Wednesday, May 9, 2012
The End
For this entry, kindly answer the following: What did you think of the ending? Before you answer, think hard about what you wanted to happen, about what made the most sense in the context of the story, about how you felt when you put the book down, about how you would have felt about a different ending, about how you feel about endings of books in general, about the difference between the endings of novels vs. the endings of movies. After you've thought about all that, tell us what you think.
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At first i thought the ending was dissapointing. I kinda knew it wasn't exactly going to be a happy ending but i thought at least Karim and rebecca would end up together in the end or his epidemeology thing would have been approved. It was kinda sad that he knew and realized that his relationship with rebecca would deteriate over the next couple months. It was also a little sad that his plans with Mr.Schrub didnt work out but that was kind of expected. I thought it was very unlike him to just give up though. But on one hand in the end he regains his morals and realizes his family is most important to him. It is a little disheartening though that he just goes back to Quatar and doesn't really get to live out his dreams its almost as if hes just listening to his father and doing what he wants him to do which is the exact opposite of what he was telling his sister to do. idk but overall i think this was one of the better books we read this year, DEF better then the road and their eyes were watching god..those books sucked.
ReplyDelete-kaitlin
DeleteAt least you didn't write "sukt." :)
DeleteI have to say that i loved the ending of the book, just perfect. i believe that the best line out the the whole book was "good-bye, Mr. Schrub" -Karim This statement salitafie my love for karim. When i read this i finally started to get a grasp on what type of person Karim truly is. Through out the book Karim always questions himself about being in the type of business that requires a strong attitude towards wealth success, and reputation. Through out the book i was always worried that Karim was going to fall to "the dark side" of the New York business corporations. But when he said "good-bye, mr. schrub" i new that he would prevail. I wish that they had ended it there. I did not like the rest of the ending with rebecca and working with his father. I thought that this showed a weak side to karim a side he worked so hard to conquer. I wish i could have pondered on all the different opportunities and places that the corky Karim could have gone. "good-bye, Mr. Schrub" BOOM end.
ReplyDeletesolidifies*
DeleteThat would have been an interesting ending. Maybe he could have said, "Goodbye, Mr. Schrub," then gone over the lagoon in Central Park and wondered aloud about where the ducks go when it ices over.
DeleteUnlike Kaitlin, I liked the ending, I thought it was the appropriate way to finish off the book even though it was quite sad. At first when Rebecca was talking about getting the quick marriage, I was upset because i thought that's how it was going to end. I did not want an ending like that because it would've been, as Mr. H says, a hollywood ending. So when I got to the part where Karim said he was going back to Qatar I was a little happy even though it was a sad scene. I also enjoyed the scene where Karim throws Mr. Schrubs' offer down the drain. Karim was becoming someone he is not, he was stepping away from his roots that he grew up with, people should stay true to themselves. I believe Karim made the right decision to go back home, even though it means he probably wont be allowed back into the US. He also needed to go back and see Zahira since she was struggling with her father and was in the hospital ill. I agree with Kaitlin also about this book being one of the better books weve read, but i disagree and I thoroughly enjoyed The Road.
ReplyDeleteNice. If you think about it, all these books -- The Road, Their Eyes, Catcher, Gatsby -- all have these bittersweet endings. Things don't work out, but there is some kind of moral reconciliation.
DeleteIt wasn't as much that I didn't like the ending, I just had higher expectations for what might happen. As Kaitlin said, I pretty much knew that the ending wasn't going to very happy. I think what I wanted to happen would be Karim would maybe have to leave for a short amount of time and Rebecca would go with him; whether or not he stayed in New York or had to go back to Qatar for some time, Rebecca and Karim would stay together. I agree with Cooper about how it would seem like a "hollywood ending" if Karim and Rebecca got married, but sometimes, a book like this needs a little more romance to break it up a little. I do somewhat agree with a little of what Shannon said about how the book should have ended with "Good-bye, Mr. Schrub." The way the book actually ended, with Karim saying he would just go back home, visit Zahira in the hospital, work for his father, and continue life as it was before he left was a little depressing. When I read the last few words I was bummed that it was ending like this, and I was bummed that for the first time Karim gave up.
ReplyDeleteYeah, "...and work for my father" sounds a little bit like a sad resignation, like someone marching off to do his duty and nothing more.
DeleteIn agreement with the others i liked the ending of this book. With a story like this, a hollywood ending would almost be disappointing. In class we would always talk about how this book would make a great movie but now that we have finished it, i don't know if i feel the same way about making a movie out of it. For it to be a movie, the story would need some sort of happy ending with a piece of excitement like Karim creating his own company to run his programs with and live happy ever after with Rebecca. I was on edge for a long time while coming to the end of the book. Karim was holding back his emotions and it was nice to finally see him spill them out and tell Mr. Schrub who the real boss was. Mr. Schrub needed Karim and it was evident because his programers obviously failed at creating something like Kapitoil. The ending brought me back to The Catcher In The Rye, because like Holden, Karim returns to his family after a unique journey of his own. I like that this book is unique and different and am convinced the ending is very good after thinking so in depth of the different possibilities that it could have been.
ReplyDeleteIt could still be a good movie, but I don't think Sacha Baron Cohen would be in it.
DeleteI think the ending fit the plot of the story perfectly. It was all sad and emotional, truly what I expected from Teddy, especially due to the series of gloomy events leading up to Karim's departure. That being said I absolutely hated it! I wish Karim managed to stay in the U.S. NOT through the set marriage but through some other illegal form and have him rise above Mr. Schrub and his Equities, which would emphasized the theme of living out the American Dream. I know my ending is no the slightest bit Karim-esque but it would of been stimulating. I liked what Shannon said about the book ending right after Karim rejects Mr. Schrub's offer.
ReplyDeleteKaitlin's response made me think about Nick Caraway and the similarities between him and Karim. How both characters never really adjusted to the New York lifestyle and although Karim was kinda force to leave the county they both made a conscious decision to go back to what they knew, which was family.
Very Antonio-esque.
DeleteAntonio, I agree that the book has negative things to say about the American Dream, I do think that Karim rose above Mr. Schrub by turning down his offer. Karim in a sense won against Schrub because he out negotiated Schrub, kept the program from making Schrub even more ridiculously rich, and Karim did not sacrifice his morals for money like Schrub did. I thought that the ending was appropriate and definitely fitting for the plot but it still felt too sad. Looking back on the last part of the ending when Karim talks about partnering with Zahira for his epidemiology program and until then working for his father has a positive outlook because his family is reconnecting after Karim's visit to New York caused a rift in the family. At the time of the ending it is very sad but I think it has parts for Karim to look forward to at least a little bit. BOOM roasted
ReplyDeleteNice, Tony.
DeleteI have to agree with Shannon on this, the ending was awesome. I don’t think the carriage scene could have been any better, I was sort of happy and surprised when Karim stood up for himself and took out the recorder and went right back at Schrub. This reminded me of how Mr. Schrub makes fun of his subordinates by acting like he’s mad just to play with them. But in this situation in the carriage Karim realizes he is in the position of power over Schrub and when Karim realizes that there is a zero sum gain I had no idea what Karim was going to do. When Mr. Schrub takes a low blow on Karim when he says he’s nothing in this world, and Karim simply says “good-bye, Mr. Schrub” all I could imagine was Mr. Harrington immediately saying “BOOM Roasted.” On the other hand I didn’t particularly like the gloomy ending of Karim and Rebecca’s relationship but I think it was appropriate if Karim and Rebecca lived happily ever after because it just wouldn’t feel right.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I wanted Rebecca and Karim to get married, i understood why he couldn't. Rebecca was one of the few people in Karim's life that is able to keep his karim-esque personality that he had before he landed in New York. when i put the book down, i wondered what it would be like to be him. Not for the whole book, but to experience that ending scene. I was a little disappointed because I would not be happy if my life continued as Karim's did. However, I am glad that the relationship ended with Mr. Schrub because Karim wanted to help people while Mr. Schrub just wanted to help himself. In the end, Mr. Schrub deserved a roast because in the end, they all are the same.
ReplyDelete........ roasted.