The Hate U Give……First post (to page 121)
Respond to BOTH of the prompts below: Each response should be at least 150 words.
1. As Starr and Khalil listen to Tupac, Khalil explains what Tupac said “Thug Life” meant. Discuss the meaning of the term “Thug Life” as an acronym and why the author might have chosen part of this at the title of the book. In what ways do you see this is society today? (Chapter 1, p. 17)
2. At the police station after Starr details the events leading up to the shooting, the detective shifts her focus to Khalil’s past. Why do you think the detective did this? Discuss Starr’s reaction to this “bait” (Chapter 6, pp. 102-103).
1. As Starr and Khalil listen to Tupac, Khalil explains what Tupac said “Thug Life” meant. Discuss the meaning of the term “Thug Life” as an acronym and why the author might have chosen part of this at the title of the book. In what ways do you see this is society today? (Chapter 1, p. 17)
2. At the police station after Starr details the events leading up to the shooting, the detective shifts her focus to Khalil’s past. Why do you think the detective did this? Discuss Starr’s reaction to this “bait” (Chapter 6, pp. 102-103).
Prompt #1
ReplyDeleteI have seen the term thug is mentiotion a few times throughout the book. One page that it was very prominently mentioned was page 17 where is Khalil is explaining to Starr what Tupac (ones of Khalil's favorite musicians) thinks thug life means. “Pac said Thug Life stood for ‘The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.’” I think what Khalil means is your childhood experiences play a big part in what you are like as a adult. And those experience you have as a child are generally based off of what your parents life was like. If you grow up in a loving home I think that it becomes second nature to continue loving other people the way you were loved. Conversely if you grow up in a home with people who are doing drugs you are much more likely to do drugs because it is what you grew up around. The title The Hate U Give is taken directly from that quote which tells us that this is going to be a recurring theme in the book.
Prompt #2
After Khalil is shot by the white police officer, Starr is asked to speak with some detectives at the police station. At first they are just asking questions to get more details about the shooting, but then they change perspectives and start asking about Khalil's past. One thing the detectives really want to know is if Khalil was a drug dealer. Starr definitely thinks he was, but she wants to protect her friend. She also doesn't want the detective to think that what the police officer did was right. The answers Starr gives are truthful but definitely not the answers the detectives wanted her to say. I think that the detectives start asking Starr about Khalil’s past because they are trying to find some way to blame Khalil for what happened instead of the police officer. Starr knows it was wrong of the officer to shot Khalil and she is being very careful not to give them a reason to justify his death.
Prompt #1
ReplyDeleteWhile in the car listening to Tupac, Khalil explains to Starr that when Tupac said “Thug Life,” it stood for, “The Hate You Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.” Essentially, the experiences that you put children through, ends up screwing with the rest of society later on. I see this hate ‘given’ to children in two ways. The first way being how we expose them to terrible things. Such as if their parents are drug dealers or they live in a place with gang violence. These two things can end up with the children being involved in them when they are older which steers our society in the wrong way. It ‘fucks everybody.’ Another way I interpreted the hate is those parents who isolate their children from what is going on. I don’t believe children need to live in such a situation, but if a child does not know it’s going on, their ignorance can end up moving our society back as well. I think that the author titled the book after this acronym because both situations, children being unaware and children being exposed to ‘The Hood,’ appear in the book.
Prompt #2
Starr went to the police station a few days after Khalil’s death to tell about her experience on that day. During the investigation, the questions changed from, “Can you describe what happened next?”(p 98) to ones like, “Now, do you know if Khalil sold narcotics?” (p 102) and “Did you consume any alcohol at the party?” (p 103). These questions really started to bother Starr. She felt like she was on trial rather than the police officer. However, she stayed calm and answered the questions without giving too much away. Her mother wasn’t too fond of these questions either. “You keep asking her about Khalil, like he’s the reason he’s dead” (p 103). The reason for these type of questions I believe, is because of exactly what Starr’s mom thought. The detectives wanted to find a reason to blame Kahlil for what the officer did. They wanted to justify his death.
Prompt #1
ReplyDeleteThe word thug and its meaning seem to show up alot in the book so far. I hadn't realized that “The Hate U Give” was an acronym until I got to the part about Khalil. I think the term thug is considered a negative term and is used in a derogatory way. The book and the song by Tupac has changed this into a more positive thing with its acronym. I also believe that people have taken this negative term “thug” and used it in a more positive way, like they have embraced it. Many people now say thug and thug life, but it is no longer about being negative and using it in a hateful way. I think that the author used this as the title to bring light to the word and to remind what happened to Khalil. I think the author did not include the second part because it's a little less relevant to the book and life. Many people in the “Ghetto” are called thugs and the author wanted to bring more positivity to this and try and bring a new meaning to the word thug.
Promt #2
I think the police officer brought up Khalil's past because there is an idea that drug dealers are very bad people, I'm not saying drug dealing is right, but the officer almost wanted to justify why the police officer might have shot Kahlil. I think her answers to the question and the following questions were very well thought out and well said. She didn't want to give them a reason to justify his murder. She even knew it was bait and she was not going to fall for it. I thought it was really important that she told the truth, but still didn't give the police a reason to justify his murder. The police screwed up by killing him. It was a completely wrong and horrid thing to do, they were just trying to make it seem less cruel by saying he was a drug dealer. When he was on the news and it said he was a “suspected drug dealer”. This was just a way for the media and the police to justify what they did. It all comes down to one thing. The police wanted to cover up their mistake.
Your blog responses were very well thought out and I admire that. When you said that the term thug is a negative term, it isn’t being used in a negative way in the acronym. Tupac said, “When I say 'thug' I mean, not criminal or someone that will beat you over the head, I mean the underdog. I mean someone who goes out there and succeeds who has overcame all obstacles." This is what thug means in this case and it was not used in a hateful way. In the second prompt you wrote that the police were trying to justify for what they did. I agree, that is was important that Starr stated the truth. Because it shows that she is mature and that she was capable of going through the investigation. Although I don’t think she quite understood why the detective was asking questions about Khalil selling drugs, I wrote about this is my blog response. Overall I thought you brought some ideas that I found very interesting and were well thought out.
DeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog response as there were many different things about our posts. One thing that was different and I in fact hadn’t even considered was in your response about THUG LIFE. You mentioned how nowadays, it seems that people are no longer using thug as a negative term. I hadn’t really thought about this and was truly curious as to what you meant by this. Personally, I do see thug life being used in a derogatory manner. However, when I read Elliott’s response to you, I began to see what you meant about it bringing light to Kahlil. How he overcame obstacles. Another interesting thing you said in your first section of your blog post was how you think that the LIFE portion of the acronym seems less relevant to life. In my post, I explained how I think it is very relevant to life. I thought of the acronym as a whole and explained how I saw that in society. But when reading your post, I do see how using thug alone without “Little Infants Fucks Everybody,” brings more light to the word. Your reflection on why this is the title of the book was something I hadn’t thought about before.
DeletePrompt #1
ReplyDeleteKhalil and Starr were in the car listening to Tupac, and Starr was complaining that the music was old. Khalil didn't agree, and he said that some of the stuff he says can be compared with today. He pointed out a lyric from one of Tupac's songs that said, "The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody," (17). That's what Tupac thought Thug Life stood for. I think Tupac was saying that hate doesn't help anyone, so there's no point in giving it. The title of the book connects with this, because a lot of Starr's life has been affected by the hate people have given her. I think the author was also trying to say that you should think about the hate you give to people, and how it can change them. This connects with today because theirs still lots of hate being given around the world.
Prompt #2
Starr went to the police station trying to get justice for what the police man did to Khalil. I think Starr felt like the detectives were trying to make the cop look better. When they brought up about Khalil and his drug dealing, it seemed like they were trying to use that as an excuse of why he got shot. My question is was there even any drugs or guns in the car? The detectives also started asking if Khalil was under the influence. Starr's mother said, "Are y'all putting Khalil and Starr on trial or the cop who killed him?" (103). They said the reasoning for asking so much about Khalil was that they just wanted the whole picture. If they wanted the whole picture why did they barely ask anything about the cop? Later on in the story Starr sees in the news that it says a drug dealer got shot by a cop. To me I feel like their just trying make it seem more like it's Khalid fault that the got shot and killed than the cops.
Prompt #1:
ReplyDeleteThe term "Thug" shows up multiple times in the book so far. When Starr and Khalil are in the car listening to music, Khalil points out a part of Tupac's song saying "The Hate You Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody" on pg. 17. This is saying that in the long run, hatred and negative childhood experiences can affect your adult life. For instance, like when people say that a rescue dog may act a certain way because of its old owner and how he/she treated them, it's the same thing here. If you grow up in a bad household or a bad neighborhood, it can affect who you become later on in life. I feel as if the author added this because she wanted to bring more positivity to the word "Thug" which is usually used in a negative way. I feel as if this connects to our world today because hatred and negativity is still common in our society.
Prompt #2:
After the death of Khalil, Starr was asked to meet with some detectives. Throughout the interview, the detectives started to change the questions up and relate them to Khalil's past. I feel as if they did this so that they could blame Khalil for his death. Like it was his fault or something. They brought up Khalil and drug dealing, which made it clear that they were digging too deep. Too deep to the point where it was getting a little frustrating for Starr and her mother. On pg. 103, she states "You keep asking her about Khalil, like he's the reason he's dead". Drug dealing isn't ok, but they can't use this as a justification for his death, because it is in his past. And they say he's a "suspected drug dealer" which means it isn't a valid justification, it's just a cover up for their mistake. The police officer shouldn't have shot Khalil, and now the police department doesn't want to admit their mistake.
I completely agree with you. I think that the author is trying to turn thug into a more positive word, because it's viewed in such a negative way. I feel like it's less of childhood experiences that lead to troubles in adulthood, but more of how society treats and what is given to young peoplel. I think the infants could represent something so much more. The infants could represent poor people, and other people who don't have enough compared to others. The infants could represent people who struggle in this world. They do things that they need to do, even if it isn't good, and those things come back to haunt them and potentially hurt them later on.
DeleteI personally don't think the police were digging too deep for Starr and her mother, I think they were trying to manipulate her into saying something that would make up for what they did. I do completely agree with you, I think the police were just trying to cover up their mistake by saying negative things about Kahlil. Drug dealing is looked down upon in this society, but sometimes people do what they have to do to survive.
Prompt #1: ‘The Hate You Give Little Infants Fucks Everyone’ This acronym was tattooed on Tupac’s chest and was a warning. “What you feed us as seeds, grows and blows up in your face” (Tupac Shakur 1971-1996). The warning is that if we continue to bring up kids in an environment where there are negative entities such as oppression, violence, and drug abuse then that cycle will continue. I think the author chose this acronym because she wanted to bring awareness to this topic via a book and wanted to stop this cycle. In society today, we see many people working to help these kids get away from all of the negatives in their lives, an example would be the SYFL which is a football league created by music star Snoop Dogg. His intention is to help young kids find a passion that they love and to get kids off “the streets”.
ReplyDeletePrompt #2: Starr thinks the detective asks questions about Khalil’s past because she thinks she was trying to justify why Khalil got shot. I infer that the detective already knows what happened that night, from 115’s report. The detective at first wants to clarify what happened which I infer she already knows part of. Then she begins asking questions about Khalil and him selling drugs. In order for the police to give a full report they need all details of the incident and the people surrounding it. That is why I think she asks about Khalil. Starr is very offended that the detective asks about Khalil’s drug dealing because she thinks the detective was baiting her. I don’t quite understand why Starr was offended by this. Dealing drugs is clearly a huge deal and she thinks that Khalil selling drugs had nothing to do with the investigation. Starr is so focused on the fact that the police did something bad that she can’t see that Khalil was doing something bad also. The police know that there is no way to justify why Khalil got shot.
Elliott, I really enjoyed and reading your blog post. In prompt #1, I like that you do m research on the acronym THUG LIFE. It was really interesting to see that he tattooed it on his chest and what Tupac thought of the acronym. The quote, “What you feed us as seeds, grows and blows up in your face.” (Tupac) is a great example of what he means. I think it interesting that you chose to write about is why the author to use the first part of the acronym as the title of this book. However I think you are completely right in that one of the things the author wanted to so with this book was to end the cycle of oppression, drugs, and violence. Another thing that I thought you did well was mention Snoop Dogg’s football league the SYFL. This was his way to try and help to end the cycle. Elliot, this piece is really well written becaue you researched most of the things you wrote about. you researched how Tupac felt about the acryonym THUG LIFE. You wrote about the cycle and explained one of the reasons you think Angie THomas wrote this book. You also added to that by researching another person who tried to help end the cycle and you came up with Snoop Dogg. All in all, I think prompt #1 is a very good post.
DeleteFrom Sophie
ReplyDeletePrompt #1
Starr and Khalil were fleeing the party after two people were shot. Starr was worried about her friends who they left behind in the panic. Khalil was taking Starr to her family’s store, Khalil turned up the radio and a song by Tupac was on. After arguing about the choice of music Khalil explains what “ Thug Life” stands for said that it stood for “ The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.” (pg 17) I think Khalil means the things you do or experience as a child can occur again later in life and affect you. In society today I recognize the acronym affecting many people. For example if child has a family member that abuses substances they are eight times more likely to develop an addiction later in life. Versus a child who grew up in a family where neither the mother or father abused substances. If a child has a parent who is a criminal they are more likely to become one.
Prompt #2
I think that the detective shifted her focus to Khalil's past to try to find something wrong with him. So she could use it as evidence as to why Khalil supposedly was a threat. If he had drugs on him she could have said that he was high and was trying to assault the police officer and shooting him was only a matter of self defense. I think she is asking about his past to try and find an excuse for the police officers actions. The police officer had no real reason to shoot an innocent teenager, after patting him down three times, and asking Starr and Khalil if he had any weapons on him. When Starr realized that the officer was baiting her to try to find something wrong with Khalil she was upset that they couldn't just accept the fact the officer one fifteen had no real reason to shoot Khalil. She didn't tell the cops that he had been dealing even though she knew he was. She only said “I heard things” (pg 103) This did not give the cops any excuse for why one fifteen killed Khalil but it was good enough for them.
Prompt #1
ReplyDeleteWhile Khalil and Starr are in the car they are arguing about Tupac. To try and win the argument, Khalil explains what Tupac meant by thug life. Khalil said, “ PAC said Thug Life stood for ‘The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.’” (Thomas p. 17). What this means is if a child grows up in a mean family and is surrounded by mean people, that child is likely to grow up and not be a very nice person. By people being mean to him in his youth, he is possibly not going to be nice person as an adult. The author probably used The Hate U Give as the title of this book because this book is a reflection on what Tupac said. This is a recurring theme in the book. Two of Starr’s friends, Natasha and Khalil got shot. As a result Starr has nightmares about it. She also has a lot of pent up anger she can’t let out yet because if she does she will get into trouble.
Prompt #2
A few days after Khalil’s shooting Starr goes to the police station to give and account of what happened. At first the questions asked are, “How long did you know Kahlil?” (Thomas p. 96), “Where were you going?” (P. 98) and “What happened next?” (P. 98). Soon however the questions shifted to, “Now, do you know if Khalil sold Narcotics?” (P. 102), “Did you consume alcohol at the party?” (P. 103) and “Did Khalil?” (P.103). The detective started asking these questions because she said it was to, “Want the whole picture.” (P. 103). However these questions were really asked to bait Starr and to find some justification for the police officer to shoot Khalil. Because if they did find some evidence then the police officer would have probably gone free. Starr’s reaction to the bait was, obviously, anger. However Starr kept the anger in her head. She responded with what she wanted to say to the police officer in her head and then gave the officer a more calm version. However throughout the question Starr almost let all the anger out. Her mom saved her from reacting how the officers wanted and they soon left the station.
THE ABOVE WAS FROM MACK
DeleteFrom Sophie (about Mack's comment)
DeleteI really like how in the second prompt you used actual quotes from the book. I think that this helps explain what you mean when you say “these questions were really asked to bait Starr.” It gives a clear view of how the questions changed from what happened to what Khalil could have possibly done to pose as a threat or to provoke the police officer. I like how you include that Starr was mad at the police officer but was able to keep her cool and answer his questions. In the first prompt I agree with you that if an adult is mean to a child when they are younger they are more likely to be mean when they are older. It seems that the people in our society today who are mean, grew up around people who were mean to them as a children. I think that what your life as a child is like reflects how you will act towards others as an older person. As I was reading your post I was thinking about the quote “The Hate U Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody.” (pg 17) I realized that it is true, what happens to you as a child has a large impact of how you will be as an adult.