Wednesday, December 30, 2009

The Friendly Letter

88 Insanity Road
Isa Town, Bahrain

Nov 30th, 1999

Dear Rabab & Mariam,

Hi, how are you? I’m fine. I went to the carnival with some friends, but I didn’t win anything! I’m proud because last time I went to tennis and played well. What have you done so far? Anything exciting? I’m sure you were busy with the play. So was I. I hope I was good.
Did you like the carnival? I am very busy with homework and projects. You’re lucky you’re in third grade. Did you win any prizes at the carnival? I didn’t. I saw you a lot in the past few days. I’m excited about Ramadan! Are you guys excited, and are you going to fast?
I live in West Rifaa, in front of the National Stadium. My house is two minutes away from school, I could go walking. I’m looking forward for the rest of The Westing Game. I am way ahead of you since it’s my REP novel. Where do you live? Did you like The Westing Game so far? You know this is our last letter. I’ll be seeing you soon.

Love,
Samar
Grade 6A

Monday, December 28, 2009

Romeo and Juliet Cont...

Act II is probably even more confusing than Act I. Most of the scenes we read so far were confusing especially when Mercutio and Romeo were talking. But after Mrs M. explained it, I understood. I wouldn’t have figured out what was going on. The balcony scene was understandable though.
I think the best thing to do is to discuss what happened after each act, or after a particular part in a scene.

Samar Al ANSARI
GRADE 9.2
11/11/ 2002

Saturday, December 26, 2009

What can I do to help save the world?

I can save the world by recycling paper, glass, plastic, and shopping bags. I can recycle paper by using used paper to draw on or make paper planes out of it. We can recycle glass by crushing and melting it and using it to make bottles again. I can recycle shopping bags by using them over again. If I see trash on the floor I should pick it up and make my country cleaner.

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 5D
Dec7, 1998

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Hello from Heaven

Beloved Mother, as you fly
today in the sky up high
You’ll feel my presence
no need to ask how or why
I’m here to comfort you
as you’ll miss me and cry
And shed your tears
of them, you never shy
But, look at the window
and your eyes will surely dry
As I come with the sunrise
to greet you as you fly
And embrace you
with my love from the sky
A warm hello from heaven
mother I didn’t die
Speak to me! I can hear
even if I don’t reply
As between you and me
there is never a good-bye

Randah R. Hamadeh, 2009, Copyright©
Written in loving memory of my daughter,
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari

Sunday, December 20, 2009

So They Say

It should be getting easier I often hear you say
The time is passing quickly since your son went away
It must be getting better as I see you smile a lot
And time is such a healer
So they say!

Life must be feeling normal now
Although I know it takes a little time
But when I lost someone a year later I was fine
Oh yee, I cried on birthdays you know the kind of thing
A tear or two and sadness
But time is such a healer
So they say!

It’s lovely to remember them with smiles you say
And all those memories will help take the pain away
I cannot even go there if I do I know I’ll die
You seem surprised at thoughts like that
You think I’ve lost my mind
You say that time’s a healer
So they say!

Well it isn’t getting easier I’d like you all to hear
Life is just as painful with every passing year
But I’ve had a lot of training and my aching skills are great
I could beat an Oscar hopeful any day!
You stare at me in wonder
How can she feel such pain
After all time is such a healer
So they say!

Sue White 2006 Copyright ©

Friday, December 18, 2009

Bahrain’s people and voices

Bahrain’s people are Bahraini and in Bahrain there are a lot of foreigners and very kind good-hearted people. Bahrain’s cultures are making vases and other stuff from pottery. Bahrain was known for a long time as being the “Island of the Million Trees”. Bahrain catches fish and before they used to dive for pearls. Bahrain has many voices saying “I love you, Bahrain, you’re the best!”

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 5D
Dec14, 1998

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Why is Bahrain special?

Bahrain is special because it is known for having a lot of palm trees and dates. Bahrain is special because they are known with diving for pearls and catching fish. Bahrain is special because they are known for making vases and other stuff using pottery. But, I don’t care about those things. Bahrain is special to me because it’s my country, my home, and my life.

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 5D
Dec 5, 1998

Monday, December 14, 2009

أخي

أخي، ضمني إلى صدرك لأبكي عليه
وأقص له مما أعاني وأشكو إليه

أختك تعبت من الحزن وألم الفراق
وقلبها ينزف دما ودوما مشتاق

أختك لم تعد كما بالأمس تعهدها
فالأسى أدمى قلبها وعينيها و كبدها

من حبك وحب الأهل تستمد قوتها
ومن محبة الأصدقاء الذين برفقتها

ألمي يا أخي كبير كصخرة أحملها
وللحزن أثر على جبهتي يكللها

ابنتي عند الرحمن، هذا ما أعرفه
و مصابي الجلل، لن تقوى أن تخففه

بنظرة منك يا أخي تعرف ما أربد
فهل هناك حل يا صاحب العقل الرشيد؟

صابرة أنا، لكن قلبي ليس من جليد
ففراق الحبيبة جعل الحزن يسري بالوريد

2009©رنده ربحي حماده
(أم سمر)
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Piggy's Diary

Objective: Write a journal entry looking at the incident in the point of view of the character; it should fully capture the character’s voice.

I need him to be strong. His strength will keep us together, but sadly he is crumbling, and so are we. Ralph, God bless him, thinks with his heart, and not with his mind, and that is weakening him. He needs to think of the future, and not dwell on the past. The past is painful; Simon’s death was…an accident. So young and killed so brutally…NO, I mustn’t think like this! I need to put this behind me, we all do. It was an accident, people make mistakes. We just need to learn from our mistakes, that’s all. Maybe Simon was pretending to be the beast and people fell for it? Yeah, that’s probably true. We’re all civilized here, we got the conch.
If Ralph just blew on that conch, I know that it will bring the two groups closer together. I would do it myself, but no one seems to care when I got the conch. I have a right to speak damn it! Maybe if people listened to me, we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now. Nobody listens to me, except Ralph. Ralph cares for me, I can tell. I care for him too, for he has a kind heart. He is strong as long as he has support, and when he lost his support, he lost his strength. But he’s got the conch, if he just used it, he would get support. The conch is all he needs, the conch is the only thing that Jack and his savages don’t have. Ralph has been like a father to most of the littulns, and it’s clear that he needs a father like figure of his own. I saw the way he rocked to and fro like a child, and the way he cradled that rock; he needs someone. I tried to be that someone, but he pushed my hand away. He thinks he doesn’t need me.
He came to me flushed and referred to Simon’s death as murder. It wasn’t murder, it couldn’t be murder. How can murder happen on the island while we still got the conch? It was an accident, it has to be. It was a mistake, a tragic mistake nevertheless. He needs to forget about it, he needs to stop thinking about it, like I did. What good will it do us if we think about the murder, I mean death, of our poor friend Simon? He needs to forget and come up with a way to prevent another death. The others are in desperate need of order, and need some sort of guidelines. No one should worry about me, I can set up rules for myself. If he just called an assembly, I know people would come. But when I mentioned it to him, he laughed in my face. I know he is hiding his fear with laughter, we all do, but reestablishing order is not a laughing matter. I know that if he just blew that conch, somehow it would all be better. If he blew that conch, everything would be normal again, not as normal as our past lives, but as normal as it gets on this island.
Oh, how I miss my past life. I miss my auntie, she cares. No one cares about my asthma, not even Ralph. I know that if my Auntie was here, she would care. She would pamper me, and let me rest, because I matter to her. I don’t think I matter to anyone here, and it hurts. I have never been anywhere where I haven’t been loved or liked. Back home, I was loved by my Auntie, but not necessarily liked by the neighborhood kids, but that was okay, as long as I had my Auntie’s love. I need someone to acknowledge my importance here; I mean if it wasn’t for my glasses, the fire would’ve never been lit. Urgh, why am I thinking about this now, I shouldn’t think of things that disturb me. I need to remain strong, if not for my sake, for Ralph’s. Ralph needs me more than he thinks he does.
Piggy

By Samar Al Ansari
Grade 11.5
Sep. 27, ‘04

Thursday, December 10, 2009

After

From now on
my life holds
a before
and after.
My before life
is known,
is held by memory,
encompassing
all the darks and lights,
blues and golds,
of life before. After.
Only my strength,
courage, faith,
and God's key,
can unlock the mystery
of after.
by Genesse Bordeau Gentry, 2009 ,Copyright©
Catching the Light

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Sunday, December 06, 2009

If I ruled the world this is what I would change

These are the things I would change if I ruled the world:

I would change the days we go to school, I think school is important but I would let people go to school twice a week. I would change that there would be no wars anymore. I would change that there will be no more orphanages in the world, and that every orphan has a home, and that if every parent who abandons his child has to pay a fine. I would change the pollution in the earth by recycling, and I would let everybody have a car that uses water.

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 5D
Dec 8th, 1998

Friday, December 04, 2009

Please, Mother, Don't Cry

Please, Mother, Don't Cry
When you miss me, look at the sky
You'll find me shining with the stars up high
When the sun rises and sets, I greet you with a hello or hi
And with the birds I send you messages as they fly
Each morning I hug you and kiss each eye

Please, Mother, Don't Cry
I 'm with you, a fact that no one can deny
You'll smell me in a rose or jasmine that you buy
And you'll hear me in a song or a lullaby
And see me in the faces of any girl or guy
Smile, Mother. I am free now like a butterfly

Please, Mother, Don't Cry
Your face has changed, I can hardly identify
You've withered. I don't need to ask why
You call my name but there is no reply
Happiness is gone, you can't get or buy
Mother, rest assured I 'm with you, by your side I lie

Randah R. Hamadeh, 2009, Copyright©
Written in loving memory of my daughter,
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari

Tuesday, December 01, 2009

December 2009


وذكراك يا روحي لحن من أجمل الألحان
واسمك أصبح يا سمر يعرف من غير عنوان
يردده الكثيرون بفخر وعز وحب ووجدان
(من قصيدة "عام مضى يا ابنتي الحبيبة سمر)

Sunday, November 29, 2009

On Sorrow by Gibran

The bitterest thing in our today's sorrow is the memory of our yesterday's joy.

Sand and Foam
by
Khalil Gibran

Friday, November 27, 2009

أتى العيد

أتى العيد يا ابنتي ولم يجدك
سأل عنك وأخبرني بأنه يفتقدك

أتى يحمل معه أجمل الذكريات
عندما كنت نجمة تنور اللقاءات

واليوم يجتمع الأهل دونك
بعدما كانوا بالأمس يتربصون قدومك

!ليته لم يأت بعدما رحلت
فهل هناك عيد من غيرك أنت؟

رنده ربحي حماده
(أم سمر)
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة© 2009

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Does hair dye weaken and damage your hair?

Basically, our experiment was we dyed hair with 3 different hair dyes on the same person’s hair. We separated the hair into 3 parts, and we dyed each part with a different hair dye, the brands we used were: X, Y, and Z. Before we dyed the hair, we checked it under the microscope and checked its physical characteristics to check for breaks and other things. As we were dying the hair we checked for changes, and we saw changes in color. Later, after we shampooed the hair, we looked under the microscope and saw some changes. In brand X we saw no change in structure, there were no other changes. In brand Y, we saw that there were less than 10 breaks, and a few split ends. When we checked the brand Z dyed hair, we saw that there were a few breaks, less than five. There weren’t complete changes in appearance and structure, but there were some minor changes. As for our original question: does hair dye weaken and damage your hair? The answer is the following, yes it does in some ways and when you use some brands, in some brands you see changes in appearance and you see breaks, but in others the hair remains the same. We infer that if we dye these strands of hair over again, the hair would be damaged. We think that the more times you dye your hair, the more chemicals, thus the more damage. Our hypothesis was partially correct, because brand X wasn’t damaging to the hair, but brand Y and brand Z were slightly damaging. In our hypothesis, we said that hair dye would be damaging to the hair, but it was both damaging and not damaging in some cases, so we were partially right. Possible reasons why brand X was not damaging to hair and the others were, is that they could have different ingredients which damage or don’t damage the hair. This experiment is useful to many people, because many people dye their hair either to be hip, cover their grey hairs, or to go for a new style. So, people want to use the safest dye for their hair, so their hair doesn’t get burned or damaged, and we recommend for you to use brand X, because it showed the least damage. The controlled variable in this experiment was the hair, the hair all came from the same person, it was brown wavy hair. Most probably the results would’ve been different if we used different types of hair, but because we used the same type of hair we know that our results are right. The uncontrolled variables were the hair dyes. That was the whole basis of our experiment, and we couldn’t of done this experiment without it. What we tried to achieve in this experiment was which hair dye was the safest to use. What could’ve been done to improve the project, was to use more brands of hair dye to explore this more, also to dye the piece of hair over and over again to see how long to make it really damaged. We really enjoyed doing this project, because there was a very important reason to do it. In the future, we would like to examine the components of hair dyes and see what effect they have on hair separately, and use other substances and see what effect they have on hair. We hoped you enjoyed our project as much as we did !
Samar Al Ansari
Grade 8

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

لماذا لا تذكروا اسم الحبيبة سمر؟

لماذا لا تذكروا اسم الحبيبة سمر؟
أتخافون أن تؤلموني فتنزل العبر؟
وتخشون أن يتجدد الحزن والقهر؟
بربكم، هل بإمكانكم أن توقفوا المطر؟
أو تبدلوا الشمس بالنجوم و القمر؟
إذا، لا تتوقعوا أن أغفل لحظة عن سمر
و أكف الحديث عنها أيها البشر
.فقلب الأم لا يسهو! هكذا شاء القدر
اذكروا اسمها واسردوا علي قصة أو خبر
،فأنا أشتاق إليها كما يشتاق السمك للبحر
.وعن ذكر اسمها، كما تشتاق العين للبصر
دعوني أصفها، قبلما ذهب عمرها هدر
.وأقص نوادرها وكلماتها وأشياء أخر
أصغوا لي ولصرختي التي اخترقت الحجر
.حتى ولو كنتم تخشون ذكر اسم سمر
رنده ربحي حماده
(أم سمر)
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة© 2009

Friday, November 20, 2009

They are all around us,

Like the sky ,the sea ,the land.

They are the thousands of stars

That shine down upon us.

They are our daughters and our sons,

The pain on their fathers' faces,

The sorrow on their brothers' too,

Their sisters' tears slide softly down,

Their mothers' hearts broken in two.

We held their hands when they were little,

Let's hold them now and for ever in our hearts.

By Jean Pulford

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

التوقيت الغير مناسب:المشهد الثالث

يبدأ المشهد في الكنيسة يوم زواج جورج بمايا

جورج: مابك أيها الصديق العزيز؟ اليوم يومٌ سعيد، فعليك أن تبتسم لصديقتك مايا، زوجتي إن شاء الله

نيكولاس: لا يا أخي، بل فقط مرهقاً، فلم أستطع النوم البارحة

جورج: نعم فهمت

نيكولاس: جورج أريد أن أوصيك على مايا، فهي من أقدم أصدقائي، وأعزها أكثر من أي إنسان، فاعلم إذا جرحتها، فعليك الايجاية إليَّ

جورج: لا تخف، فسأكون أفضل زوج

( بعد مرور ساعتين)

جورج: أين مايا؟

...نيكولاس ( مستغرباً): لا أعرف
!جورج: إن الكاهن ينتظر.... آخ للفشل

نيكولاس: يا ربي! إن شاء الله هي على ما يرام

( تدخل سارة)

جورج: سارة!! أين مايا؟

سارة: جورج، مايا لن تحضر اليوم، فإنها لن تستطيع أن تتزوجك

جورج: ماذا؟! ولكن.. لماذا؟

سارة: لا أعرف، لم تقل لي. أنا آسفة

!جورج(غاضباً): يالها من ساقطة
نيكولاس.... لماذا تبتسم؟

سمر الأنصاري
الصف 11:3
4/10/2004

Monday, November 16, 2009

التوقيت غير المناسب: المشهد الثاني

يبدأ المشهد بعد مرور أسبوع تقريباً من لقاء نيكولاس ومايا. ففي ليلة عرسها، مايا عاجزة عن النوم، فاتصلت في صديقتها سارة

سارة: مابك يا مايا؟ هل تعرفين ما الوقت؟ فإنها الثانية صباحاًً! هل جننت؟

مايا: لم أستطع أن أنام

سارة: آه... تفكرين بالعريس؟

مايا: لا يا سارة، يا ليتني أستطيع أن أفكر فيه

سارة: مابك يا مايا؟ فلك كم يوم وأنت ليست طبيعية

مايا: لا أستطيع أن أخبرك عن ما في قلبي

سارة: يا مايا، أنا مثل أختك، فإذا لا تستطيعين أن تقولي لي ما في قلبك، فلمن تقولين؟

مايا: حسناً، ولكن رجاءً لا تحكمي عليًَّ، فإنك لا تعرفين ما أمر فيه

سارة: أكيد يا أكثر من أختي

مايا: جاء إليّ نيكولاس قبل أسبوع واعترف بحبه إليََّ. سارة، لن أكذب عليك، لم أفكر في شيء سواه في هذا الأسبوع. فقال لي أنه أحبني منذ طفولتنا، وسارة، لدي اعتراف... أنا أحببته من الطفولة أيضاً ولكنني لم أعرف أنه بادلني هذا الحب. فبعد مر السنين جمعت أجزاء قلبي المتحطمة وعلمته كيف يحب مرة ثانية، ولكن بعد اعتراف نيكولاس، تفرقت أجزاء قلبي ولا يستطيع جمعها إلا حبه. فما عليّ أن أفعل، فلا أريد أن أجرح جورج

سارة: مايا، اذهبي مع الرجل الذي سيسعدك. أنت الوحيدة التي تستطيعين تنفيذ القرار، فافعلي ما برأيك صحيح، سأكون في الكنيسة غداً صباحاً، وإذا لم تأتِ قبل الساعة الحادية عشرة، سأعلم قرارك، وسأساندك
سمر أحمد الأنصاري
الصف 11

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Men Can Cry

I want you to know
that men can cry
They shouldn’t hold their tears
when loved ones die

And if the deceased
is someone so dear
Don’t be so scared
to drop a tear

I assure you
that I feel your pain
Tell me what good it does
if silent you remain?

Instead, be yourself
and express your sorrow
Shed your tears
and in your grief wallow

Shout, scream
and call up her name
Even though
society considers it a shame


Randah R. Hamadeh, 2009, Copyright©
Written in loving memory of my daughter

Samar Ahmed Al Ansari (4/4/1988-4/9/2006)

Thursday, November 12, 2009

التوقيت غير المناسب: المشهد الأول

يبدأ المشهد الأول في مطبخ مايا، فمايا وصديقها الحميم نيكولاس يشربان القهوة. نيكولاس ينظر في فنجانه وينزل رأسه لكي يخفي حزنه عن مايا

مايا: يا نيكولاس، لا أصدق أنني سأتزوج بعد أسبوع. فكيف مضت طفولتي بهذه السرعة؟ سأصبح زوجة لجورج، ومن ثم أما لأولاده، وأخيراً جدةً لأحفاده... كيف كبرت بهذه السرعة؟

نيكولاس (وفي عينيه الحزن): الشيء الوحيد الذي تغير فيك منذ طفولتنا هو جمالك، فكل يوم تزدادين جمالاً

مايا: شكراً، أيها الصديق الحميم

نيكولاس: أخ خ.. قلبي

مايا: مابك يا نيكولاس؟ فالحزن واضحٌ في عينيك

نيكولاس: كلماتك تجرحني... كلمة صديق تمزق قلبي إلى قطع عديدة، والشيء الوحيد الذي سيعيد قلبي قطعةً واحدةً هو حبك

مايا: يا نيكولاس، ماذا...؟

نيكولاس: لا يا مايا، دعيني أنهي كلامي. فإنني أخفيت سراً عنك منذ أول مرة رأيتك فيها عندما كنت في الحادية عشرة من عمري، ففي كل يوم ثقلت قلبي من هذا السر. أحبك يا مايا!! أحبك، ولم أفكر في امرأة سواك منذ اليوم الذي رأيت جمالك. فأخذت قلبي، وأخذت روحي، فأنا متيم بحبك

...مايا: يا نيكولاس، لا أعرف ما أقول

نيكولاس: ليس عليك قول شيء، أنا الذي سأتحدث، أعرف أنك تحبين جورج (يمسح دموعه من عينيه)، فقط أردتك أن تعرفي مكانتك الغالية عندي

مايا: أيها الأناني! كيف تقول لي كلاماً كهذا أسبوعاً قبل موعد زواجي؟ ماذا تتوقع مني أن أفعل؟ أترك جورج وأرمي نفسي بين أحضانك؟ فأنني امرأة ذات مسؤوليات ولا أستطيع الرجوع عن قراري

نيكولاس: حبيبتي، لا أتوقع منك شيئاً، وإنني لست بأناني، بل رجل مجنون بحبك! كيف تقولين عني أناني؟ الأناني لا يضحي بسعادته الشخصية من أجل سعادة حبيبته! لم أرد أن أضعك في الموقف الذي وضعتك فيه الآن، ولكنني لا أعرف ما أفعل بنفسي! منذ خمسة عشرة عاماً، عشت في تعاسة وعذاب. كنت أتعذب يومياً عندما أستيقظ وأدرك أنك ليست امرأتي. كنت أتعذب عندما تقولين لي إنك تحبينني، فكنت أعرف أنك لم تعني كلمة "أحبك" في الطريقة التي أعنيه. حاولت على التغلب على مشاعري ولكنني لم أستطع أن أفكر في امرأة سواك. صبرت، وصبرت، والآن ستتزوجين، وأنا لا أعرف ما أفعل بنفسي! هل أنتحر؟ لا، لأنني لم أستطع أن أراك مرةً أخرى، هل أغادر وأبدأ حياة جديدة؟ لا، فإنني لا أستطيع على فراقك. أردت أن أخفف عن آلام قلبي المتحطم وأقول لك عن مدى حبي باتجاهك وأنت لا تزالين امرأة عزباء

مايا: أقدر مشاعرك يا نيكولاس، وأموت فيك، ولكن كصديقة. وأظن من الأفضل أن لا أراك قبل يوم زواجي

..نيكولاس: نعم، هذا أحسن حل، ومايا

مايا: نعم؟

نيكولاس: أحبك، وسأحبك لآخر الزمن، وهذا الشيء لن يتغير لو تزوجتي
سمر أحمد الأنصاري
الصف 11

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

A Poem

As a perfume doth remain

In the folds where it hath lain,

So the thought of you, remaining

Deeply folded in my brain,

Will not leave me; all things leave me,

You remain.


By Arthur Symons

Sunday, November 08, 2009

Letter Book : About The Author

My name is Samar Ahmed Al-Ansari, and I am the author of this book. I am twelve years old, and I am in the seventh grade. I was born on the morning of April the fourth on the year 1988. I have one brother and one sister, my brother’s name is Omar and my sister’s name is Qadar. My mother’s name is Randah and my father’s name is Ahmed. I am very close with my family, and I enjoy being with them at all times. My hobbies are reading, writing, watching television, swimming, and going on the Internet. I live in West Riffa, Bahrain, and I enjoy living there. My goal which I had since I was in the fourth grade was to become a famous writer and a famous DJ on the radio. I enjoy doing both things, but not if I am forced to. My best friend is Latifa Al- Maraj, and she has been my best friend since we were small. People say that I’m quite stubborn, and I have been trying to stop being stubborn for a very long time.

What inspired me to become an author was when I wrote a tribute to my grandfather two years ago, although he is not dead, I wrote about what he did and I talked about his troubles, and the teacher gave me an ‘A’. We had parents coming in so we can explain to them stories we read, and the teacher told me to read my tribute. As I read it I saw my mom crying, and from that moment, I knew I wanted to be an author. I also wanted to become an author, because many people say that I have a writer’s tongue, and they enjoy listening to my stories. I will try to achieve my goal, and I hope I will succeed.

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 7

Friday, November 06, 2009

Our Children

Perhaps our children are like stars in the daytime. They are still there but we can't see them right now.


Author unknown

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

من النوم توقظيني

مجددا من سبات النوم توقظيني
وفي هدوء الليل وصمته تناديني
أمي، آتي بقلمك لتخاطبيني"
وخطي الحروف والكلمات لتضميني
واذرفي دموعك ،التي بها تقبليني
دعيها تعبر عن حنينك و تناجيني
أمي اشتقت إليك و أبكيك كما تبكيني
!ليتك بتوسلاتك تستطيعي أن تعيديني
.أعلم إن هذا مستحيل..... أمي اعذريني
ليس لي إلا الرسائل، أخاطبك بها وتخاطبيني
"والصبر، فالله بشر الصابرات والصابرين
(أم سمر)
رنده ربحي حماده
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة© 2009

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

ضباغة بنت عامر

شاعرة و صحابية كانت زوجة هشام ابن المغيرة في الجاهلية و لها قصيدة في رثائه، أسلمت بمكة في أوائل ظهور الدعوة الإسلامية. كانت في صباها من شهيرات النساء بالجمال، توقيت سنة 631

المصدر: موسوعة شهيرات النساء صفحة 160
سمر الأنصاري
الصف السابع

Sunday, November 01, 2009

Friday, October 30, 2009

Dhubaa Bint Amer

Dhubaa Bint Amer est une arabe et Islamique poète, qui est la femme de Hisham Ibn Al-Mugheera. Elle est devenu une muslumans dans le commencement de L’Islam.

Samar Al Ansari
Grade 7C

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Marimba

History:

The marimba is an instrument developed around the year 1910. People say that the marimba got it’s name by a goddess called Marimba, who made an instrument by hanging gourds below wooden bars. It is sometimes referred to as the source of the instrument’s name. The marimba started off as wooden bars laid over a whole in the ground struck with sticks. The Africans brought the instrument to South America and it was improved there. The early model of the marimba was called the marimbaphone. Europeans called it kaffir piano, while the Natives call it the malimba.

Description:

The marimba has thin bars, pipes, and it consists of strips of wood. It belongs to the percussion family like the drums. Large models of the marimba are called xylorimbas. The marimba can be played by four players. It is a modern instrument unlike the piano. It is played like the xylophone, and it is very similar to one. The marimba is a very popular instrument which many people like to play.

Sound:

The marimba sound like a xylophone, but it has a deeper sound; many people call it the deeper version of the xylophone. It has a loud sound which is achieved by it’s pipes. Many people describe it’s sound as a joyful sound, which is enjoyed by many.

How It Is Made:

Marimbas are made with rosewood bars. It’s bars are made with man made material which has characteristics of wood. It’s resonators are usually made of metal, but when they run out of metal it is sometimes made of paper tubes. Marimbas are easy instruments to build, and that is why people sometimes make their own.

Bibliography:

1.www.marimba.org

2. www.home.sprynet.com/˜gipbard.marimba/htm

3. The New Oxford Companion to Music pg.1129

4. Musical Instruments of the World pg.267

Done By:
Samar Al-Ansari
7C

Monday, October 26, 2009

The Visitor

He climsbs inside my head,

Whispering stories from the past,

Sifting through my memories

With fingers cold as night.

All there in words and pictures,

The times he filled my senses,

As he once filled my womb.



He dwells still deep inside of me,

His light shines on unceasingly,

My pearl within an oyster,

His soul entwined in mine,

Two rivers join,two stars collide,

Two hearts still beat in perfect time.

Not even death could cut the cord

And seperate his world from mine.


By Joan Hirst

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Dear Nieces

Dear nieces,

I know how much you try
To hold your tears and not cry.

I feel the sadness that you try to hide
And the heartache you keep deep inside.

In our looks, her memory we embrace
And we see her in each other’s faces.

I am writing this to let you know
That I recognize the pain you try not to show.

I want to thank you and express my love
Along with that sent to you from heaven above.

Summer Rays Copyright© 2009
by Randah Ribhi Hamadeh
Written in loving memory of my daughter
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari (4/4/1988-4/9/2006)

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Number 4

It was a very painful feeling to carry my gown and go to the university this morning as we had the 25th silver anniversary celebration and the graduation ceremony. There was this heaviness and throbbing pain in my chest that I had to carry with me along with my Oxford gown, the bag that had my shoes, and other things. I had first worn the Doctorate gown in Oxford for taking pictures after I completed my viva on March 1st, 1988. I had to rent a gown then as Ahmed insisted that I should take pictures for the sake of memory and since I will be unable to come for the graduation because of the new baby who was arriving soon, Omar and Qadar . I was not so much keen to take pictures before the results were out but agreed as it was my only chance to have a picture in the Oxford Gown. At that time in March 1988, I was carrying SAMAR inside me as I am carrying her now. I was then 8 months pregnant.

As faculty we were asked to park in the agricultural land of the university and not in our usual parking area which was allocated for dignitaries. As a chair of department, I was given a ticket for the parking and it read parking number 4. I went and parked in the agricultural land and carried my stuff and walked in the sand and dirt until I reached the entrance after walking for a while. As I arrived flushed, with my shoes completely covered with sand, I suddenly saw in the nearby park next to the Accident and Emergency (A/E) entrance, a big sign with number 4 on it. I was amazed and for a moment got confused. Although I knew that we were to park in the agricultural land but at that moment I thought that I had done a mistake. I went into the building, left my clothes with the security men and told them that I should have parked in the A/E area and that I will go and get my car. No one seemed to disagree or correct me!! I went back and drove the car to the A/E parking lot but the security man stopped me. He told me that I was in the wrong place and parking number 4 was in the agricultural land where I parked earlier. I felt frustrated, explained to the man that I saw the number 4 sign but he insisted that I was wrong. I then said “Oh my God, I have to go back again. What a morning!” He smiled and said “You are a very special and dear person; I will not allow myself to make you do that.” He then opened the gate for me to enter. As I parked I saw again the number 4 sign and realized that it is the blessings of SAMAR . She wanted to help me. I do believe that she knew what I was going through this morning and wanted to make it easier on me by indicating that she is with me on this difficult day. She as well did not want me to walk at night in this dark area where the heels of the shoes go deep into the sand and the possibility of falling is high.

I then went up to my office which overlooks the A/E and I told Nawal, my friend and secretary the story. She laughed at first and then she rushed to the window. She said “Oh my God, it is number 4!” We then realized that all the signs for the parking spaces were on a small truck with number 4 being the first and the other numbers were behind it. I did not see the other numbers before when I was in the parking space. However, but we could see them now from my office on the 2nd floor. Nawal commented that this is very strange indeed! An hour later the truck moved with the signs and placed sign number 4 in the allocated place.

I stayed all morning thinking of SAMAR and number 4. The heaviness in my chest was lighter and the ceremony was not as bad as I thought. Somehow the circumstances did not allow the graduates to interact a lot with faculty which suited me well. As I left in the evening before the ceremony ended around 7:30 pm, I saw Nawal calling her driver to be picked up. He was unable to come as he was with her kids so I offered to take her home. It was a good feeling for both of us to get out of the building and find my car so close. I guess I was looked after today!

Um Samar

April 30th,2008

Sunday, October 18, 2009

There's an Elephant in the Room

There's an elephant in the room,
It's large and squatting ,so it's hard to get around it,
Yet we squeeze by with ' how are you? and ' I'm fine'
And a thousand other forms of a trivial chatter.
We talk about the weather,
We talk about work,
We talk about everything,except the elephant in the room.

There's an elephant in the room.
We all know it's there.
We're thinking of the elephant as we talk together.
It is constantly in our minds,
For,you see, it is a very big elephant.
It has hurt us all.
But we do not talk about the elephant in the room.

Oh, please say her name.
Oh, please say Barbara again.

Oh, please let's talk about the elephant in the room,
For if we talk about her death,
Perhaps we can talk about her life?
Can I say 'Barbara' to you and not have you look away?
For if I cannot,then you are leaving me
Alone
In a room
With an elephant.
By
Terry Kettering, 'Bereavement Magazine'

Friday, October 16, 2009

A Mother’s Diary

Nothing makes a mother happier than her daughter’s happiness, and nothing makes a mother unhappy than her daughter’s unhappiness. But what about the mother’s own personal happiness? It is too late for me now. I live through my daughter, some might say that it is wrong, but my life is over. There is no hope for me. I just had a fight with my dear daughter, her words hurt like a knife to the heart. As I remember those harsh words, I can’t stop my flowing tears. Why doesn’t my daughter love me? Is God punishing me, because I left two daughters behind in China? Not a day goes by when I don’t think about them .I’m trying to do it right with Jing-mei, but there is no hope for us anymore.

Samar Al Ansari 10.3
Sep. 14, ‘03

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

هنيئا لك يا ابنتي سمر

هنيئا لك يا ابنتي سمر لما لديك من محبين
.بالحياة والممات والأحلام، لديك معجبين
كم من الأحباب من أجلك في بيتنا مجتمعين
،بالحب والحنان يا حبيبتي سمر حولنا ملتفين
.أحلى الكلام عنك قالوا وأجمل الصفات بك ناعتين

كم من الأهل و الأصدقاء على فراقك متأثرين
ومن الأغراب على عدم فرصة لفائك نادمين
.فرحيلك يا حياتي جعلهم جميعا من الفاقدين

!ليتك تعلمين كم من الخلق اسمك مرددين
فهنيئا لي كأم بأنك دوما تذكرين
نعمة ورضا لك ولنا من رب العالمين
إنك مميزة أكثر من بعض الحاضرين
.لما جمعت من محبة وإعجاب خالدين

رحلت تاركة لي إرثا من الحب ولقب أم الغاليين
رضا الله عليك وهو بإذنه تعالى من المستجيبين
ورحمة من السماء ومغفرة يا أول السابقين
.وصبر جميل لنا... حتى نصبح من اللاحقين

رنده ربحي حماده
(أم سمر)
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة© 2009

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Nwoye

Dear Mr. Brown,

I don’t even know if I should be sending you such a letter, but I can’t seem to stop thinking about your ‘ways’. The religion you preach seems to come from love, and that is what truly captivated me. Christianity seems to answer a lot of questions that have been lingering in my mind, unlike my own religion which discourages any questioning.

As you see, this is quite a sensitive subject. I have been thinking these thoughts for some time now, I tried to push them aside, but now that I see such an alternative, these thoughts come rushing back. An alternative based on love, when my own religion is based on fear. I am tired of being afraid; I am tired of living this life. I want to learn more about Christianity. I feel as if I’m living incorrectly, I feel as if everything I’ve been taught is based on silly assumptions. I never believed I would find happiness doing the things my father wanted me to do, but up until now, I had no alternative. To explore your religion, I risk losing everything. You must be thinking, ‘he is clearly unhappy, so what does losing his life matter?’. It does matter, I have never known anything but the Ibo ways, and thought I may not agree with them, they are all that I’ve been taught.

By writing such a letter, I am putting myself in danger. My father, Okonkwo, might cut off my hand to prevent me from writing you in the future; he is that violent. You might have heard of my father, for he is quite respected in Mbanta. But I don’t respect him at all. I want to escape my father’s world, for one of two things might happen. We might argue to the point where he kills me, or even worse…I might become like him. Oh Mr. Brown, he is an awful person! Please save me from his fatal hands, please be my saviour!

While listening to you preach the other day, one thing put my heart at ease, the concept of hell. I hope there is such an awful place, a place made specifically for sinners, because then my father would be the first one to enter! My father is a despicable being, he is too powerful. He has the power to hurt you both physically and emotionally, and people that powerful should be sent to ‘hell’.

My brother was murdered. I remember it as if it was yesterday, I was so young then, so naïve, so innocent. I was sitting with Ikemfuna one day, and then my father entered saying that Ikemfuna had to return to his homeland. You see, Ikemfuna is not my real brother, but I considered him a brother because he meant so much to me. I burst into tears when I heard this, because Ikemfuna was the sole reason for my happiness. Ikemfuna left, and later on that day my father returned that night alone; I knew Ikemfuna was dead. I could not understand why my father would do such thing! For years I was angry at my father, but now I am not only angry at him, I am angry at the society in which I live. How could a society promote the killing of an innocent child? I know Ikemfuna more than anybody else and I know that he would never harm anyone! Why did they kill him? Why do I live in a society in which the innocent are murdered and the guilty are respected?

As you see Mr. Brown, I can no longer live this way. I need to get away, and I want you to help me. I do not want to live in a place where things are done without explanations. When I was younger, even before I knew Ikemfuna, I began to doubt my tribe’s ideals. Something happened when I was younger that I will carry with me to my death, the cries of the infants still haunts me sometimes. I could not have been more than six or seven years old when I heard infants crying in the evil forest, finding out later that they were twins left in the forest to die. For years I tried to figure out what the infants did that made them deserve such a death, but now I know that it is not something that the infants did, it is something that my tribe believes in. Infants, a few days old left to die! How can my people be that heartless?

I have made my unhappiness with my religion and society quite clear, but I am still confused. At this point, I am not sure of what I want. I just want answers, and possibly someone to talk to. I want to live my life doing things I see as right. I want to live in peace and not fear. I want to be proud of who I am and what I believe in.

I liked what I heard from you the other day, but I need more than that. I want to be sure that the religion you preach does not promote ideals I feel so strongly against. Over the years, my heart has endured so much; I do not think I will be able to handle much more. I truly hope that your religion will soothe me like the drops of frozen rain melting on the dry palate.

I would like to meet you and discuss some things, and hopefully you will be able to answer more of my questions. I do not want to meet in a public place, for if we are seen together, we might both be in danger. I know I sound like a coward- my father Okonkwo constantly refers to me as a woman- but hopefully, under your guidance I will become more brave.

Hopefully, you have learned more about me. I want you to know that I am extremely interested Mr. Brown. I plan to seek eternal comfort with your teachings.

Sincerely,
Nwoye

I have chosen to write a letter from Nwoye to the Mr. Brown to convey Nwoye’s apparent unhappiness with the customs and traditions of the Ibo Society. I felt that the letter was one of the few tasks that could manage to convey such emotion. In this letter, I write about Nwoye’s skepticism on Ibo traditions, and his search for answers. This links to one of the themes of the novel, which is that people continue to do things in ignorance just because they are part of tradition. I also wanted to show that the reason Nwoye eventually converted was because he was unhappy with his current situation; I do not think that Nwoye converted because he was so captivated by the Christian ways. I chose to write in a formal register, because I felt that the issue the letter talked about was a relatively serious topic. Also, while reading the book, I felt as if the Ibo people spoke formally to one another. The excessive amount of proverbs in the book gave off the impression that they speak to one another formally.

Samar Al Ansari 11.5

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Account for the rise and fall of Benito Mussolini

The post World War I period, was a period of both economic and political instability in Europe. This was no different in the case of Italy, for it was suffering from the Great Depression as well as many other post-war effects. Italy’s short-lived ministries seemed incapable of providing strong leadership and stability. Thus, when Benito Mussolini’s fascist movement unleashed, it received overwhelming support. Mussolini preached strong leadership which spoke a double language, it talked of revolution and social leveling, and it also preached national revival and emphasized the importance of martial ardor, hierarchy, and discipline. As a result, Italian conservatives fully supported Mussolini.

In Italy, there was a fear of communism. Economic stability would not be present with communism, and the Italians had had enough. Being a capitalist nation, communism would completely destruct their already suffering economy. Thus when fascism emerged, it received extensive support due to their anti communist leadership. King Victor Emanuel II of Italy appointed Mussolini prime minister in 1922, because he preferred giving leadership to Mussolini’s party over other communist parties. Therefore there was no need for the “March on Rome”, Mussolini’s plan to seize power by force. Mussolini did not need to overthrow the government, his anti communist feeling was enough.

As many other dictators, Mussolini used force as a weapon to inspire terror within the Italians. The Matteotti Affair of 1924 exhibits the brutality of the Mussolini perfectly. Socialist Deputy, Giacomo Matteotii, spoke out against Fascist acts of terror. He disappeared suddenly, and later it was found out that the he was killed by Fascist orders. The fascist leader then resorted to press censorship to cover up his ruthless act, but it was too late, the truth was out. He then accepted responsibility and crushed every opponent of his regime. Terrorized by his force, people either kept quiet or emigrated. Mussolini’s Black Shirts worked similarly to Hitler’s Storm Troopers, they both did their dictators’ dirty work. The Black Shirts would beat up opponents of the party, especially communists. This force on communists, led to an increase of support by Italian businessmen and conservatives. Also, in 1924, Mussolini obtained a massive majority in the Chamber of Deputies through a rigged election in which violence and terror were used.

After World War I, the Italians were both angry and embittered. They entered the war on the side of the Allies, because they were promised land. When the War Ended in 1919, no new land was acquired. Thus leading to an overwhelming feeling of betrayal. The Treaty of Versailles, only added to the frustration and betrayal of the Italians. They felt that their government betrayed them; they felt it failed to obtain the full price of Italy’s entrance into the war. Naturally, when Mussolini’s regime emerged promising revived glory, it received overwhelming support.

Mussolini was an incredibly good public speaker. His persuasive language helped him gain support in Italy. His regime also censored any anti-fascist talk, as exhibited in the Matteotti Affair. By not allowing people to listen to what his opponents were saying, Fascism had a monopoly over other political parties. He used propaganda to create a new image of himself as the strong leader (Il Duce). The persuasiveness of Il Duce alone is a clear example of how propaganda was used. He placed giant posters of himself everywhere with slogans saying, “Mussolini is Always Right”. Many newspapers and magazines talked about his greatness, talent, and genius. Indoctrination of Italian youth was also occurring at a fast pace, for they were brainwashing preached fanatic loyalty to the fascist party. They were taught to set the fascist regime as their uttermost top priority.

The agreements conducted by Mussolini also helped him gain vast support. In 1925, he signed the “Corporate State” Agreement, which essentially, gave organized Italian Industry freedom to what they see fit in return for its implied promise to support the Fascist regime. Theoretically, the Confuindustria (Federation of Italian Industrialists), would give their unconditional support to Mussolini’s regime. Through the Lateran Treaty and the Concordat that accompanied it, Mussolini was able to settle an ongoing dispute between the Church and Italy. Mussolini was an atheist, but he fully understood the importance of Catholicism in Italian life, thus he saw it to be in his best interest to improve the relationship between the two. In 1929, Pope Pius XI, and Mussolini were able to reach an agreement on issues that have been a source of debate for over sixty years, in the Lateran Treaty. The pope was given a few acres of land around the basilica of St. Peter’s and the Vatican, thus securing the church’s independence from the state. He also obtained a position for the Church in public education and assurance that Italian marriage law would not contradict with Catholic teaching. Through this treaty, Mussolini was able to obtain the support of the Pope as well as devout Catholics.

During the Great Depression of 1929, Mussolini distracted Italians by invading Abyssinia in 1935. He also signed the Rome-Berlin Axis in 1936 which gave him political power. His inclusion in the Spanish Civil War also strengthened his ideological aims. He was gaining more power globally by invading Abyssinia and by helping out in the Spanish Civil War without the help of the Allies or the League of Nations.

With the wide support Mussolini was receiving, no one would’ve predicted his people would soon turn against him. Mussolini often bragged about Italy’s amazing military strength, but these were hollow boasts. When Hitler invaded Poland, Mussolini did not help Hitler due to the lack of military strength. When France was about to be defeated by Germany, Mussolini saw this as an easy opportunity to grab land. But the Italians managed to advance only a few kilometers before France surrendered, thus there was no real gain. In 1940, Britain was under German attack, so Mussolini saw this as another easy opportunity for victory, so he invaded British colonies in Africa. A month later, he ordered an attack on his old enemy, Greece. Both invasions failed, and Mussolini had to ask for Hitler’s help. Hitler sent troops both to Libya and Italy, making Italy look like an occupied territory than a partner. 1941 was an extremely disastrous year for Italy, for they were defeated by the British at Tobruk, Egypt. Also, they were defeated at the Battle of Alamein. Italians were fed up. Italy was unsuccessful in all the wars it took part in under Mussolini, and for that Italians had to pay the price. For example in the invasion of Abyssinia, the Italians had to sell their jewellery to help pay for the invasion. The various invasions were a waste of resources; Italians were fed up. They disliked food rationing and they disliked German armies which were flooding into their country. More than anything, they disliked Mussolini who had brought all these disasters upon them. Mussolini had lied to them about their nation’s strength and readiness for war; once again the Italians felt betrayed. Due to public pressure, King Victor Emanuel II dismissed and imprisoned him.

Mussolini received overwhelming support at first because he offered strong leadership at a time of weakness and instability. He knew how to please the people by displaying his anti communist attitude openly and his longing for restoration of national pride. He took Italy into WWII while it was not ready, and lost battle after battle, losing support along the way, till finally his own people killed him.
Samar Al-Ansari
11.5

Sunday, October 04, 2009

How Many Children?

“How many children do you have?” I am asked
My answer to them will never be masked

I have a boy and two girls, a total of three
Two on earth and one whose soul has gone free

Two my hand can reach and embrace
And one left us all with an empty space

She was so eager to meet the Lord
Perhaps, from this senseless life, she got bored

The person is speechless and in shock
It seems like I have hit her with a rock

But what else can I answer, if I may ask?
To make it easier on people is a difficult task!

“But you have two then, am I right?”
No! I have three even though she is out of sight

Don’t you count your child when he is away?
Then why are you so surprised, if I may say?

Didn’t I carry all the three in my womb
And in my life and heart gave each one equal room?

Then how can I now this fact deny
To save you the shock? Do you want me to lie?

Summer Rays Copyright© 2009
by Randah Ribhi Hamadeh
Written in loving memory of my daughter
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari (4/4/1988-4/9/2006)

Friday, October 02, 2009

Secondary Losses

Secondary losses exacerbate the pain
When our children die,leave us adrift,
struggling to stay sane.

Secondary losses -the world ,as a safe place
where they would thrive,we'd watch them grow,
now fearful,desolate.

Secondary losses-a friend (or friends) shut off,
can't look at death this closely-
the fear is tempest tossed.

Secondary losses-the ability to cope
with anything and everything
in a world deprived of hope.

Secondary losses-the good things that we held
have lost their importance
when misery shrouds our cells.

Secondary losses-our laughter,free from care.
The times we see its reason,
delightful,now so rare.

Secondary losses-the ability to deny
that terrible things do happen-
invulnerability,a lie.

Secondary losses-the self -confidence we knew.
Our world view so shattered,
can any part be true?

Secondary losses-the lovely lives we had.
That sunshine that could fill our days,
when rarely we were sad.

Secondary losses
may,transformed,in time come back.
But our children aren't returning.
Nothing,no one,can change that.

By Genesse Bourdeau Gentry
Stars in the Deepest Night

Thursday, October 01, 2009

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

مجنون ليلى -المشهد الثالث

قيس مستلقياً على الأرض في الصحراء وهو يضم صدره، وفي وجهه مظاهر الحزن، فالدموع تسيل من عينيه بانتظام، فيراه سفيان

سفيان: قيس؟ يا مجنون ليلى، مابك؟ هل أنت مريض؟

قيس: لا، إنني لست مريض، بل متيم. لا أستطيع تحمل الألم في فؤادي آخ، يا قلبي، أتأسف إليك، فإنني لم أرد أن اضعك في كل هذا الألم (سامحني يا قلبي! سامحني! أرجوك سامحني! ( ينفجر في البكاء

سفيان: مابك تتحدث مثل المجنون؟ هل جرحك أحد؟

قيس: نعم، جرحني الحب، جرحتني ليلى

سفيان: يا قيس، عليك أن تنساها، فإنها متزوجة. هل سمعتني. متزوجة


قيس ( يصرخ): أعلم أنها متزوجة! أستيقظ كل يوم وهذه المعلومة بذهني، ولكن أحبها، ولا أستطيع أن أنساها. كيف أنسى واحدة أثرت على قلبي هكذا!؟

سفيان: احكِ لي ما حصل

قيس: حلمت عن ليلى، فكانت بين ذراعي ورد، فكان يداعبها بالكلام الحلو ( يقبض على صدره)... لا أستطيع العيش هكذا إنها لا تحبني آخ خ على الألم

سفيان: يا قيس، هذا مجرد حلم ولكن أنصحك أن تنساها

(قيس: لا، لن أنسى... ( يموت فجأة

سفيان: يا قيس! قيس! مجنون ليلى؟ ( يركض لجانبه، ويراه ميتاً). الله يرحمك يا قيس! الله يرحمك ويعوضك على الألم الذي مررت به. فإنك أول رجل أعرفه يموت من الحسرة والغم. إنك مت ولكن حبك لم يمت... حبك دائم... لأنك مجنون ليلى
( يدفنه سفيان تحت الرمال ويدعي على روح مجنون ليلى)

سمر الأنصاري
11.3الصف

Monday, September 28, 2009

مجنون ليلى -المشهد الثاني

يبدأ المشهد الثاني في خيمة البدوي سفيان، فسفيان ومجنون ليلى جالسين وأمامهما مائدة تحتوي على اللحم الطري والخبز الساخن الرقيق
سفيان: تفضل... تفضل يا مجنون ليلى
قيس: وأنت؟ لماذا لا تأكل؟
سفيان: سأنتظرك لما تنتهي، فهذه هي الأصول
قيس: دعك من هذا، فأنا لا أرتاح عندما أملئ بطني وأنت جالساً أمامي وظواهر الجوع مبرزة في وجهك
سفيان: لا، لا، أرجوك يا أخ
قيس: على راحتك
سفيان: قيس، لو تزوجت امرأة، هل ستحبها لآخر الزمن أو تخونها؟
قيس: أكيد سأحبها لآخر الزمن، فالزواج شيء مقدس
سفيان: نعم، فهمت. يا لك من رجل شريف. أستأذن لبضع الدقائق يا ابن العم، فسأحضر لك الحلوى( يخرج البدوي سفيان ليتحدث مع أخته (زينب
سفيان: يا زينب؟
زينب: لبيك؟
سفيان: زينب! وجدت لك عريساً! فهو رجلاً سيحبك حباً عظيماً لأنه رجل يفهم معنى الزواج. فاذهبي وقدّمي له الحلوى، فسأحضر والدنا لكي يتمم الخطوبة
( زينب تدخل على قيس حاملة الحلوى وهي تنظر إلى الأرض)
زينب: تفضل يا سيدي
قيس: شكراً، من تكونين أنت؟ زوجة سفيان؟
زينب: نعم؟ لا، لا! أنا أخته
قيس: تشرفنا، لماذا تنزلين رأسك هكذا؟
زينب ( وهي بغاية الخجل): لأن لا يجب عليك أن ترى وجهي قبل زواجنا الرسمي
(قيس: زواج؟ أي زواج؟ لا، أظن أنك أسأت الفهم، استأذنك! اشكري أخاك سفيان على كل شيء. فأمان الله. ( يخرج قيس فاراً من الخيمة

سمر الأنصاري
11.3الصف

Saturday, September 26, 2009

مجنون ليلى-المشهد الأول


يبدأ المشهد وقيس بن معاذ ( قيس ابن الملوح) جالساً على الرمال في صحاري نجد باكياً، ويراه شاب بدوي غريب

البدوي: مابك يا ابن العم؟ لماذا تبكي كالطفل الضائع المشتاق لأمه؟

(قيس:أبكي على الحالة التي أنا فيها. أبكي على الحب الضائع... أبكي على الماضي، والحاضر، والمستقبل ( ينفجر في البكاء
البدوي: أيها المسكين، ما اسمك؟

قيس: أنا قيس بن معاذ، من بني عامر. فمن تكون أنت؟

البدوي: أهلاً بك يا قيس من بني عامر. ولكن ماذا تفعل هنا بعيداً عن قبيلتك؟ أنا سفيان بن راشد، أعيش في مخيم قريب من هنا

قيس: يا سفيان، قبيلتي لا تعترف بي... لا تعترف بقيس بن معاذ ( يمسح الدموع من عينيه). فوالي قبيلتي أهدر دمي، فها أنا ذا أتقلب من مكان لمكان أحاول مداواة قلبي

سفيان: يا إلهي! فلماذا أهدر دمك الوالي؟

قيس: هل تريدني أن أقص عليك القصة بأكملها؟

سفيان: نعم، تفضل يا أخي العزيز، ربما أستطيع أن أساعدك

قيس: لن تستطيع أن تساعدني، ولكنني سأقص عليك القصة. منذ صغري أحببت نفس المرأة، ليلى، ابنة عمي... وليلى بادلتني هذا الحب. في كل يوم زاد الحب الذي في قلبي، وعزمت على الزواج منها

سفيان: يا ابن معاذ، إنني لا أرى مشكلتك! فانك تحب ابنة عمك، فهذا الحب سيرجع بشكل ايجابي إلى قبيلتك

قيس: أرجوك، لا تقاطعني! دعني أنهي لك حكايتي. أين كنت؟ نعم، تذكرت. زاد الحب بيننا، فإنني لم أستطع أن أخبئ هذا الحب، فالحب ليس عيباً! احتجت أن أعبر عن حبي بأي طريقة، فنظمت قصائد كثيرة وتغزلت بحبيبتي الغالية ليلى. مما أزعج عائلة ليلى، فزوجوها لحقير اسمه ورد. آخ، يا سفيان، لا أستطيع أن أشرح لك مدى حزني عندما سمعت بالخبر، فلم أستطع أن أنام، أو آكل، أو أعمل. حاولت أن أتوقف عن كتابة الشعر، لكن الرباط بين القلم في يدي والحب في قلبي لم يسمح لي بالتوقف. فأهل ليلى رفعوا أمري للوالي. فأهدر دمي ، وها أنا ذا جالسٌ أمامك أحكي لك مأساتي والدموع تملأ عيناي

سفيان: لا أعرف ماذا أقول لك. أنا أعلم أن لا شيء يستطيع أن يهون الجرح الأليم في صدرك، فأنت متيم بحبها! ولكن عندي لك سؤال، ما كان موقف ليلى؟ ها بادلتك هذا الحب؟

قيس: في البداية بادلتني الحب، ولكن بعد أن أغضبت أهلها لم أرها، فلا أعرف إن كانت لا تزال تحبني. أحياناً، أفكر أنها تبادلني هذا الحب، ولكن أتساءل، كيف رضت أن تتزوج ورد؟! ثم أتذكر أن أهلها غصبوا ورد عليها، فعجزت ليلى عن الدفاع عن الحب الذي بيننا. الأمل الصغير في قلبي أنها لا تزال تحبني يعطيني الدافع للعيش، فلو تأكدت أنها لا تحبني لانتحرت

سفيان: لم تفكر بامرأة سواها طول هذه المدة؟

قيس: لا! بالطبع لا! أحبها حباً صادقاً، وسأحبها لآخر الزمن
"فشاب بنو ليلى وشاب ابن بنتها وحرقة ليلى في الفؤاد كما هي"
سفيان: أنت مجنون بحبها. سأعطيك اللقب "مجنون ليلى" من الآن فصاعداً. مجنون ليلى، تعال معي إلى خيمتي، فسأقدم لك بعض الطعام
وأدعك ترتاح قليلاً
سمر الأنصاري
الصف 11.3

Thursday, September 24, 2009

لزيارتي تهرولين

كنت لهبوط الطائرة يا أمي تتشوقين
لتأتي لزيارتي وعلى قبري تقفين
حضرت مسرعة لا بل كنت تهرولين
وكأنك لم تزوريني أشهرا وسنين
غبت أياما فقط... يا أحب المحبين
أردت أن تزوريني، لتصلي وتدعين
وسلام أهل الرياض إلي توصلين
وعما حدث برحلتك علي تقصين
وكم كان العيد من غيري حزين
وكيف كانت الصلاة وأنت تصلين
بعدما أصبحت من دوني إليها تذهبين

أمي، سلام عليك يا أغلى الغاليين
حفظك الله لأبي وأخوتي ولنا أجمعين
وأدام عليك الصحة لتأتي وتزورين
لتصلي وتدعي، وروحي تخاطبين
للصلاة والدعاء من أجلي توجهين
رنده ربحي حماده
(أم سمر)
جميع الحقوق محفوظة للمؤلفة© 2009

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Nature's Rainbows

We held them in our parent arms

for days or weeks or years.

Now we hold them in our hearts

and cry the darkest tears.



The cord attached to children,

eternally fine and strong.

We never leave the missing;

it holds us all life long.



Our children now inside us-

our souls tattooed with gold.

Their love,their words,caresses,

are hugs that we still hold.



If we open to the knowledge,

that they aren't completely gone,

we will sometimes feel their touching,

sometimes soft and sometimes strong.



When they show us nature's rainbows,

we can feel their proud delight,

sending signs to show they're living,

only far beyond our sight.

By Genesse Bourdeau Gentry
Stars in the Deepest Night

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Summer Rays Now Available in Bahrain


Now available at The Bookcase, Budaiya Road, Bahrain
Note: The proceeds will go to charity in SAMAR's name

"Hawk Roosting” Commentary

The “Hawk Roosting” revolves around one key idea, control. Control is evident through various aspects of the poem and is a key factor of the theme. The theme of this piece being, although we stem from Creation, we are in control of our lives to a great extent due to our divine right of dominance. This idea is symbolized through the literal theme of the hawk’s control over life; “My feet are locked upon the rough bark. It took the whole of Creation to produce my foot, my each feather: Now I hold Creation in my foot”(lines 10-12). The irony of this stanza alone is sufficient enough to determine theme. The hawk’s foot, that took all of Creation to make, is locked upon a tree bark that is also made by Creation. Thus although both the tree and hawk are made by the same forces, the hawk still has control over the tree’s life by putting its foot on the tree’s bark. This theme can be taken to another level and be applied to man, who is symbolized by the powerful, superior hawk. Man is the dominant creation on land and exerts its power and control over other life forms, much like the hawk. Through various stylistic devices, Hughes successfully manages to create an excellent understanding of the theme.

Appointing the hawk as the speaker of the poem has a tremendous impact on effectively displaying theme. Hawks are known to be powerful, majestic, dignified, and superior life forms. Man is also known to have these features; therefore it is easy to draw a parallel between the two. There is such a great similarity between the two to the extent that the reader might think the speaker is a man if not for the title of the poem. Thus by creating such a strong parallel, Hughes effectively takes his theme onto a deeper, more metaphorical level. A significant salient feature of this poem is the use of first person point of view. By using first person point of view Hughes emphasizes the control and power of the hawk; “I kill where I please because it is all mine.” (line 14). The use of personal pronouns such as “I” has such a drastic effect on displaying power and control. The repetition of the personal pronouns in this particular line merely reiterates the hawk’s power and control. If Hughes chose to write in third person point of view, the theme would not have been as clearly exhibited as it is while using first person point of view; “My eye has permitted no change. I am going to keep things like this.” (lines 23-24). By starting these two lines with personal pronouns, Hughes is reiterating the control of the hawk over life. First person point of view makes the reader feel as if the hawk is talking directly to him/her, and the frequent use of pronouns merely adds an extensive amount of control and power to the poem.

“Hawk Roosting” has a very specific and clear order to it. It is composed of six four-line stanzas made up of relatively short sentences. The purpose of having an identical number of lines in each of the stanzas is to strengthen the theme; this form is merely a display of control. Since the poem is written in first person point of view in the voice of the hawk, the reader feels as if he is being talked to by the hawk. Thus by having and orderly and repetitive form, the reader feels as if the hawk is even controlling the poem. There is an element of divine right in the poem (5th stanza), and the fact that there is a specific number of lines per stanza soothes the reader and persuades him into accepting the divine right of the hawk to rule. The control and divine right exhibited through the structure of the poem emphasize the last line of the poem, “I am going to keep things like this”; only the hawk has the power and right to change things. Short sentences were used throughout the poem in order to present bold statements; bold statements are a sign of power. Punctuation plays a key role in this poem. Firstly, some of the periods are used to make the sentences bold, ‘The sun is behind me.” (line 21). This line alone will not have the same effect as the line with a period at the end due to the boldness accompanied with the period. Another important function of the punctuation is to indicate caesural pauses. Caesural pauses are used throughout the poem to emphasize the hawk’s control. “I sit in the top of the wood, my eyes closed” (line 1). The comma in this line empathizes the personal pronouns, clearly exhibiting the extent of the hawk’s control. The caesural pauses also give the reader time to digest the thought and the opportunity to recognize the significance of the line; “I kill where I please because it is all mine.” (line 15). The period at the end of the line indicates a caesural pause and enables the reader to digest the thought at hand. Thus the reader comes to a clear understanding of the complete and utter control of the hawk.

There are several ideas and messages hidden in this poem circulating around the theme. Firstly, the idea that the hawk has a divine right to be in control is exhibited in the fifth stanza. Choice of words such as allotment, meaning ration, imply that it is predestined for the hawk to kill. Thus it his divine right to do so. “For the one path of my flight is direct through the bones of the living.” (lines 19-20). The phrase path of my flight adds a spirituality to the poem implying the divine right and specific duty the hawk has to fulfill. Another idea in this poem is that things were meant to suit the hawk; “The convenience of the high trees! The air’s buoyancy and the sun’s ray are of advantage to me:” (lines 5-7). The word convenience strongly suggests that things were made to suit the hawk, implying that Creation went out of its way to make the hawk’s duty within reach. These two ideas further strengthen the parallel between the hawk and man, therefore strengthening understanding of theme. Man has divine right over other creation to rule on land, and Creation did create the world for man.

The tone of the speaker is a very proud one. The pride in the hawk’s tone strengthens the idea of him being a superior animal and his power; “The sun is behind me.” (line 21). The reader senses a great deal of pride from the hawk, because he is saying that the sun, one of the most magnificent creations, is behind him. The sun that provides all living organisms with warmth is beneath the hawk. Through lines 21 and 9, the reader recognizes a pattern of the hawk belittling other forms of creation. As for the atmosphere, it is a very peaceful and calming one. The idea of divine right implied through this poem makes the reader believe that everything is as it should be, and that the hawk has a predestined control over life. Even though there is talk about killing and death (line 15), the reader still feels at ease, because of the divine right of the hawk’s control. The last line, “I’m going to keep things like this”, has a significant calming effect on the reader, because of man’s constant fear of change. Hughes decided to take man’s fear of change to his advantage and set a calming tone.

Hughes deliberately chose to not use a lot of description and imagery in this poem. There is barely any imagery whatsoever, and the two main images are very bluntly stated. “I sit in the top of the wood, my eyes closed” exhibits an image of a hawk sitting at a great height. Since height symbolizes control, the image is used to capture the idea of control. Another image, “the sun is behind me”, displays an image of a hawk with creation behind him. This image also strengthens the theme and control of the hawk. These images represent ideas more than they represent actual pictures. Hughes deliberately excluded extensive imagery, because if the images displayed the beauty of nature, or other creation, it would contradict the superiority of the hawk. Nature is work of the Creator, and this poem is told to the reader through the voice of a proud hawk. There are no metaphors or similes either, because that would belittle the hawk and take away from his proud tone.

Hughes carefully chose the words used in the poem in order to assert the control of the hawk. First of all, many words were used to make it seem as if the hawk’s control was matter of fact. Words such as buoyancy and allotment imply that there is a scientific reasoning for his control. ‘Creation’ was used deliberately instead of God, in order for Hughes to exclude religion from the poem and include spirituality. The use of the word ‘foot’ is a clear example of the hawk’s pride. It is very belittling for Creation to be held in a foot; Hughes could have chosen any another body part, but he chose foot because it is belittling.

There is no specific rhyme scheme, or obvious sound devices such as alliteration. Hughes did this in order for the hawk’s control to seem very matter of fact and not fabricate as a result of the hawk’s pride. Since it is through first person point of view, if there was a rhyming scheme, all the reader would picture was a proud hawk.
By creating a proud hawk that believes it is his divine right to be in control Hughes draws the parallel line between the speaker of the poem an man. Through other stylistic approaches such as diction, form, absence of imagery, etc., Hughes manages to create a solid understanding of the theme.


Samar Al Ansari
12 IB

Monday, September 14, 2009

SAMAR

I am glad we named you SAMAR
A short name with so much power
You darling added to it glamour
And the scent of a special flower
With your charisma, charm and color
A name I miss every minute and hour
I miss calling you as I call your brother
And your sister, beloved Qadar
And I yearn for your reply: “Yes mother”
When I hear people talking to each other
Mentioning the word summer
It breaks my heart; I miss you, SAMAR

Summer Rays Copyright© 2009
by Randah Ribhi Hamadeh
Written in loving memory of my daughter
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari (4/4/1988-4/9/2006)

Thursday, September 10, 2009

War Quote

“They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet or fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason.”

By Ernest Hemingway

Samar Al-Ansari 11.5

Feb 26, ‘05

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

More from Gibran

I shall live beyond death, and I shall sing in your ears
Even after the vast sea- wave carries me back
to the vast sea-depth.
I shall sit at your board though without a body,
and I shall go with you to your fields, a spitit invisible.
I shall come to you at your fireside,a guest unseen.
Death changes nothing but the mask that covers our faces.
The woodsman shall still be a woodsman,
The ploughman,a ploughman,
and he who sang his song to the wind
shall sing it also to the moving spheres.
_Khalil Gibran

Sunday, September 06, 2009

I Love My Sister

I love my sister
My only sister
She’s there for me
When I get a blister

I know she loves me
And I love her
Without her I can’t
Be happier

By Samar Al Ansari

1997-1998

Friday, September 04, 2009

Friends in Grief

Two bereaved mothers
met for an hour
became pals for ever
Friends in grief

I never knew Um Samar
until my son died.
Thousands of miles away she called
to comfort and console
Um Samar lost her daughter 3 years ago today
I lost my son
Almost 23 months ago today

We met only once,
Um Samar and I, for just an hour
She arrived draped in sorrow and aches
I was there drained and in despair.
Our eyes said it all
The enormity of the pain was too great not to behold
We held hands in affection and compassion
And when she looked thru my streaming tears,
my pain eased.

She showed me Samar’s photo,
Samar, glowing with life and beauty
I showed her my Haas’s last pictures,
Haas handsome and fit till the very end

Um Samar and I
Two bereaved mothers
met for an hour
became pals for ever

We sat in stillness and silence
until the sun set down
Until the day said goodbye
We felt safe to shed tears.
We held each other in love and peace.
No more alone,
But walking together into the pathway of grief.
hand in hand following our destinies.

We are two bereaved mothers
Who met for an hour
and became pals for ever

Friends in grief are true friends indeed.

By Najwa- Haas’mom
4 Sept 2009

Three Years

Mother, why do you keep
calling my name?
You know I’m with you
though nothing is the same.

I‘m always there
to relieve your pain
of not seeing nor touching me,
nor hearing my voice again.

Don’t worry I visit you
every single day
Whether you’re awake,
asleep, and when you pray.

As you lie
on the sofa or bed,
I rest my head Mother,
next to your head.

Listen to my voice
when I whisper in your ear
Even from afar,
to you, it’s still near.

When you hug my picture
to give me a kiss,
I return it
Dear Mother, with bliss.

I know how painful it is
for you to go on…
Now three years passed
since I have been gone.

Wipe your tears, Mother
and give me a smile,
I know those three years
weren’t a short while.

But I also know
that you’re very strong
You survived my death
by keeping me, where I belong.

You kept my legacy
all these years alive
Without it, we wouldn’t
have been able to survive.

And Mother, I’m closer
to you now than before,
As we have become One
Not two anymore.

You must know
that I love you so…
I’m always with you
and will never let go...

I hope it lessens
your unbearable pain
For you to know I’m with you
I say it now, and forever again…

Randah R. Hamadeh, 2009, Copyright©
Written in loving memory of my daughter
Samar Ahmed Al Ansari

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

"Wake Me Up When September Ends"

Summer has come and passed

The innocent can never last

wake me up when September ends


like my father's come to pass

even years has gone so fast

wake me up when September ends


here comes the rain again

falling from the stars

drenched in my pain again

becoming who we are


as my memory rests

but never forgets what I lost

wake me up when September ends


summer has come and passed

the innocent can never last

wake me up when September ends


ring out the bells again

like we did when spring began

wake me up when September ends


here comes the rain again

falling from the stars

drenched in my pain again

becoming who we are


as my memory rests

but never forgets what I lost

wake me up when September ends


Summer has come and passed

The innocent can never last

wake me up when September ends


like my father's come to pass

twenty years has gone so fast

wake me up when September ends

wake me up when September ends

wake me up when September ends

Green Day Lyrics

Tuesday, September 01, 2009

September 2009

ولكن اسمك لا يزال يردده الأغراب قبل الخلان
وسيرتك تدوي يا حبيبتي في أرجاء كل مكان
وعبيرك يا أحلى وأعبق زهرة في البستان
عطر الحبيب والغريب فغار منك الريحان
"من قصيدة "عام مضى يا ابنتي الحبيبة سمر

Sunday, August 30, 2009

The Beast Within

Objective: Discuss Golding’s purpose and the ways in which it is achieved.

We are all beasts deep down. It sounds awful doesn’t it? What’s awful is that it’s true. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding addresses the theme that every man has a beast within that is tamed by society. As a result, when society is diminished, man’s beast is set free, and his savagery emerges. In the novel, the boys started off things in a civilized manner, but as the plot progressed and order and civilization began to lose their importance, the boys became savage. Authors use writing as a median to express their thoughts/opinions, or to fulfill a certain goal; all authors have purposes. Golding’s purpose was to convey his timeless and universal theme. Lord of the Flies was written shortly after World War II, a period directly after a time in which in inhumanity and darkness of man’s heart was at its peak. Golding used this novel to send a message, the message being the theme of the novel. Golding’s timeless theme is conveyed through the absence of referral to time, type of characters in the novel, use of symbols, and through author’s style.

Throughout the novel, there was no concrete reference to time. Some could argue that there were some references to time such as hair length and day/night, but these were subtle references used to advance and develop plot; “Toward noon, as the floods of light fell more nearly to the perpendicular, the stark colors of the morning were smoothed in pearl and opalescence” (58). This reference to time (noon), was used to create an image and introduce the plot of the chapter. Golding didn’t include references to time, because his theme was timeless and universal. He wanted people all over the world regardless of what time period to be able to familiarize with his theme. It is known to the leader that there was a war being fought in the ‘real’ world, but again, there was no reference to which war was being fought, “Didn’t you hear what the pilot said? About the atom bomb? They’re all dead” (14). Golding also refrained from mentioning material things such as books or toys, because as times change, so do peoples’ tastes and preferences. Golding had an important message that he wanted to deliver, so he did purposely did not include any references to time in order for his message to be timeless and universal.

Golding used various types of characters in his novel such as archetypal, real, and symbolic characters in order to achieve his purpose. All his characters appeared in such a way that the reader could familiarize with them. The reader could compare the real characters to people they know, or they could recognize the ideal that the symbolic/ archetypal characters embodied. If the reader recognized the characters, then it would make understanding the theme much easier. In the novel, Ralph served as the real character; he was the fallible young man that everyone could identify with: “Ralph too was fighting to get near, to get a handful of that brown, vulnerable flesh. The desire to squeeze and hurt was over-mastering”(115). Ralph was not perfect, he had his moment of weakness; he was flawed, like the rest of the world. His savagery emerged at a point in the novel, emphasizing Golding’s theme of the beast within. The characters also work on a symbolic level because Golding wanted to include ideals, or perfect examples of things in the society he created, so he personified them. Simon was the archetypal character of kind heartedness, “Simon, sitting between the twins and Piggy, wiped his mouth and shoved his piece of meat over the rocks to Piggy” (74). Simon was the perfect example of the kind hearted man, a Christ figure, included in the novel as a personification of kindness. His similarity with Christ also added spirituality to the society. Roger on the other hand was the foil character to Simon, he was the archetype of a sadist, “Roger led the way straight through the castles, kicking them over, burying the flowers, scattering the chosen stones” (60). Roger was the perfect example of man who’s beast has been set free with the absence of order and society, “Roger stopped, picked up a stone, aimed, and threw it at Henry-threw it to miss” (62). When Roger realized that no adults were present, his beast began to emerge, and as the story progressed and order began to diminish, Roger became more and more evil. When he killed Piggy, his beast was fully exposed. As for allegorical figures, Piggy was the allegory of logic, and he represented the adult voice in society, “Like kids!’ he said scornfully. ‘Acting like a crowd of kids!”(30).
Piggy was the voice of reason in their society, he tamed the beast within the boys to a degree, especially Ralph’s beast. Jack was the allegory of anarchy in the novel, his anarchy led for his beast to emerge as well as others’ beasts. Jack’s anarchy was first evident in the first argument between him and Ralph over shelter vs. meat/needs vs. wants, “We needed meat,”(71). The characters’ dual functions, symbolic and real, were an effective way of achieving purpose.

Another method of conveying his theme, was through Golding’s use of symbols. His own theme is symbolic, the beast within, meaning the evil within man’s heart. He used symbols to include the ideals essential to conveying his theme. The fire was symbolic of order and civilization, and as the fire began to lose its importance, civilization began to diminish, releasing the beasts within the boys. “The fire’s the most important thing. Without the fire we can’t be rescued. I’d like to put on war-paint and be a savage. But we must keep the fire burning” (142). In this quote Ralph conveys the theme; if the fire runs out, they will become savage. The fire represents civilization and if that is diminished, the evil within man will emerge, and he will become savage. As for the conch, it represented law and order, “That’s what the shell is called. I’ll give the conch to the next person to speak. He can hold it when he’s speaking” (33). The conch started losing its importance and anarchy began to emerge, “Conch! Conch!’ shouted Jack. ‘We don’t need the conch anymore”(101-102). When people like Jack began to neglect the conch, their savagery emerged. The Lord of the Flies symbolized the inner devil, “You know perfectly well you’ll only meet me down there- so don’t try to escape” (143). Simon’s conversation with the Lord of the Flies displayed the theme fully; only after their conversation is the reader fully aware of the beast’s identity. “You knew, didn’t you? I’m part of you? Close, close, close! I’m the reason why it’s no go? Why things are what they are?”(143). Finally, the beast symbolized the darkness within man’s heart, “However Simon thought of the beast, there rose before his inward sight the picture of a human at once, heroic and sick”(103). Simon was the only one aware of the beast’s true identity, the others were unaware of the beast’s identity, which then led to problems between the boys. Jack for example used the beast to manipulate the boys, and for a source of power. People began to go to Jack for protection, which led to crumbling of the original group. It’s ironic how people went to Jack for security because he offered protection from the beast, and the beast being the darkness of man’s heart is no longer tamed in Jack.

Golding uses mood, tone, and diction to convey his theme as well. The diction used in the novel was very simple and easy to understand, because Golding had an important message he wanted to spread and thought that through simplicity, it would be the most understandable. “I’m frightened of us. I want to go home. Oh God, I want to go home” (157). The simplicity of the diction in the quote created a better understanding of the theme to the reader. As for Golding’s tone, it was pessimistic. He was not very critical of man, but man was certainly displayed in a negative manner, “Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man’s heart, and the fall through the air of a true wise friend called Piggy” (202). Golding knew that man will not repent, therefore his pessimism was obvious through the novel. His pessimism enables you to regard the theme with a high level of importance, because you realize how horrible man can be. Finally, the mood was very sorrowful. At the end of the novel, the reader feels overwhelmed by his newly acquired knowledge on the nature of man, and is left filled with sorrow. This sorrowful mood enables the reader to fully understand the importance of the theme of the novel. The reader realizes how evil man is, and is left disturbed while digesting this heavy theme.

Golding managed to achieve his purpose effectively, for the reader is left significantly affected by the theme. The timeless theme of the novel was successfully delivered to the reader through the absence of reference to time, character types, various symbols used, and the author’s style. The best confirmation to the success of the timeless theme is that more than fifty years after the novel was published, students still continue to study it in schools all around the world. Through character types, symbols, and author’s style, the reader comes to a full understanding of the theme, and is left disappointed and sorrowful over the darkness of man’s heart.
Samar Al-Ansari 11.5
Oct. 19, ‘04