Schlangen: Tuesdays with Morrie Final Test – Flashcards

Mitch Albom

He was one of Morrie's old students. They became more than teacher and student -- they became friends

a famous musician

his uncle's death from pancreatic cancer

the interview between Morrie and Ted Koppel

he thought he was a narcissist and wanted to make sure he was not too stuck up

he continued "tending to his work" and he felt remorse for not contacting Morrie in 16 years, as he promised

no one talks about dying like Morrie does. people admire that and want his advice. Morrie says, "people want me to tell them what to pack"

he took jobs for money and he compromised his dreams, something that he told himself he never wanted to do

he was, in a sense, Mitch's coach for the biggest game -- life

Ted Koppel

Morrie Schwartz was dead when Koppel's interview went live

a story about him in the Boston Globe

he suffers from ALS. Nerve cells disintegrate and muscles lose function

call a lot, come and spend time with him, and take him to the movies

a wave that fears hitting the shore was told he was not just a wave, but a part of the ocean so he had no reason to fear

"maybe the distance between life and death is not as great as you think"

Brandeis University

No

a briefcase with his initials

he cries

dance -- he loved dancing

he wants to truly express what he's going through and what it feels like to die. he doesn't want to act like he's embarrassed of dying.

he saw his interview on Nightline

he finishes his business call and crouches down in the seat of his car

what it's like to die

he's not the same respectable college student he once was. he's changed a lot and he fears that Morrie will notice those changes

selfless

selfish

visit him again soon and keep in touch

he inhaled and counted while exhaling. he counted to 18 and he used to be able to reach 23. he uses this as proof that his time is limited

love

Morrie is living out every moment to the fullest as Mitch is spending time on things he doesn't even care about.

Morrie's outlook on life is one that many people are incapable of achieving. He's jealous of Morrie's peaceful acceptance of his situation

a baby

Tuesdays; that was they day most of their courses were held when they were at Brandeis

the tape recorder

make a list of the topics he wanted to discuss with him

a teacher of a group of kids who had lost parents. because Morrie lost his mother at a young age

no; his new wive, Eva

polio

Morrie basically is saying that death can come at any time and it's important to take that into account when determining priorities in life.

It's a gateway to freedom for him. He can't go outside because it puts him at risk for illness. Since he can't go outside, he doesn't take the view for granted and he appreciates that window much more than anyone else could.

Morrie catches a disease named after an athlete and he has no connection to sports. Mitch spends every waking moment thinking about sports because of his job. This is an example of situational irony.

a "mutt of religion" (agnostic, Jewish, Christian, Buddhist)

yes; he has pictures of them everywhere and talks about them constantly

He allows his sons to keep living their lives while his is ending. He does not ask them to care for him, instead he lets them keep their jobs, families, and routines as he relies on other friends to help him.

"Without love, we are birds with broken wings." "Love each other or perish"

His brother suffered pancreatic cancer. His brother would not speak to the family nor allow them to help. Mitch is drawn to Morrie because he felt the need to help his brother, but he was denied. So, in a sense, helping Morrie helped to ease that pain.

he tells us to feel our emotions and embrace them -- "by throwing yourself into these emotions, by allowing yourself to dive in, all the way, you experience them fully and completely."

"turn on the faucet. wash yourself with emotions."

Chestnut Lodge -- a mental hospital

He learned that wealth did not buy those people happiness or contentment

he embraces it

adult, child

to feel like they mattered to someone

a gazelle

he coughs all the time and struggles to eat

Mitch has changed his outlook on many things

the wrong things

"when you're in bed, you're dead"

He brought his wife, Janene

she sung-- she's a professional singer

"friends are good, but they're not enough"

respect, compromise, communication, and a common set of values

40 years

The Book of Job -- "....to test his faith"

"I think God overdid it."

he was mugged, ran away, and then had a heart attack on his own porch

it prepared him for his own untimely death

to be surrounded by people he loved and who loved him

"A Teacher to the Last"

he called to tell Mitch he was okay

"less of an interview, more of a farewell"

the OJ Simpson trial

a friend

you can connect it to his aphorism "when you're in bed, you're dead"

when they're threatened

"we need people at birth. we need people at death. we sometimes forget that we need them in between too."

"don't let go too soon, but don't hang on too long"

pride and vanity

"there's no point in keeping vengeance"

Norman and his wife were friends with Charlotte and Morrie and they lost touch when Morrie and Charlotte needed them. Morrie never forgave them for that. Soon, Norman died unexpectedly and Morrie still regrets the entire situation.

under a tree, overlooking a pond, on a hill

yes

Mitch promises to visit the grave, which parallels to when he promised to call Morrie after graduation

"be compassionate. take responsibility for each other. love each other or die."

it was the first time he'd admitted talking to God

"tell you what, after I'm dead, you talk and I'll listen"

he mourns it, but he cherishes the time he has to make things right. he's known too many that didn't have the chance (Norman, his father)

Morrie's

to help pay for the medical bills

"the final thesis"

he wanted to be cremated

"death is as natural as life"

after all his loved ones had left the room, he passed quietly

"if I could've had another son, I would've liked it to be you"

it was on a Tuesday

they cried, hugged, kissed, and Morrie said "Okay then?" and Mitch replied "Okay then"

an average day with a normal routine

"the teaching goes on" -- meaning he still learns from what Morrie said

his attitude

the old man who is the main character of the story wants to go to a nursing home. He goes to his daughter's house to tell her that he would like to stay with her for a short while and then go to a nursing home. When he first arrives at her house she laughs at him because he rides up on a motorcycle, but her mood quickly changes when her father tells her that he would like to go to a nursing home. She tries over and over to convince him that he should come to live with her instead of going to the nursing home. He says that he has made up his mind and there is nothing that she can do to stop him from going to the nursing home. He didn't want to be a burden on any of his daughters and he knew that eventually he would be a burden on them and they would just put him in the nursing home anyway. He had too much pride to be put in a nursing home so he just put himself in the home. At the end of the story the man's daughter finally accepts her father's decision, and he goes into the old folks' home.

In this poem, Masters tries to explain why some people become lost in life. Masters writes about a dead man named George Gray who had wasted his life trying to find what he should do in life. He begins explaining about his mistakes and why he failed to reach his destiny at first, but he then figures out why. He symbolizes people as a boat in a river or water mass of life. Instead of people trying to find and pick the fate they want, he says we should "lift the sail and catch the winds of destiny wherever they drive the boat." Basically, we should let whatever destinies we have find us rather than look for it

The poem "Ex-Basketball Player" by John Updike chronicles the life and daily routine of the former high school basketball standout, Flick Webb. The speaker leads the reader on a journey through Flick's life, starting with the principal road in the town, progressing to Flick's lowly job, and then finishing with his menial habits. Flick was once the best basketball player in the area. However, he has since fallen from stardom and now he just "sells gas, checks oil, and changes flats.

Tim Benecke sits at a desk in the living room of his eleventh floor apartment, typing a memo for work. His wife Clare prepares to go to the movies alone. With difficulty, Tom opens a stubborn window. Seeing Clare off, Tom explains he must work rather than go with her, in the hopes of bettering himself at work. While the door to the apartment is open for Clare to leave, a current of air from the hallway enters the apartment, and blows a sheet of paper out the window, landing it on a ledge below, out of his reach. The paper contains all the data Tom needs for his memo proposing a new grocery-store display method. It would takes months to duplicate the information, and if his proposal is not enacted immediately, Tom doubts he will get a promotion and pay raise, or distinguish himself at his company. He reasons it would be simple to retrieve the sheet of paper from the ledge. Putting on a jacket, Tom exits the window of his apartment. Edging along, he reaches the corner where the paper lies. With great effort, he pinches a corner of the paper, but in doing so, he looks down at the street below, panicking. Trembling, he tries to get himself under control, but is paralyzed with fear. He shouts but no one hears him. He imagines the worst, but summons enough strength to inch back to his apartment. Reaching the apartment window, he stumbles, causing the window to fall closed. He almost falls, then catches the window casing, and pulls himself against it. He can't open the window. He tries unsuccessfully to break the glass with a coin, then, with one of his shoes. Feeling himself weaken, he knows he cannot wait four hours until Clare returns. He tries unsuccessfully to signal apartments across the street by setting fire to papers he finds in his pockets. He drops coins onto the street below, also to no avail. He realizes if he falls, he has no identification. The only thing to be found on his person will be the contents of his pockets: the page of data. He regrets the time he has spent away from his wife, working. His life seems wasted. As a last effort, he decides to punch his way through the window. He is successful. Upon reentering his apartment, he immediately lays the retrieved paper on his desk. As he leaves to join his wife at the movies, he sees that same piece of paper fly out the window again.