iRead Journal Prompt #1 for The Declaration

AJ Pendharkar

English III Honors

Coach Morrell

April 3, 2013

iRead Journal Prompt #1 for The Declaration

            There were many important events in the book, but the most important one was when Anna met Peter.  Peter was the gateway of happiness for Anna; he helped her meet her parents, escape from Grange Hall, and become a Legal.  When they first met, Anna hated Peter and tried to avoid him at all costs; she thought he was a trouble maker and knew if she was around him it would hurt her chances of being the best Surplus.  Anna did whatever it took to be on good terms with Mrs. Pincent.

            As Anna got closer with Peter, he told her about her parents, which upset Anna.  She believed her parents hated her and didn’t want anything to do with her, and thought that Peter was lying to upset her.  However, when Peter started calling her ‘Anna Covey’, she knew he knew something.  Nobody has used her last name in years, and she thought how Peter would know it.  On top of that, Peter knew she had a birthmark that looked like a butterfly on her stomach.  At Grange Hall, Mrs. Pincent was the only one that knew about that, and she told Anna it wasn’t a butterfly, but a dead moth.  Peter not only turned Anna’s life completely around, but also helped her grow as a person.  The second they met, Anna knew that he was different because his eyes were darting everywhere; Surpluses weren’t allowed to look everywhere, they had to stare at the ground.  After a lot of persuasion, Peter finally convinced Anna to escape with him and go to London to finally meet her parents.  Once they both got sent to solitary, they finally made their escape and within a couple of days of hiding in various locations from the Catchers, they finally made it to London.

            Peter persuaded Anna to leave Grange Hall, led her in the escape route, protected her through the rigorous journey, and safely got her to her parents.  He was probably the most important thing that happened in Anna’s life.  Without Peter, Anna would have still been at Grange Hall being forced to do chores that she didn’t want to do.  

iRead Journal Prompt #2 for The Declaration

AJ Pendharkar

English III Honors

Coach Morrell

April 3, 2013

iRead Journal Prompt #2 for The Declaration

            Anna grew greatly in confidence over multiple occasions.  One of the main ones was when she was rewarded with a journal after she completed a job at Mrs. Sharpe’s home.  Anna treasured that journal and spent the first couple days just staring at the beautiful book.  She didn’t want to write in the book just yet; although Anna knows how to read and write, she was never allowed to own a journal.  She knew the amount of trouble she would be in if Mrs. Pincent or any other teacher found the journal, so she had to keep it hidden.

            Throughout the remaining months Anna was at Grange Hall, she recorded almost everything that happened to her in that journal, and in great detail as well.  It wasn’t until she escaped with Peter that she greatly regretted ever writing in it.  Little did Anna know that the journal would cause her parents to kill themselves.  Writing in the journal helped Anna grow in confidence.  Before, she would blindly follow all the rules and orders that Mrs. Pincent would force her to do, but when she got the journal Anna could write her feelings in there and she truly understood that she didn’t deserve any of this – no one did. 

            Another occasion that caused Anna to grow in confidence was when she met Peter.  At first, she hated Peter and tried to avoid him at all costs.  However, the more she was around him, the more she began to like him.  She realized how smart he was and when Peter told her that he was sent by her parents to retrieve her, she thought he was crazy.  However, after a lot of talking, Peter convinced her that his intentions were true and they should escape immediately.  While Peter was in solitary, Anna felt alone.  She then realized how safe Peter made her feel.  Anna didn’t want to escape to find her parents at first, but when she overheard Mrs. Pincent talking with a doctor to strategize the death of Peter, she immediately got put in solitary to escape with Peter.  If she never met Peter, Anna would have stayed at Grange Hall being a Surplus for the rest of her life.

            Another huge impact on Anna’s confidence was finally meeting her parents for the first time.  Throughout her childhood, she was told that her parents hated her and wanted her to die, and Anna completely believed it.  However, when she finally met her parents, she realized how Mrs. Pincent and all the other teachers were just persuading her to think her parents were the bad guys and Grange Hall was her savior.  After meeting her parents, she realized how wrong Mrs. Pinent had been about her parents; they were the nicest people she’s ever met, and loving too (something she’s never experienced while at Grange Hall).  It’s amazing how just a couple of incidents could completely change ones life.