John+A

John Anderson 10-16-09 Mr. Kreft Independent Reading Assessment 2001: A Space Odyssey Plot Overview:  The story begins with cavemen discovering that a dark rock has fallen from space. They investigate the rock and find that it makes them do weird things with their body. This rock is the first test for mankind. The story then jumps thousands of years in advance to the present day where a new black rock has been discovered on the moon. Once the sunlight hits the moon, a message is shot to Saturn. A space mission is started with Dr. Dave Bowman, and Dr. Frank Poole who are set to fly to Saturn with other members onboard who are to be woken up later in the mission. The spaceship called Discovery has a computer onboard named HAL who helps the men with their mission.  The mission starts off well until the two men find that HAL is corrupt and tries to sabotage the mission. HAL kills the entire crew and Bowman is forced to shut down HAL. Bowman continues flying Discovery by himself and presses on with the mission. He is told by his colleagues on earth that he is to investigate one of Saturn’s moons. Bowman goes into a small pod and investigates what looks like another rock similar to the one found on the moon. He tries to land on it and finds that it is a portal to another part of the universe. In this new universe, Bowman is tested in what looks like a room on earth. He goes to sleep on the bed and his life’s memories flash before him. He becomes an invincible star child and watches over planet earth. Character List: David Bowman: One of the two original astronauts who were chosen to stay awake during the entire mission. He is very smart and disciplined and able to survive the rest of the mission going solo. Frank Poole: The other astronaut chosen to stay awake for the duration of the mission to Saturn. Poole flies the space pod outside of Discovery and makes the repairs. He is killed while trying to fix Discovery. HAL: The onboard computer designed to assist the men in their mission and give them entertainment during the long journey. HAL ultimately kills everyone on board except for Bowman and is shut down. Important Quotations Explained: “Floyd was still musing over these thoughts when his helmet speaker suddenly emitted a piercing electronic shriek, like a hideously overloaded and distorted time signal.” This quotation was taken from when sunlight first hit the black rock named TMA-1 on the moon. When the sunlight hit the rock, some sort of signal was given off and sent to Saturn, showing that man had evolved since the last encounter. “Most men would never have noticed either of them, but after all these months aboard Discovery, Bowman had established a virtual symbiosis with the ship. He was aware instantly, even if not always consciously, when there was any change in the normal rhythm of its functioning.” This quotation is when HAL opens the air lock on the ship and tries to kill all of the crew members. Bowman has been on Discovery long enough to know when something out of the ordinary happens and was able to get to an emergency chamber in time to save himself. “Good…morning…Doctor…Chandra…This…is…Hal…I…am…ready…for…my…first…lesson…today…” These were the last words of HAL as Bowman pulls out the last unit that kept HAL running. This quote is significant in that after unplugging HAL, Bowman was truly alone for the rest of the mission and had to operate everything manually. <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Study Questions & Essay Topics: <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">What is the significance of the black rocks in the story? <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The black rocks I think, are used by extraterrestrial beings who are testing humans and helping them evolve. The first black rock in the story teaches the cavemen to move parts of their bodies in ways they wouldn’t normally move them. It also taught them to use things like rocks as weapons and gave them a nudge in the right direction to ensure that they will live on. The second black rock discovered on the moon gave humans a reason to want to explore Saturn. Because of the second black rock, Bowman became a star child who watches over earth and prevents humans from killing themselves through nuclear warfare. <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Why would HAL want to ruin the mission? <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I honestly do not know why HAL would want to ruin the mission. It seemed that HAL was working fine for most of the flight to Saturn. I think HAL was somehow taken over by extraterrestrials to try and kill the crew as some sort of test. I believe that they wanted to see man reach Saturn without the help from a machine and the reward for doing so was becoming an immortal star child. <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Describe the ending of the story as compared to the beginning. <span style="color: yellow; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In the beginning of the story, aliens taught humans how to survive through this black rock sent to earth. They learned how to fight off predators and discovered new food sources. In the end of the story, Bowman watches over earth and sort of takes that role of what the aliens where doing in the beginning of the book. Bowman detonates a nuclear missile in midair and prevents the end of mankind. So in a way both the beginning and the ending of the book are similar.