Thursday, April 5, 2018

The Kite Runner: Frontloading


(due as a comment to this post; worth a quiz grade; 0 to + holistic scale)


Part A: Click here to visit the CIA's World Fact Book. Peruse the Afghanistan page on this site and respond to the following questions:

1. What are the top eight agricultural products? What product is #1? 
2. What is the life expectancy rate? What is the infant mortality rate? What deeper issues are typically reflected in these statistics?
3. How many kilometers of coastline does Afghanistan possess? How might this number have contributed to the country's history?
4. Identify the transnational issues that Afghanistan faces. 
5. Construct a thesis statement that encapsulates the essence of the Afghan nation (both its assets and its challenges). 

Part BClick here to visit The Boston Globe's "The Big Picture: Afghanistan." View each photograph (use your judgement for the objectionable pieces) and read the corresponding footnotes. Choose the most powerful image to prompt a piece of short fiction. Write a descriptive passage that embodies the "show vs. tell" technique.

Part C: Read this article on the Hazaras. Produce a thesis statement that encapsulates the author's characterization of their culture and plight and illuminates the purpose of the text.

Part D: FOR EXTRA CREDIT (200-point Quiz): Click here to view the Frontline Program: "The Dancing Boys of Afghanistan." Take notes as evidence for your viewing.

If you happen to finish early, please proofread your work carefully. 



4 comments:

Anonymous said...

A

The #1 agricultural product is opium. Other products include wheat, fruits, nuts, wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins, and poppies.
The life expectancy rate is 50.3 years for males and 53.2 years for females. The total infant mortality rate is 110.6 deaths / 1,000 live births. Some issues that are typically reflected in these statistics are clean drinking water sources, access to sanitary facilities, and diseases.
Afghanistan has 0 sq. kilometers of coastline which could contribute to the number of deaths that happen every year.
Pakistan has built fences along the Pakistan - Afghanistan border whch serve as bases for foreign terrorists and other illegal activities.
Struggling to keep their people safe, Afghan citizens are landlocked but at the same time produce many of the world’s important foods.


B

The boy’s life changed as soon as he and his father made the decision to go for a walk. They always knew to be careful whenever they were out in the open. It seemed like everone was afraid of each other. There was a large explosion. The next time the boy opened his eyes he would be looking up into a US soldier’s eyes. The comforting feeling of the soldier’s cloths on the boy’s bare skin didn’t have the power to take away the pain that rushed over his body. The soldier tried to clean him up and take away the pain nothing was helping. Nothing would take away the physical pain or the pain of losing his family member.


C

Discriminating against the Hazaras, individuals belonging to Isis continuously abduct and kill the Hazaras if they had not already fled to Shia Iran.

Anonymous said...

PART A:

1. The top eight agricultural products are: opium, wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins, and poppies. The product that is number one is opium.
2.The life expectancy for the total population is 51.7 years. However, the life expectancy for females is 53.2 years and for males 50.3 years. The infant mortality rate is, in total, 110.6 deaths/1,000 live births. Specifically, 118 deaths/1,000 live births for males and 102.9 deaths/1,000 live births for females. Some examples of deeper issues that are typically reflected in these statistics are: poor education, poor healthcare, poor government regulations, disease, and/or gun violence.
3. Afghanistan possesses 0 km of coastline, it is landlocked. This lack of coastline might have contributed to the country’s history because they are less likely to travel to other continents and see how other people live. The people of Afghanistan are stuck in the old times and haven’t seemed to evolve to the 21st century. Afghans are less likely to migrate out of Afghanistan too. If people are not happy with living in the country, they would just tend to stay because they feel trapped and resort to violence or drugs.
4.Afghanistan faces many transnational issues. One issue is that they are the world’s largest producer of opium; there are a lot of opiate addiction problems. Another issue is that there are 59,737 refugees (Pakistan) and 1,553 million Pashtuns and Kuchis who are displaced in the south and west due to natural disasters and political instability. There are also many international disputes. The disputes are mostly between Pakistan, Iraq, and Russia.
5.Traveling through the history of Afghanistan, the country is not just notorious for violence but also many essential agricultural products.
PART B:

I said my goodbyes to my brother as he boarded the plane, I thought I would see him soon enough. My dad told me that my brother, Joshua D. Powell, was going on something like a vacation. He was going with his military family so I thought he would be in good hands, wherever he was going. I think it was a country that started with the letter “A.” It was, I think, Afghanistan. I can’t be positive though, I haven’t had geography yet. I know I get left out of things or told twisted truths because I am only five, but I do not ask questions. I waited and waited for my big brother to come home. He was my biggest role model, best friend, and favorite sibling. I loved coming home after school and playing checkers, video games, or riding my bike with him. We always had the best of times together, we were inseparable. I wanted to be just like him when I grow up! One day the police knocked on my door. I was so excited because I love policemen, I am thinking of being one when I am older. I answered the door excitedly, but they were not as excited to see me. One of them said to me was “Are your parents home?”. I rushed to go get my parents, still excited that a policeman was at my house. When I told my parents that the police were at the door my dad sprinted for the door faster than I have ever seen him move. He was pale in the face with a look on his face I have never seen. My mother just immediately began to cry and told me to go up to my room and not to leave it until she came upstairs to get me. I did just that. I heard through my wall a ton of screaming, yelling, and crying. I had no idea what to even think, I just waited and waited for my mother and father to come upstairs like I was told. I was used to waiting for my brother, so I gained a lot of patience through the years. Little did I know I was never going to see my brother ever again, no matter how long I waited.
PART C:

Depicting the Hazara’s lifestyle, a glimpse of the pain the minority group faces when dealing with threats and persecution is conveyed.

Anonymous said...

A
The top 8 agricultural products are opium, wheat, fruits, nuts, wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins, and poppies.
The life expectancy rate is 51.7 years. The infant mortality rate 110.6/1,000 births. This reveals the poor healthcare. They most likely do not have skilled doctors or physicians, and a harsh lifestyle that adds to the early death.
Afghanistan has no coastline; it is landlocked. This most likely resulted in it being stuck in many wars and constantly being taken over and fighting the surrounding countries. In times of war it would be easier to take control of than a country with coastline. This results in instability within the country.
The Afghanistan, Coalition, and Pakistan military meet periodically to discuss border issues and the continuous issue of the Taliban. Iran protests the control of the Helmand River, Pakistan is building fences. Russia is mad about the shipment of poppy seeds into asian countries.
Troubled by the country’s turbulent past, Afghanistan still deals with many issues with violent military groups, its landlocked nature, and struggling healthcare; however its economy is gradually improving, pushing towards the country’s promising future.


B His earth shattering screams rang through his father’s ears the moment after the explosion. In the minutes after the blast, his dad, mom and sister were able to dig themselves out of the rubble; but his little limbs remained pinned down. He screamed continuously, with such vigor that he could barely hear the sounds of his loving family digging through the ruins of their one-room home. As his voice grew faint, he finally felt the frantic touch of his father’s calloused hand. With the help of the only three people left in the world that love him, he finally was lifted from the oppression of the rubble, but not from the life he lived. They were never going away. The same ones that destroyed his home were yelling in the distance. Barely having time to address the shrapnel embedded in their bodies, the family headed for the mountains. Whispers said that there was an American base on the other side. The boy’s family had been waiting to gather supplies for their trip, but destruction set them off early, as they now have nothing to stay for. The journey will be long, but the driving force behind their steps will propel them into the future: hope.


C Beginning with the establishment of the Hazaras’ history, Sarah Hucal used the resilience of the Hazara people, their never ending fight against discrimination, and the excessive brutality of the Taliban to reveal the Hazaras’ dedication to the future of Afghanistan, as well as their cultural identity.

Anonymous said...

Part A:

1) Afghanistan main exports are opium(number 1 export), wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins, and poppies.
2) The life expectancy is 51.7 years among the population. Their infant mortality rate is 110.6/1,000 which is the highest in the entire world. They seem to lack medication placing very high in diseases and underweight children.
3) The country is landlocked which contributes to their lack of trade and dependence on other countries.
4) Tensions at their borders opens the door for terrorist groups to form bases and promotes illegal activity.
5) Afghanistan is a rough country that is wildly different from what we are used to in America due to facing economic depression, malnutrition, internal affairs, and public discrimination of Hazaras.

Plan B:
A large crowd shouts at the stationed troops. Constantly jeering and chanting in unison. They want them out it is clear to see yet, the troops stand their ground not letting the crowd get to them. The tension in the air could have been cut with a knife. The clear divide between these two groups of people seemed immeasurable.



Part C:

The political climate in Afghanistan is described as extremely hostile and dangerous for the Hazara minority due to the radical islam and terrorist groups constantly discriminating against them and, even going as far as killing them.