This podcast includes Anouk, Milani, Gabby, Jazz, and Indi.

The Brief Recap of Oscar Wow is a podcast focused on the book The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz, which is about an overweight Domincan boy growing up in New Jersey with a large love for science fiction and fantasy novels and with falling in love. In this first episode, Milani opens up the conversation to a debate about who we believe could be narrating the book, to which Anouk follows up with the conversation of the order of perspective in the first two readings we have done. The theme of literal and figurative writing looms over our conversation as we try to make sense of the beginning of our book.

https://www.wevideo.com/view/3286981436

Purple Hues Podcast dives deep into the Literal and Figurative devices that appear in the book “The Color Purple” By Alice Walker. A book about a character named Celie and the events of her life, navigating how to discover the things she desires.

In this first episode, the hosts of Purple Hues share their hottest take along with their first impressions of the book. Analyzing key parts to build up bigger ideas later in the story.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qe9kLsRMckDofdgvWxu1ajgNKKaHivow/view?usp=sharing

Speakers: Medina Baram, Cana Berkey-Gerard, Bella Olsen, Diana Yang, and Gina Zou

Podcast #1: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1uoQ_vr0WucNo0e0tAq04RZ3ZZNvybok5/view?usp=sharing

Speakers: Ana Blumberg, Lia Dunkin, Josie Silver, Adrie Young, and Tina Zou.

In the new podcast 1984+, hosts Tina Zou, Adrie Young, Ana Blumberg, Lia Dunakin, and Josie Silver will explore the contents of the classic dystopian novel by George Orwell. Episode one dives into the first seventy pages of the book, and discusses the literal and figurative aspects of the book thus far.

LISTEN HERE: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1weq1Hdr04TA0dW2SdIxY18AmNuovxJnb/view?usp=drive_link

Talkaholic’s Pod #1

Speakers: Langston Payne, I’Jhanae Chase

Pod #1:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pSYdcpYhi4w8HGf003_-kOi3ClUGo5CO/view?usp=drive_link

Going Home Podcast

Speakers: Na’im Faulkner, Khairi Roberts, James Murray

Pod #1:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Qcpp0rkclyEMclhfKbJzdXC5RGNKIOdr/view

Welcome all Here Herers! This podcast is one of many deep dives into the lives of the natives in the book “There There”, by Tommy Orange. In this episode, Jackson, Gabe, Henry, Anthony, and Leo Braveman go into our thoughts on the plot of the story, because no, it’s not yet obvious. We also pick apart the first 100 pages, looking for quotes, symbolism, and connections to other books that we may have read in the past. Some of these connections, you would never see coming. They are truly groundbreaking and mind blowing to the average human. The input from Anthony at the end will leave you with chills…So don’t miss it! And of course, come back next time.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A9h-w05oHc7RBCP5zhepc6-5gmrxjXzX/view?usp=sharing

In Cormac McCarthy’s novel “The Road,” the landscape is a representation of how grey and unforgiving this world is. Everything from the abandoned structures to the beach shows the hopelessness this world has to offer. I cannot paint everywhere but I painted important places that they have been.

Early in their journey, the two explore a city, almost like a skeleton of its former self. Buildings stand hollow and streets are littered with abandoned cars and the ash of what once was. The city, a symbol of human achievement, now lies in ruins, underscoring the extent of the apocalypse. It’s a place where danger is everywhere, forcing the father and son to be exceedingly cautious. Page 24, “The mummied dead everywhere, the flesh cloven along the bones, the ligaments dried to tug and taunt as wires.” This urban wasteland sets the tone for the hopelessness pervading their world, where survival is a constant battle against the remnants of civilization.

Going on to a more rare find on their journey is a hidden bunker filled with supplies. This place is a temporary haven, page 148, “ How long can we stay here papa? Not long. How long is that? I don’t know maybe one more day. Two. Because it’s dangerous? Yes.” The bunker, stocked with food and amenities, offers a brief glimpse of normalcy and safety. However, the Man and boy know they can’t stay because nothing has security in this world.

A particularly horrifying moment occurs when they discover a house where cannibalism takes place. This house, a grotesque perversion of the concept of ‘home’, represents the depths of depravity humanity has sunk to in the face of extinction. It’s a constant reminder of the pervasive threat other humans pose and the brutal measures taken by some to survive. Pg 110, “ Huddled against the back wall were naked people, male and female, all trying to hide, shielding their faces with their hands. On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to his hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt. The smell was hideous.”

Throughout their journey, the father and son encounter remnants of what used to be a functioning society—crumbling roads, collapsed bridges, and abandoned vehicles. This decaying infrastructure serves as a metaphor for the collapse of the societal order and the fragility of human constructs.

The beach, their final destination, stands as a contrast to the bleakness they have traveled. Despite its natural beauty, it’s cold, and windy, and offers no salvation. The beach symbolizes the end of their journey and the realization that there is no promised land in this new world. In “The Road,” these places are not just physical locations but are imbued with symbolic meaning. They reflect the hopelessness of a world, where survival is a daily challenge.

Link to document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1f_QnsTdMW8usuHuYN-4aAZfAOUneOxKveav-HMuCPwc/edit?usp=sharing

The novel, “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy, is a story that highlights a father and son relationship. Throughout the story, we begin to understand why each character is the way they are. When reading “The Road” for the very first time I thought the man was a selfish character who never saw the good in people, but as soon as I re-read the book for the second time, I realized that the man isn’t selfish.

The man cares about his son’s well-being even though he may sound a bit harsh for the most part. Throughout the book the man begins to understand why the mother of their son, said “You won’t survive for yourself” (pg.57), The man’s only reason to live and have hope is because of the boy. And even though this is true Cormac Mccarthy highlights that the man won’t be around much longer due to the type of dreams the man has been having. which is why the man tries to prepare the boy throughout the book.

To become mentally and physically ready to take on challenges. Now even though the man wants the best for the boy and is preparing him, he also doesn’t want the boy to grow up so quickly at such a young age, which is why even though honesty is important to conserve, there are times he has to lie to the boy for the sake of the boy maintaining the innocence that is left in him. This highlights that the man cares about the boy but is also harming the boy in a way, due to the position they are currently in.

Even though the man is preparing the boy he is also sharing some core memories with the boy, because the man believes the memories won’t ever come back due to what’s left in society. This core memory was shown by two bottles of Coca-Cola they had found in a supermarket.

I believe McCarthy’s message was how even though as a parent one tries to protect their child, you can’t have them unsee, what is right in front of them. Also don’t always focus on what is going to happen in the future, what matters is to conserve what the now is.