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In our latest novel, My Brother Same is Dead, we are learning about the difficult choices that are required of people during the Revolutionary War.
Question to blog about:
Stone Walls Do Not a Prison Make
Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor iron bars a cage;
Minds innocent and quiet take
That for a hermitage;
If I have freedom in my love,
And in my soul am free,
Angels alone that soar above
Enjoy such liberty.
Text to text, Text to self connection:
Tuck Everlasting
While Winnie stands in the darkness outside of the jailhouse, she has lines from an old poem in her head: Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage.
This poem, To Althea, from Prison is a romantic poem written by Richard Lovelace in 1642. The poem is one of Lovelace's best known works, and its final stanza's first line ("Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage") is often quoted. Lovelace wrote the poem while imprisoned in Gatehouse Prison for speaking up against one of the King's rules.
Your Task:
Think about what "Stone walls do not a prison make" means before you read on.
Since we are unable to come together today, I will tell you what I believe it means. It means that you don't have to be surrounded by stone and iron to find yourself in a prison or in a cage. The strongest bars are not made of iron, but of your own fears.
People go about their day to day lives never brave enough to step off the path and live their lives. This is due to fear. They're locked inside a cage of their own creation and they don't even realize it. They don't know what it truly means to be free.
Freedom comes from within, from your attitude. Stone walls cannot deny your inner freedom. You are in charge of your freedom. You can change your attitude.
As you comment on my post, answer the following questions. If you feel uncomfortable blogging on my particular request, simply speak about freedom and what it means to you. (COPS apply~at least 15 sentences.)
1. What fear do you have that you would like to overcome so that you may have "inner freedom”? This fear should be something that keeps you from doing things in your regular day. (For example; maybe it is a fear of public speaking; It should not be a fear of snakes, etc., unless you handle them everyday)
2. Do you think that this fear is denying or keeping you from feeling completely free? If so, how?
3. List 2 or 3 ways that you can begin to overcome this fear. Think "baby-steps." These actions can be small steps in moving ahead with overcoming this fear.
4. Write about what your day would be like if you overcame this fear today. Describe how you and the day would be changed
Extra Credit Reading Project: On an 8" x 11" piece of paper, create a collage from pictures found in magazines, newspapers, or on-line, that you feel is representative of the novel, Tuck Everlasting. Include pictures of people who could be the characters from the story. ) For example: a woman for Mae, a young girl for Winnie, etc.) Place them in a setting you also find in the above resources. Include symbols, ideas and/or concepts from the novel.