Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Blog Post #7: Dreams from My Father Chapters 1-2
Scan back through Chapters 1 and 2 for a specific moment in Obama's life that stands out.- Describe the experience he had.
- Explain why it was significant in his life. What did he learn from the experience?
Responses due MIDNIGHT on Wednesday, Mar 12, 2014.
Obama had only one parent his mother. His mom was white and his dad was black,so he was mixed. It was significant in his life because he really didn't know who he really was until he was older. Barack Obama learned from his experience that he doesn't have to change himself to be who he is and that society has to accept him for who he is on the outside mixed or not. And that is all that matters to him on the inside.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter two, he talked about how he was reading a magazine about how a man bleached his skin in order to achieve happiness in life. He experienced/learned from reading that article how desperate people will be and the lengths they will take to get what they want. It played a key part in his life because from that moment on, he knew they things that others would do to gain whatever they desire. In the case, the man was trying to bleach his skin to turn white because all of the ads say that to achieve happiness, basically, you have to be white.
ReplyDeleteThroughout chapters one and two Obama grows from an innocent child into a young man still a child but coming into his own forming his own thoughts and opinions about life and what everything is about. Some things that stuck out to me were that he could think so well and clearly about so many things but still did not really have a handle on who he really was, but all his experiences were to help him grow and figure out who he was both personally and race wise
ReplyDeletei think the seen where obama first got to Hawaii was significant in his life because it was the first time he seen that kind of culture and enivronment because it went from such a over crowded and impoverished looking society, into a empty embassy that looked high class and more familiar type environment. this was significant because it was like his first time in the country and it seems like he saw two different cultures in this one new city
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 1 and 2 the most important thing that happened to Obama is him moving out of Hawaii. I believe if he would have stayed there all his life he would have learned about racism a lot later and it would have impacted him even bigger. Obama grew from this mentally. I believe that if he would have not experience racism he would not have worked as hard and accomplished as much.
ReplyDeleteThe moment when Barack went to the real nice building. He saw a picture in the magazine of a black man getting injections to change the color of his skin. After he had seen that picture he was angry. He demanded answers to the picture immediately. Obama really wanted to know why would somebody want to do that to themselves.
ReplyDeleteIn Obama's life told througha vivid story, ge tends to grow curious. It all begun when he was young and his father left him and his mother. He always thought his father was less of a man, however, his grandparents always told him positive stories about him. This is significant because the way he view his father is retrospective to the way his grandparents veiwn his father. He think he is a bad person because he don'actually know him because, he left when he was young. However, the prandparents and mother actually knew who the father was and only had good things about him. So it is significant because people base their judgement off of feelings rather than the actual person. Also, another significant moment is when Obama read about a guy getting a chemical treament to change his physical appearance. This just happens because society annihilates and dictates people based on race. They think that Caucasian people are more valuable than African Americans. This is significant because Obama is mix breed, so he may think how will he be viewd because he is black and white. How will people view him as person ? Theregore with this kind of knowledge about the annihilation of society can cause a child to bd brain wash into believing something that society wants him to believe but not what he wants to believe. It is impeccable how society can dictate a person's thoughts
ReplyDeleteWell in the middle of chapter two it talks about a time when he was beat up at school. Then with in the next few days Lolo his mothers husband brings home boxing gloves and starts to teach him how to defend himself. This brought warmth to his heart because in that moment he spoke of how close he has gotten to Lolo within the last 2 years. The event here is significant because Barack Obama grew up not knowing his dad not having a father figure. He learned to cherish the people that are close to them .
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of the chapter one, Barack received a call from his aunt Jane saying that his father had died and he was killed a car accident. Obama has only seen his father once in his life, so I can only imagine how he feels. This event is significant because he gets a phone call saying that the man who help made him has died. Barack would hear stories about his father all the time from his grandparents and his mother, and the fact that his father could not tell him the stories himself is sad. He basically had no father experience so, it's hard being raised by a women because there are certain things that his mother would not understand like his father would.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter Barack Obama reads a magazine about a man bleaching his skin to make him feel better. This is significant because his mom is white is dad is black so he is mixed so it makes him think about what people will do to make them feel better. Barack learned that people will do anything to make themselves feel better
ReplyDeleteDuring Chapter 2, it describes how Obama and his mother went to live in Indonesia with Lolo, who was dating Obama's mother at the time. While he was there, Lolo taught Obama how to become a man. He taught him the basics of life, and how to better himself as a person. He also gave him advice that Obama used throughout his life. Obama respected Lolo, but he still always wanted his father in his life. Although Obama had a father figure in his life, he still wanted the company of his own father and that greatly impacted his life. Obama's mother never hid from the fact that he is black. She was gave him books about his heritage, so that he knew. Living in Indonesia was hard for him, but he took with him a great experience.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapters one and two Obama experienced many obstacles and one of them was when they were picking up and leaving and he was talking about how the cost of a refrigerator cost the amount of a two month salary and I think that took a toll on him because when he was little he experienced so many struggles and I think that when he got older and he had children he wanted to do everything that he could to provide for them and I think that he wanted his children to have both of their parents in their lives because he didn't have that opportunity to have his father in his life.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that stood out to me was when he moved to Indonesia. I think then and there is when he began to realize the seperation of black and white. Alot of things were going on as people were trying to change their appearence to be succesful. It gave him a sense of what to think about it and what he wants. If i were in his situation, i probably followed society.
ReplyDeleteSince at this time of the story he was only 6, he experienced a lot of stuff. He was told that his dad had died and the only thing he learned about him was from family. In chapter 2, he notices an ad in a magazine that shows a young black man that apparently bleached his skin. At a mind of a 6 year old, he will think that lighter is better. But he may now be confused because of him being Kenyan and Caucasian. He does not know which one to choose from now after seeing the ad.
ReplyDeleteThroughout both chapters, Obama was suffering through the tension of him being both black a white. His mother was a single parent and he doesn't remember his father much. Or so, his father was not there growing up. When showing up to Hawaii he noticed the dirty messes and people filling the streets and the change of cleanse when he got to the embassy. He must of felt at the embassy it was a chance of hope, but discrimination. But in those flithy streets, who can judge who's different everyone is going to the same place or stuck in the same predictament.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 1 Obama talked about the death of a neighbor that he had a silent connection with. This moment was significant because it show him that living by yourself and not having anyone support it not the best way to be going about life. He noticed that looking old man was like looking in the mirror and he wanted to change it . Before he was to die unnoticed and alone .
ReplyDeleteWhen Obama traveled to the Hawaii, I believe that was a significant time in his life. The way he describes the setting in Hawaii. The things that surrounded him had to affect him in some type of way for him to put it in his book. He describes the places he visits and tells of the weather, buildings and the smells of these places.
ReplyDeleteThe moment when Obama and his mother moved to Indonesia with her new husband Lolo stood out to me. This moment was a drastic change because it happened so fast and he was new to the land. He had to learn so much about the place to really get to know it. He also took it as a time to get to know Lolo more. Also, in that time, he learned basically how to live life in Indonesia. From this experience, he learns that Lolo has secrets and his mother's about the marriage and the moving.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 2 Obama see a magazine, He reads about a black man changing his skin color so it can be lighter than what it and he can be happy with his self. Obama learned that people change their skin color, so they can treated the same as the others. He also learn blacks would do whatever to be treated like whites.
ReplyDeleteThroughout chapters one and two Barak Obama faced many struggles as a little boy growing up into to a very wise man. A moment that I thought stood out for Barak Obama is when he saw the advertisement for blacks to bleach they skin. The reason why I believe this event was important to Barak Obama is because he then had learned something about his culture. Seeing the advertisement helped open the eyes of Barak Obama to see that it was hard being a black and that most black folks weren't happy in the skin they were in. Also this event was important because he was learning about both his cultures , he then realized he had no voce when it came to wanting to ask questions.
ReplyDeleteIn chapters 1 and 2, Obama showed us the growth and the background layer of his life. He wrote about the road to becoming a real man and finding who he really was. He talked about how he was mixed, his mother being white and his father black. He touched on how being racially mixed brought about complications throughout his life. This stands out to me because I see him getting past his racial background as being a huge milestone in his life that he turned into a drive or a force to make him prevail throughout life. That is a significant theme in chapters 1 and 2.
ReplyDeleteAn important moment in Obama's life was when he was reading the magazine in chapter 2. During this moment Obama seen a picture of an African American man attempting to get his skin lightened in order to be white. This moment showed significance in young Obama's life because it made him realize that everywhere in America was not as accepting of other races as Hawaii was. He saw that now White people were superior to other races in many places in America. In addition Obama learned that many people were not okay with being African American. Being African American meant less opportunities, inferior education, and segregation and people were willing to change the way they looked in order to achieve happiness.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 2, the event that stood out to me was when Barack and his mom moved to Indonesia with his mothers boyfriend, Lolo and he was reading a magazine and it said that a man was bleaching his skin so that he could basically have a better life and barack was confused by that. It stood out to me because in my opinion i think that you could change the way you look on the outside but you cant change the way you look on the inside. Which means that you can change the way you look but you will be the same person that you are regardless of anything. If you want to have a better life then that starts from the inside of you not the outside.
ReplyDeleteThroughout chapters 1 and 2, it was obvious that Barack Obama struggled to find himself because of his mixed race. His mother was white and his father was African. So for him, he tried to really dig deep to figure who he is, and what to consider his self as. And I think lots of people who are bi-racial deal with this problem. But now as we see President Obama, in his later years, its clear that he knows who he is now and he embraces his life knowing he's mixed and feels comfortable being in his skin.
ReplyDeleteThroughout chapters 1 and 2, Obama was suffering through the fact to pick his appearence either he's black or white. His mother was white aswell with being a single parent and his dad was black with not much memory of him. Later on his life, but still as a young boy he found out that people bleached their skin color to get treated equal as others.
ReplyDeleteBarack Obama has gone through a plethora of life changing experience that has shaped him into the man he is now. Growing up as a mixed race child, being raised by a single parent also, heavily impacted his life. His father left his mother and him, which left him with a feeling of rejection. To add to the rejection, being mixed race was frowned upon in Obama's youth. He was surrounding by adds illustrating that being white will get you success, and he suffered with that internal conflict. When Obama saw one of the adds for the skin lightening cream, it was like a culture shock for him. He was very young and didn't understand why one wouldn't want to keep their skin color, why one would ever be ashamed of it. It left young Obama dumbfounded.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of chapter one, Obama described how his next door neighbor, an old man that he would help with groceries, died in their apartment. This event was important because it reminded Obama of how the father he never met died alone. The old man's death also showed him that it was time so he don't end up the same way.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that sticks out the most in Mr. Obama is When his step-dad and mom. He never really knew his real dad that gave him birth to him. What he had learned from this family will be happy. He will be happy getting to bound with his dad. The moment that really stock out in his life.
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of Chapter 1, Obama describes how his neighbors, an old lonely man, dies almost immediately after he tells readers about how he discovered the death of his own father. He talks about insignificant things while describing the old man, his house, and his relationship with the old man: he would often help him with his groceries. This is a significant moment in Obama's life because in one way or another, his neighbor meant something to him and it saddened him the way in which he passed away. It also created a turning point in Obama's life, a time where he was living alone, because he realized that if he keeps living his life the same way, he will eventually die old and lonely as well.
ReplyDeleteThe moment that stuck out to me the most in chapter 1-2 is that fact that even at a young age it was still hard for him to know who he really was and what was the right thing to do to become successful. In chapter 2 he see an ad that shows a black man getting bleached to look lighter. This is important because it shows that to be successful you have to be white. He looked at this at a very young age.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 2, it talks about how Obama and his mother went to live in Indonesia with Lolo, who was married to Obama's mom. While he was there, Lolo took on the role as his father and taught him how to become a man. He taught him the important things in life, and how to become a better person. Even though Obama appreciated Lolo playing the father figure, he still always wanted his father in his life. Obamas mom gave him books about his heritage to give him knowledge on his ancestors. Living in Indonesia was hard for him because it is not where he's from or where he was born. He learned a lot of life long things by living in Indonesia.
ReplyDeleteIn the beginning of the chapters, we see how Obama is struggling. He is going through a bit of an identity of crisis when he is feeling some type of way about his race. He seems all these different people, and sees that his mom is white. He think if what color he is, is the right one. We see that black people are frowned upon and Obama being little can not see anything wrong , but starts to notice. He has learned that it is such discrimination in the world and he does not know why. Black people are given a tag or stereotype that automatically singles them out and it makes white people seem more superior. It's actually ironic because in the end, Obama ends up being the first black president, but first he has to endure some confusion and hardship.
ReplyDeleteObama had many experiences in his life. The one that stood out the most is his experience in being in a school with a majority of white people. This is significant in his life because while in school the kids made fun of him and made him feel uncomfortable. What he learned from this experience is that sometimes you experience uncomfortable situations that you may not understand but it just makes you stronger.
ReplyDeleteI think the moment that stood out to Obama is when he had seen a very pale, dead looking person, not knowing at the time that the man was once black. Obama then seen a propaganda about black people getting this cream where they are getting lighter to be light-skin or white, and this one guy told him that he would be successful if he got one of the creams in an indirect kind of way. This was significant in his life because he felt torn about what he is, part black and white, while regular black people are getting the cream to look white to get better opportunities etc.. So when it came down to Obama, he wondered how the opportunities will be presented to him since he is black and white.
ReplyDeleteThat moment in Chapters 1 and 2 that was the most significant was when he just a teenager and he was in his apartment and helped out an elderly man which just lived in his part of the apartment alone. That's when Obama just explained helping him with his groceries and he just gave him a nod, no a full thanks. So while his roommate broke the news to him that he found him crumpled up on the third-floor landing, his eyes wide open, his limbs stiff and curled like a baby's. While seeing that he was impacted by that because he didn't want to fall into that path of the old man, so that inspired him to go further in life and do more in his life. Like becoming the president he is now just from that incident he saw his self since he was alone and his father had died.
ReplyDeleteThroughout chapters one and two Barack struggled racial issues. His mom and dad were two different races. His mom was white and his father was black. Because of this he is split between finding his own path and figuring out which race he was. This led him to figure out who he really was. This is significant because that journey made him who he is today. Obama is a strong man and that's because of everything he went through and over came.
ReplyDeleteOne major moment that Obama talks about in the book is how he battled with his skin tone and who he is racially. His father wasn't in his life growing up so he was always with his mom. He questioned what he really was. This is significant because it shape who Barack Obama is now and what he represents. It shows how he evolved from the things he went through as a child.
ReplyDeleteThe moment in Obama's life that I would like to talk about that made a big change I would say is when he saw in the magazine the picture of the black man using the light skin cream. I say this moment because it says that if you skin was white than you would be successful. This made a big impact on Obama because he is mixed. He not just white or just black so he wonders will he be successful even though he is white or will he not be successful because he is mixed. This shows that he probably has to work harder than usual because most people around this time disapproved of mixed children. In the story Obama is stuck between his black and white roots.
ReplyDeleteThis book, Dreams opens up with Obama telling the audience all about his life while studying as a law student. HE then explains the sudden death of his father, and the dodgy phone call that informed him of the whole ordeal that came from presumably Africa. He expresses the feelings he got learning this devastating news. He then tells how that death made him consider the past and what he remembers of him father, no matter how distant and small it is. These memories then bring him back to the time where he created a brand new identity when his step-father, mother and himself all moved to Indonesia. He paints an amazingly vivid picture about how his life was and how he made the transition. The most significant point was, when, at 5, he found a breaching add that changed his perspective on people and societal views. This caused him to grow as a person and understand life more clearly.
ReplyDeleteOne specific moment that stood out in Obama's life was when the old man that lived next door died. This was a significant moment to Obama because he felt like he was becoming this old man.He felt like this because the old man was quite and Obama never even learned his name,so Obama feared his life going down the same path and he becomes insignificant in this world. From this experience Obama learned you have to make a name for yourself which led to him to becoming the president of the United States of America.
ReplyDeleteObama experienced travels and new people. He learned how to adapt to new situations and how to embrace new people. His time in Indonesia taught him the ways of respect and how to be obienet. These experiences changed his life for the better, it made him a humble man and not having his father around very much made him become the man his father could have been.
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ReplyDeleteThe fact that Obama had a white mom and a black dad, probably took a toll on him and him feeling out of the ordinary because he was mixed must've been a struggle. His dad walked out on him and his mom when Barack was younger. Him being a mixed person had him thinking he had to be someone else until he was older. Throughout the chapters, he realizes he does not have to change himself for society to accept who he is or might be. And that was the whole significance of the two chapters.
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