DUE: Thursday by 8:30 a.m.
Download and read the story by clicking the link below:
Please post your response to the following questions in the comments section below. You should aim for 400 words.
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What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
a) topic sentence (main message/ lesson). The main message of the story is that we should/ shouldn’t …
b) Elaboration: In life, …
c) Examples: In the story, ….
d) tell me how it connects to your message: Therefore, …. e) personal connection based on the lesson: I think that the story…. In my experience….
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Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
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If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
You will be marked on the quality of your response and your response to others’ comments:
9-10: Excellent and insightful; response shows superb understanding and critical analysis; contains great details and responds to complex ideas
7-8: Good; response shows thoughtful understanding; contains good details and responds to ideas
5-6: Satisfactory; response shows a basic understanding; contains basic details and responds only to major ideas
3-4: Unsatisfactory; response shows some misunderstanding; contains insufficient details and does not fully respond to the main ideas
1-2: Poor; response shows poor understanding; contains no details and does not respond to the task
EAP 300 
1, What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
The primary messages that the author want to tell readers is that we shouldn’t take actions without getting any information and knowledge. This is because we often get new opportunities to start something in life, but almost all people do not research them. They make a decision whether participating in these incidents or not by their feeling. Lack of knowledge sometimes cause serious troubles. For example, Jerry who is the main character in this story was very curious about the carnival which was taken place to reduce population by the government as he did not know how serious it is. If he had had more information about the carnival, he would not have gone to the carnival as there was high possibility that the odds are one in eight to die. I can understand why he is excited to go to the carnival as almost all people imagine the carnival is going to be fun. However, he should have collected any information about it. Therefore, we need to comprehend the contents of incidents at least not to encounter serious issues. Also, we must not take actions by our feeling if we are keen on something. I think that this story is going to remind me the importance of consideration when I confront some happening. In Canada, I need to make numerous difficult decisions in English. Although it might be hard to understand the contents in English, I try to catch on it to avoid serious problems. This for information, I think that the main ideas, which the author wants to tell us is that getting knowledge is essential in our life.
2, Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry a lot for Jerry because he was still student when he died. Although the government had to reduce the population, he was too young. His decision was wrong, but people around him should have convince him more seriously. I think that his mother had already known what the carnival is as she was crying in the first paragraph. This her attitude was kind of negligence to take care of him. Since it is difficult for students who are the same age as him to think logically, his parents, relative or teacher needed to support him to be alive.
3, If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I would like to the author Why you chose the carnival as the place to kill people? I guess why you choose amusement park is that you want to kill people accidentally. If I were you, I would choose the place where people cannot see from outside as it is illegal way to reduce population on purpose.
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Hello, Kaito! I mostly agree with your statement that people around Jerry should have told him the truth. However, as you mention in number 1, he should also have gained enough information by himself. What I want to say is that the accident brought on himself.
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Hello Kaito! I agree with your idea of talking about his idea. Also, I’m interested in your questions. Specifically, where do you recommend for the place to expand the carnival? And do you have any experience of making decisions without getting information?
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1. What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
I think that the main message of this story is about the problem of overpopulation. In the story, Jerry as a special guest of the government, won a free carnival ticket in the school lottery. He was very much looking forward to this carnival, but he did not know the true meaning of this carnival. The government also kills people who visit the amusement park by bus to reduce the population. Therefore, he was there because of government policy that was concerned about overpopulation. Moreover, when we hear the word carnival, everyone thinks of a fun place, but in this story the government is trying to solve the problem of overpopulation by using the name carnival. I do not think that this method is correct. Each human has the right to respect human rights. Therefore, as in this story, I think that government actions alone should never deprive a person of human rights, future, or freedom. I also think have to look ahead and deal with future issues. In my experience, I use my cell phone every day when I have free time. It is the same at home and outside. Also, when I noticed, I use GB a lot and the speed is limited. These can predict in advance how this problem can be resolved.
2. Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry. He got a carnival ticket and he was really looking forward to this carnival, but it was not a really fun event. He died by the government at this carnival. I’m sorry this was the result as he was looking forward to it. Also, if he knew the true meaning of this event, I think that he could have said goodbye to his family. That’s why I would like to say “I’m sorry” to him who died at the young age of sixteen.
3. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
If I could ask the author one question about this story, I would like to ask why the government invited a young man such as Jerry to this carnival as a special guest. I think that it is wrong to invite young people to a carnival to kill them to solve the problem of overpopulation because I think that young people have a bright future. I also think that the government should properly convey the intention of this carnival to the people. By doing so, I think that taking away the lives of young people have hope in the future is reduced.
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Hi lovely Sachi. Thx for sharing ur idea.
I especially like your point that you tried to understand this story in light of his family. Do you think his family could do something for him before he had gone? And do you think he wouldn’t die if they did something for him?
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1) The main idea of this story is that we should not choose action without thinking carefully. Jerry is inquisitive person, and he is the only one person who don’t know the truth of this carnival. If he considered carefully about going to the carnival before he won the drawing in his school, He might not have died. He may have stopped to be chosen as a special guest of the government. In life, making decision in choosing high school or university and job is related with author’s message. If we make a wrong decision, our future will become laborious and tedious, so we should gather information as much as possible and think seriously. In the story, Jerry attends to the carnival only with his curiosity. He didn’t notice that the carnival is the place to kill people to reduce the population in the country until the end of the story. Even if he had no choice to visit the carnival, he would have done a lot of thing before he died. Therefore, when people make a big decision or launch new action in their lives, they ought to research and assume about it seriously. I think that the story advises the importance of being cautiously. In my experience, I regret deciding share house too early. Because of transient emotion and impatience, I only went to one house to preview and paid deposit on the same day. At that time, I felt satisfied with my new house, but I recognized that my room is little bit old, and I thought that I could have found a better room. Thus, we should think carefully when we make a significant choice.
2) I feel sorry for Jerry because he was selected as the person who attend to horrifying carnival even though he is still student. The age of 16 is too young to die. Also, he has a talent and curiosity, so he can live a fulfilling life. I’m very sorry for his dying due to government policy.
3) If I could ask one question to the author, I would like to ask how the government decide people who attend the carnival. I was wondering if there were special criteria of choosing the person because the age and gender of the passengers in the bus were random. It was surprising that Jerry was chosen even though his age is only 16. Also, I would like to know if there are some solutions to avoid death.
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Hi, Riko!
I have similar experience to yours. Although I also decided my share house without any consideration, I have some complaints about my house after I moved to new house. I regret not to consider any disadvantages. Therefore, I agree with your idea that we should be careful to make important decisions in our life.
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Hi, Riko! I’m interested in your question3. I’m also interested in this question. I guess it is a kind of key that an uninformed statistician added another check in the “Departure” column. And I guess this “Departure” means to depart to death. What do you think?
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1. What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message?
This story teaches us the importance of having the right information. Knowing or not knowing information can affect whether you gain or lose your life. In today’s society, due to the widespread use of the Internet and social media, there is an enormous amount of information flowing every day. Therefore, getting the right knowledge from reliable information is one of an important skill to live in this modern era. If you make your decision based on incorrect information without looking at the source, you will not be able to get it back. For example, Jerry only knew that the carnival was just a fun place. We can infer from the story of the old people in the bus that this was the case in the past. It seemed to be a fun place, but in reality, it was not. It was a place to lure people in and kill them. His mother might have known because she was crying when Jerry left. Jerry had no idea that there was no tomorrow for him and there was no meaning thinking about what to tell about the carnival to his school friends. For my experience, I often use twitter and there have much information. However, there have much fake news too. One day, I heard on Twitter that two famous people had announced that they were dating. At first, I believed it. However, the day was April Fool’s Day, and the fact that it was a lie which was announced later. I learned once again that I shouldn’t believe all the information.
2. Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry. He just wanted to enjoy the attractions and he was only sixteen years old. He was killed by government’s policy. As I said he should get correct information, however, I also think that he was too young to think deeply and to doubt. He needed a help or advice to avoid that consequence.
3. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I want to ask that why government do this carnival for young generation? Young generations have more bright future and potential. This has benefits for government too. They can contribute to the economy for using money and working. I think it is not an good idea to solve overpopulation with killing young people.
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1.The main message of the story is that we should know the details before taking an action. Some people move on to curiosities without considering deeply in life. For example, although the main character, Jerry, succeeded in winning the drawing at school, which allowed him to attend the carnival, the fact that he was filled with his curiosities made him fail. Moreover, my personal experience will demonstrate this incident. My curiosity of heating sweet potato in the microwave got my house to smoke up. Before I tried to this action, there was only a feeling that I want to warm sweet potato there and enjoy it without thinking what the next happened. After the smoke was coming up, my mother yelled at me about why I heated the food in the microwave. This experience made me understand the significance of taking some considerations or searching about the curiosities. Thus, I accept that having curiosities are of importance in terms of studying or personal growing in daily life. However, researching the curiosities is more desirable than having no comprehension about them. Therefore, we must be aware of the next movements with much information. After all, the chance of failing may be slim.
2.In my opinion, Jerry should be felt sorry and not be sorry. The reason is that his curiosity to the carnival not only enabled him to know the new world that he would never see but also helped him to win the drawing contests at school. In other words, a curiosity sometimes plays a key role for human in expanding ranges of their cognitions. On the other hand, as he did not recognize the truth of the carnival without looking for its contexts, he received such a vicious experiment lastly. Therefore, I argue that Jerry should not lost his curiosity about the carnival, but he should have used it with having enough information.
3.If I am allowed to ask a question to the author, I will mention why nobody around him tell the fact of the carnival even though we got the drawing prize as a special guest. In this story, all characters and even Jerry’s mother already understand what the event occur, but I wonder the reasons that they did not tell so. For my guessing, everyone including his family attempted to convey the truth. However, Jerry was into the carnival and did not afford to think about exceptions for it.
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Hi Ai!
Thanks for sharing your opinion.
Speaking of burning food in microwave, it reminds me of my exact the same experience!
My case was not a sweet potato but a frozen dumpling though…
I strongly agree with your idea that sometimes peoples’ curiosity causes terrible consequences.
Thank you!
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1. What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
I think there are two main ideas in this story. Clearly, one of them is about the strategy of reducing the population and the other one, which has hidden meaning, is that we should not always have faith in certain things. I suppose that the second main idea is also the author’s significant message for every reader. In the story, the “certain thing” means the government. As we can see, the one who led Jerry, a protagonist of this story, to the carnival was the government. In addition, Jerry said that “The forecast has said no rain, and the Weather Control Center was never wrong” in Paragraph 40. It shows that he literally believes in this kind of organization without any doubt. It’s definitely risky because they are not always trustworthy but sometimes make use of peoples’ reliability for the sake of themselves. Consequently, Jerry ends up losing his life due to the ferocious amusement ride, however, this story doesn’t mention that “who” killed him directly even though the government let him be involved in the carnival. They just pick citizens randomly and lead them to the carnival to decimate the population as if it’s an honor or something. For these reasons, I think the story tells us that we shouldn’t trust anything unconditionally.
2. Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
Yes, I do. I wholeheartedly feel sorry for him because he was just a young innocent boy. Certainly, there were some weird things that he should have been more concerned about or at least realized that something was happening. For instance, when he ran into the woman who was being led by the police officer forcibly, when he saw the numerous plastic bags in the huge pit and when he saw the man, who was next to him on the Thunder Clapper, didn’t move. Jerry just passed these scenes even though there were plenty of tips that showed him alert. However, just because he was indifferent to them, doesn’t mean he deserved to die. He was just too young to realize the government’s intention. Because he was even trying to tell his achievement to his classmates the next day.
3. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I would ask him why he chose an amusement park to take place as a cruel place. When I started reading this story, I really didn’t predict it was such a bad ending. Who thinks that the story, which begins excitingly and pleasantly, becomes a catastrophe eventually? Also, a place like an amusement park is supposed to be fulfilled with a lot of joyfulness. In fact, I read this story more than five times because I didn’t understand the author’s intention at all due to lots of implication and metaphor. This story makes readers mislead easily and doesn’t let them understand properly. I guess even if I read it in my own language, I would never figure out the true intention perfectly. However, in other words, I can say it is an attractive story in itself since all novels should be mysterious and do not always have a happy ending.
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Hello, Mamiko. I agree with your opinion. We have to be careful about an organization information even it is supported by government. Also, you argued that the story didn’t mention clearly who killed Jerry. It is an interesting point. Thank you for sharing!
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Hi, Mamiko! I like your view of the question1! I didn’t focus on the meaning of this sentence, “The forecast has said no rain, and the Weather Control Center was never wrong”. Thanks for your opinion, I can read this story more deeply. And I agree with your opinion of the question2, I too think just because he didn’t have concerns about the weird things, it was not a reason for him to die.
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1) What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message?
The main message of this story is that we shouldn’t prioritize immediate pleasure and ignore the risks. In life, unfortunately, we have possibilities taking risks but sometimes we pretend to not notice the possibilities. In the story, he could know this carnival was a dangerous place. Nonetheless, he actively challenged the perilous attractions because he felt enjoyment by overcoming fear. I think that he was thinking that the risk doesn’t relate to him. The reasons why I think the above are from the below three descriptions. First of all, he heard that the Populace Control officer said to the passengers “As you know, some of you may not be making the return the trip on this bus.” And he saw a mountain of black plastic bags was into a pit. I think that this is a metaphor for dead bodies. Finally, he said at the last scene “They said one in eight–one in eight!” These words mean that he accurately understood the meaning that the two burly men who he met near the pit said. For these descriptions, I think that he could know the carnival was an awful place and ignored these meaningful scenes. Consequently, he was dead. Therefore, I think the author wanted to warn of the importance of paying attention to risk. In my experience, I can’t sometimes stop browsing the Internet on my phone. At the time I feel entertaining but after that, I realized I had better do other things such as learning English, house working and sleeping. Thus we shouldn’t precede instant curiosity and should think about the importance of the risks.
2) Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry because as the woman next to him on the bus said, he was still young, however, I also think he had a choice that he didn’t ride any attraction. I know he is young and curious so that being patient was hard for him but I wanted him to choose to endure and live rather than dead by curious.
3) If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I would like to ask him if he wanted to imply overpopulation. While reading, I had two questions. One is the name of the government agency. When I saw the name, Populace Control, I thought about what they want to control. Another is why the government in this story tried to kill the people and what purpose did they want to achieve. I connected these questions, I came up with overpopulation. If I could ask the author, I would like to certain him this question.
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Hi, Kaori. Thank you for sharing you idea.
I am totally convinced the main idea which you think. You are good at reading between the lines. And I also think about a similar question to yours. Why government tried to kill people in public place. I also wonder.
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1) What were the main ideas presented in Rosling’s lecture? Do you agree with his conclusions, why or why not?
The world’s population has changed over the last decade. As a background of the increase of world population, the increase in food supply and the development of medical care has improved rapidly. The average number of kids per woman was five decades ago but is now 2.5.
A decrease in the birth rate and an increase in life expectancy means that the birthrate is falling birthrates and an aging society. Especially in developing countries, if the number of kids can not be managed by the government, randomly having kids leads to be poor and troubled with life.
2) What sort of work does Taslima Khan do?
He takes statistics on the world’s birthrate and life span and predicts future data from past statistics. He summarizes the past birth rate and life span of each country and graphs the movement of numbers from the past to the present.
2a) What are some difficulties she faces in her work? What is your suggestion for her in tackling these difficulties?
She was appointed by the government to help big families in the country to manage the number of children. In order to avoid having difficulty with fewer household budgets, she advises them on how to make kids intentionally.
The most difficult problem that she faces is the difference in values between men and women for trying to have a baby. In the past, men have tended to be relatively optimistic about life after having kids in the country. The problem might not be resolved completely if she pays attention only to the mother of her large family. It is difficult to manage the birth rate without radically changing the awareness of all people living in the country about trying to have a baby.
3) What is the current situation in your country in terms of population and what is the government doing to deal with it?
The current population of Japan is about 120 million. In Japan, the declining birthrate and aging population are regarded as the most serious problem, and we are trying to arrange environments that make it easy to raise children by introducing some policies such as child subsidies and expanding childcare facilities and educational facilities by the government.
A major reason why the birthrate in Japan is declining is that working hours are much longer than in other countries. The Japanese love to work anyway. The average working hours are overwhelmingly long compared to other countries. Men and women do not matter regarding the working environment. Both men and women have to work a lot anyway.
Also, it is difficult to take a long vacation like in Canada. Even if companies recommend a long vacation, it is difficult to take a vacation due to the pressure of the crazy boss and subordinates. It is a bad tradition in Japan. Due to these nonsense costumes, which are not suitable for raising children, the birth rate is decreasing year by year. In other words, I think that the most critical cause of the declining birthrate is that women can not have enough time to raise children because of hardworking.
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1) What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
The main message of the story is that we shouldn’t seek the thrill to get something exciting for our lives. People sometimes behave abnormally to want to get exciting chances. This story is an extreme example. After overcoming that thrill, thrill seekers are under the wrong impression that they are happy. They can’t stop seeking thrills because I want to feel happiness and pleasure more through something wrong. The carnival in this story is like gambling. Gambling addicts think that gambling is a convenient way to enjoy the thrill easily without using talent or knowledge. Once they win the gambling, they can’t forget the pleasure, and they will continue to gambling until their money runs out, and there are cases they fall into self-bankruptcy. In the story, Jerry was always excited at the carnival. He sought more thrills in exchange for his own life and eventually losing his life. When he had survived the first attraction, he might have felt “I am a lucky person” He couldn’t stop riding the attraction. I think he ended up riding the attraction until he died.
In short, he was tired of his life so far. He ended up seeking the thrill to get the exciting spice of life. This story is related to my messages.
Jerry tried to seek something exciting for his life without any effort. He was just lucky that he survived first, and nothing can be gained from it. People can get real excitement when they try something new or try to overcome hardships and difficulties.
In my case, I am studying English hard to speak it fluently, but sometimes I still can’t catch up with the speed of English speakers and I can’t express my opinion well. If I will be able to overcome such difficulties, I believe that I will be able to get a great deal of excitement, so I am still working hard. Both Jerry and I have the same purpose in the sense that we seek thrills in life, but the means of seeking thrills are completely different. The exciting spices are so important for our lives. But don’t take wrong methods to find the spice.
2) Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I feel very sorry for Jerry. If he dies, he can’t learn forever. He felt that his life was boring. He might not have become a thrill seeker if his parents had given him more exciting experiences. I think he learned something very important from it.
3) If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I want to ask the question if he was dead or not.
There are various types of excitements in our life, such as work, romance, hobbies, new knowledge, gambling, and sports, but I would like to ask the author if this stimulus has a positive effect on life.
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Hi, Yo Hey!!
Thank you for sharing your idea. You mentioned that the carnival in this story is like gambling. It was easy to understand. Also, your question is very interesting to me. Thanks!
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Hi, Riko! I’m interested in your question3. I’m also interested in this question. I guess it is a kind of key that an uninformed statistician added another check in the “Departure” column. And I guess this “Departure” means to depart to death. What do you think?
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1)What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message?
The main message of the story is that we should doubt sometimes. In life, we should have distrust mental to live smart. People sometimes lie to trick someone into confusion by using the media. It is called fake news. In Covid-19 pandemic, we saw a lot of fake news. For instance, if you drink something more than 60℃, it can sterilize Covid-19. And if young people are infected with Covid-19, they will not die. They are absolutely fake news. In this story, the boys completely trusted that the carnival is an amazing place without doubt. Although it is weird that Jerry’s mother was weeping when she saw him off. Therefore, he eventually died. If he had doubted the carnival, he would have survived. I think that the story implies we should have suspected perspective. In my experience, I reflect on myself because of the event. When I was 12 years old, my foot was injured by my bicycle in front of someone’s house. At that time, a man came from the house and he drove me home. Fortunately, he was a really kind man. However, if he had been an evil man, I would not have survived.
2)Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry, though he chose a dangerous attraction for the second time by himself. Although he already rode the dangerous attraction for the first time and he knew how dangerous it was, he followed his desire. However, If he had chosen to exit the carnival, he could not have done it because he did not have a return ticket. So, I guess he was forced to stay there. Moreover, he was egged on by the carnival staff to ride dangerous attractions. That is why I feel sorry for Jerry.
3)If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
Why was he chosen to be invited to the carnival? Because he has a talent for drawing, his future is going to be bright. So, this question also means how the government chooses people. If there are no concrete reasons, the family of dead persons such as Jerry’s mother cannot accept his death.
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Hi, Rika!
Thank you for sharing your comment. About 3), I also wonder how they were chosen to be killed, and if there are some reasons to be chosen or not. As you said, Jerry had bright future. It is more difficult for the family to get over grief than usual death.
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1.What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
The main message of the story is that too strong curiosity can put you in danger. When the fire or tsunami breaks out, some curious people go to see it. They get injured occasionally because they go to see it. There was a fatal accident due to curiosity in the past. When high waves were caused by a typhoon, a man who tried to surf in the high waves drowned and died. In the story, Jerry thought “The taste of this kind of success was something he had not known before.” It means Jerry felt accomplishment that he survived after he had rode on the Thunder Clapper. And also, he said “It isn’t fair! They said one in eight—one in eight!” He had already known that one in eight means only one out of eight survive in the carnival before rode on the Whirl-Away. Although Jerry knew he might die if he rode on the attractions, he didn’t stop attending because of being thrilled. However, there was nobody who could survive after attending Whirl-Away. Therefore, he was killed by curiosity for getting thrills. I think that the story calls to attention the risk of curiosity. There is an idiom that curiosity killed the cat. It means being curious contributes to danger or misfortune. I have experience with that kind of situation. I have tried a century egg which Chinese traditional food but I had a stomach ache due to the century egg. Century eggs are duck eggs soaked in an alkaline liquid and aged. The curiosity results in being sick.
2.Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry. Because he was killed by government policy to reduce population. In the story, a woman said “They never had these when I was sixteen. I wish they had.” Previously, the population was smaller than today, and overpopulation was not a problem. Young people have to solve problems that elderly people have caused in the past.
3.If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
If I could ask the author, I would ask what you think about the government controlling the population. This story was written in 1980 and China‘s one-child policy began in 1979. I think the author was inspired by the policy to write this story. The policy was abolished five years ago. The policy was able to suppress population growth, but it caused the problem of aging. I would like to know whether the author agrees or not with the government’s solution to overpopulation.
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Hi, Rina. Because I did not compare between this story and real situation, I think your opinion that you associated with this story and China government policy in that time is interesting. I also want to ask the author what he think about this solution.
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a) Main idea of this story is “Do not judge only the surface of matter” and “Pay attention to surrounding when you join to something the first time. The main character is Jerry who is 16 years old. He won the drawing the free pass of carnival at school from supporting the government. In fact, it was not from supporting of government. In order to control the overpopulation, government sat up this carnival. In other words, they killed people at this carnival. However, when he won the drawing, he did not know this terrible carnival, so he was rally looking forward to going to this carnival. It was difficult for him to notice this carnival is dangerous from only this situation that he won the drawing. But the day of carnival, his mother cried when he left. He just went to this carnival, his mother seriously worried about him. Furthermore, other passenger who were also going to go to this carnival were not feeling well even though they go to this carnival. Although he looked these weird situations, he did not doubt this carnival. This situation which is carnival is for free, his mother cried and other participants depressed was not normal clearly. He was 16 years old and not child, so he should have doubt at least before he entered this carnival. Because his pleasure was above weird situation, he could not realize this carnival was different from normal carnival. This author insisted that “the bait hides the hook.”. In short, we should pay attention to negative aspect.
b) Although I said he should have noticed some weird situation around him, I feel sorry for him because he did not know what he does at this carnival. Even if he realized this carnival seemed be weird, he went to this carnival because he was really looking forward to going to this carnival. If I were him, I think I would go to this carnival because pleasure has strong power.
c) If I could ask the author one question, I would ask him which way is the better to solve overpopulation problem. In this story, government dealing with controlling population by using a carnival to solve this problem. It is impossible to ask people to die. On the other hand, it is also difficult to ask woman not to give a birth. Also, deceiving a person such as this carnival is not good way. But the author wrote this story. Therefore, I want to ask the better way to solve overpopulation problem.
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Hi Shungo! Thank you for sharing your idea. I like your main idea! and hey gave me new point of view about this story. Also your question to the author is so interesting! I want to know about it too!!
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1. What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
There are two main ideas of this story. First one is viewing overpopulation as a problem. In this story, the government control the population by inhumane way such as carnival’s attraction. By this depiction, the ruthless and the fear was showed so I consider that the author sounds the alarm toward the issue of overpopulation that can be occur in near future. Second one is that we should be modest instead of getting carried away. In the beginning of the story, Jerry was excited with joys that he could participate the carnival. However, once he rode an attraction and realized the pleasant feeling of success, he lost humility and got carried away. In addition, he talked down to other participants and behaved with less respects. And finally, he dead. His bad attitude caused his death, so I think that the author implies how significant for us to live modestly without being getting cocky. In life, being modest and respecting others can be a key to success because these attitudes enable us to accept other’s idea and advice. In other words, we can improve our spirit and humanity by being modest. Therefore, I keep in mind to be modest and respect others.
2. Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I feel sorry for Jerry because he was a child and still only sixteen years old. He is not enough to judge such a strange and horrible situation. He met some adults who have already known what was conducted in the carnival before he entered the carnival and rode attractions. So, I think they could help him somehow. I feel it is too cruel to let children carry the overpopulation problem on their back. Considering the excited feeling that Jerry had, I feel sorry much more because he was just excited the carnival of his first time as a kid. I feel that he was swayed by the government.
3. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
If I could ask the author one question, I would ask about the behaviors that adults take when they met Jerry. I wonder why the adults especially his mother did not help him even though they have already known the weird situation. In the very begging part of the story, there is a depiction that his mother cries seeing him get on a bus to the carnival. I really want to know the reaction when they knew that Jerry had to go to the carnival. If I were his mother, I would manage to help or stop him to go to there.
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Hi, Miyu! Thanks for sharing your idea!
I agree with your opinion. Jerry is a only kid, so he cannot judge properly. Adults have to guide kids so that they can make the right decisions.
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1. What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message?
(Support your claim with evidence from the story)
The main message of the story is that we don’t have to try something without thinking deeply. In our life, there are many challenging things with risk, so when we face the issue, we have to think about that how important the achievement is, and how dangerous the risk is at the same time. In this story, Jerry ride an attraction that which had average on death is 8 in 1. It is very risky challenge, but he tried to ride without thinking. This situation tells us that we should think deeply which challenge is important. And also, this story tells us that the danger of overpopulation is coming to our lives. In this story, the carnival was made to decrease population. I suppose that it expresses worst situation after growing population extremely, so the author would like to tell us that we should be concerned about overpopulation before facing terrible situation like this story. I totally agree with main ideas of this story, so we should avoid dangerous situation, and think about risk deeply. In my experience, I chose university without thinking seriously, so I couldn’t enjoy my school life so much. If I had information about the university, for example the satisfaction of students, environment and location, we might not choose. Eventually, I realized that my campus only had men students, so it was hard for me to make a girlfriend. Therefore, as this author implied, I believe that considering before making decision is very important.
2. Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
I don’t feel sorry for Jerry because his death was caused by his action. In this story, he had already understood how dangerous the attraction was; however, he decided to ride on it without thinking. Although he could not avoid going the carnival, he could avoid boarding the attraction, so I suppose it was his fault. His curiosity was good personality, but he should have thought about more deeply. I don’t think 16 years old is too young to consider about it.
3. If you could ask the author one question about this story,
what would you ask?
The question I would like to ask to the author is that “Will this situation be really possible in the future?”. The reason is that although I understand that how dangerous overpopulation is, I cannot believe that this terrible governments policy will conduct in the future. Understandably, the carnival is fantasy, but I would like to discuss overpopulation with the author.
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1) What are the main ideas of this story? What is the author’s message? (Support your claim with evidence from the story)
The main idea of the story is that we should not take action without thinking what we are trying to do. In this story, Jerry, the main character, did not know the essence of the carnival. He just wanted to go to the carnival because he presumed that the carnival was interesting. I always take action before thinking too much, so I learned that we should get enough information about what we are trying to do. Also, in my case, I am seeking jobs now. It is important for us to get to know about the companies before we enter there.
2) Do you feel sorry for Jerry? Why? or Why not?
Yes, I feel sorry for him because his parents can let him know. If he knew that the carnival is to kill people for controlling population, he would not have participated it. And he did not know the much information about the carnival. Also, the depiction that he was looking forward to going to the carnival makes me sad. These facts makes me so bad because everyone should have enough information about what they participate in. For these reasons, I feel sorry for Jerry.
3) If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would you ask?
I want to know why he sets the main character sixteen years old. It makes us more and more sad if he was younger. Almost our writing essay will disagree with this idea. Also, I think it is more efficient to kill elder people in order to reduce population not younger people such as Jerry. It is not enough strategy of the government for you to know your essay. For the reason. I ink he wants to let us imagine why he sets the main character 16 years, just he wanted to catch someone’s eye.
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Hi, Fuya! I empresses your asking for the author. I also wonder why the author set up the main character at 16 age. However, I suppose that his age is not too young, so I don’t feel sorry him. I would like to discuss it in the class.
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1) The main ideas of this story are you should doubt in any situation and judge calmly. There are many strange situations which he could realize the carnival differed from the one the thought. For example, when Jerry got on the bus, his mother was crying. In the bus, the other passenger were not excited by the carnival. If the carnival was really exciting, these were strange reactions, but he didn’t doubt the carnival would amuse him. In addition, after he succeed the first ride, he sought more thrill and tried the next ride. The words, “They said one in eight”, indicate he had already known not everyone could be alive after riding. However, he didn’t judge calmly, and challenged the ride; as a result, he died. In real life, doubting around us and judging calmly is important. We have to keep in mind that judging lack of calm causes unfortunate results.
2) I feel sorry for Jerry, since he was only 16 years old. He was innocent and he didn’t do anything worthy of death. The government might have to do something to solve overpopulation, but killing children would not be a good idea. This is because the government should consider not only current situation but also future. If most children were killed, that society would be aging and it would cause other problem such as luck of workforce. Long time ago, old people were sometimes left in a mountain to kill because their family could not have enough money to take care of them in Japan. They chose to look after their children instead of their old parents. Children have a future and possibilities to change the world. They could came up with revolutionary solutions for this problem. Therefore, I think children should not be killed by government policy, and Jerry was sorry.
3) I would like to ask the author if there are any ways to avoid death perfectly and there are anyone know that. I think Jerry’s mother didn’t know that, because if she knew, she should tell him that. I also think there are no choices except going to the carnival since most people went there although they seemed to know there is the place to kill people. However, there must be some way to avoid the death. I wonder whether he could have survived if there had been someone who were government officials in Jerry’s family.
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