Literature Circle
Passage Masters
What is a Passage
A Passage is defined as a short extract from a book or any reading
material
Team Members: Satvik Syal, Daksh Sehgal,
Pranav Kakar, Vedant Chandra, Anahita
Shandilya, Aarav Jain
Chapter: The Grand Tour, (PG.25) Satvik Syal
"Nothing Much to
see ..........................................................
.Of course! I mumbled." (Paragraph 2)
Flashback:
His whole life , August Pullman has been homeschooled , due to his deformity. August’s parents have decided to finally
let the bird out of the nest. They want to send Auggie to a proper school , so that he can have a formal education, and
learn to deal with problems. August has to go to the school to have a look at the facilities, and the people. Mr. Tushman,
the principal of the school , gives Auggie a warm greeting, and welcomes him to the school. Mr. Tushman assigned the
task to three students to give August a tour of the school. These three students, are Julian , Jack Will , and Charlotte .
Analysis
If I were a character analyst , I would be taking a lot of reference from this passage . This passage gives us an idea of
the mindset of Julian , Jack , and Charlotte . So far , Julian has come across as a mean person who was rude to Auggie.
We are not sure if he was actually wanting to ask these questions or if he meant to hurt August , but some things he said,
were very offensive. These include, “Do you know what an eraser is?" Jack on the other hand, came across as a kinder
person. There was not much information about Charlotte except for the fact that she came across as very self obsessed
as she kept talking about herself during the tour.
Satvik Syal Continued…
This passage impacted me deeply. I got to know about different types of people. This passage hooked me, and made me
want to read more. At the same , it made me sympathize with Auggie, and the way he was being treated. Julian,
according to me should be taught a lesson for behaving the way he did . His behavior was not ideal.
There are not many language features in this passage. It consists of a conversation between Auggie, Jack , Julian and
Charlotte . This passage was written from August's point of view.
Visual imagery was utilized when the author mentioned 'Big Blackboard', that makes the reader visualize a Blackboard
which is black. Alliteration has also been utilized with the sound of 'B', that emphasizes on the size and color of the
board.
These are the reasons why I chose this particular passage for discussion
Chapter: Ordinary, (Pg. 3) (Passage 3) Daksh Sehgal
“But I’m Kind
……………………………………………
………………………………………… I am
not that way.”
Analysis
This passage depicts Via's character how she protects and defends Auggie in every possible situation, this was suggested
when Via started yelling at the kids who were shouting in the playground, when they teased Auggie about his face.
I liked this passage because it talks about love, insecurity and most importantly how a sister defends her brother in
every situation. August is very lucky to have a sister like Via.
There was lots of imagery present in this passage. For instance, in the playground where kids make noises by seeing
Auggie. I can visualise a playground in my mind (visual imagery) and can hear noises. (Auditory Imagery).
Chapter: Ordinary, (PG.3) (Paragraph 1-2) Pranav Kakar
"I know I am not
ordinary ................................Sees me that
way."
Analysis
In this Passage, August wants to feel like an ordinary kid cos he does things like other ordinary kids do. He eats ice-
cream, rides a bike, plays ball, X box etc. He wished he could have a normal face and that no one notices him when he
walks around the street.
I felt really bad for August. If his face is not normal then it is not his fault and we should accept everyone the way God
has made them. Everyone should not stare at him, rather should try and make him feel normal and ordinary.
Eat ice cream- Gustatory imagery. Kids Screaming – Auditory imagery.
Repetition of the word 'ordinary' and 'wish',
Chapter: Driving, (PG.12-13) (Passage Vedant Chandra
5)
"I'll be the only kid
.........................mood for that now.
Analysis
This chapter shows us how Auggie and his parents are preparing him for the 'meet' . He starts by saying, " I'll be the
only kid who looks like me. " This suggests that he knows he would be different from the other children . His parents
try to explain the fact that he will make new friends and learn a lot more than he did being homeschooled. This could be
the first step to him being more social. He had very few friends, and this could help him make more in the future. His
parents cheer him up, by mentioning the baby chick (where?), which reminded them of his birth. Auggie says, " I
usually love when they talk about when I was a baby." The word ' usually ' implies that , his parents have told him about
his birth before, and he has always loved it, but now Auggie says he is not in the mood, which suggests that, Auggie is
not feeling his usual self and is feeling fearful, sad or depressed. Lastly, Auggie mentions that he misses being a baby,
when he didn't know anything. This tells us how he doesn't want to deal with the problems he may face, due to him
looking different and having the Treacher Collins Syndrome.
I feel that Auggie is a smart child, as he understands that in the future he will always be treated differently due to his
different appearance . His parents share a special bond with him, and this is suggested when he says, he wanted to curl
up in a ball, and let his parents hug and kiss him. Everyone has a different way of bonding with their family, and this is
Auggie's.
Vedant Chandra Continued…
'Auggie, it actually kind of reminded me of you when you were a little baby.' In this sentence Auggie is metaphorically
being compared to a baby chick. 'With those big brown eyes of yours.' - this is an example of visual imagery, as we can
imagine a baby, with big brown eyes, and the alliteration “Big brown” has been used, to emphasize the size and color of
the eyes. The mood created here is pessimistic and the tone is nostalgic, confused and fearful.
I chose this passage as it is an example of foreshadowing of what Auggie has in store for him when he leaves home to
join school for the very first time.
Chapter: Why I didn't go to school, Anahita Shandilya
(PG.4) (Paragraph 1
"Next week I ....................couple of
years."
Analysis
The passage from the chapter ‘Why I didn’t go to school’, signifies and makes us understand why Auggie didn’t go to school. It also touches upon how
Auggie’s mother used to home-school him. The novel starts by telling us, that Auggie was born with the rare ‘Treacher Collins Syndrome’, which caused
him to have a different face. Auggie wants to feel ordinary just like other kids his age, but is always reminded of his unusual looks.
The passage starts with the sentence, ‘Next week I start fifth grade. Since I’ve never been to a real school before, I am pretty much totally and completely
petrified,’ which explains how Auggie is scared before going to a real school for the first time. Next, Auggie mentions why many people think he never
went to school because he looked different from everyone else, whereas it was because of his weakness, after going through twenty-seven surgeries since
he was born. The lines ‘I’ve had two or three surgeries every year since then’, convey that these surgeries took place quite often. As a result of him
getting very weak , his parents preferred not to send him to a real school. They finally decided to let him go to school, because they thought he needed to
become mentally and emotionally strong enough to handle himself. All of this explains to us that, Auggie is not an ordinary child and he is starting
school, and it might be a struggle to make some new friends.
'The struggle of poor Auggie really affected me. The little 10 year old went through so many surgeries, twenty-seven since he was born. After reading this
passage, I feel like I was struck by Auggie's struggle to make friends and be normal. Despite Auggie's surgeries and struggles, he still tried to overcome
all of it, and leave it behind which makes me think that this passage is very impactful since it made me empathize with and feel sorry for everything
Auggie had to undergo.
Since, I have never been to a real school before’ is an example of Visual imagery because I can actually imagine a real/physical school . The words
‘medical mysteries’ contain alliteration because of the repetition of the letter ‘m’.
These are my reasons for choosing this passage.
Aarav Jain
Chapter: The Bleeding Scream, (PG.77)
"I've thought about this……………………..
Was I supposed to do”
Analysis
'Open your mind first, before you open your mouth,' A famous quote said by Glenda Jackson which is more often said
than done.
This passage is significant as it helps us understand the quote 'Do not judge a book by its cover' which is true for both
Auggie and Jack Will with regard to this passage. Auggie had been under the delusion that he had found a true friend in
Jack Will. This was a source of happiness and a boost to Auggie's self-esteem, considering how most people reacted to
Auggie and his misshapen face that he had on account of being born with the Treacher Collins Syndrome. Though
Auggie, thought of Jack Will as a genuine friend, why Jack would engage in such a hurtful conversation with Julian and
his friends, confounded Auggie, wounded him, made him feel betrayed, and shattered his self-esteem to bits. This
passage reveals that Jack only interacted with Auggie in order to impress his principal and teachers and not from any
feeling of friendship or compassion towards Auggie, this is evident when he slandered August by saying, “I’d literally
kill myself If I looked like him,” and, “I was forced to hang out with August.” Jack expected Auggie in a Boba Fett
costume and did not recognize the person in the Bleeding Scream costume thus felt free to malign Auggie, in front of
Julian and his friends. This passage revealed Jack Will's true colours.
Aarav Jain Contiuned…
These lines touched and greatly impacted my soul. At first, I was overwhelmed with sadness, as I was shocked by Jack
Will’s audacity with regard to the blatant betrayal of his friendship with August. It made me realize that not everyone
who claims to be your friend, is a friend indeed. It also taught me, that I should love myself for who and what I am, and
not seek validation from others and pick my friends wisely.
The passage contains a casual conversation between Julian and Jack Will, about Auggie in a negative perspective,
which created a mood of misery, desperation and frustration. The use of the hyperbole, "I'd literally kill myself,"
suggested that Jack found Auggie's face terrifying and if he looked the same, he would be mortified.
These are the reasons why I chose this passage. A quote once said by August ' Be kind for everyone is fighting a battle'
Thank You!
Passage Masters
