essay

The book ‘how to make friends with a giant' is a book that explains friendship amongst children. Jake being the shortest pupil in their class goes against all odds and does the unexpected. A new pupil joins the class by the Jacomo. However, Jacomo is a huge-bodied pupil whom the other students refer to as a giant. His situation is worse seeing that, he is too huge to fit in the school bus, hence being forced to trek home. Also, he occupies much room in the classroom, hence being a laughing stock by the other students. Jacomo size affects his co-curriculum activities. When in the field, he kicks the ball so hard that the other pupils find uneasy to coup up. However, with all these challenges he is facing, Jacomo finds someone who appreciates him. Jake, the shortest boy in the class, tries to befriend Jacomo. When going home, Jake tells Jacomo to run after the school bus that he does and finds it fun. When the other students jeer at Jacomo and refer to him as a giant, Jake stands for Jacomo and stops the other students from jeering Jacomo. At the football pitch, Jake teaches Jacomo how to kick the ball with limited energy and goes ahead asking him to join the school team.

According to the analysis above, an unexpected message is portrayed. Jake being the shortest boy in the class, one expects him to be bullied around by the other students. However, when the other students jeer Jacomo and nickname him the giant, Jake stands for him and stop the other students from jeering him. It is Unexpected since, one as a reader expects the vice-versa. Another message portrayed from the story is the unexpected calmness of Jacomo. In the modern society and time before, big boys in schools are lunatic bullies who have authority over other smaller students. However, with Jacomo it is different. He gives in to Jake requests, lessons and befriends him yet he is the shortest in the classroom. He is calm by not fighting back the pupils who nickname him or jeer him.

According to the book, gender stereotypes are present. Jacomo is a boy. Being in a new school environment, one expects him to make friends of both genders that are male or female. However, a large number of Jacomo friends get to be boys. Jake is his first friend in school. He introduces him to the school football team. Jacomo adapts to the new people he has met in the team that impacts him positively. On the other hand, much of the girls in the class are at the frontline to nickname him and jeer at him. When one relates the gender stereotypes to the modern society today, such experiences occur for a while. The occurrence of such experiences occurs in the first days in a new environment before bonding with the people living in the environment. However, Jacomo case is different since his size acts as a hindrance to acceptance by all members of his class.

After reading the book, one gets a clear understanding of the community. Jacomo faces rejection because of his huge size. He is nicknamed names, and a large number of pupils dislike him. The same applies to the society, and community. That one person with a difference from other members of the society has a hectic time living amongst other normal people in the society. For example, if one has a condition such as that of Jacomo, the chances are that the community view one as an outcast. One experiences rejection and is not involved in much of the community activities.

The book makes a distinction between good and evil. When Jacomo joins the class, he is in a dilemma due to the kind of treatment he gets from the classmates. However, Jake goes contrary to the classmates deeds and befriends Jacomo. With the above statement in mind, the book has differentiated good and evil. The evil is being portrayed by the unfriendly behavior of the other classmates. The good is being portrayed by Jake’s kindness and befriending Jacomo. The book also shows the determination of good and evil. One expects Jacomo to be unruly and rude. However, Jacomo is friendly to the classmates even with all the rejection he is facing from them. The same applies to the society today. There are always people with a negative mind towards people due to their skin color, look, race and shape. These negative traits lead to evil deeds such as racism and hatred. However, there is always a remedy to differentiate the good from the evil. These good deeds include; understanding and appreciate one another for who they are, and living with the differences that the both parties share.

The lesson from the book is friendship. The reason for this lesson is that; to create understanding among children that friendship is not based on the looks of a person. One as a child should embrace their neighbors as friends no matter their size, race, gender and look. Also, the book has got values relevant to the society. The core value is kindness and love. One should be kind and show love to the other person next-door. Jake well portrays These two values for befriending Jacomo, knowing that they are two different people.

In conclusion, The none-positive message in the story is the definition of a normal human being. The pupils refer to Jacomo as a giant because of his size. Why? The reason is that the society defines a normal human being based on moderate size, a normal functioning brain and a normal lifestyle like any other. When the pupils refer to Jacomo as a giant, the message portrayed is negative. It shows how diminishing the definition of a normal human being can be, to a person with such a condition.