Thursday, October 8, 2009

Touching Spirit - Cole's Personality Flaw

Throughout the story, Cole has made many bad choices leading up to and during his banishment on the island. What do you think is Cole's greatest character flaw; a fault in his personality which has led him to make these decisions?

118 comments:

Kristie said...

Mrs. sullivan I think that cole is responsible for his own acctions yes he could of stop but he keep on with his plan he could of die but no he stayed together i think he is brave to because if he could still be a live and helped i think he desives a round of alpuse

Kristie said...

Good job everyone for all the comments i think that was realy fun i would love to do that again


Mrs.Sullivan

troy said...

Cole's greatest flaw is his anger,He can't control his anger like whrn he beat up Peter from school for telling on him for robbing a hardware store

kevin said...

I think Cole has a problem of not letting people help him he thinks he knows everything. I also think that he blames the world for all of his problems and that nothing he does is his fault.Also i think he has a bad temper and that mabe his dad beating him could have somthing to do with the way that he behaves.

Taynara :) said...

I think that Cole's greatest character flaw is that he thinksz that everyone has to be scared of him. I dont think he has fear becouse when he was fighting the spirit bear he didnt show eny fear. Also he didnt give up nd die he staid blinking for hous so he wouldnt dei

Jordan said...

I think that Cole doesn't want help from people, and that he thinks he should be able to do everything he does all on his own. He also is angry with the world because everything isn't going the way he wants it to. He thinks the world revovles around him. Cole looks at the world only in a negative way, rather than looking at it as if it were beautiful.

Caroline said...

Mrs. Sullivan i think that Cole's flaw is he thinks everyone should care about only him, and he expects so much attention for just himself when he's not the only messed up kid on earth. Also he may have a tough life, but he makes the worst out of it. He bearly tries to help fix his problems. He is a stong kid, but uses his strength to fight, instead of help himself.

Victor said...

I think Coles problem is his mom and dad becuse they dirink his dad beats him.his mom ignores him.his greatst character flaw is that he isnt kind or forgiving.

Eduardo said...

cole is angry because he thinks that nobody cares about him,and he also thinks that his parents sent him to the island because they whanted to get rid of him.

Nicole : ) said...

Mrs. Sullivan I think Cole's flaw is that all he cares about is himself. I dont think he cares about anyone else but, him. If he makes a mistake or something he doesnt't take responsiblity for his actions he just blames other people, and the world. He does have a messed up life but, he can't blame everyone else for what has happened. Also no one else can fix it but, him. He has to make the best of his life but he doesn't.

melissa said...

I think that cole acts this way because of his parents and his past. I also think its because he doesnt want to be on the island.H is most greastest flaw is he always gets very mad and angry. Sometimes he cant control his actions.

troy said...

kevin i agree with with your comment about Cole's father might be the reason why the way he behavesm

Zack said...

I think Cole is irresponsable and does not think before he acts.Such as when he burns down the hut that is a very stupid move. He also thinks he can swim away from there and kill the spirit bear.

kevin said...

thank you troy

kevinn said...

i agree with you zack

Taynara :) said...

VICTOR!!!
i understand what you meen but i dont think that its all there foult. becouse if Cole understood why his dad beat him he would stop duing bad things,, so his dad would stp beating him =) but its still mean to beat your son.

Caroline said...

Nicole i think the same, becasue if Cole wanted to change his life, and make things better. He would be trying istead of running away from his problems, Because in the end all thats gonna happen to him is failure.

Victor said...

Kevin i think that is true he keeps blaming people for his actions.

troy said...

for what

Jordan said...

I also think that Cole doesn't think before he does anything. So i agree with you Zack.

taynara said...

ZACKKK ITS NOT A HUT ITS A SHELTER!!!!!!

Vctor said...

Eduardo iagree at some of the things you say becuse Garvey wants to help him

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Victor, you are right when you say that Cole's mom and dad are really terrible parents, and terrible examples of how to be a good human being. But those are their flaws, not Cole's. Focus on his problems. Despite having a horrible home life, he's still the one making the choices in his life. He had many opportunities to make different choices that would have brought him better options than jail or banishment.

eduardo said...

i agre with kevins comment about cole not leting people help him

Zack said...

Cole also thinks he is king of the world he thinks can get out of everything he does. He thinks he is so scary but not a lot of people think he is scary.

Jordan said...

Nicole, I agree with you too that Cole would try to fix things if he wanted his life to be better.

Caroline said...

Victor i agree, becasue he was raised the way he is by his parents, and they are disrespectfull and dont try enough to help his problems. Also growing up with a father that beats him, does not fix his whole beating up kids problem. But then again Cole dosnt try to help himself as well.

taynara said...

I agree with you Jordan becouse he acts like he dousnt want help from enyone. But after he got beat up by the bear he was screeming for help but nobody was there =(

kevinn said...

i agree victor i think that cole is very miserible because he cant forgive people and if he cant forgive people then he will just waste his life with no friends

Zack said...

Hut shelter same thing Taynara.

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Taynara, do you really think that Cole's dad beats Cole only because of the the bad decisions he makes. Would Cole ever be able to please him enough? His dad's anger problems are his dad's responsibility, not Cole's. His dad could handle Cole's actions in a much different way.

Anonymous said...

Jordan...I agree with you because he doesn't want people to help himself at all. He wants to do it on his own but, he isnt helping himself at all. I also agree he thinks the world only revolves around him thats what I said. Towards the end of the chapter when he wanted to die I think he started noticing that the world was beautiful. It says in the book "A strange thought occured to Cole: the world was beautiful. Yes, the world was beautiful!"

victor said...

Tynara!!!


He keeps doing tese things cuse he wants atention =(

TRoy said...

its a tent

kevinn said...

I think that if cole just looked at the good things he had instead of the bad then he will have a better life

taynara said...

Ms.sullaven i agree with you 100%

Caroline said...

Yeah Mrs. Sullivan, but why does his father beat him anyway?

Jordan said...

I agree with Melissa how he may not be able to control some of his actions. Although he doesn't take ressponsibility for them at all. He blames it all on other people, when sometimes, they have nothing to do with his actions.

Zack said...

I also agree with Jordan He acts like he doesnt want help from anyone!

melissa said...

i also agree with Jordan because he says he doesnt need help even though he needs a lot of it.

taynara said...

VICTOR!!
MY NAMES (TAYNARA) get it right
and yeah i know he wants atention.
but his perents dont give it to him

Caroline said...

Kevin. What good things does Cole even have to look at?

kevinn said...

I think his father beats him because he is mad about his own problems and cole is the only one he can take them out on

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Many of you have said that Cole doesn't take responsibility for his own actions, that he doesn't think he needs help from anyone, and that everything/one should fear him. What are some examples of those traits?

victor said...

Jrdan i agree he dose blame the world for his actions

Zack said...

Troy and Taynara it is a hut!!

Nicole said...

Caroline...I agree with your comment that you wrote me i think towards the end he is going to start t fall apart but, then I think in the very end he is going to finally figure out that the world doesn't only revolve around him theres other people in the world to and i think Cole is going to start to actually care about other people.

kevinn said...

caroline...well at least he is alive and healthy and he has people like garvey that want to help him

taynara said...

ms.sullaven
I think his dad nead counsaling to help with his anger

taynara said...

ms.sullaven
I think his dad nead counsaling to help with his anger

Jordan said...

You're right Nicole about how towards the end of the chapter he realizes how beautiful the world really is. I think that may be one of the turning points for him.

Anonymous said...

i agre witht taynara that coles parents dont give him any atention

melissa said...

why dont coles parents care for him 100%?

Caroline said...

Cole just thinks he's the only person in the world that needs help. and expects it from everyone, when he dosnt deserve the slightest bit. he makes his own decisions.. which is good for some people. But Cole needs a little advice to get himslef to go down the right path, but right now he's running away from his problems, and not trying to handel his life properly!

Victor said...

TAYNARA i am sorry for your name and you spelled parents wrong why do you think he wants atention

Zack said...

some examples of the traits of cole not taking responsibilty in his actions is he thinks his parents will bale him out every time it wont happen his whole life.

taynara said...

no its not ZACk
a shelter is like a log HOUSE
and a hut is like a thin made of sheep skin...o wait thats a tipii...woops =P

Jordan said...

Kevin, it is true that he has Garvey who wants to help him, but the question is will Cole take the help? I think he knows he needs it, but doesn't wanna give in.

kevinn said...

i think that coles parents see him as a mistake and cole knows it so he just gave up on trying to live a good life and he thinks that if no one cares about him then he shouldnt care about himself

tRoy said...

i think they dont care for him because they donnt think he is good enoough for them.

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Caroline and Melissa, it's hard to understand why people treat others, especially their own children, so horribly. The only idea I can guess at, is that's all they know from their own childhood, so they repeat the same actions with their own children.

Caroline said...

Thank you Nicole !

Nicole said...

Well Caroline when Kevin said that I think he mean'tto make things better but, he dojust look like if he even attempted s at everything as esnt he its bad.

taynara said...

hahaha its okay victor
and i think he want atention becouse his parents dont give it to him. so he gouse out beting people up to see if he can get it

Jordan said...

Zack and Tynara, it doesn't matter what he burned down, either way he burned down his shelter that would have protected him from the rain and snow and cold weather.

Zack said...

I think Cole is messed up he need help but he says no one has ever tried to help him that is wrong.

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Taynara and Zack, give up the shelter/hut argument, please. It's not adding to the discussion.

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Eduardo, haven't heard from you in a while...

Victor said...

Melissa his parents dont like him is becuse they think he's a failer

kevinn said...

i agree with that troy i guess they cant exept him for who he is and i think that is wrong

taynara said...

NO ITS NOT ZACK!!

taynara said...

SORRY MS.SULLIVEN
okay so zack how are you likeng the book so far????

melissa said...

I think that if coles parents treated him better and if some people would take some time out to tak to him he would have some better actions.

Jordan said...

That's true Mrs.Sullivan. That may be why Cole's parents beat him, because they may have grown up around it and repeat it.

Nicole said...

Jordan...I think that was the start of a turning point. I think the spirit bear is going to some how make Cole change for the better.

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Zack, you make a good point about his parents bailing him out everytime he messes up. That's why he gets so angry when he finally has to face up to punishment this time. He can't believe he actually has to be held responsible for his actions.

Victor said...

Taynara i agree with you do you think he is going to get some

kevinn said...

does everyone like the book they

Anonymous said...

Okay Mrs. Sullivan. i can tell too becasue Cole's used to his dad beating him up, and abusing him. so thats probally why he took alot of anger out on Peter. He was treated like that in his childhood. and thinks its okay to do it to other people when he dosnt think about these things.

Jordan said...

How are you liking the book so far Nicole?

taynara=) said...

cole keeps saing that nobody helps hi,,thats realy wrong beacouse Garvey has bin helping him alot its just that Cole dosnt open his eyes to see it =)

Troy said...

Do you mean though kevin?

Troy said...

Do you mean though kevin?

Zack said...

I think cole deserved getting attacked by the bear but I do not know how they new Cole was hurt it is like they have cameras around there They randomly just show up and save him.

eduardo said...

i agre with zacks coment that alot of people have tried to help him

Jordan said...

Zack I agree with you how his parents always bail him out and that now he has to face reality and punishment.

kevinn said...

hey troy how do you like the book so far

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Zack, remember that Garvey and Edwin said they would be back in a couple of days to check on him. He was lucky that he was able to survive long enough for them to help him.

taynara=) said...

Victor
maibe towards the end of the book his mom will step up and stick up for him becouse now i think shes scared and takes it all up on drinking thinking she can escape her fears

Jordan said...

I don't think Cole deserved getting attacked by the bear. Although he did try to kill it. I just don't think he should have almost died because of it.

Zack said...

I like the book A lot how about you Taynara

Caroline said...

I honestly think Cole has some right of complaining about his life. But sitting there and whining is not going to help him at all. He dosnt have alot of positive things to really think about in his life, but he has a very good opportunity to make things better with circle justice, and going away to a private island to get help. also his parents didnt just send him there to get rid of him. they sent him there so he can change things for himself to have a better life.

kevinn said...

hey troy how do you like the book so far

taynara=) said...

i like it too zack
its really good

Nicole said...

Melissa...I agree with you when you said that maybe if his parentsd treated him better I think he would have been a better kid. Also, if he got counsiling or something he would have better actions

melissa said...

I think that if cole had not of tried to be so brave and try to kill the spirit bear he would not be in the bad condition he is in right now.

taynara=) said...

Caroline that was deep =)

kevinn said...

but caroline how can you say that if you dont know how it feels...?

Troy said...

Kevin, its good so far in the begggining i thought it wasnt going to be a good book because i thought someone going on an island for a year in abook tewlling about what he does wouldn't be interestting but now in in the middler of the book i like the book.I like it because it is showing Cole what it is like to be the person that he hurts because the spirit bear attacks him and that is like Cole hurtingt peter from school

Zack said...

But Mrs.Sullivan he got hurt the first day and surrvived for 3 days that is imposible he would die from loss of blood.

Nicole said...

Jordan... Im liking this book so far I think its interesting to see how Cole reacts to different events. I can't wait to know what happens in the end, and see if he changes! How are you liking the book Jordan?

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Taynara, what do you like about the book so far?

taynara=) said...

kevin
wats your fav part of the book??

Mrs. Sullivan said...

Everyone, what did you think about Cole attacking the spirit bear? What made him do something so thoughtless?

Jordan said...

Nicole, I like the book so far. It is interesting to see how he handles different situations. I wonder what the Spirit Bear does to help Cole in any sort of way.

kevinn said...

mrs sullivan do you like ben mikealsen as an auther

Caroline said...

Taynara your so weird..

taynara=) said...

ms sulliven
i like the whole book like i dont have a favorit part

Nicole said...

Jordan...Ya, he didn't deserve to be attacked so badly but, its good he did because if he didnt then he probably wouldn't notice how beautiful the world really was.

Anonymous said...

pie

taynara=) said...

bye everyoneee!!!!!

Nicole said...

Melissa..I agree

Caroline said...

Mrs. Sullivan because i think he dosnt care about it, and takes his anger out on a harmless bear, i dont think he's sure its trying to help him.

Anonymous said...

silly goose

Mrs. K. said...

Taynara, I disagree with your comment about Cole not having fear. I actually think he has a lot of fear, about everything. I think it's his fear that is part of what causes him to make some of the bad choices he makes. Many times when we are afraid, we react by doing things we might not ordinarily do if we weren't afraid.

Mrs. K. said...

Jordan, do you think Cole doesn't WANT help from people, OR he's never really had help from people so he doesn't know how to ask for or accept help?

Mrs. K. said...

Eduardo, I think you are right. Cole is angry because he thinks nobody cares about him. I wonder if he would behave differently if he had someone in his life that truly cared for him and really showed him that.

Lori DiGisi said...

Dear Green Team Students,
Wow! I have read through every one of your comments. I appreciate your insights into Cole's anger.

I also admire how well you are responding to each other's thinking and trying to keep the personal comments out of this discussion.

I have a question. Cole can't be more than 100 pounds and 5 something feet. What would make a small person like Cole think he could take on a 700lb bear?