Potomac's eighth grade English students read and discuss The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. The book is a series of short vignettes that together capture the characters, setting, and stories of a particular neighborhood in Chicago. The vignettes are written from the perspective of a fictional narrator and are based loosely on Cisneros's own experiences as well as those of her students. Some of the vignettes are humorous or action-packed; some are heart-wrenching or shocking. All are deliberate in their use of figurative language, poetic elements, grammar conventions, and pacing.

Each eighth grader composed at least one vignette for inclusion in this digital collection. They wrote in the style of Sandra Cisneros, as they interpreted it based on their notes and our class discussions, yet they set it in a time and place of their own choosing. While some of these vignettes are based on the author's personal experience, many of them are purely fiction, an imagining of characters and circumstances that seemed ripe for this assignment. Students also used this assignment to experiment with new vocabulary words and techniques involving punctuation and sentence structure.

We encourage you to leave comments below vignettes that strike you in some way. Please keep your comments positive and specific; this is not the place for critiques or suggestions. Enjoy the creativity and vibrancy of these students' literary efforts.

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Krakatoa

Have you ever seen a kit-kat commercial? The snap that sounds like a drum set, the crunch that sounds like an explosion… every day. That’s what I hear. Thinking of sounds to fill up this paper that forces me to listen to a room full of clickety-clack. My impatience building as I tap my nails on my keypad bringing forth my annoyance and jealousy for the person who can look past the grenade of the door closing behind my friend who ignorantly just left me with a migraine that will last all day. Clickety-clack. I want to scream, I want to hold my head in my hands and collapse on the ground, then bang my fists on the white, painted concrete walls of this… this HELLHOLE! I want to run from the sounds of the lunchroom full of people I will never interact with outside these tiled floors and bulletin board ramparts. Clickety-clack. I close my eyes. Clickety- clack. I lean my head back and stare. Clickety-clack. Stare at this ceiling that restricts me from the glistening clouds and sunshine and freedom from this world of frustration. These manufactured noises that keep me up at night as my sister watches television from the other room. This clamor that kicks me out of class for shutting my eyes because it’s disrespectful for me to cover my ears, away from the stringent glances of my classmates. This uncontrollable racket that lights something within me on fire and lets the flames burn me from the inside out leaving only my eardrums to suffer. Clickety-clack. And now I feel the necessity to apologize for my actions and my inept ability to save myself, as I’m sure I have caused you to give attention to these unavoidable mediocrities that have led me to insanity Yes, there you have it, I’ve admitted to you all that I’m past the breaking point, that I’m down on my knees begging you, BEGGING you! Stop. Look up from that blank screen. These noises, they’re building walls between each other. For once, make the choice to stop using what you hear from the media, what you hear from your friends, and journey back to the source, taking the time to administrate your desires unconnected from a device that fits in your back pocket, and perhaps then, you will experience sile-

~ Windsor S.

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9 comments:

  1. HeleneJanuary 6, 2016 at 10:29 AM

    I loved how you put a greater meaning at the ending. This really made me think about what phones do to people. -HF

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  2. CourtneyJanuary 6, 2016 at 1:23 PM

    Windsor this is amazing, the message is great and the way you use repetition really adds to the story!

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  3. LilyJanuary 7, 2016 at 10:51 AM

    Wow this is amazing I love all the details you put into and the deeper meaning at the end

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  4. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2016 at 11:02 AM

    I love your word choice! This story has a great moral that you put across very forcefully! - Fleming

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  5. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2016 at 11:03 AM

    It was very descriptive, especially of the noises you would hear and so while I was reading it I felt as though I was actually hearing those things.

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  6. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2016 at 11:03 AM

    It was very descriptive, especially of the noises you would hear and so while I was reading it I felt as though I was actually hearing those things.

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  7. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2016 at 11:07 AM

    I really like how descriptive the whole thing was, and the great word choice. great job!

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  8. AnonymousJanuary 7, 2016 at 11:10 AM

    I liked how you were so descriptive. You draw the reader in.

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  9. Mrs. AshleyJanuary 7, 2016 at 2:15 PM

    I was struck by the stream of consciousness and coherency of this piece, which typically have difficulty existing in unison. I have always enjoyed the clarity and depth of your writing, Windsor. The interruptions of the clickety-clack sound demonstrates and reminds your reader of the way our lives are constantly interrupted not only my technology but the repetitive nature of our actions. Thanks, Windsor, for sharing.

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