Nineteen Minutes Essay - 699 Words

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult Fiction Novel Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult is a novel based on a school shooting in the small town of Sterling, but focuses more importantly on the feelings of the main characters, Peter Houghton and Josie Cormier, who experience insecurities and social acceptance, or lack of. The novel explores the damaging effects of bullying, peer pressure and the dynamics of group interaction within teenagers in a modern day society. Picoult’s novels are aimed at a mature audience, whether that is from adult to young adult-if they are emotionally ready to read it. Nineteen Minutes is a tragic and emotional novel, but teenagers are able to relate more due to the teenage characters and high school setting.†¦show more content†¦We both know I didn’t get here by myself† (Kindle location 84). Groups are portrayed in Nineteen Minutes from when they started kindergarten to high school. â€Å"Every kid in the school played a role; Jock, Nerd, Beauty and freak† (Kindle loc. 11600) Peter was viewed as an easy target throughout his school years, but had always had Josie to stand up for him. Josie gravitates away from Peter to be in the ‘cool’ group, and becomes to focused on how everyone views her and struggles with her own issues of acceptance, image and her sense of ‘belonging’. Both Strictly Ballroom and Nineteen Minutes have used similar techniques of portraying ‘belonging’ and ‘not belonging’. Peter Houghton and Dough Hastings are viewed as similar characters, although they both have different thoughts they are both showcased as a loner or someone not important. Peter, unlike Doug, wants to belong but his peers are holding him back by bullying him and he is unable to feel a sense of belonging, whereas Doug rejects belonging to any group in the film. Scott Hastings is ridiculed and abused for dancing his own steps, and Josie Cormier from Nineteen Minutes believes that if she doesn’t put on a mask everyday to ‘belong’ to a certain group, she too will be bullied and unhappy. Scott and Josie can be contrasted, as Scott wants to belong to the ballroom world, but he wants to be himself and dance his own moves, unlike Scott, Josie tries to ‘belong’ by being untrue toShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Nineteen Minutes By Jodi Picoult2188 Words   |  9 Pages Nineteen minutes is a captivating novel that follows the story of a school shooting while thought-provoking the readers to ponder: Do we ever really know someone? This novel follows the relationship among peers, and the nervousness and distance between a teenager and a single mother. Author Jodi Picoult, discusses an important and increasingly common issue of school shootings. In this paper, I am going to discuss the reasonings why I believe Peter Houghton decided to commit such an atrocity at SterlingRead MoreNineteen Minutes: Fiction Imitating Reality Essay880 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world, or you can just jump off it. In nineteen minutes, you can revenge† (Picoult). Those words are of the opening lines of Jodi Picoult’s best seller, Nineteen Minutes. Although this novel is heart wrenching, and cuts into the ‘grays’ of school shootings, it is anything but original. Lead character, Peter Houghton, is an almost per fect profile replication of 1999’s Columbine shooters, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris. A simple personaltiy analysis will revealRead MoreI Am Reading Nineteen Minutes By Jodi Picoult2469 Words   |  10 PagesActivity 1: The Basics My name is Leala Solomon. I’ve read a little more than 15 books. I read every day. I am reading Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. As I was choosing between what books to read, I read the summaries for all of the choices. It interested me that it was about a school shooting due to a massive amount of bullying to victim. Shootings have become more realistic in 2015 and I wanted to see what the victim was thinking during the shooting. I expect different viewpoints to view theRead MoreSociety in the Worlds Created by George Orwell and Annie Proulx1549 Words   |  6 PagesIn the worlds created by George Orwell and Annie Proulx, society could be seen as the enemy. The society in Nineteen Eighty-Four is a dystopia; no civilians are permitted to have any amount of privacy and an act of adultery would be a crime against the leaders if the society: â€Å"The Party†. The time setting of Brokeback Mountain, in the 1960s, ensures that the characters sexuality makes them criminals. 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Literary critic Irving Howe states, â€Å"Were it possible, in the world of 1984, to show human character in anything resembling genuine freedom...it would not be the world of 1984† (62). In Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, the government usesRead MoreNineteen Eighty Four By George Orwell Essay1601 Words   |  7 PagesBook Review for Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell Jason Lee December 12, 2015 SECTION A Date published June 8, 1949 City where published London, England Publisher Secker Warburg Number of pages 267 SECTION B Summary of your book (key details only...address the beginning, middle, and end of the book) Nineteen Eighty-Four takes place in the fictional nation