... behavior of the men in Reserve Police Battalion 101, his critics are correct to point out the distinction between "ordinary men" and "ordinary Germans." While the soldiers in this unit in a sense were ordinary men, historians cannot ignore their cultural and societal heritage. While people are united by many common traits shared by all humans, they are also a product of their societies. In the ... case of the men of Battalion 101, their society preached hatred of Jews and everyone else who was not "ethnically German." Therefore, unlike Browning, people cannot discount racial hatred ... ...

• Word Count: 1476
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... when you try to explain what it means it becomes very complicated. What makes something ordinary or normal? Something that is ordinary is generally accepted by the majority of the public to be ordinary. In other words when most people say that something is ordinary it makes it so because ordinary is really all about how you perceive something. If everyone says that a stop sign put ... at an intersection is ordinary than that's how people perceive that stop sign. But what happens if you put that same stop sign ... it is unique. How can we take something that is not like any thing else a...

• Word Count: 783
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Ordinary Courage The travels of Joseph Plumb Martin's enlistment during the Revolutionary War are very well depicted throughout his book. Sacrifice, growth, and freedom gleam out from ... are remembered and viewed as icons, but Martin shows the hard work that had to be accomplished by every ordinary soldier for the great leaders be remembered. For every single leader remembered there stand thousands of soldiers that had the ordinary courage to stand up and fight. I believe that the Continental army stood for many things in Martin's ... grew up and became a man in the Continental army, while ...

• Word Count: 577
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... some outside opinions if it was interesting to anyone other than myself" ("Judith Guest" 102). Guest sent the draft of Ordinary People to three different publishers with no letter of inquiry nor an agent. This course usually leads any hopeful-eyed writer to their defeat. The ... lives. Her drive for success sparked a new literary classic, as well as a successful movie, produced just four years after the release of her book. Ordinary People is a novel like no other. It dives into the lives of a typical American, middle class, suburban household, and their daily struggles ("Judith Guest ....

• Word Count: 2059
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

What exactly makes a world and it's people ordinary? In the spellbinding novel Ordinary People, Judith Guest gives readers a taste of life after having to deal with a terrible crisis, and introduces us to an ordinary family living in an ordinary world. The novel's descriptive nature highlights the main character, Conrad's, struggle in maintaining sanity in an ordinary world. Conrad Jarrett is a precise description of a teenager, having to deal with ... completely enjoyable. Conrad's struggle intrigues the reader, and Guest's descriptions keep the reader intrigued. Even though the content migh...

• Word Count: 411
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

What exactly makes a world and it's people ordinary? In the spellbinding novel Ordinary People, Judith Guest gives readers a taste of life after having to deal with a terrible crisis, and introduces us to an ordinary family living in an ordinary world. The novel's descriptive nature highlights the main character, Conrad's, struggle in maintaining sanity in an ordinary world. Conrad Jarrett is a precise description of a teenager, having to deal with ... completely enjoyable. Conrad's struggle intrigues the reader, and Guest's descriptions keep the reader intrigued. Even though the content mig...

• Word Count: 415
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... its first series was done by Stanley Milgram in 1961-are quite similar to each other. How church was possibly able to dominate the power over ordinary people, demanding them orders of the God and how people as absolute followers would simply take action of the given celestial task, no matter how hard or harsh the tasks were, is relatively equivalent to the ... after the experiment had been finished, with an excuse of performing the act under command of an authority and doing the given duty, can simply be considered evidence that most ordinary people would tend to do while they are broug...

• Word Count: 1011
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Graduate

... are falling apart these days, so parents worry that this book gives children the wrong aspect. Then, they suggest that Ordinary People should be banned. However, I think this book should not be removed in 10th grade English class. Ordinary People is offensive to parents. They said this book tells children that it's normal to have sex with one another, and this book is full ... can read this book, they are old enough to tell what is right or wrong. Therefore, parents should not worry too much about this book. Parents said Ordinary People gives children the wrong information that "ordinar...

• Word Count: 390
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... the book Ordinary Men I will be attempting to give my viewpoints on what the book conveys about the Holocaust in Poland and how the Nazis organized and carried out the destruction of Poland's ... , women, and children to clearing out the ghettos of all Jews and forcing them to board the trains to the concentration camps. I agree with the author about how a group of "Ordinary Men" could become mass murderers. The story goes on the give us insight into the answer by investigating the background of these men. What I have learned is that these men ... without provocation whatsoever. The Je...

• Word Count: 959
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... conscience, it is a question of how far will one go to obey orders. In this situation, the Germans went as far as to kill a group of people because someone else ordered them to do so. The obedience that the men had to their superiors was the main reason the men did what they were told to ... do, kill the innocent Jews. After the murders, these men, who were ordinary when they were drafted into the battalion, seemed to no longer be ordinary. This is because it is not normal to kill and at Jozefow killing became the norm. This meant that the men ... was one of the many mass murders that t...

• Word Count: 2324
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... conscience, it is a question of how far will one go to obey orders. In this situation, the Germans went as far as to kill a group of people because someone else ordered them to do so. The obedience that the men had to their superiors was the main reason the men did what they were told to ... do, kill the innocent Jews. After the murders, these men, who were ordinary when they were drafted into the battalion, seemed to no longer be ordinary. This is because it is not normal to kill and at Jozefow killing became the norm. This meant that the men ... was one of the many mass murders that t...

• Word Count: 2170
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... In order to fully overcome such adversities in life, one must be able to make adjustments, and implement them in their everyday lives. The novel Ordinary People, by Judith Guest, demonstrates the ability, as well as inability, of an individual to adapt in order to overcome the exacting circumstances they face, ... his attempted suicide, all of which are eventually dealt with in their own particular ways. The most exemplary instance of a dysfunctional relationship in Ordinary People is that of Beth and Calvin Jarrett. It is clear from the beginning of the novel that Beth and Cal have serio...

• Word Count: 1074
• Approx Pages: 4

... a journey everyone must go through, and everyone's journey consists of extreme obstacles they must overcome. Judith Guest illustrates the journey of each member of the Jarrett family in her book, Ordinary People. The family suffers from a great tragedy when the eldest son of the Jarrett's drowns in a boating accident. Throughout the book, Guest depicts a vivid picture of each character's conflicts, and ... death and the loss of Beth's affection forces Conrad on a journey to overcome his depression and recover his once happy adolescence. Conrad is the troubled protagonist of Ordinary Peo...

• Word Count: 1918
• Approx Pages: 8
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... movie contain everyday obsticles that teenagers face. In The Catcher in the Rye we read as Holden tried to overcome the deep rut of depression that we has in. In Ordinary People, Conrad became happy and accepted once again. Although the movie is not an exact shadow of the book, they are very similar and in many cases Holden and Conrad share ... the streets of New York, Holden finds a problem with just about anyone who he comes in contact with. He seeks out the bad things about people rather than search for the good qualities in them. In Ordinary People, Conrad has the challenge of facin...

• Word Count: 976
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Comparing Crow Lake and Ordinary People In the novels Crow Lake and Ordinary People two comparable characters are established: Kate Morrisson and Conrad Jarrett. Despite the dissimilar settings, both characters share a related image of their older ... back of his study notes and watching the movements of his pencil" (Page 224). Kate idolizes Matt and deems him perfect. For her, Matt defines success. In Ordinary People, Conrad Jarrett idolizes his older brother, Buck Jarrett, in the same way that Kate idolizes her older brother, Matt. In one passage T. C. Berger, Conrad's ... the perfect child"...

• Word Count: 961
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... family resolves conflict, whether it be amongst themselves or with the help of a therapist, it can strengthen the family relationships and turn a negative situation into a positive one. In the movie, "Ordinary People", the Jarrett family must deal with many conflicts. One conflict being death and depression, Conrad dealing with his parents and friends forgiving himself as well as others for his brother ... must be willing to cooperate with each other. Stubbornness prevents families from resolving their differences and prevents them from considering and visualizing other people's views, ...

• Word Count: 1019
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... one actually pays attention or appreciates, the importance of an object? Simple objects such as forks, tables, chairs, blankets, etc. can be very intriguing. Now that I put more thought into ordinary objects, one specific object stands out among the rest. My childhood blanket stands out to me because it was with me from the moment I was born until about a few months ... to see how useful it can be; we would be able to see how beautiful and important it is. Every object has certain unique characteristics that make them distinctive. Most people don't actually appreciate objects, I never t...

• Word Count: 678
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

In the novel "Ordinary People"," Conrad experiences a number of events that contribute to his recovery. The first positive event that contributes to his recovery is the fact that he decides to go to therapy on ... stop caring about how it looks and care about how it feels instead. This is crucial to the novel because it shows Conrad that he shouldn't worry about what other people think of him, he should do what makes him happy. Conrad also starts to get better when he starts making decisions that will allow him to heal from the tragedy ... shows that Beth is the one who prevented all commun...

• Word Count: 919
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

An Ordinary Outlook The movie Ordinary People directed by Robert Redford is a very real life movie set in the suburbs of Illinois in the late 1970's. The movie begins early ... Beth; Con's father, Calvin; Con's psychiatrist, Dr.Berger; his friend Karen, and his somewhat girlfriend Jeannine. Beth, a determined perfectionist, is constantly concerned with the way people view her and her family. She wishes for everyone to view her family as "normal". She buried all her love with Buck and, therefore, neglects Conrad because she no ... which direction to follow. Con's self confident psychiatrist, ...

• Word Count: 1100
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

The novel Ordinary People is very similar to my ordeal that began just after the Christmas of 1999 when my stepbrother became deathly ill and died in March of 2000. Losing someone so close is only the beginning of the painful experiences that Conrad and I faced. The effects of losing a sibling ar...

• Word Count: 601
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... be acquired and although it may be difficult at times in the long run, you become a better and happier person because you are able to take control. In the novel Ordinary People, by Judith Guest, she uses the theme courage and lack of it continuously to show how the characters are unable to achieve greatness because of it. Although courage can be ... helps build personality. Conrad Jarret gains courage along his journey and he is able to live with himself and his feelings and he learns a lot about himself and others. Most people who commit suicide try it again, and Conrad has to live eve...

• Word Count: 993
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

The book I did my report on is called Ordinary People, by Judith Guest. It is a very well written novel about a boy's battle with depression, suicide, the loss of his brother, and communication gaps with his parents. The story starts by ... they are still going out at the end of the story. I think Conrad is a good kid that just tries to take on the role of his older brother, who in people's eyes was perfect. At the end of the story you finally get to see the real Conrad show through, and he is really a good kid. Overall, I really enjoyed the book ... . It showed how although people seem OK o...

• Word Count: 461
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Ordinary People 1. Conrad Jarret is teenage boy and high school student who had experienced the unfortunate tragedy of witnessing his brother Buck's drowning in the ocean. This ingredient alone affected Conrad into ... , especially his mother, Beth, didn't help or ease the pain Conrad was feeling during this tragic time. Beth, who seemed to be a determined perfectionist, is constantly concerned with the way people view her and her family. She wishes for everyone to see them as "normal." At a party her and her husband attended, she got extremely upset that her husband, Calvin, mentioned ... h...

• Word Count: 1354
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... in 1899, Frank Norris" novel, McTeague serves as a view of San Francisco at the turn of the century. Norris illustrates what life was like in an ordinary community in San Francisco, by using descriptive imagery throughout the novel. In addition, Norris gives detailed accounts of the inner workings of society along with the emotions ... setting. He describes Polk Street as "one of those cross streets peculiar to Western cities, situated in the heart of the residence quarter, but occupied by small trades people who lived in the rooms above their shops. There were corner drug stores with h...

• Word Count: 952
• Approx Pages: 4

The novel, Ordinary People, written by Judith Guest, is a story about a teenager named Conrad Jarret going from being a young boy to an adult within a year. It is also about how Conrad ascends from worse ... like before his decision. But he was unable to. He was trying to take one day at time. One thing was true though "Things were so different at the hospital. People were, you know, turned on all the time. And you just cannot live like that. You cannot live with all that emotion floating around, looking for a place to land. It ... is to exhausting." This quote is trying to say that at the ...

• Word Count: 458
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School