Posting on behalf of Ben Cheong, Australian International School's E.S.L class.
Rap Point 2 Consider the family's escape from Vietnam through the eyes of: Grandma In the beginning of the letter, grandma is so proud of her grandson but towards the end, the letter indicates that she feels emptiness in her life. She feels happy that she still had time to celebrate New Year's eve with her family and is also proud of her grandson, Toan, for giving a speech on the New Year's eve celebration to the oldest member of the family in the house. It is shown that age and past experiences were influencing how Grandma feels and her point of view about the New Year's eve celebration. She also feels old and didn't want to celebrate the New Year's eve party.
Toan
Toan was feeling a bit mad because nobody tells him that all of them are going to move (leave Vietnam). He also was a bit mad because nobody thinks that he, a six year old boy, should interfere or know about what's happening. He also felt sad. This was indicated when he said "looking back at the distant coastline of the country that was no longer my home". However, he also feels happy since he can leave together with his family. Toan liven in a country where freedom to express something and to do something is non-existent. He must feel quite happy that he can leave Vietnam together with his family and leave freely. The language was written in first person as he expressed his mood.
Minh
Minh feels rather nervous and develops a sense of fear, as the time to leave Vietnam draws near. He feels this way because he knows the chances of them getting caught are fairly high and it would mean the end of his freedom and future. He also feels sympathetic towards his family because of the unpleasant "accommodations" they have to endure on the boat. Furthermore, is unconfident about the boat's reliability to sustain the journey of over 70 people across the sea. However, Minh is at the same time, grateful that he may have a new future soon. The salty sea breeze reminds him of the days he was harvesting seaweed for a living, when life was much simpler, but now, he has to face the reality of his current situation. He also thought about the fact of being caught. He thinks he would be sent back to the re-education camp where he once was for a long time. As the sea is calm, Minh hears the sea's small ripples going against the hull of the boat and at the same time endure the calming sea breeze. However, Minh soon realises the seriousness of the situation he is in.
Hoa
Hoa has mixed feelings on her and her family's departure. The sound of a motor which gets gradually loader makes her reminiscent her past. She feels pity for her mother who was too proud to let the old ways go and recalls all the experiences she went though. This is the time to put the past aside, and since she is at the point of leaving he whole life behind, she recalls everything, which she didn't want to think about before. She tries to recall past without her will on the way, which separates her life until now and her future. Hoa is a very strong-willed person who didn't want to listen to her mother. The pain of misunderstanding between Hoa and her mother strikes her suddenly as she thinks back to the past and their relationship with each other. Responses by the Australian International School's E.S.L class. Back | Next | Reply | Reply All | Forward | Delete | Move To
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