The main character in my story “The Big Field” written by Mike Lupica, is a fourteen year old boy named Hutch. He plays in a minor league baseball team in Florida for the Cardinals. He wants his team to win the championship. They can win the championship by playing their hardest and working together. Hutch is athletic, short tempered, and determined.…
“Show me Yours” by Richard Van Camp narrates the promising and apparent upturned in life experienced by Richard, a middle-aged man who at the beginning has experienced a nadir in his life caused by addiction issues and harmful friendships. After a bad night, by mere randomness, he decides to glue a found baby picture of him to his grandparent saint’s necklace and wears it under his shirt. Abruptly, the baby picture necklace becomes a trend in his community and seems to encourage care and positivism around the participants of the furor. Richard, who starts experiencing acceptance and recognition around the locality also reunites with an old love, Shawna, with whom he spends the night and appears to bring more hope to Richard’s situation. At…
In the short story “The Threshold” by Amy Frazier, addresses an abusive relation between Ricardo and Vanessa. Alcohol converted the high school sweethearts into enemies. Unfortunately, domestic violence is a common problem in Hispanic families. There are three types of abuse that predominate in this story, physical, verbal, and psychological. Due to Ricardo’s frustration and unsuccessful life, he starts beating Vanessa which is a clear example of physical violence. Although, Ricardo shot her in the middle of the story . The worst physical aggression, it is when Ricardo beats Vanessa while she was pregnant with her second son Thomas, causing the loss of his defenseless baby. This is the most severe type of physical abuse…
An old couple Ethel and Norman Thayer goes to a home on Golden Pond every summer. They will be celebrating Norman's eightieth birthday, and he makes frequent jokes about his own mortality but Ethel is not amused. Norman is also having bouts of memory loss, a reality he struggles to accept. While they are at the Golden Pond, their daughter Chelsea writes them a letter, telling them she is coming to visit for Norman’s birthday. Ethel is excited about Chelsea coming but Norman never seems real excited about anything. You can tell they don’t having the regular father daughter relationship. Chelsea also states how she is bringing her fiancé Bill with her, who’s a dentist…
First, consider Flannery's theme "redemption through catastrophe" In just a few words, share your thoughts on why Joy-Hulga is or is not in need of redemption? Consider what was she like before her encounter with Manley Pointer? Has she changed?…
Coyotes are known for reeling in chickens. That is what Mendez and other smugglers do to get large amounts of money from desperate illegal immigrants coming into the United States. Tragedies, like the Yuma 14/ Welton 26 occur often. Many deaths go unnoticed and some of those that enter the desert, never return. In the true account The Devils Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea, The Welton 26 faced betrayal, hardship, and the possibility of death with great courage and peserverance.…
"I am ashamed at how much time, resources, money, food, stuff, and energy I have wasted over the years, like storing my personal trash and possessions, as if they were more important than God, my family, and the people around me." ~ Jon Barnes…
The story “All the Broken Pieces” is about a twelve year old boy named Matt who is struggling from his nightmares. Matt is a Vietnamese child, his mother gave him away when he was 10. Matt is can not stop wondering why his mom gave him up and not his brother. He is also wondering when his American parents will go back to git his brother or give Matt back to his mother. Matt is trying to get through but is still trying to figure out whats going on. Matt joins a baseball team because he used to play back in Vietnam. There is a kid on his baseball team that Matt does not get along with because his brother was killed in the war from the Vietnamese people. The kids did not get along until their coach made them work together.…
When most people think of their Grandma, they think of a sweet, loving, good-time, lady-like woman. However, Grandma Dowdel, in A Long Way from Chicago, is no average grandma. In this book, Joey and Mary Alice Dowdel journey from Chicago to their Grandma Dowdel’s for a week every summer from 1929-1935. They experience new things every summer and learn that their grandmother is anything but normal. Grandma Dowdel does not always follow the rules of the law or society, but her grandchildren learn, under her gruff exterior, she is truly a good-hearted person.…
The most predominant symbol of the novel “A Long Way Gone” by Ishmael Beah is the triumph of the human spirit. The triumph of the human spirit is a very predominant oppression in the novel that relates to the survival of Ishmael. To begin, characters throughout the novel experienced many small wins; however, the circumstances they were in was life and death scenarios. “That night we were so hungry that we stole people’s food while they slept.” (Beah 29). The small triumph that leads to survival. If they had not stolen the food, that could have led to worse things happening from oppression. In addition, Ishmael joins the army as a relief of triumph. “I wanted to avenge the deaths of my family. I also had to get some food to survive, and the…
Grassian realized “these people were very sick.”(Maclyn Willigan “What Solitary Confinement Does to the Human Brain”) Researcher Stuart Grassian who interview many men at Walpole State Penitentiary in 1982. she found that the men talked with symptoms “such as hallucinatory tendencies, paranoia, and delirium”( Maclyn Willigan “What Solitary Confinement Does to the Human Brain” ) Grassian characterize them as “SHU Syndrome” this syndrome has symptoms of PTSD, insomnia and uncontrollable feelings of rage and fear.…
Have you ever read the book If I Grow Up? In the novel If I Grow Up by Todd Strasser the main Character DeShawn wanted to stay out of trouble and get an education. But, DeShawn goes through a rough time with money and food. So, he realizes that he has to make a choice to join the Disciples or to keep getting an education. DeShawn then chooses to join the disciples. DeShawn had a choice to join the Disciples or better his life. DeShawn could have got a job, he could have left the projects, and he could have kept his education.…
In the novel Schooled by Gordan Korman, Capricorn Anderson’s life has changed for the better. Have you ever heard of a thirteen year old who got arrested two times in less than two months for doing a silly thing like driving, and being underage while doing it? Cap Anderson is a flower child, who lives in Garland Farms with his sixty-seven year old grandmother, Rain, who educates him until she has an accident. Cap is different from other characters because Cap comes from Garland which is a whole different world. In Garland, there is no money, no television and different hobbies from the “real” world. Cap would have never thought he would interact with the world outside of Garland and enjoy it!…
Many teenagers go through lots of different relationships and sometimes they get lost during their routes to become an adult. They find it hard to realize what the right thing is and what is being the right way. In the episode My So Called Life, the main character, Angela Chase, goes through many relationships. Angela was a student who did well, and pleased her family and friends around her. However, a change happens, when she meets Rayanne, a new friend, and she starts to act differently. She tries out many things, such as ditching class, dying her hair red or going out on school nights, which she never would have done before and develops a new personality (a bad one). Throughout the story, we see a variety of character traits from Angela. Although Angela is always herself, she hasn’t yet found her true self, her personality that is hiding inside her, and developing her relationships with others.…
The National Honors Society places a strong emphasis on the cornerstone traits of character, leadership, and service within the school and outside of school. I have met, and in some cases exceeded these requirements by being honest, assisting others, and participating in school activities.…