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I choose this book because I am extremely interested in school shootings, particularly delving into the psychological aspect of them. I want to study behavioral neuroscience and abnormal psychology in college, and I love learning how and why school shooters do what they do. This book goes into vivid detail about Columbine High School, its teachers, students, and even the shooters themselves.

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11/30: Pages 1-130
Quote analysis ranges from (1-32) (32-65)(65-96)(96-130)

12/7: Pages 130-234
(This was changed from 269-234 due to lack of time during this week to complete this page amount)
Quote analysis ranges from (130-165) (165-196) (196-234)

12/14: Pages 234-406
Quote analysis ranges from (234-272)(272-305)(305-338)(338-371)(371-406)

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"He told them he loved them. Each and every one of them. Frank DeAngelis waited out the pom-pom routines, the academic awards, and the student-made videos...then he told them how much they meant to him. How his heart would break to lose just one of them" (3).

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"He told them he loved them. Each and every one of them. Frank DeAngelis waited out the pom-pom routines, the academic awards, and the student-made videos...then he told them how much they meant to him. How his heart would break to lose just one of them" (3).

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In this passage, pathos is effectively utilized by the author to create a strong sense of unity and attachment among the reader. The audience, specifically high school students, feel a deep connection with the text when the author mentions "pom-pom routines" and "academic awards". In addition to this, a emotional response is created by the use of repetition of phrases such as "...he loved them", "he told them how much they meant to him. How his heart would break to lose just one of them". Through the use of pathos in this passage, which is the beginning of chapter 1, the reader automatically feels drawn to the story, almost as if they are apart of it themselves.
Also, this passage sets up a contrasting setting compared to the rest of the book. The current environment at Columbine High School is welcoming and joyful, with a student body that aims to protect one another and make smart decisions.

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"Dylan would break his heart. They had been tight for years. Nate spent a lot of time at his house, and Tom and Sue Klebold had looked after him. Nate had a lot of trouble at home, and the Klebold's had been like a second mom and dad" (63).

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"Dylan would break his heart. They had been tight for years. Nate spent a lot of time at his house, and Tom and Sue Klebold had looked after him. Nate had a lot of trouble at home, and the Klebold's had been like a second mom and dad" (63).

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Dylan Klebold was one of the two shooters responsible for the Columbine massacre, and this passage exemplifies the horror and shock that this brought upon the community, specifically Dylan's friend Nate Dykeman. As inferred about school shooters, they appear to be isolated individuals with families that lack genuine love and supports. However, the Klebold's were the opposite, with a son that excelled in school and established friendships and a compassionate family. This passage signifies the unpredictability and confusing nature of the shooting, and leaves the audience wondering, "what made them do it?"

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"No one had spotted Brian; no one had heard a word" (71).

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"No one had spotted Brian; no one had heard a word" (71).

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Brian Fuselier was a student at Columbine high school, and also the son of the head FBI agent assigned to the shooting who was missing for hours after the initial shots. Despite the fact that readers would come to find out that Brian survived the shootings, this sentence was located at the end of a paragraph, acting as a cliff hanger. Through the use of anaphora, along with the short and concise nature of the sentence, the reader is left to only imagine what happened to Brian, creating a feeling of suspense. Word choice is also very important here, for the author could have used "saw" instead of "spotted". Spotted is often used in a context where the somebody quickly sees something/someone, just a glimpse, where "saw" implies that there was more interaction involved, even if it was minimal. Through the careful choice, the author selects a word that goes along with manner of the sentences, something quick and concise.

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"Danny was a natural. He loved cars and he loved sound. He was great with the PC and had an ear or pitch. He liked to mess around with computer programs and was promising to take the business in a whole new direction...He was a charmer, and Brian reveled in showing him off" (103). 

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"Danny was a natural. He loved cars and he loved sound. He was great with the PC and had an ear or pitch. He liked to mess around with computer programs and was promising to take the business in a whole new direction...He was a charmer, and Brian reveled in showing him off" (103). 

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Danny Rohrbough was one of the 13 students killed in the shootings, and had a true passion for working with automobiles. Instead of talking about Danny's death, and his devastated family, which would have the audience feeling pitiful, Dave Cullen cunningly discusses how talented of an individual Danny was, and where his future was going. The author does this so the readers can feel more connected to the Rorhbough family, for they know more about the kind of individual their son was, which makes reading about his death even more heart-rending. Danny seemed to be genuinely content with who he was and where his future was going, and the fact that it was taken away from him in a matter of seconds makes the reader more aware of the tragedy and pain that Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris inflicted upon the families.

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"Dylan liked her and loved the adulation, but wasn't really into her as a girlfriend" (8).

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"Dylan liked her and loved the adulation, but wasn't really into her as a girlfriend" (8).

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DEFINITION: adulation (noun). excessive admiration or praise
EXAMPLE: After the championship game, the captain of the hockey game received much adulation for scoring the game winning goal

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"At the perimeter, officers struggled to hold back the parental onslaught" (59).

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"At the perimeter, officers struggled to hold back the parental onslaught" (59).

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DEFINITION: onslaught (noun): a fierce or destructive attack
EXAMPLE: The president of the United States faced political onslaught after making a lewd comment about women on national television.

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"He described Eric's interest in Nazi's, a crack about jocks, and some scary recent suggestions: cutting power to the school and setting PVC bombs at the exit with screws for shrapnel" (89).

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"He described Eric's interest in Nazi's, a crack about jocks, and some scary recent suggestions: cutting power to the school and setting PVC bombs at the exit with screws for shrapnel" (89).

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DEFINITION: shrapnel (noun): fragments of a bomb, shell, or other object thrown out by an explosion
EXAMPLE: While the paramedics helped the injured, the FBI Bomb Squad searched for shrapnel after the bomb went off in the park.

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"Over and over, they mocked her about the disparity" (122).

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"Over and over, they mocked her about the disparity" (122).

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DEFINITION: disparity (noun): a great difference
EXAMPLE: The disparity between the witnesses account of the kidnapping made the police wonder about their credibility.

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"His self portrait informed the reader five times in eighteen lines how nice he was... He described himself flying above all the rest of us, bragged about his straight A's, and demonstrated his emotional depth...Eric dreamed of a world where nothing ever happened. A world where the rest of us had been removed....Happiness for Eric was eliminating the likes of us" (134, 135). 

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"His self portrait informed the reader five times in eighteen lines how nice he was... He described himself flying above all the rest of us, bragged about his straight A's, and demonstrated his emotional depth...Eric dreamed of a world where nothing ever happened. A world where the rest of us had been removed....Happiness for Eric was eliminating the likes of us" (134, 135). 

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Earlier in Columbine, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold were not described as abnormally rebellious and overtly angry people; they just seemed to be normal teenage boys with their own unique quirks, not people who would want to shoot up a school. However, this passage that describes Eric's inner feelings acts as an antithesis to this point. The author portrays Eric Harris to be a narcissistic individual who has very little empathy for other people, for he writes poems that emphasize how great he is, and wants to end mankind. Research has proven that psychopaths display these exact traits: feelings of superior grandiosity and lack of empathy.This contradicts the point that nobody could see where the shootings came from, for Eric Harris clearly displayed tendencies parallel to those of series killers. This makes the reader wonder why these poems were not looked at more carefully, and why Eric's friends and teachers did not report his wish that all people were eliminated from the earth? Were people really this ignorant to his behaviors or did he do such a good job at hiding them that nobody noticed?

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"A woman told a reporter she'd been spit on for grieving for the killers, then shoved into the mud. A woman with a baby wrote 'Evil Bastard' on Dylan's cross. Two teenager girls approached her; crying, they begged her to stop. Someone began singing 'Amazing Grace'. Soon much of the hillside was belting out the refrain" (193).

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"A woman told a reporter she'd been spit on for grieving for the killers, then shoved into the mud. A woman with a baby wrote 'Evil Bastard' on Dylan's cross. Two teenager girls approached her; crying, they begged her to stop. Someone began singing 'Amazing Grace'. Soon much of the hillside was belting out the refrain" (193).

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This passage refers to the commotion caused by the 15 crosses put up for the victims and shooters at Clement Park. It is extremely contradictory, for a woman got insulted and looked down upon for grieving for Eric and Dylan, yet when another lady condemned the shooters, she was also shunned. One moment the people were inflicting hatred on others, the next moment embracing and singing among each other.The Littleton community was in a state of despair and confusion, their emotions thrown completely out of wack. The shocking nature of the tragedy threw people into a similar state of shock, and people did not know what to believe or how to act. They could see both sides- sympathizing with the shooters, yet also hoping they burn in the depths of Hell. The author purposely sets up this passage as contradictory to adequately show the reader what the community was experiencing in that moment.

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"...the National Rifle Association convened in Denver. It was a ghastly coincidence. Mayor Wellington Webb begged the group to cancel its annual convention, scheduled long before. Angry barbs had flown back and forth all week. 'We don't want you here', Mayor Webb finally said" (210, 211).

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"...the National Rifle Association convened in Denver. It was a ghastly coincidence. Mayor Wellington Webb begged the group to cancel its annual convention, scheduled long before. Angry barbs had flown back and forth all week. 'We don't want you here', Mayor Webb finally said" (210, 211).

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The Columbine shooting in 1999 was the catalyst for many more horrific school shootings to come, such as the Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy and the Parkland shooting in Florida. These events are causing an immense amount of controversy over gun control and the NRA in US politics, for some people believe that laws required for buying/owning a gun are too lax. Before reading Columbine, I was not aware that the NRA has been facing opposition since the 20th century, for I believed that it was only in recent events sparked the debate. I find it extremely interesting that the author included this because it just goes to prove how much damage these killers brought upon people's lives and the nation as a whole. It sparked a whole wave of debate and dissension in America, and pit groups of people against each other. The fact that the shooting was taken to the federal level, and eventually the White House signifies the enormity of the shooting, and how it affected all of America, not just the families of the Columbine shooters and victims.

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"He was fastidiously analytical, but he had no way to assess his data, because he fled as soon as he hit the fuse" (163).

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"He was fastidiously analytical, but he had no way to assess his data, because he fled as soon as he hit the fuse" (163).

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DEFINITON: fastidious (adj): very attentive to and concerned about accuracy and detail
EXAMPLE: The sociology teacher praised the student about his fastidious essay, for he included many relevant facts and anecdotes.

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"To the Brown's it looked like retribution" (165).

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"To the Brown's it looked like retribution" (165).

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DEFINITION: retribution (noun): punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong or criminal act
EXAMPLE:  After being caught in the bathroom smoking marijuana, the students faced retribution that included a $500 fine and expulsion from school.

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"That seems simplistic for Eric- who was a gifted critical thinker with a voracious appetite for classics" (197).

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"That seems simplistic for Eric- who was a gifted critical thinker with a voracious appetite for classics" (197).

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DEFINITON: voracious (adj): having a very eager approach to an activity
EXAMPLE: The lethargic boy had a voracious longing for junk food, which caused him to gain 15 pounds in a week.

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"psychopathy is not a two dimensional cover that can be lifted off the face like a Halloween mask...His entire personality is a fabrication, with the purpose of deceiving suckers like you" (240).

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"psychopathy is not a two dimensional cover that can be lifted off the face like a Halloween mask...His entire personality is a fabrication, with the purpose of deceiving suckers like you" (240).

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During the Columbine investigation, specifically when figuring out why the shooters did what they did, psychologists inferred that Eric Harris displayed psychopathic traits. Dave Cullen does an excellent job relaying this to the reader in a very concise and detailed manner. The use of the simile in the quote to describe what psychopathy is NOT, creates a clear image for the reader to see, therefore making it easier for them to understand what psychopathy truly is and how it relates to the shooters. Also in this quote, the author utilizes repetition and compound and complex sentences to reiterate the traits of a psychopath, while also provoking an emotional response in the reader. In four sentences, the pronoun "he or his" five times (referring to Eric Harris), with the goal of not only to have the audience understand what psychopaths do, but to make them realize that THIS is the monster that Eric Harris was. This understanding will play a vital role in the rest of the book, for the readers will now know the kind of illness that Eric Harris encounters months before the tragedy.

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"Kriegshauser said there would be consequences if Dylan's efforts didn't change. That could include termination. Termination would translate to multiple felony convictions. Dylan could find himself in prison" (280).

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"Kriegshauser said there would be consequences if Dylan's efforts didn't change. That could include termination. Termination would translate to multiple felony convictions. Dylan could find himself in prison" (280).

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This quote exemplifies much irony and also provokes many questions within the readers. Dylan Klebold was extremely depressed, and was certainly not the dominant killer. Eric Harris was BY FAR more dangerous than Dylan, and it can be inferred that without him, the Columbine massacre would have never happened. In fact, Dylan would not even be in the Diversion program if it was not for Eric Harris and is wretched influence. However, in the Diversion program that both boys had to go through, Dylan was the concerning individual that raised many concerns due to the fact that Eric did such a great job at manipulation adults. This is ironic because even though Dylan was depressed and had low grades and a bad attitude, he was not a threat to other people. Eric Harris should have been the one that the counselors were concerned about, and if he was incarcerated, than Columbine would have never happened. Many questions arise after this passage, such as "why was Dylan realeased from this program with such bad marks?" "Why were his parents not notified of these conercning troubles?" This also adds to the much larger theme/question of the novel, "Could Columbine have been prevented?".

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"The active shooter protocol gained quick and widespread acceptance. In a series of shooting over the next decade, including the worst disaster, at Virginia Tech, cops or guards rushed in, stopped shooters, and saved lives" (324).

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"The active shooter protocol gained quick and widespread acceptance. In a series of shooting over the next decade, including the worst disaster, at Virginia Tech, cops or guards rushed in, stopped shooters, and saved lives" (324).

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A overarching theme in Columbine is resilience and silver-linings. Tragedy can either pull people apart or make them stronger, and this is seen in various parts of the book. However, this quote exemplifies both themes and contributes to the popular belief of "everything happens for a reason". Even though the Columbine massacre was one of the worst events in American History, and nobody would ever dare say "good thing it happened", it benefited the country in the fact that it made police forces and the government more apt to respond wisely in similar circumstances. People may argue that Columbine was the catalyst for future school shootings, but whether or not that is true, without it, hundreds of lives were saved due to the fact that SWAT team received so much controversy over their procedure in Columbine. They improved themselves and could now have a better action plan for similar circumstances.

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"Of course they remembered the tragedy. What an awful day. Their grade schools were locked down, everybody was scared. Several had had older siblings trapped in the high school. Their parents had been upset for months. So what was Denver like?" (356).

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"Of course they remembered the tragedy. What an awful day. Their grade schools were locked down, everybody was scared. Several had had older siblings trapped in the high school. Their parents had been upset for months. So what was Denver like?" (356).

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One main theme in the novel, as mentioned earlier is resilience. Columbine students, months after the shooting and when they returned to school, did not want people to pity them or have the country associate "Columbine" with the massacre and horror. It was their school, and they were proud. The author does an superb job at genuinely sounding like the students in this passage. Instead of using quotes or paraphrasing, Cullen uses the short sentences to mimic how the students would respond to questions about the tragedy. This truly makes the reader understand and picture where the students are coming from. They did not go into detail about the grotesque scenes, or their frayed mental state, but rather glossed over the big parts and rather impersonal parts of the shooting such as "grade schools were locked down". Columbine students wanted to try their best to put the shooting in the back of their minds and move on with life, focusing on lighthearted topics such as the Denver city life.

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*Eric's journal: rape fantasy and acquiring guns, November 1998* (Appendix)

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*Eric's journal: rape fantasy and acquiring guns, November 1998* (Appendix)

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In the Appendix of Columbine, many primary sources are found, whether it be letters or journals or to-do lists. This particular journal entry, made by infamous Eric Harris, demonstrates a strong use a pathos. Eric probably never meant for this journal to be found, much less produced for the whole world to see, and therefore went into extremely vivid detail about his fantasies. Reading this journal provokes various emotions throughout the readers, such as disgust, fear, sadness, among many others. The audience probably also lost their appetite after reading the first paragraph. This journal completely supports the claim that Eric is a sadistic psychopath who feels no emotion towards the well being of others,.Describing torture in the most graphic of language makes the reader wonder where in the world did all of this hate and anger come from? Why did Eric Harris feel this way?

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"The psychopath was prone to 'vexation, spite, quick and labile flashes of quasi affection, peevish resentment..." (243).

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"The psychopath was prone to 'vexation, spite, quick and labile flashes of quasi affection, peevish resentment..." (243).

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DEFINTION: vexation (noun): the state of being annoyed, frustrated, or worried.
EXAMPLE: After receiving a failing grade on a test she thought she aced, the student stormed out of the class in vexation.

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"The library kids could have escaped easily, they said, unencumbered by police 'help'" (298).

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"The library kids could have escaped easily, they said, unencumbered by police 'help'" (298).

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DEFINTION: unencumbered (adj): not having any burden or impediment
EXAMPLE: College kids roamed around the campus unencumbered by projects and finals looming in the near future.

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"Jeffco was ordered to release almost everything, except the supposedly incendiary items" (315)

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"Jeffco was ordered to release almost everything, except the supposedly incendiary items" (315)

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DEFINITION: incendiary (adj): (of a device or attack) designed to cause fires.
EXAMPLE: After the incendiary bombs went off in the warehouse, the fire department was called by innocent bystanders.

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"The Molotov started a small fire that burned the duffel bag off one of the bombs and ignited some of the fuels trapped to it, but the propane tank was impervious" (351). 

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"The Molotov started a small fire that burned the duffel bag off one of the bombs and ignited some of the fuels trapped to it, but the propane tank was impervious" (351). 

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DEFINITION: impervious (adj): not allowing fluid to pass through
EXAMPLE: On the world renowned dessert show, the chef made an impervious cake where the liquid chocolate would not leak until the delicacy was cut with a knife.

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"Disagreement over how to respond is reasonable. Pretending we're not a part of it is a fantasy. And deplorable" (388). 

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"Disagreement over how to respond is reasonable. Pretending we're not a part of it is a fantasy. And deplorable" (388). 

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DEFINITION: deplorable (adj): deserving strong condemnation; shockingly bad in quality
EXAMPLE: In her rejected letter from the prestigious college, the failing student was informed about her deplorable essays that did not come close to meeting the high standards.