Author: Jordin De La Rosa

The reason why they used nail polish to deceive the passengers from Simon’s leg wound is because one of the nail polish bottles had red ink instead of actual nail polish. Second, Simon wanted to fool everyone that someone else is the murderer by “harming” himself and throwing the gun away. People would believe a wounded man rather than a man who’s unhurt. This was all an elaborate scheme that Simon conjured up.

After reading “The Complete Persepolis” by Marjane Satrapi, I came to a realization of one of my favorite chapters from the beginning of the comic and it has to be “The Bicycle”. The reason behind it that being my favorite chapter is because of the meaning and context behind it. Marjane describes what it means for a revolution to occur and what happens if the wheels stop. What happens if the cyclist stops pedaling? It falls. For a revolution to succeed, you’ll need individuals on the bike constantly pedaling to keep the bike moving. Without movement, you’re stagnant. No matter what is thrown your way, everyone on the bike must continue pedaling in order to win. You begin to understand Marjane’s faith and how she became the way she is. In the chapter, you also hear the conversation between her mother and father. They’re talking about the unforeseeable events that occurred in a cinema. How it was all part of a scheme to allow four hundred lives to either be injured or lost. Marjane overhears the conversation and is willing to join her parents to help fight this revolution. Her parents explain the dangers of doing this and brushes off her question. This is another reason why I enjoyed this chapter because it shows how much of a child Marjane is. She believes that this is all a game and doesn’t understand it’s true horrors. On how much she believes that she can help the cause but doesn’t understand the consequences of doing so. Marjane wants success and she strongly feels that she’ll bring change at her age. To then conclude the chapter with her wondering where God is at so she can perhaps vent her anger on why she isn’t allowed to revolt.

In the story, “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, you are here worrying about a man who is currently in the middle of a crisis with the cold temperature and at first, you’re stuck wondering if there aren’t any options around him that will make him feel as if he could survive this day but instead you’re treated with a man who infuriates you with the thought process that goes through his brain. He goes to this place that he knows is below freezing temperature and instead, he insists on making this journey with a poor dog. A man that doesn’t think twice about his actions. He was told by an older individual that the journey to travel will not be a safe one due to the cold temperatures but proceeds to go. I was felt with bitter emotion reading the agonizing pain that he and the dog was feeling. However, reading this made me enjoy the way John London was able to describe these moments. Reading this made me realize a time I was freezing cold and how horrible that feeling can be. From the lips that felt as if they were to shatter if you were to fall, the numbness of your hands that you can see but not feel as if they weren’t there. As well as describing the environment he was in. I can imagine the narrator trudging through this area with his dog struggling to make this journey possible. It didn’t seem doable and comprehensible. John London did a phenomenal job at conveying the feeling of being in a harsh environment. He also depicted the constant failing of trying to create a fire and how it would constantly go out because he wasn’t thinking ahead. You start to feel bad for the main character because everything isn’t going his way but he’s the one that got himself into that event and he must bury the consequences, which was his death…