The+Year+of+the+Hangman

====**1.)** The civil war would be a good example to explain if the "Yankees" wouldn't have taken the prize. First of all, slavery may still be a problem today. The civil war was fought over differing opinions of multiple things, slavery being a large one. Another thing, we could still have problems with the North. The South probably wouldn't have stood for the North to remain part of the country, therefore the South would've kicked them out. We would most likely have money issues remaining, being as small as the United States would be, and the North side would probably never want to help or even associate themselves with the South. All in all, the United States wouldn't have the wealth and government we have today. ==== ====**2.)** Trait one: Creighton was quite stuck up, not unlike your usually teen. "Creighton paid little mind to his mother's warnings," when she "predicted he would come to a bad end." "Creighton was too busy to notice," that most of the men who were hanged were "not the usual run of thieves and murders, but respectable men of substance," when he attending public hangings. He didn't care about his studies either "in fact, he seldom cracked a book, and was absent from his classes more often then not." He just didn't really care about anything other then himself. ==== ==== Trait two: Creighton had "a time when the person he most admired was his own father," but "his father was dead now, killed in a skirmish with rebels in a place called Carolina." "The one quality Harry Brown lacked was luck. In this respect Creighton took after his father." Creighton was horrible at cards. When he played with his friends "they did not cater or commiserate with him, no matter how badly he lost." ==== ==== Trait three: Creighton acted like his family was wealthy. When he lost at cards he'd say "in any case, it's only money isn't it? And my family has plenty of that." That wasn't the case. "In fact, their financial situation was shaky at best." His mom had part in his thinking that way. "She meant for her son to be a gentleman, and a gentleman, by her definition, was someone who didn't work for a living-- a notion that appealed strongly to Creighton." ==== ====**3.)** In the book The Year of the Hangman, Benedict Arnold's role in chapter five is ironic because, in the revolution, he was a traitor of the Continental Army. In chapter five, he is honestly with the Continental Army and is taking offense to things Colonel Gower says, like when he says "Treaties are for wars. Your pitful campaign was a rebellion, nothing more. The American's face went tight. Creighton feared for a moment he might shoot the colonel, or impale him." Benedict Arnold even goes as far was to say "You know, that's one of the things we can't abide about you Brits--your damned arrogance," when in real life, he was a "Brit" at heart. ==== ====**4.)** In chapter five, Creighton pretends to be a servant to escape being held at ransom and to able himself to move around the Americans freely. He can not act very well though and sometimes loses character. When talking to Peter throughout chapter five and through chapter seven he slips up a lot. Peter says "I hope you don't object to a roommate." Creighton sits up, scowling. "As a matter of fact I do. I don't like sharing accommodations with anyone, let alone a pirate." In reality, a servant would be happy with or without a roommate as long as he could be unbound. Another conversation with Peter is a great example as well. Peter gave him a baffled look. "Excuse me for saying so, but for a fellow who's been rescued from bondage, you don't seem to me to be very grateful." Creighton just blows up saying, "Grateful? You expect me to be grateful when I'm being hauled off to no-man's-land? Couldn't you just set me ashore at Mobile or Biloxi?" Honestly, sometimes the things he says are hilarious. When he was initially caught and Peter asked him "Hired or Bound" he answers "Bound," but forgets further into the book when he asks to see Colonel Gower. Peter asks "Well he's the one you're indentured too, an't he?" Creighton says "Yes. He is. But you see... he owes me a months wages." Peter frowned in puzzlement. "I never heard of a bound servant being paid wages." At this point Creighton just makes something up. "That's because you're an American. We do things different in England." There are multiple instances like these with Peter but some other ones occur at Dr. Franklin's house. The first day at Dr. Franklin's home, Dr. Franklin begins talking to Creighton about him needing a place to stay and this is where he slips up once again. He says "Just until I can find a way home." Dr. Franklin is a smart man and starts to pick up on the fact Creighton is pretending at this point. In the same conversation, Dr. Franklin asks Creighton if he can read and he answers with attitude "of course." Then later "I can also read Latin and Greek, if you want to know." At this point Franklin really calls him out on his horrible acting. "Well, well. What an oddity. A servant who not only reads the classics but also has a superior, arrogant manner." Of course at this point Creighton starts digging himself a larger hole trying to cover. All in all, this inability to stick with a the role of servant proves his arrogant manner and conceited attitude. He simply is too full of himself to allow the low level of servant. ====

**5.)** Dear Diary,
==== Today I arrived in New Orleans. When we got off the Amity they expected me to ride in a boat that had no more then four inches of free board. I said "I hope you don't expect me to ride in one of those." That smart-mouthed Peter made me anyways. He talked to me like I was born lame or something. He would point out something and say "Spanish Moss," or "them are cypress trees." He ended up getting on my nerves when he said "Mosquitoes. They get as thick as mustard when dusk comes." I snapped "I KNOW what mosquitoes are." When we finally got to land, it wasn't even New Orleans. We had another two miles to get to town. They tried to get me to rub bacon grease on all my exposed skin. "I'm not about to anoint myself with that," I told Peter. It was just so gross. I really regret not putting it on now. "The mosquitoes were so numerous and so merciless that I felt almost the way I had on the Amity, after the canon balls struck and the air was filled with deadly debris." When we did come upon New Orleans, it wasn't as bad as I had thought it would be. "The houses of New Orleans were not quite as grand, overall, as those in Charles Town, but neither were they small or shabby." After all that I had been through, I had to deal with this girl named Sophie at the house I was to stay at. When I told her I was from England she turned to Pete "You did not tell me he was English!" I confronted Peter about it because she had a french accent, he said "They belonged to a French settlement in Nova Scotia -- which is someplace in Canada, I believe," I interrupted saying "I know that," because I was still upset at him. Peter began again, " Well, anyway, the Brits kicked them out. Her folk were split up. The father went to France or somewhere. The mother was put on a ship for New Orleans, but she never made it. Died of fever or something--but not before she'd give birth to Sophie." It kinda made me feel bad for her. All in all, I suppose New Orleans isn't that bad. I'm just ready to be back in England again. ====

Dear Diary,
==== I met Dr. Franklin. He is pretty much crazy. When I woke up, I called for Sophie but she wasn't there. Dr. Franklin called from his chambers "What's all the commotion?" So, I opened the door to his room and there he was, in all nudity. What's funny is he didn't even know who I was, but he wasn't even alarmed at my appearance. I kind of forgot about the servant thing. Dr. Franklin said "you're the bound boy from the captured vessel," and it threw me off balance. I mean I just met the guy and he knew what even I forgot. I said, "How did you know that?" Turns out he is a newspaperman. He makes it his business to know what goes on. He also asked me if I needed a place to stay. Here I slipped with my servant role, saying "just until I can find my way home." He looked at me funny, "home?" I meant England, but I had supposedly sold myself into servitude in order to come to the New World, so I lied, "Carolina." Dr. Franklin asked, "why would you want to return to English territory? Here, you are free." That made me laugh. I mean how could I be free in any such place like New Orleans? Dr.Franklin made a big deal out of me being able to read. He was pretty sarcastic with me though. Not that I didn't deserve it. I was being sarcastic with him as well. As an excuse as to why I could read I said "I wasn't brought up to be a servant," but Dr. Franklin totally misunderstood. He said "Oh? Then you indentured yourself only in order to come to America? What attracted you here so strongly?" I couldn't let him think I actually enjoyed it here, so I said, "I was not attracted here so much as I was repelled from there." The crazy man told me I had to work to stay. It really got me mad. Then he made it fun. He asked, "You look like a card player to me. Am I correct?" This brought back the memories of back home. I looked warily at the cards and told him I new a bit about it. Then he made a bet, if I won the game of commerce then I got to stay for free, but if I lost I had to work. I cannot believe that I lost to that old man. I lost my cool then he guilted me into keeping to my honor. So, now I have to work by Sophie to print the newspaper. How great. ==== ====**6.)** The Mississippi river's significance to the story and to Creighton is how it is always changing. Through out the whole story, Creighton's loyalties change just like the river changed the boundaries of English to American soil. In the beginning, Creighton is very much with England. When he met Dr.Franklin the first time, Dr. Franklin understood he needed a place to stay. Creighton said, "Just until I can find a way home," meaning England. Also, when he helps his Uncle by gaining information from Dr.Franklin by deciphering Dr.Franklin's message. "The first cipher on the paper was 1142. Creighton turned to page one of the almanac. It was calender for the month of January, with brief weather predictions. Line one didn't contain forty-three words. On line fourteen..." Although he was born in England, he was starting to be loyal to America. He was unsure what side he was on. "Back home,Creighton had always been comfortably certain which side of any given line he was on. But the flood of events in which he'd been caught up had left him floundering, uncertain which shore to swim to." ==== ====**7.)** The power of the press is strong and useful power. To get across a message, newspaper is used. It could be widely spread, and quickly in the time of the American Revolution. The Liberty Tree, in code, could also be distributed carelessly because it would only have meaning to the people who could decipher it. The power of the press is a freely exercised in America today, because we did win the revolution. In the time of the American Revolution, newspaper was like phone calls. The phone calls those 1-800 numbers use. They spread like quickfire. Today, newspaper is a extremely large component in how people vote. A person who is running for, say governor, can have a complete newspaper to himself putting down his opponents and giving good facts about himself. Generally, the people who read that newspaper will vote for that runner. ==== ====**8.)** “I will not tolerate talk of war, not here in Dr. Franklin’s home.” In my opinion, trying to keep peace among the Americans and Brits, in this book, is the best course of action. The American forces numbers are extremely low at this point from losing multiple times at the hand of the British soldiers, so if they want to do any damage to the opposing force they need more numbers. In the beginning of the book Colonel Gower made the comment “Treaties are for wars. Your pitiful campaign was a rebellion, nothing more.” That means even when they were first at war, the American’s numbers were significantly low. Why would it make sense to take out even more soldiers? ====


 * 9.)** page 142. "Creighton took a hold of the pistol's grip again and pushed "No!" the lieutenant protested. "Don't try to force it!: Abruptly Creighton jerked the weapon back. There was an explosion, and the pistol jumped in Creighton's hand. He heard a grunt of surprise or pain or both from Hale, followed a second later by someone shouting in Spanish. It took Creighton a moment to grasp what had happened: When he attempted to push the gun through, the hammer had caught on the rough mortar and half cocked itself. Then, when he pulled it back,the hammer had released, struck a spark, and set off the powder." When Creighton shot Lieutenant Hale, it marked when Creighton started having feelings toward the American side. Although right after that, he helped Colonel Gower and Lieutenant Hale escape, his mind set was changing. I do have to admit, when Creighton's uncle knocked him out with the pistol, his mind changed real fast. Everything started from this point. On page 167,Creighton finally realizes that he actually cared what the Americans thought, specifically Dr. Franklin and Sophie. "A week ago, he wouldn't have cared what they thought of him. But like a sailor who suddenly discovers that the wind, which had been blowing against him, has changed direction, Creighton realized that, without his even noticing, his feelings about them had turned around." Before, he would have made comments like calling Dr. Franklin "daft" (page 90) or stealing "The Liberty Tree." (page122) It was those string of events that started Creighton's mind change, the shot the symbol for his exploding epiphany.


 * 10.)** page 3. "Creighton paid little mind to his mother's warnings. Like most wellborn English lads, he had grown up regarding death by hanging not as a cruel and dreadful fate so much as a form of amusement." This paragraph from Year of the Hangman, is irony of situtation. Creighton grows up thinking death as a game, a form of amusement, but in all reality it is completely oppisite. When he gets to America, he gets close to Dr. Franklin and then he dies. Creighton tries extremely hard at his funeral not to show emotion. If back in England, he may not have even cared. Thought of it as funny. It is ironic how he grows up thinking death a game to actually get older and it mean so much more.

A good theme to gather from this book would be something like, "no matter where your loyalties lie, do what's right." When Peter takes Creighton to the cafe with a group of his friends an issue comes up. A guy Creighton doesn't know the name of was talking about Indians and how the Brits gave out muskets to the Indians and convinced them American's were their enemies. "Didn't I hear that it was a Brit who brought the word to you?" asked Paine. "It was. Which goes to show, I guess, that they arn't all bad." Mouldy-Poultry assembled the deck of cards and began shuffling it. "He was a major in the British army, as a matter of fact- though you'd never guessed it, expect the uniform. He was a good-looking, good-natured fellow, soft spoken and quick to laugh. I remember him well because he was the one decent Englishman I've met. Come to think of it, bub, his name was the same as yours. Harry Brown." Although this hits Creighton hard it is a fine example. Major Brown put aside his differences with the Americans to save a few of innocent people the Indians were going to attack. When Creighton finds out his father is still alive, Creighton is talking to his dad about his uncle and Major Brown says, "Don't judge him too harshly. When I was court martialed for 'aiding the enemy,' he spoke up in my defense. It was his intervention that saved me from the rope." This is really a good shock. No one expected Colonel Gower to aid anyone, especially a traitor. He showed that even though he was on England's side, he could help his brother and do the right thing. When Creighton, who promised to leave his father behind if it risked his life, did not, that was a good example as well. "You promised you'd leave me behind." Creighton shrugged. "I lied." Leaving his father behind would not have been the right thing, obviously, so we went against his promise just to save him. **12.)**  For my altered ending, Arnold would die in the duel. Creighton would be more for British side after his Uncle talked him into it. Then, Colonel Gower would bring Creighton to his dad and they would visit for a while. Creighton's father would talk about doing the right thing and how his brother, Colonel Gower, spoke for him at his trial. Gower and Creighton would embrace and father Brown, who would be sick, would die while they embraced. Creighton would be allowed to go back to live with Sophie where he would find his mom. He would explain everything that happened to his mom and they would live in America. Sophie and Creighton would start to become close and Creighton would finally ask her to be his wife. They would get married, witnessed by his mom and Colonel Gower. The war, instead of continuing, would slowly fade away. The King of England would start helping America. The king would finally let America be its own continent and Britain and America would remain close, just like Creighton and Sophie.
 * 11.)**