Personal Reflection

After reading the book Anne Of Green Gables I learned a lot of new things. As I was going through the pages of the book, I have become a stronger reader, and to get though the whole book, it was a challenge to me because in every page I had to look up the meaning of about five words to understand what was going on, I had to read some paragraphs over and over again to pick up what was happening. Another challenge to me was to think about the themes in the book instead of just reading the words, but trying to think what was in between. As I was reading it, I started to get engaged in the story and I started to connect the themes in the book with real life situations and it has slightly altered my understanding of literature. Though this book I’ve realized the difference of people, of how much they can be cruel with a child just because the way she talks or how much people love them for that. As I learner I’ve discovered that If I don’t just read the book but take the meanings in it, I will love to explore it even more.

                                                               Works Cited


"SparkNotes: Anne of Green Gables." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/anneofgreengables/>.



bee. "The Books: “Anne Of Green Gables” (L.M. Montgomery) | The Sheila Variations." The Sheila Variations. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. <http://www.sheilaomalley.com/?p=5213>.



"characteristics of classic literature." ThinkQuest : Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. <http://library.thinkquest.org/CR0210243/Language%20Arts%20Lagoon/Literature/characteristic%20of%20classic%20literature.htm>.

                                       "Anne of Green Gables" a classic novel or not?  

      In this last post I will tell you why “Anne of Green Gables” can be considered a classic novel, but before I tell you, what is a classic novel? A classic novel is a book that can be enjoyed through different generations and not in just one time period and the reader is able to make connections with the book.  A classic is always more than just a story, the writer wants to teach something to the reader. You can see that it has depth through its symbolism, themes and the message the story tells you. And it does not matter the time period you are in, you will be always able to connect with the story.

      In Anne of Green Gables we can easily connect with Anne, the main character thought her conflict between imagination and social expectations. She is guided by her imagination and romanticism, and that does often lead her to some wrong directions. Her daydreams always pull her away from reality to her imaginary world. She is always pleased by that, but it often comes into conflict with Avonlea’s expectations of appropriate behavior. Readers who once experienced that can connect with the book and really understand how Anne feels about it, mainly children that are passing though it in the same moment as they read the book, they feel as they grow with the book.

      One other aspect of Anne is that she is really easy to connect with is her sentimentality and emotions.  As a child she is not able to distinguish between true and fake emotion, so her feelings run deep, she dreams with spirit, loves and hates with passion. Anne’s attachment to sentimentality can provide her a refuge from the real emotions of fear and loss that she experienced as a child. Her parents’ death left her at the mercy of others and made Anne be treated not with love and attention as every child should have, but with cruelty and carelessness. When she imagines sentimental stories, she can control the situation and only when she becomes an adult she can deal with real emotion. When Matthew dies, she experiences real loss and as a woman she can recognize her pain as a real emotion of the loss of someone dear and not the sentimental ones that she was able to control in her childhood games and imaginations.

     Another point that people can connect with is Anne’s adoption. She was sent to a strange place and when she got there she felt unwanted because they were expecting a boy. But after they decided to keep her, she loved her life, did well in school and became successful. As most of the people she grew up, went to college, became a teacher which had always been her dream and fell in love, so it doesn’t matter so it doesn't matter the time period people read the book in they can always relate to these things in their lives.

     So, in my opinion, “Anne of Green Gables” can be considered a classic novel because it was published 100 years ago and today people still like to read it. They can connect with the story because when you are a child you can have a conflict between your imaginations and what the social expectations are. When you suffer a loss, just like Anne you can try to refuge not to feel the real emotions. When you are adopted you could fell unwanted in the beginning and then fulfilling all your goals and dreams in the end. A hundred years from now, I think, these characteristics will continue to make this a classic novel.

4º Significant Point: Anne decides not to go to Redmond College

After a year studying in Queen´s College, Anne won the Avery prize, what gave her a scholarship to go to Redmond College. When she came back from Queen´s College to Green Gables she knew something was wrong. Matthew looked a lot older and Marilla was feeling her head hurt often, behind her eyes. The other day, they received a letter from their bank and as soon as Matthew read that, he felt in the ground, Marilla and Anne tried everything, but was too late. After that Anne looked at the letter and it was saying that the bank has had to close down, so they had no money. During weeks Marilla and Anne worked hard at Green Gables, and when Marilla went to the doctor he told her to stop reading or writing, otherwise she would be blind in six months. When she told Anne that, she said that she would have to sell Green Gables and move to Mrs. Spencer´s house, that´s when she decided not to go to Redmond College and work to help Marilla to pay the bills, then she wouldn't have to sell Green Gables. 

3º Significant Point: Anne meets Gilbert Blythe

It´s the first day of class when Gilbert just came back from a holiday. Anne and Diana go to school walking and Diana tells Anne that she will meet Gilbert Blythe, a boy three years older than them and very good looking. She said she wasn't interested in boys but when they arrived at school she did look at him, he was a tall boy, with curly brown hair and a friendly smile.

In the middle of the class while Mr. Phillips, their teacher, was helping some of the older children, Anne was looking out at the window. Gilbert wanted her to look at him so he whispered to her, but she did not move. Then he out his arm out, pulled her red plaits, and said in a loud whisper: “Carrots! Carrots!” Then Anne jumped up and looked angrily at him, and then she said: “You horrible boy! I hate you!” and then she brought her heavy book down on Gilbert´s head.

Mr. Phillips heard the noise and came to ask Anne why she did that, and when Gilbert tried to say that was his fault the teacher did not believe and told Anne to go and stand in front of the class. There, lonely she thought: “I hate Mr. Phillips and I will never look at or speak to Gilbert Blythe again!”

2º Significant Point: The Cuthberts decide to keep Anne

When Matthew and Marilla decided to keep Anne it was a really cool moment. Matthew wanted her since the moment they arrived at home, and told his sister that he could hire someone else to help him with the farm chores, but she wanted a boy. She told Anne that she was going to sleep there and the next day she was going to take her to Mrs. Spencer, the lady that brought her from the orphanage, to tell her the mistake.

The next day, at Mrs. Spencer´s house, she said that if Marilla really did not want to keep Anne. She did not have to send her back because the day before Mrs. Peter Blewett told her how much she wanted to send her a little girl to help her. At that moment Marilla not even felt graceful to be able to get Anne off her hands. Mrs. Peter arrived at Mrs. Spencer´s house a little after and was explained what was happening. She said she would like to take Anne and if Marilla wanted she could take her at that moment. Marilla wasn't sure if she wanted to get Anne of her hands anymore and told Mrs. Peter she still needed to talk to Matthew, and if they decided to send her over they would call her. Coming back home Marilla decided to keep Anne and told Anne that the following afternoon, making Anne and Matthew really happy.

1º Significant Point: A surprise

I think when Matthew went to the train station to pick up the Orphan ha was surprised to see a girl instead of a boy. When he first got there he just saw a girl sitting by herself on a pile of shingles, she was thin, with red hair and freckles and was wearing a garbed in a very short, very tight, very ugly dress of yellowish gray wincey. At first he not even noticed that and just walked by her to talk to the stationmaster about a boy that was coming for him. The man told him that there were no boys and that they left that little girl for him. Disappointed, he went talk to her about the mistake, but when he saw her he realized that he could not tell that girl with that glowing eyes that there had been a mistake, so he decided to take her home and show his sister Marilla that they sent a girl instead of a boy and let her tell Anne the truth that they wanted a boy so they´re sending her back.