Free response/guiding question
In the Chapter "Dance Dance Dance" Junior feels that he needs to keep pretending that he is poor and has now made a cartoon about how to avoid showing that you are poor and it does have some power behind it if you think about it. It shows how much he goes through almost everyday to try and be the least bit normal. He musters enough money to go to the dance and Penelope did something very nice and made him feel good about his suit and he then quoted "It was the best time of his life" and by the end of the dance he was happy and had at least one more friend. His identity really changed in this chapter as well because when they go to the diner he admits that he is poor and he learns that people like him for who he is not what he seems to be and I think that will stick with him for a long time if not forever. I wonder what Earl was think letting Penelope go with arnold because the chapter before he had threatened him. I think Earl knew that other people were going to and that changed his opinion or he realized it was time for his daughter to grow up. When junior tries to make up with Rowdy in the next chapter I guess it kind of worked because rowdy sent him something that he would do even if they were friends so I think Rowdy is making an effort to. I think this is leading to them making up but I think there will be still some turbulence. Do you think that they will be friends? Do you think that things have now changed for the better and will stay that way? Do you think that Arnold will still have his friends aven though they know he is poor?
Using evidence from the chapter called DANCE, DANCE, DANCE, Arnold has already experienced others knowing his social status; poor. The news of his poverty is only at its shoots of life. Many at Reardan are still oblivious to his status. However, this does not dissuade Roger and Penelope from being friends with him. When Junior gets out of Roger's car, Penelope says a private goodbye, "She started to cry. FOR ME!" (129). This shows Penelope's empathy for Junior. Penelope definitely cares about him, the discovery of poverty has not resulted in Arnold losing any friends yet. This helps him find his identity because he learns that people like him for his personality, not his status. This fact will not completely forfend Arnold's relationship with the overall student body. As a result, Junior may be prone to losing friends at Reardan, as it is a white school, where money is a major focus of choosing friends. Relating with Penelope may help subside the prejudice within the student body. Though Junior will certainly not lose ALL his friends at Reardan, he will be judged by many.
ReplyDeleteHow would this story have been different if Reardan was a school for poorer whites?
If Reardan was a school for poorer whites, then they would totally accept Arnold and Arnold would not have hidden his poverty in the first place. Well, I would not say he would have been excepted immediately but he would be less of a outsider.
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ReplyDeleteI think that Arnold will have friends at Reardan even if they find about his class. When he told Penelope that he wasn’t as wealthy as he was seeming to be, she started to cry and then she kissed him on the cheek. Arnold said, “But then I realized she was being my friend. Being a really good friend in fact” (127). Once Penelope knew he was poor she started to become a better friend. This scene was a major change in their friendship, Penelope started caring about Arnold. On page 127 Penelope said, “Roger was the one who guessed you were poor.” This is showing that Roger knew about Arnold's class but still remained a great friend. Arnold will still have friendships at Reardan even if they know he is struggling with poverty.
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