1.    Give two examples of each of the following elements of fiction and nonfiction from the texts you’ve read in Units 1, 2, and 3.

Fiction story : The Giant’s House,  by Elizabeth McCracken

Non-Fiction story: Desiderata by  Elizabeth McCracken
Characters:
Fiction: James the teenager, Peggy the librarian and Astoria, Darla the one who placed the books on the shelves..
Non-Fiction:  Desiderata by Elizabeth McCracken
Plot:
Fiction: Peggy and James fell in love
Non- Fiction: One would think that the narrator is in a quiet place writing and notating about her family history.
Conflict:
Fiction: James is searching to find a book about tall people as Peggy works with him by helping him to find some book. But she hesitant because the books she finds or about giants and knows how he feel, so she does not want the hurt his feeling in any way.
Non-Fiction: The is a conflict because all the document as well as letter at her hands that she has are not completed, however the narrator defines Desiderata as something needed , wanted or really craved explains her feeling about her family history.

Setting:
Fiction: In the year of 1955, in a small town library.
Non- Fiction: The narrator home, in the car with her father.
Point of View:
Fiction:  Peggy who was the narrator, she feels that James is in an emotional state of mind and she is very mindful of what she says to him.
Non- Fiction: The author’s involves her personal experience concerning her family history.
•    Theme:
•     Fiction:  The difficulties of being out cast with disabilities. A very important message about behavior and human life.
Non-Fiction: The theme is about living  a wonderful life
Tone:
Fiction: Beginning with the narrator the tone placidly, sometimes flat and lacking humor.
Non-fiction: Deliver pleasant musical sound that assured many of the people who listen.
Perspective:
Fiction: Romance
Nonfiction: Keeping the peace within one self.
Bias:
Purpose:
Fiction: Was to let us know that people who have disabilities are human and they have feeling concerning being different from others. Also people who are lonely do find love if they open up their heart.
Non-fiction: To get others to look at problems and beauty of the world, to have hope and visualize with their eyes.

2.    Argue a case for either the usage of hyperbole or understatement. Which do you think is more effective? More humorous? Explain your opinions, citing examples from the texts.
I would think Hyperbole is more effective because of it intentional, exaggeration; it give more visual in understanding humor. In non-fiction “The Talk” essay, there are different example of use of hyperbole, found on page 574 such as “First, our heads got large, but our necks wavered, frail as crisp tulips. The eyes stayed small as well, receding into pencil dots on each side of and unshapely nose that cast remarkable shadows when we turned sideways”. This seen to be effective in visual terms and I find it to be kind of humorous, but that is just my opinion.

3.    Cite examples from the texts you’ve read in Units 1, 2, and 3 to briefly explain the answers to the Big Questions.

A.    Unit 1: Can truth change?

“The Giants House. “In The Giants House, there’s a man with a condition called “gigantism” of which had no treatment or operation to cure, which was the truth back then. Now, in the 21st century, we have a special kind of operation/surgery that removes bone marrow from your fibula and fibula, more known as your shin and calf bone. When they remove the bone marrow from both bones, they fuse the two separated areas together, making your shin and calf bones shorter. It’s an operation which stops growth in the lower legs completely. The only problem with this operation is that the rest of your body will grow, while your legs would be the same length for the rest of your life.
B. Unit 2: Is conflict necessary? “The  Most Dangerous Game”
For Zaroff conflict is completely necessary, which is the reason he decided it would be most challenging to hunt humans. Intelligence and problem solving skill made the hunt more fun for him……. he was a pretty sick guy!
C.  Unit 3: Is knowledge the same as understanding?
No, I would not think consider knowledge the same as understanding. The reason I say that is because you can understand something such as   directions or a concept without the full knowledge of it, knowledge is something you inquired pervious to understanding.

4.    Discuss the role of love in three of the texts you read in Units 1, 2, or 3.

A White House Diary, the citizens and people closest to President Kennedy all came together the days of his assassination in the month of November 22, 1963.  Mostly all the people showed their love for the President on that tragic day.
The Most Dangerous Game, the General Zaroff showed and expressed his love for hunting; because it was the only passion he desired.
The Talk, in this story two finds had been infatuated with the girls from next door: they fantasize about their future wife’s. These two boys talked about the next store as if they loved her and wish they were not so “ugly” so they could talk to her.

5.    Explain the author’s use of symbolism in three of the texts from Units 1, 2, or 3.

Unit 1:  The washwoman By Isaac Bashevis Singer
The Washwoman was old and fragile-looking, but she was dedicated and strong. She would get the family’s laundry and return it 2-3 weeks later. She was loyal, dedicated, hard-working, and selfless.  One day she gets the laundry but doesn’t return for 2 months. The family thinks she died. Then she returns, gives back the laundry, explains she fell sick, but never comes back after.
Unit 2: The Gift of the Magi – By O Henry
In “The Gift of the Magi” O’ Henry uses symbolism in reference to the Three Magi (The 3 Wise men).  They come bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to Baby Jesus in Bethlehem.  The gold is a symbol of love, the frankincense and myrrh were used to burn and had a sweet aroma. They were also ingredients used in developing medicines.  These gifts were not only practical, but precious.
Jim and Della gave gifts that were also the same.  They were prized possessions but the gifts they bought were practical; combs for her hair and a chain for his watch.  They bought these things to add to the importance of their possessions, but in the end the greatest gift they had was their love for each other.
Unit 3:
A Celebration of Grandfathers, is a story from the authors past memories about his Grandfather and other elders. He remembers about his respected Grandfather, a farmer, teaching Anaya to learn English and sharing values together. Now he is older, he understands the power of his heritage, which is Mexican-American.