Alaska's way out

'How will we ever get out of this labyrinth of suffering?'
-> Straight & Fast

Guesses about Alaska's death

'Maybe she was driving there to break up with Jake.' (the Colonel)

'Maybe she was going to return them (white tulips) to Jake.' (Miles)

'It might have been a suicide.' (the Colonel)

'Maybe she just had an odd kind of courage.' (Miles)

'Maybe it was only because Alaska couldn't hit the Brakes.' (Miles)

'She did like being mysterious. Mybe she wanted it to be like this.' (the Colonel)

'Maybe Jake has the answers.' (the Colonel)

'Maybe she was racked with guilt.' (the Colonel)

'Maybe the flowers were some kind of memorial to herself - like a funeral arrangement or something. ' (Miles)

'She was really drunk, so ahe could have thought she wasn't going to hit the cop, ...' (Takumi)

'She could have fallen asleep.' (Lara)



'Something invinsible snapped inside her, and that which had come together commenced to fall apart. Maybe that was the only answer we'd ever have. She fell apart because that's what happens.' (Miles)

Thanksgiving meal

Here you see a real traditional Thanksgiving meal with turkey and all this stuff

Writing a letter

Imagine you are Miles you are writing a letter to your parents after the Thanksgiving break.

Dear mom, 
Dear dad, 

the Thanksgiving vavation was quiet hard. As I told you before I had a lot of wark to do. Somedays I had to wake up at 7:30 to finish my homework or essay. 
But my friends were with me and in my rarely freetime I did funny things with them. But mom don't worry! I did not get in trouble! I still do not smoke, I still do not drink alcohol and for shure I will never do something stupid. 


The mother of my roommate Chip Martin inveted me to spent Thanksgiving with them and Alaska. She is a very nice girl I met here. 
Mrs. Martin lives in a small trailer, but she is so friendly. She made a real good Thanksgiving meal. But there was no cranberry sauce, so it wasn't as good as yor food mum. I missed the taste of that a bit, but it was still a good meal. 


I will visit you at home on Christmas. 
See you then. I miss you both.


Yours Miles

Feelings

Longing:
- Miles and Alaska are lying in the gras and drinking wine, he wants to kiss her

Emberassement:
- when Alaska asks Miles if he likes porn
- when the visit the Colonel

Gratitude:
- when they tell their gratutudes after the meal on Thamksgiving
- Alaska is thankful that Miles stays with her

Sensuality:
- when Miles and Alaska are lying in the gras
- when Alaska is crying and says that she fucks everithing up

Incredulity:
- Alaska has no family

Distress:
- the Colonel's mother cares for Miles and Alaska on Thanksgiving

Moodiness: 
- Alaska changes her mood while she is talking about her mother

Superiority:
-Alaska knows more about sex than Miles
- Miles ahs richer parents than Alaska and the Colonel

Unprdictability: 
- Alaska's moods are unprdictable

Writing a summary (p. 84-99)

In the novel 'Lookning for Alaska' the protagonists are Miles Halter and Alaska Young. They get to know each other on a boarding school. They become friends and miles get to love her.

 In the text exerpt from p. 84-99MIles and Alaska are staying at Culver Creek during the Thanksgiving vacation.

they drink wine which Alaska has buried to hide it from the Eagle. she tells Miles that she bought it with her fake ID. She always buys some Vodka for the Colonel, too.
Miles and Alaska spent a lot of time together. She told him that she is very thankful for that he is staying with her, because she hates to be at home.
Later they watch a porn together which they stole from some Weekday Warriors and Alaska teachs Miles how sex should be for a woman.
One day the Colonel inveted both to spent Thanksgiving with him and his mum. They live in a small trailer and the colonel has to sleep in a tent. But his mother is an amazeing cook and makes the best Thanksgiving food Miles ever had.
on their way back to Culver Creek Miles Fells asleep and doesn't realise what Alaska and the Colonel are talking about.
She tells him later and she os totally confused and  messes things up.

Friendship

Miles: I think he is happy, that he has got some friends on Culver Creek. Before he hadn't got any, we remember the going-away party.

Alaska: She seems to be popular, but she ratted on a friend to avoid trouble.

The Colonel: The most important point for him is that his friends are loyal.

Our opinion: It is important that ...

 ... you can trust your friends

 ... they hear you, if you have problems

 ... friends are a kind of loyal, for e.g. if you did something stupid

Their relationship/ friendship (p. 63-83)

The bufriedo

On this picture a bufriedo is shown.
Like the one which Miles and his friends ate one in the cafeteria of Culver Creek.
You can a bufriedo also call 'chimichanga'.


Here is an original recipe from mexico:

BURFRIEDOS:
250 g flour
1 teaspoon salt
80 ml oil
100 ml water
flour, for the work surface

CHICKEN FILLING:
2 tomatoes, peeled,
1 avocado, ripe
2 tablespoons lemon juice
400 g chicken breast
Oil, for frying
Baked beans cream
Sour cream
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt & pepper
  
Chimichangas:
Flour, salt, oil and water (adjust amount of water) to a smooth, supple dough. Cover and soak for about 1 hour.

Platelets:
Dough into 12 portions and shape into 12 balls. Balls to press tortillas tortilla press with an original mind Ø 25cm.

CHICKEN FILLING:
Cut the tomatoes into thin slices. Peel the avocado in half, remove stone, cut into thin strips. Immediately drizzle with lemon juice.
Chicken breasts, pat dry and season. Fry in little oil on contact. Cut into very fine dice.

FILLING:
Just before serving, spread baked beans in the middle of the hot chimichangas. Top with chicken, sour cream, avocado and tomatoes. Drizzle with oil, season with little salt & pepper. Fold chimichangas (such as Chinese spring rolls), or roll, so jedenfals that the abundance during frying can withdraw anywhere.

FRYING:
Rolls in hot oil fryer fry until crisp. Done.

A comparison between Miles and us

One part in this book we could understand Miles. On page 34 he explained the situation in his frensch class. He didn't understand anything, because his class before wasn't on that high level like this one. We were in the same situation as we came from a Realschule to a Gymnasium and that's why we are hating frensch (a little bit) like Miles. A funny scene (for us).

Analysing the beginning of a novel

The narrative does begin 'in media res' (the reader doesn't get any background information -> plot has already started) and it goes up to page 38.

At first Miles and his parent are in Florida and his mother is going to organise a farewell party for her son, because he wants to go to a boarding school in Alabama.
At Culver Creek Miles mets his roommate Chip, called Colonel, and the beautiful girl Alaska. Miles got his nickname 'Pudge', but in fact he is the opposite of pudgy.
And in one night some boys played a bad prank on Pudge.

This is a sculpture by the Cuban sculptor Yoan Capote (2008)

Here is a maze shown that looks like a brain. It is not that huge, but it seems difficult to find the right way out of it. We can see a few men. They are walking into it, going through the labyrinth or standing in it and one person is standing in front of stairs into/ out of the maze.
The personon symbolise that there could be many 'right' ways or they are something like obstacles or stones in the way when you want to walk through the labyrinth.

A good title for this sculpture in connection with the book 'Looking for Alaska' could be 'The Labyrinth of Live'.

Personally, I would think that Alaska would like this sculpture, because it fits to what she says and it is an plausible answer to her question waht the labyrinth is.

The Labyrinth

On the Pages 22 l.22, 23 l. 6 and 23 ll. 26-27 Alaska and Miles are talking about a labrinth.

In a book called 'The General in His Labyrinth', by Gabriel García Márquez, Simón Bloívar is the main charakter. Alaska has brought this book to the lake where she and Miles met. They talked for example about famous last words which Miles knew of course, but when Alaska aksed him for the last words in the book he could not answer.
Simón says 'Damn it. How will I ever get out of this labyrinth!'

Then they started talking about the maze.

They ask each other what the labyrinth is, if it is living or dieing and which is he (Simón) trying to escape- the world or the end of it...
Alaska wants to find out what the labyrinth is and asks Miles for his help.

We could ad the questions why is it called 'labyrinth' and what it stands for.