For this project, one visual symbol Kaci and I chose to represent one of the main themes in the text was isolation because in Kokoro the narrator or Sensei felt alone or lonely. We depicted this by drawing someone alone on an island. We also chose one word to describe each person: Sensei-- self-inflicted, Narrator-- depressed, Sensei's wife-- oblivious, K-- troubled, the Narrator's father-- traditional, the Narrator's mother-- anxious, and Okusan-- controlling. Then, we drew a key and a chart of how each character is related, and how they feel about each other below it. Then, we wrote our overarching question about the book, which is: how does the time period that Kokoro is set in affect the character's traits? We also drew a heart around Kokoro because that is the meaning behind the title. Next, we sketched three images-- a grave, a tree, and a garden-- because we felt these settings stood out in the book, and they affected the plot greatly. They are also closely related because they are in nature. Then we illustrated the question, "What do you think makes the narrator care more about Sensei's view of him and his reaction than those of his parents?", by illustrating a "less than" diagram. The narrator's parents are less than the narrator, and Sensei is greater than the narrator. Then, we quoted two specific examples of literary devices: simile and personification. Next, we chose the quote, "Words are not meant to stir the air only: they are capable of moving greater things" (Soseki 142), because we felt it was a quote that summed up the moral of the story. Then, for our vocabulary word, we chose "loquacity" and drew an image of a girl talking. The last image and word we drew was "junshi", as the Japanese culture that we learned about. We drew a knife because junshi was an act of suicide.
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