing because you will not able to tell which the past is and present. The present Vladek is the same as flashback because present Vladek is pretty cheap and doesn’t like to waste his money. Flash Vladek wasn’t cheap and was a resourceful and knew how make trades. (106) RR STA Block 3

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