【100-2 第三名】財法一 洪〇凡：The Help

The Help

參賽者：洪〇凡（財法一）
名次：第三名
書名：The Help
得獎作品：

     The Help depicted the south life in America in 1960s.The blacks were crippled by the chains of discrimination. As servants, they hadn’t been treated as normal people. Instead, they’d been put scorn on, bullied, even killed without reason. With no help, they could only silently sustain hardship in numerous events. Though I knew that misery from textbooks, somehow I just couldn’t feel the same way. That is, what I knew was the history. However, through this book, I felt the words’ real, jumping out of the pages, and then visualized in front of me. The stories in the book are colorful and lifelike, making me touched. Because of it, I could imagine all miseries of mankind that they’d suffered. To be more exact, I comprehended what tribulations they had been to be subjected to. In the book, a white girl, Skeeter Phelan, who was a green hand of the society, irritated by an abominable means by her friend who reckoned that blacks were all dirty and contagious so prohibiting them from using whites’ restrooms. This made Skeeter felt revolted and then due to this, she determined to write the stories from those who worked for whites, and were treated badly. What she’d done was a pioneering work. I admire her anti-unfairness deeds, but I admire those who were brave enough to dictate their own stories to Skeeter much more. There was so much unpredictable danger in their future life. Once their identities were discovered, they could be fired or even worse; that is, losing their lives. But they chose to stand out, speaking loud, stunned the world. But for their fearlessness, the ugly fact couldn’t have been disclosed, been spread out, and been to urge the society to face it seriously. Stories of theirs are poor, making me filled with righteous indignation. After reading, I made a self-examination: All of us knew everyone’s equal, and we should be kind to everyone without prejudice. But did we put it into practice actually? If our nation weren’t disadvantaged in international relations, would we look down on the Third World? Is it a distorted prejudice that we pursue the western culture, longing for a blond-hair beauty from there but not a black-hair one from the Southeast? There is so much to list, and to meditate on. However, besides from the serious parts, I’d like to share one funny, somewhat cheerful story in the book. One servant, after being under a long-term awful treatment in her hirer’s villa, was driven beyond the limits of forbearance. She put her own shit in the pie for her hirer! What’s more, she told her hirer while her hirer was enjoying it! Though it wasn’t a correct method for children to learn, it was the greatest one I had heard of as revenge. To me, she could be a sort of heroine! Not only did she dare to do, but she dared to admit her deed. That is awesome! In the age of multiculture and cosmopolitan, we seem to take a giant step towards peace. However, with the tides of fashion and strong individualism, there is an obscure side inside people’s heart. We all talk glibly about that all men are created equal. But it seems to me that all of us are just the echoes. On the one hand, we know the truth; on the other hand, we have our own rule of standards subtly in the mind. That’s really evil, isn’t it? No one discloses the ugly truth so we hide it as usual. Once somebody committs an error, the society must send troops to punish him/her as if others were emissaries of justice. There’s no so-called equality of all time in this world; not to mention the situation between different ancestries. This book made me think of Dr. King, who devoted himself to leading Africa-American Civil Rights Movement. One part of his speech seared into my memory entirely: I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with it’s vicious racists, with it’s governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers. Didn’t anyone remember his agitating words? How could we lose sight of our geniueness deeply rooted in the heart? As a matter of fact, there can certainly be no doubt that we can make the things right as long as we face up to the reality and are willing to try. We’re all the residents on the planet. I wonder what would be left if we don’t care about the harmony? Maybe the coldness would be left, the hatred would ramble, and the spring would never come back for good. I’m sure that no one would like something like this to come true. So, Dr. King did it. Skeeter did it. They succeeded. Dr. King can, Skeeter can, so can we! Perhaps we can’t have such influence on this as they did, we can try as much as we can. The aforementioned instances inspired me, and I can tell them to others, changing other’s thoughts if they kept incorrect ideas towards that. Last but not least, The Help is a great book worth reading. We can have tears and laughter together while reading. This is a book full of ruthlessness and warmness. We can find the initial feelings which hided inside the soul, feeling the waves of the mood surging over the mind, pondering long and deeply over the matter. Sincerely, I hope that everyone can read it and really enjoy it.

【100-2 第二名】應外四 張〇儀：Disgrace

Disgrace

參賽者： 張〇儀（應外四）
名次：第二名
書名：Disgrace
得獎作品：

     This is a story of disgrace in post-apartheid South Africa, written by J.M. Coetzee. David Lurie, a Cape Town professor of English, loses everything after having an affair with his own student, Melanie. There is a hearing to help him save his jeopardized reputation and job, but David Lurie is arrogant enough and not willing to accept the deal offered by the committee. He has been assailed by the public; as a result, his reputation sinks out of sight and his job is gone. However, David Lurie himself, dissatisfied with his own lectures to unwilling students, does not seem to care that much. Having caught in a mess, David escapes from his disgrace in the city and moves to his daughter’s farm in Eastern Cape, taking refuge. David’s daughter Lucy, a solid woman and a lesbian, is now leading her life perfectly well in the countryside, seemingly. There is Lucy’s neighbor Petrus, a hardworking farmer, who is black. Although David Lurie thinks at first that Petrus seems to know his place, in time it becomes clear that Petrus wants Lucy’s land and Lucy as one of his wives. Later, an attack is launched against Lucy, raped and impregnated, and David, violently assaulted. Surprisingly, Lucy does not seek for justice and sanction imposed on the rapists, who are also black. Not until then does David Lurie realize the difference already occurred in post-apartheid South Africa. At first, I think Melanie is a victim of David Lurie because his affection, if there is, is obviously not appreciated. David occupies a position of power, a professor, and that is why Melanie does not resist. While they are having sex, Melanie is passive throughout. “All she does is avert herself: avert her lips, avert her eyes,” and “she goes slack, dies within herself for the duration.” We can easily tell how undesired the whole duration is. But then, Melanie starts to know how to take advantage of David, of her own unfortunate. As for David, I don’t think he is a victim of Melanie. From his attitude on the hearing, obviously he does not care about what Melanie says to the committee or how she reacts toward their closeness. He accepts them all. Also, he has made it clear to the committee that he is not sorry and he won’t repent. So, it seems to me that David is the victim of his own desire, something he cannot control, instead of his student Melanie. Animals in the novel are served as the inferior ones, probably black South Africans during apartheid, the colored like Melanie, and now people like David Lurie. At first, David has no sympathy/empathy for the dogs. To some extent, he identifies the animals as black South Africans, the inferior kind: when David finds out the black boy who is peeping at Lucy, he calls him “swine”; also, David thinks what the rapists do is nothing but mating, “marking Lucy like a dog’s urine.” But later he takes on the job as a dog man because he doesn’t want the dogs to bear such disgrace, so I believe it is because he identifies himself as the same kind with them, and there is no such a thing called baas en Klaas (boss and worker in Afrikaans) between him and the dogs. “Perhaps that is what I must learn to accept. To start at ground level. With nothing. Not with nothing but. With nothing. No cards, no weapons, no property, no rights, no dignity. Like a dog. Yes, like a dog.” He himself has actually become the inferior kind now. The reason why Lucy does not seek for justice is confusing. David once says, “Perhaps it was not they who produced her: perhaps history had the larger share.” This is probably the foreshadowing about Lucy’s attitude toward what happens followed. According to David, Lucy “wishes to humble herself before history,” “a history of wrong.” It could be apartheid. Lucy herself also says, “I don't want to come back in another existence as a dog or a pig and have to live as dogs or pigs live under us.” She wants to make up for black South Africans for what white people has put them through, so she moves to the village and befriend them, subordinating herself out of her own will. In short, she compromises. While David is unbending, it is too hard for him to accept how the society has changed after apartheid. For example, he doesn’t understand why Petrus can just walk in his daughter’s house and act like he is their same kind. However, I do think David has changed by the end of the novel. This is post-apartheid South Africa. People must accept or adapt, and David does. He surrenders to the past; his sympathy/empathy for the animals grows, and he is learning how to compromise. And I believe that is his transformation, his changes.

【100-2 第一名】企管四A 林〇昇：127 Hours

127 Hours

參賽者：林〇昇（企管四A）
名次：第一名
書名：127 Hours
得獎作品：

     Imagine that you were trapped down in a 150-yard canyon alone with two burritos, less than a liter of water, a cheap imitation of a Leatherman brand multi-tool, a small first aid kit, a video camera, a digital camera and rock climbing gear, and an 800-pound boulder crushed on your hand. Aron Lee Ralston, a graduate from Cherry Creek High School in Greenwood Village, Colorado and a mechanical engineering and French student at Carnegie Mellon University. At Carnegie Mellon, he served as a Resident Assistant, studied abroad, and was an active intramural sports participant. He left his job as a mechanical engineer with Intel in 2002 to climb all of Colorado's "fourteeners", or peaks over 14,000 feet high during the winter season. In April 2003, Ralston entered Utah's Bluejohn Canyon only to become trapped when an 800-pound boulder shifted, crushed his hand, and pinned him to the canyon wall. For six days, Ralston struggled to free himself while warding off dehydration and hypothermia. Trapped and facing certain death, Ralston chose a final option that later made him an international sensation: Using a multi-tool, the climber amputated his right arm, and then rappelled to freedom. Very few of us will ever have to make the difficult choices Aron Ralston faced. Even fewer of us will experience being trapped underneath a boulder and be forced to serve our own limb over freedom. It is not difficult to believe that Aron Ralston could be any one of us. When his arm got stuck “between a rock and a hard place” (the title of his book and possibly the first time that expression was meant literally), he tried, in vain, to free himself. After a few days of fruitless effort, Aron’s situation only grew more desperate. He began to reflect, “What a big hero! Coming out here without telling anyone where I was going... Mistake! As the ordeal continued, Ralston began to get delirious. Death seemed to hover him. In a true act of desperation, he took a knife, already dulled from repeated banging on the rock, and cut off his arm. Keep in mind that he still needed to scale down the mountain and hike an additional 16 miles. But as he walked away from the scene, he looked back at Blue John and said, “Thank you.” We are given no further explanation but since the mountain released him when his life was endangered, rather than taking it, we must assume he means “thank you for the experience, for the wisdom gained, the lesson proffered." When we are in the midst of trials and tribulations, we are mostly in survival mode, just putting one foot in front of the other and trying to make it through. But when they are over, if we can find a quiet moment, if we can reflect, perhaps we can discover there was something to learn. There is some way to deepen our understanding of ourselves and our potential. As long as we remain alert and receptive, we may be able to overcome and have a chance for reflection. Aron Ralston endured an ordeal that seems incomprehensible to most of us. It took tremendous courage and determination and strength of will to escape the mountain trap. And given his weakened state, even after all that, his survival was nothing short of miraculous. What a tragedy it would have been if the entire trauma had been for naught. But Aron Ralston is a fortunate young man – not just because he survived, but because he recognized the lessons available for him to learn from this experience while he still had the time and ability to change. Although he continues to climb mountains, he also works as a motivational speaker, doing the best possible thing with such dearly-earned wisdom – sharing it with others. Married with a child, he no longer avoids solitude and he never goes mountain climbing without telling someone where he is going. I don’t know how he survived those 127 hours (the 2 hours spend watching the movie were enough of a harrowing ordeal for me) but that really taught me a great lesson as his determination and courage cheated an opportunity for the Grim Reaper. I have grown, even if it’s something so simple as carrying a better blade while canyoneering, from Aron’s experiences. And I hope his wisdom will help you overcome your own mountain, great or small.

【100-1 第三名】財法一 洪〇凡：Harry Potter

Harry Potter

參賽者：洪〇凡（財法一）
名次：第三名
書名：Harry Potter
得獎作品：

     When it comes to my favorite story, what must spring to my mind is . Frankly, I am a big fan of J.K. Rowling for I read her novels over and over again and I’ve never fed up with them. If anyone asks me why I am fond of that book, I will say “It’s a long story.”

     Among the series of Harry Potter, I view the as the most exciting, touching, and interesting one. So splendid is it that I almost look upon it as the real stuff in the world. I sobbed for Dobby’s sacrifices, laughed for Wesley twins’ humor, and felt warmed for the love between the family and the friendship. I wondered how the writer meditated such a spectacular that impressed me and other readers, and even made a hit around the globe. Up to now, there are still billions of people talking about this, crazy for this, and so am I.

     What made me really impressive was the foreshadowing that the writer hinted in the previous books. The horcruxes were planned to show up and that really exciting. I adored the wit that J.K. Rowling owned. I loved the bond between the students in the Gryffindor, fascinated with the power of magic, and touched by the deeds that everyone fought for his/her friends and family. I hated Lord Voldemort for his cruel, brutal means. Without him, no one would have died, and there were no tragedies. Though I understood that villains were the indispensible roles in all stories, I still poured scorn on him. Besides, I thought that Harry was a lucky guy because he received so much love and support though he lost his parents when little. On top of that, when I finished reading, I was sorry for Snape. He was a great man who was misunderstood and resented for his camouflage. It was not until he passed away that the truth was disclosed. It turned out to be that he fell in love with Harry’s Mom, Lily, and his love was never changed till death. To protect his lover’s son, he could do nothing but pretend to be a Death Eater so as to get Voldemort’s trust. I sighed with regret when I read that part. I used to be filled with disgust at that role, and how could I detect the fact before I finished reading? I could never forget the scene in my mind that Snape’s dying but he still struggled to whisper to Harry with his blood mingled with silvery substance leaking out. After reading the rest of the book, I not only realized everything suspicious, but got a knot in the pit of my stomach. I could not help but burst out crying with my head buried in the novel. There’s no denying that Snape devoted himself to guarding the world more than anyone did.

     Another part of the book that I’d like to mention is the quarrel between Harry and his best friend, Ron. Undergoing countless plights together, they eventually faced the most terrible difficulty—the test of friendship. They separated. The atmosphere was down to freezing point then. I was downhearted as if I were the character. I had been indifferent to my best friend, so I comprehended the feelings. That was fairly unbearable. Breathing a sigh of relief, I was glad that they ended up reconciling. After all, friendship is invaluable.

     No matter how fascinating the whole book presents, I choose for my favorite part, and to recommend it to others. The scene which the writer designed in this part was magnificent. I can envision all men and women, giants and monsters, fighting with each other at the old castle. Although some of them died, the rest did not surrender. They still gathered, kept their faith to the last moment. To their surprise, Harry’s still alive, leading them to fight against Voldemort. Whenever I read this part, it agitates me and makes my mind stirred, as if there were waves, surging over my mind.

     There is so much to list, and I’m so glad to share my feelings with others. I enjoyed the majestic, rich and colorful plots. I hope everyone has secret room for magic in his/her mind, just like me do. When we get bored or unhappy, we can take a rest, imaging that we are wizards or witches, throwing those horrible memories away, but enjoying the happiest, interesting world that we create by ourselves, and only for ourselves, no matter how bad the real life becomes, we can still find consolation in this way. After all, we have magic when we hold a positive attitude toward our life. A miracle happens when we believe it. In the end, what I’d like to say is that “I find pleasure while reading. I love this novel and have got many ideas from it. I hope that everyone loves it as I do.”

【100-1 第二名】企管三A 林〇薇：Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

參賽者：林〇薇（企管三A）
名次：第二名
書名：Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
得獎作品：

     This book is about how Chinese parents raise children differently than western parents. Western parents try to respect their children's individuality, encouraging them to pursue their true passions and providing a nurturing environment. The Chinese believe that the best way to protect your children is by preparing them for the future and arming them with skills, strong work habits, and inner confidence. Amy expects her children to strive for excellence with no ground for retreat. For example, the two daughters can’t have a play date, can’t be in a school play nor complain about not being in a school play. Moreover, they have to be the number one student in every subject except gym and drama.

     Amy Chua, the author wrote this book in a moment of crisis, when her younger daughter seemed to turn against everything she stood for, and it felt like she was losing her. Everything was falling apart. After one terrible fight, she sat down at her computer, and even though she usually has writer’s block, this time the words just poured out. Amy showed every page to her daughters and her husband. It felt like a therapy one of a kind to her.

     Amy Chua was raised by very strict, Chinese immigrant parents, who came to the U.S. as graduate students with practically no money. Her mother and father were so poor they couldn’t afford heat their first two winters in Boston, and wore blankets around to keep warm. They demanded total respect and were very tough. That was the family she was from, and she still loved her parents very much and is grateful for it. The strictness equipped her well for her later life. Therefore, she believes that the same method should work on her daughters.

     What I love the most about this book is that it is very honest. The book depicts the ugliest scenarios of parenting. However, those are just about what happens every night in every teenage family, each story of how Lulu was forced to play violin and how she wanted to attend a sleepover at a friend’s place. It is depicted in a very genuine way, not trying to garnish the greatness of parenting. I feel as if I can relate to the stories. Reflecting on my teenage years, I could remember that some of the stories happened to me, too. I could still remember how angry I was at my mom for being anal and strict. I had known better enough at that time to understand that everything she did was at the best interest of me. However, I still felt that her requests were somehow against me, as if she tried everything to make me feel worse. I honestly thought that. And I ruthlessly showed it. I let my mom know how mad I was at her. She in return, showed how hurt she was.

     The power of love is that it hurts. I had known that everything she asked of me was for my good, but I was angry at myself for not achieving them so I let it out on her. She loves me so much to have been willing to take that risk, the risk that I would rebel her, and yet still asked more and more of me. Growing older, I then understood love is so powerful that it hurts. And Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother is the best book to depict this process. It has pointed out that the process may seem harmful to the relationship of parent and child. In truth, it is just love in disguise. Every parent should assume strength in their children, not weakness. It’s a process of helping children realize their potential.

     This is the hard way, and love has given the will for them to parent the hard way. Therefore, reading this book, through the tension of Amy and Lulu, I felt love was filled in every scenario. Only loved ones would do such for you. Now reading it, I think it is a reminder for me to be grateful of how my parents would chose the hard way to teach me. Moreover, it’s a thought for me to think I should do the same to whom I care. My closest friends, I should tell them how much more they ought to prompt themselves and not idle away time. My family, I shall remind them that discipline will lead them to unprecedented success. My co-workers, I should work hardly together with them to strive for the best performance. There are many forms of love, and Amy has shown us a kind that is hard-core down-to-ear.

【100-1 第一名】財法三 施〇輝：The English Teacher, R.K.Narayan

The English Teacher, R.K.Narayan

參賽者：施〇輝（財法三）
名次：第一名
書名：The English Teacher
得獎作品：

     The English Teacher by R. K. Narayan is the story of a young man teaching English in a missionary college. The story is set in Malgudi, in the twentieth century colonial India. The reason behind penning this review is because of this amazing novel which left a deep emotion in my soul. The English Teacher is not another humorous storytelling, but rather it is a solemn one comprising of emotions and tragedy together with a few tiny patches of smile. This novel, dedicated to Narayan's wife, Rajam, is not only autobiographical but also poignant in its intensity of feeling. The story revolves around the lead character, Krishna, his experiences in life, and his quest towards achieving inner peace and self-development.

     This novel narrates about a simple ordinary living man, Krishna, who lives with small dreams and limited expectations. As an English teacher at Albert Mission College, Krishna has enjoyed a bachelor's life for several years, leading a mundane and monotonous lifestyle comparable to that of a cow, but this took a turn when his wife, Susila, and their child, Leela, come to live with him in a town called Malgudi. Krishna's life expands to include the blissful domesticity of living with his wife and child. This first half of the book, in which Krishna comes to learn how to love his family, is unexceptional by design, through the mundane joy of his day-to-day experiences with his family and teasing from the mundane intricacies of normal life a picture of largely untroubled domestic happiness. With their welfare on his hands, Krishna learns to be a proper husband and accepts the responsibility of taking care of his family. He felt that his life had comparatively improved, as he understood that there is more meaning to life than to just teaching in the college.

     However, on the day when they went in search of a new house, Susila contracted typhoid after visiting a dirty lavatory, keeping her in bed for weeks. Throughout the entire course of her illness, Krishna constantly tries to keep an optimistic view about Susila's illness, keeping his hopes up by thinking that her illness would soon be cured. However, Susila eventually succumbed to the illness and passed away. Due to the loss of his beloved wife, Susila, Krishna broke down and even conceived suicidal thoughts. In Narayan’s words, “I feel nothing, and see nothing”. As you read it, you are almost transported into Krishna’s world which is so blurred by grief. You cannot help but feel the protagonist’s pain when his wife died. As quoted from the book ‘Nothing will make him worry or interested hereafter’, Krishna led his life as a lost and miserable person after her death. He became indifferent to the other materialistic things when he lost his most precious belonging. We may think that Krishna is a very impractical and emotional man, but back in reality, I am sure we can find ourselves inside him. A person will definitely be affected when his closest or dearest ones leave him even though it may be part and parcel in the natural course of life. We know we have to accept such hard truths in the end and move on with life, but the path towards the future is intimidating and daunting when no one is there with you.

     Later on, when he received a letter from a stranger who indicated that Susila has been in contact with him and that she wanted to communicate with Krishna, he became more collected and cheerful. This led to Krishna’s journey in search of enlightenment, with the stranger acting as a medium to Susila in the spiritual world. The novel brings readers to another realm which speaks of how a person starts believing the supernatural and slowly gets involved into it. It is obvious that Krishna loved his wife too much and could not accept the fact that she has already departed, thus dwelling into such supernatural. Leela, on the other hand, goes to a preschool where Krishna gets to meet the Headmaster, a profound man who cared for the students in his school and taught them moral values through his own methods. The Headmaster placed his students as his top priority but he did not show care and concern for his own family and children, eventually leaving them on the day predicted by an astrologer as to be when he was going to die, which did not come true in the end.

     Krishna got to learn through the Headmaster on the journey to enlightenment; eventually learning to communicate to Susila on his own, thus concluding the entire story itself, with the quote that he felt 'a moment of rare immutable joy'. Eventually, Krishna started believing the existence of his departed wife and how others believed him or respected his simple ideology. Susila told Krishna how in the spiritual world, that to think of a thing means to be with it, and according to the theory, Krishna and Susila can never be forced apart even by death. It is touching seeing the relationship and bond Krishna and his wife share, that it transcends the notion of life and death.

     It is a brilliant piece of writing with experiences so beautifully put to words that it touches every chord inside your heart. The language is devoid of any unnecessary pompousness and grandiose that is visible in today’s authors. From the domestic details in the first half to the excruciating agony of Susila’s death and then the positivity in the supernatural second half, a great flow is thoroughly maintained with an inexplicable blend of subtle humour and strained tragedy.

     This story is all about belief and faith and how plans and dreams can become meaningless when things come to an end. It will make you cry or laugh and admire the characters in the novel. It talks about realms that are not necessarily obvious like the spiritual world, but might exist. Krishna’s stint with spirituality comes to me as a ray of hope and a sort of inspiration. It is an intellectually and emotionally stimulating work and it allows readers to think. There are a few moments in the book when you ‘feel’ and not just read the writing. Many questions will be raised in your mind like was his wife really communicating with him even after her death? This is the beauty of Narayan’s writing as he compels you to think. The story is subtly done but strikingly, with the touching knowledge that such a book must have originated in Narayan's desire to be with his own wife again.


     This novel will always hold a special place in my heart. It displays love in its purest form, love and kinship that bound Susila to Krishna and Susila to Leela. So pure is their love, that even mortality cannot snatch away any of its dew-drop freshness and in turn make it eternal. In a very novel way, the story shows how love can make a person a better human being.

【103-1微●心得 優選】休運二 張〇心：The Ring

The Ring

參賽者：張〇心（休運二）
名次：優選
書名：The Ring
得獎作品：

     This is a story beyond my original expectation and its’ ending surprised me. Like a detective story, THE RING full of susceptive plot.

     The first sight I saw the book I thought it was a fancy book due to its name. Then I read a chapter of this book, I thought I know the whole story. But I was totally wrong, due to judge things too fast to know the truth.Based on what the uncle described, I thought Anita is a nice girl. Until Marta, Anita’s sister, described the Anita in her eyes, her story made my opinion change. As a very popular internet proper noun, white water-lily, the people who have two-faced--in front people they are pure and kind, but actually they are selfish and arrogant.The noun reminds us not to believe what a person show in public, we have to know them by more side. We can’t actually understand a person or a thing until we get more information from different sides.

     I find that is why detective novel so attractive because they are very different from commonromantic story, which you always can guess the endingeasily since those story all are alike. However, detective story can have various type of ending, and they always can out of your aspect. But when you look back the story, you will find that it already give you a lot clues. And they lead to the ending logically. So it’s fun to notice every hint behind words.