MISS PEREGRINE’S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN THEMATIC ESSAY REQUIREMENT

Pictures play a role in the novel. Your thematic essay requirement will be a photo essay. Here is how it will work:

FOR THE PURPOSE OF THIS EXAMPLE PRESENTATION, THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHTTIME WILL BE THE FOCUS NOVEL.

As compared to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime PHOTO ESSAY: FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN

Begin by introducing your theme and defining it. Your thematic statement should share how you are going to focus on your topic and then how it was portrayed in the novel Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

Fear of the unknown is both powerful and crippling because while it controls a person’s outlook on life and ability to take on new tasks it also keeps that same person from making decisions that could put them in danger. Fear of the unknown keeps Christopher under his father’s thumb, and fear keeps him isolated when he tries new activities.

FOR THE NEXT FIVE SLIDES, SHARE A PICTURE THAT REPRESENTS YOUR THEME AND THEN EXPLAIN HOW THAT PICTURE REPRESENTS YOUR THEME AS WELL AS HOW THAT FITS THE NOVEL ONCE YOU HAVE SHARED FIVE PICTURES, INCLUDE THREE ADDITIONAL SOURCES (SONGS, BOOKS, MOVIES ETC.)

Jumping from a perfectly good airplane into the wide open, blue abyss is halted by fear of the unknown. Skills are meant to be practiced and perfected before trying it for the first time. Sky diving doesn’t allow for such a pattern. Sky diving is literally jumping in with both feet. Christopher's father doesn't have a chance to practice being a father; he gets one shot at it and he doesn’t know what he is doing so he makes some mistakes, mistakes that cost him his relationship with his son.

There are so many decisions to be made in life, and those decisions often have to be made quickly. Although we want all the facts and the possible outcomes beforehand, we often have to make our best effort. Fear of the unknown possible outcomes cannot stop us or slow us down. Decisions are made with all the information we have at the time and we often just hope for the best. Judy Boone leaves her family thinking she is making the best decision for her son and her husband. She thinks she is leaving Christopher in better hands. Her fear of the parent she is becoming and the unknown factors of raising a special needs child are too much for her.

Fear of the unknown changes as we grow up. What starts out as that fear of the dark evolves into that fear of the future. But like our youth, we turned on the light and headed down to the basement Christopher fears taking the A Level Math exam but fears missing it even more. Christopher has future plans that are still hazy and out of focus; he fears what the future holds for him, but he knows he has to keep moving forward into the dark unknown.

Fear of the unknown is also our brain’s alert system. Fear is our body’s way of alerting us to upcoming dangers. If the danger isn’t great enough we can power through, but if the danger is too much, fear is what keeps our head on straight. Christopher is scared of many things, but he encourages himself to keep pushing and moving forward. But fear alerts him of the possible danger Mr. Shears possesses; a fear that is real.

Fear of the unknown is represented in death because it is the ultimate equalizer and the biggest unknown factor in our lives. Wealth, race, power, family, love, nor intelligence can ultimately save you from death. Soldiers come back from war and tell stories, mothers can regale the pain of childbirth, and survivors of violent crime can all paint a picture of what life changing moments can feel like, but no one can share with the world what to expect after death. Death is a finality that, unless you are a Winchester, you cannot come back from. Death brings out our greatest fear of the unknown. Christopher does not understand death. When faced with the quick end of his mother he has no way of processing the emotion. Adding to his confused and limited state is the fact that she is not dead. Chris’s greatest fear is mocked by his father because it isn’t a real event.

For the next three slides you will compare a book, movie, TV show, painting, poem, etc. that shares the same thematic topic that you chose. How is the theme represented in your source compared to how it is represented in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children ? This is just like what we did for the mini presentations for Animal Farm.

In The Breakfast Club fear of the unknown controls the decision to become part of the larger group. Each character has a place that they hold in the group and each is unwilling to show the need to become part of something larger and find acceptance. Each high school student feels that they are simply representing a “kind” of person rather than being seen for who they truly are in the world. They each fear what it will be like for them in the halls of high school if they are willing to just be themselves. Mrs. Gascoyne fears the door she will open if she allows a special needs student to take an advanced math test. As an administrator she wants what is best for the student but also what is best for the school. Having a student break down barriers is an exciting step in a school but fear of what will come next can lead to quick decisions.

Breaking down barriers isn’t always a conscience decision. In Norman Rockwell’s painting “New Kid in the Neighborhood” fear of the unknown is in the form of racial tension. With the changing times of the late 1960’s families of all races were moving into their deserved slice of the American dream. Children were often the lightening rod for racial tension but in many cases they were also the bridge of peace. Christopher’s dad tries to simply kill off the memory of Christopher’s mother because of the tension she causes in his own life, but with some understanding and an open mind she becomes the peace maker between Chris and his father. Chris’s father has nothing to fear.

The blue police box from the Doctor Who series represents fear of the unknown because with each new companion the adventures to be had, although exciting and heroic, could never be planned for. Adventure for Christopher is well thought out events that he prepares himself for, like going to the train station to see his mother. Fear of the unknown is what caused him to stand in the middle of the station for eight hours desperately trying to work up the courage to get on the next train, or the next, or the next.

Requirements: A thematic statement. Analytical explanation of how the theme is represented in Peregrine. Five slides (five pictures) that represent the theme, analyzed and related to the novel. Three additional slides using books, movies, TV shows, music, etc. that share the same theme, analyzed and related back to the novel. YOU MAY WORK WITH A PARTNER…... BUT YOU WILL HAVE THE REQUIREMENT OF TEN PICTURE SLIDES. (THAT IS AN INCREASE OF FIVE SLIDES) A rubric has been provided.