It was an icy morning here in West Hartford. The School of Dad pondered a Half Day but settled on a late start instead. ‘Icy’ might be a good word to describe how Moose is feeling about Piper in Chapter 20. Or is he? I always get this feeling that Moose is really fascinated by Piper but does not want to let on. ‘Fascinated by’ or ‘infatuated with’ – which fits better and do you agree?
Chapter 20 gets us caught up. What has happened in the last two months? Make a list.
In Chapter 21 we see more clearly Moose’s soft side. Since we are using some big words today – I think that Moose shows ‘empathy’ for Mrs. Capone. What does empathy mean? Do you agree or disagree with me?
Does the way he is feeling make sense to you? Why or Why not?
Monday, December 3, 2007
Icy
Posted by Mr. Z at 9:03 AM
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5 Comments:
Moose must be infatuated with Piper. He appears to think that she can do no wrong. Why else would he attend the meeting that Piper calls after she returns from exile at her grandmother's? After losing baseball for months because of Piper, and his dad almost losing his job, I would expect the last person he'd want to associate with is the person who is the root of the trouble. Why does Piper have this power over him, and the rest of the kids as well? Moose is really miserable over the winter. He somehow seems to forgive Piper her missteps and gets back under her spell.
Added a link to definitions of the word empathy in the post. My favorite was a bit down the list:
"More than feeling compassion or sympathy “for” another person, empathy puts you in their shoes to feel “with” them or “as one” with them. ...
www.jansen.com.au/Dictionary_DF.html
I think it would make sense for moose to feel empathy. Imagine how hard it must be on Mrs. Capone. For a few years, she spent all of her time with her son. She had joy brought to her from her son. Now, she can barely ever see her son. It’s like looking forward to going to a baseball game on your birthday, and Its thunder storming on it. But this situation is much more heart breaking.
I think that Moose’s experience of watching the sadness of his mom as her attempts to help Natalie have failed have given him the ability to empathize with Mrs. Capone.
It is hard to understand how a parent feels until you are a parent, but Moose’s family experience had given him some insights that others his age probably would not have.
Mrs. Capone is a very sad figure after her strip search because she set the snitch box off. Heartbreaking is a great word to use. Imagine waiting to see your son who is in jail, then being humiliated as you get within spitting distance. I can imagine how she wants no witnesses to her pain and after holding and soothing Rocky she was probably feeling very reflective and emotional. Mrs. Flanagan had a similar reaction when she wanted the kids to get away from Natalie even though they had accepted Natalie into the group. Neither woman could believe what was happening to them. It's really hard to watch someone you love get so upset. At least Al Capone didn't witness his mother's humiliation.
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