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Young Adult

How to Make Comparisons

Date: Jan 24 2012

Themes: School

Grammar: Comparatives and Superlatives

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Intro

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Most people are happy to leave high school behind and begin their adult lives. But in the new movie Young Adult, the main character is a woman whose grown up life hasn’t yet started, even though she’s been out of high school for years.

In the film, Charlize Theron plays Mavis Gary, an author of young adult novels, who acts more like the teenagers in her books than a mature woman. When Mavis decides that her high school sweetheart was really her soul mate, she returns to her hometown to try to win him back—even though he’s already happily married and the proud father of a baby daughter. Hear Amy and Jason talk about Young Adult, and their own experiences in high school.

Dialog

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Amy

Jason: Young adult novels seem to be popular now with people who aren’t even young adults.

Amy: It’s true, I mean, Twilight, that definitely has crossed over.

Jason: Yeah. Why is that? I mean, what’s with the young adult scene?

Amy: I don’t know. Maybe there are a lot of people out there who just haven’t grown up.

Jason: Huh.

Amy: Yeah, it’s like that new movie Young Adult.

Jason: What’s that about?

Amy: Well, it’s about a writer of young adult novels who kind of hasn’t grown up herself. She still wishes she were back in high school. And she’s kind of this mean girl who was really popular in high school, and just hasn’t done very much with her life. So she ends up going back to her hometown and trying to win back her high school boyfriend, who’s now married with a baby.

Jason: Oh. It’s interesting to me that she idealizes high school, because I always suspected that writers of young adult novels actually had a really bad high school experience, and that they were sort of compensating for it by writing about it in their adulthood.

Amy: Right.

Jason: Because it seems like the heroes of those books are often awkward outcasts.

Amy: I agree that it’s weird. Like, she is not a character who I could identify with, because I was definitely happy to be done with high school, and would never look back on those years as the best years of my life. You know, I feel like it’s so much easier to be out of high school.

Jason: Wow. Yeah.

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Discussion

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Jason talks about the popularity of young adult novels, or novels written for and about teenagers. He says that many adults enjoy these novels, as well as younger people. Amy thinks these books might be popular with adults who haven’t fully grown up, like the main character in the new movie Young Adult.

In the film, an author of young adult novels who was popular but mean in high school returns to her hometown. She feels that high school was the best time of her life, and she wants to win back her high school boyfriend, who is now married to someone else.

Amy says she couldn’t identify with the main character in Young Adult, because she was happy to be done with high school. She doesn’t think she would ever want to return to that time in her life.
What was your high school experience like? Would you ever want to go back to high school? If you’re in high school now, are you looking forward to leaving high school?

Comments

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Avva

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

young adult has many problems

princessanika

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

i thing in this years we have many problems

Maria del Alba

Spain

I definitely don’t want to go back to high school. If i were in high school now, I would look forward to leaving it, since there are a lot people mean who enjoy treating bad the people who are helpless. I sometimes think than children are sinless and innocent but they can be very poisonous and harmful with other shy children.

AlexisSilva

Mexico

I’ve just to leave high school and I’m very satisfied about it.

I’m already enrolled in the university and i’m just eager about my future, I could miss my school mates sometimes but i try to look ahead, so i really don’t care about come back to high school.

hennee

Ukraine

Even though I’m 56, I still enjoy reading young adult novels.

Really, sometimes i’m just a kid.

I can really identify with the main character in this book because I have experienced the same problems.

snoopyboy

Antarctica

Pleasure’s mine pal.!

: ), come back!

kotlesya

Belarus

I must go, dear pal. Have a wonderful time! Thanks for the nice chat. :) It helped me distract myself for a while. Bye and all the best

P.S. I’m still missing Anja. I hope we al willl meet this week again :)

snoopyboy

Antarctica

Noooo… then your pretty smile and face would have been unknown to us

then I wouldn’t have written a poem entitled ” The nature in Belarus”

: )

kotlesya

Belarus

Do you know, I realise now that it was my mistake to upload my real photo and real country. It would be much better to be hidden behind the meaningless avatar and live without any “complex” here.

snoopyboy

Antarctica

Ha! what I praise my ego almost exploded with pride : )

Thanks friend.

I’m like a jack in the box puppet…just turn the crank and OUT I am to make you smile

In real life, I’m very picky about who I gather around me; here I’m more open

: )

kotlesya

Belarus

I really like movie “Dorian Gray”. I like “Omen”, I like “The Devil’s Advocate” etc

kotlesya

Belarus

I like your humour so much and I like to see your ability to mobilze people when they are tired from boredom and they don’t know what to talk about. You are like an actor in front of audience. Your ability to operate people here is interesting and unusual. I dare to hope you are the same in your real life :)

snoopyboy

Antarctica

Yeah they (italians) are what they call “Tifosi” hardcore fans.

Mmm… what else could a man want if he has a wife who likes sports, a paid cable utiliy bill, a tv set.with a remote. A couch with his buttprint in it…and a bag of snacks at hand?

: )

Favorite movie : Dorian Gray?

kotlesya

Belarus

WOW!!!! How did you know that it is my favourite movie??? I like magic stories and devils as well :)

kotlesya

Belarus

As far as I know Italian women like football so much. Whole families, including wives watch and respect football :)

snoopyboy

Antarctica

I was?... I was just savoring the moment and digest the fact that there are woman, who liked football, it’s just one of those time in a man’s life…you just have to sit back and smile.

Truth is I was amazed to hear women debating about football, I don’t hear that often enough…it’s nice

: )

secretive boy…yeah call me Dorian Gray

kotlesya

Belarus

Why were you silent during the energetic conversation about Maradonna???? I thought you have no interest in football whatsoever. :)))) You are very secretive boy :)