AP+Group+8

Michelle Ruch & TaShanda Ruffin

Chapter 7 Level 2 Level 3
 * 1) Why did the family ignore Ishmael even though they could assist each other and perhaps provide some sort of comfort?
 * 2) Why did Ishmael abandon his family even though they were the sole source of happiness for him?
 * 1) How does the prayer for family to always be together help to create a sense of happiness amongst Ishmael and his family?
 * 2) When Ishmael loses everything and walks alone day after day, how does he maintain a sense of happiness?
 * 3) When Ishmael comes across someone who speaks his language, how does his mood change in a more positive manner?

Chapter 8 Level 2 Level 3
 * 1) Are memories considered a form of happiness?
 * 2) Is happiness a sensation better felt in the company of others or may it be found in solitude?
 * 1) What does it mean to experience happiness?
 * 2) Is acceptance a form of happiness?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In such times of war, what enables Ishmael along with the other escapees to smile?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 9 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why does Ishmael turn to music to be happy?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why does Ishmael use nature as such a comforting source of happiness?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How did always having to hide and shy away from bullets and tanks affect Ishmael’s ability to be a happy child?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How did Ishmael find his happiness since he had to look in places that were so different than what regular children needed to find happiness?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How did Ishmael’s nomadic lifestyle influence his happiness?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 10 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael mentions that food and water have brought him happiness, can it assumed that due to war the ‘little things’ become essential to happiness?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In this chapter, he brings up the moon again, can this been seen as foreshadowing the happiness to be taken away in the near future?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does happiness always lie in things/ items?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Are emotions connected to ones physical being?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael says, “It was much easier to be sad than to go back and forth between emotions, and this gave me the determination I needed to keep moving”, upon this quote what can be said about war and happiness?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 11 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How did the war take a toll on what made Ishmael happy?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why was hearing about his family such a big deal for Ishmael? Why was it able to change his mood so drastically?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How does lack of family affect Ishmael’s view on typical childhood and what makes children happy?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How much does one more day of life affect Ishmael’s happiness since he lives everyday hiding in bushes and running?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How does Ishmael’s surprise affect his mood and happiness?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 12 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In the beginning of the book, the moon/ night time as whole served as a source of happiness, however now it has all changed, why do you think this happened?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“Think of if as destroying a great evil. It is the highest service you can perform for your country.” Can the peoples’ zealous to fight for their new home be seen as a form of happiness?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does the loss of innocence and youth entail the loss of happiness?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">At this point in the war, should Ishmael and friends be happy with just being alive?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Is Ishmael just as bad as the rebels for taking joy in killing others, just as the rebels have?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 13 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why do you think the boys turned to soccer for happiness instead of religion?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why do you think this round of killing had such an effect on Ishmael’s happiness since he had been able to kill before and it did not affect him as much?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How does such a simple thing as soccer help keep Ishmael happy?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">When the corporal tells the soldiers to pray to their gods, how do you think this affects Ishmael’s mood? How does he use religion to be happy?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How does that first round of killing affect Ishmael’s happiness since the next two times he had no problems killing?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 18 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Throughout Chapter 18 the idea of family is constantly brought up, how does this effect Ishmael’s mood? Try to look at the many instances found in the chapter and compare them to previous chapters.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“At times I stared at Esther while she was busy doing paperwork. Whenever she sensed my eyes examining her face, she would throw a folded paper at me without looking in my direction. I would smile and put the folded paper in my pocket in my pocket, pretending that the blank paper was a special note she had written to me” (Beah 168). Upon this quote, can it be said that Esther has become crucial to Ishmael’s happiness? Look at how she taken on a ‘mother –like’ role.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Does the loss of innocence rob one of their happiness?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">“At the entrance of the center, my uncle hugged me, and as we parted, he turned around and said, 'I’ll see you soon again, my son'” (Beah 178). Is a sense of belonging and family an ultimate source of happiness?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Do memories guide future happiness?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 19 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael spent most of his time attempting to avenge his family's death. When given the chance to finally be with family again, he is unhappy. Why do you think Ishmael became afraid of being with what made him happy for his entire life prior to the war?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why did Ishmael back out of his relationship with Zainab due to her asking questions? Most people find happiness in love, but Ishmael ran from it.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How do you think the boys whose families would not take them in reacted? For the entire war, the sense of family was the only source of happiness the boys had. How do you think the absence of that "happiness" affected them?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael's uncle welcomed him with open arms. Ishmael had found that sense of security. How do you think this affected his recovery and ultimate goal to obtain happiness?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How do you think Esther was able to find happiness in helping those stricken by war recover? How was she able to find happiness in a world where so many people experienced unhappiness--death, war, loss.

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 20 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Has Ishmael’s experiences in New York changed his perspective on happiness, if so in what ways?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael’s uncle is clearly skeptical about Ishmael’s trip to America under the pretense that “I don’t want to get your hopes up” despite the obvious signs that this is real. Though his uncle was not directly affected by the war at this point, how has the war already affected his happiness and ability to feel?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">In this chapter Ishmael is able to open up easily with others especially his chaperone, Lara. Can it be said that this step in his rehabilitation will lead to happiness?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Clearly memories are a motif within the book. “I was sad to leave, but I was also pleased to have met people outside of Sierra Leone. Because if I was to get killed upon my return, I knew that a memory my existence was alive somewhere in the world” (Beah200). Up until recently, his memories have caused him much grief and pain however; these same memories that he shared at the conference have taken on a new life. What can be said about the human desire to have an effect on those we meet as a means of joy?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">As we see in chapter 20, Ishmael is no longer afraid to show his emotions around others, even stating for himself that he hadn’t been “truly been happy in a long time” which begs the question, What does it mean to be happy?

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Chapter 21 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 2 <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Level 3
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Why would Ishmael return to Sierra Leone after it became a home to horrid memories for Ishmael?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Since being a soldier was an easier life for Ishmael in Sierra Leone--he could afford to lose his temper--why would he refuse to become a soldier again? Even if it means an easier life and, perhaps, increased happiness?
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How do you think being able to return to school affected Ishmael's happiness?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">Ishmael's recovery promised an ultimate goal of happiness. How do you think the announcement of the new President in Sierra Leone hindered his recovery?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">How do you think being a civilian affected Ishmael's happiness? His whole lifestyle had to change now that he was no longer part of the army.