Our setting is rural Indiana in a town called Hickory. It’s a place that’s resistant to change. Hickory is a place where, according to Myra Fleener, a character in the film, “basketball heroes are treated like gods”. This town takes their basketball seriously, a setting where the new basketball coach faces the obstacle of sleuth of second-guessing fathers.…
In the book A Separate Piece by John Knowles, A group of teenage boys attend a selective boarding school in New Hampshire called Devon. Throughout the novel, the characters experience the prominent effects of World War II. From rotten apples to the disappearance of maids, the lives of boys at Devon were changing rapidly. Also, because most of the characters were on their way to turning 18, they are faced with the decision of whether to enlist or wait to be drafted.…
Lastly this book shows how sports can greatly affect people 's lives. People can be affected for the greater, worse, or sports help them find abetted place. Some players careers can go so great, per say Michael Jordan, who is one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Basketball affected his life so positively because he was so good, and because of this his life was great. For some people sports can also tear their life apart, say they have a rough year or an injury, this could get to their head and mess up their career. So many athletes are affected by injuries and after they attempt a comeback might never play as good as they did before because they let it get to their heads. There are also people like Phil Jackson that playing professional basketball wasn 't made for him, so once he learned that he figured out that his thing was coaching, and he became one of the greatest coaches ever because of how much the sport of basketball impacted his life.…
In Hansberry’s play A Raisin in the Sun, the protagonist Walter is portrayed as stubborn, childish, and later determined to show his transition into manhood.…
Nichols and May’s skills as storytellers lie in their understanding of human relationships, a mastery that is expressed in the sketch through their delivery of character. The improvisational nature of Nichols and May’s dynamic is apparent in the conversational tone of this sketch. Nichols and May play off each other well and develop the relationship between the mother and son in a short amount of time. The dysfunction of this relationship drives the scene by creating conflict, which the characters exploit to the fullest extent. For instance, the mother in the sketch begins the call normally and proceeds to guilt trip her son with hyperbolized ¬¬reactions. May’s delivery emphasizes the nagging, worrisome traits of the character. The exaggeration of her character’s dysfunction is the focus of humor in the skit. However, once the sketch breaks down to reveal the emotional truth of the characters, the growing distance in the relationship between mother and son, a sense of gravitas hits the audience and asks us to consider our the…
In The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold demonstrates how Susie is able to grow through her heavenly/earthly experiences while she watches the grief of her family and the guilt of her loved ones. Fourteen years old is a young age; Susie has yet to experience some of the best moments of her life. The Lovely Bones portrays Susie’s experiences in the In-Between and how she can still live her life through her mortal loved ones.…
In the novel, Gary Black first experiences racial prejudice and begin to develop awareness of the racism around him. As we read on we will understand and discover how Gary changes, how is affected by racism and how he reacts from others. Discuss.…
Jamal Wallace is a Black American talented 16-year-old basketball player in Bronx, New York whose secret passion is writing. William Forrester is a reclusive Pulitzer Prize- winning novelist who never gave the world a second novel. After an accidental meeting, Forrester becomes Jamal's unlikely mentor, providing guidance to help the young man's exceptional skills. Soon, Forresters harsh view of the world begins to change as both men learn lessons from each other about life and the importance of friendship.…
The Invisible Man is about a young man who wanted to escape the racial division between whites and blacks in the early 20th century. The narrator never gave his own names because he is unknown and mysterious to the reader, and this emphasize on his invisibleness on society. The narrator had a simple dream of fitting in and rising above social limits and that he is able to change himself and others to accept each other. However, the narrator’s adventure to find himself and to come to realization that he is basically nothing and invisible to the world because of the color of his skin. The book, Invisible Man, is trying to teach the reader about the social division by race in the 20th century and how lives of blacks were depicted at the time.…
The movie Hoop Dreams traced a poor young talented African American named Arthur Agee from grade eight to college. Arthur hoped to play professional basketball in the future to help his family to escape poverty. Despite the fact that his family background and the neighborhood he lived in, disadvantaged him to pursue his goal in many ways. Firstly, Arthur is determined to play professional basketball, in order to help out his family. Secondly, his ability to adapt difficult circumstances played a significant role toward his success in basketball. Thirdly, his education value hoping that playing basketball could lead him to a college education. For Author playing basketball, it is not only a fun activity for him, but it also acted as a tool to…
In the play The Glass Menagerie Laura is a character that many young women across the nation can easily relate to. Although she was crippled at a young age, Laura’s insecurities often times run her life. Like Laura, many women find their insecurities at the forefront of their minds. Laura is a shy, quiet and often times invisible character throughout the play. However, she is a strong, unique, and lovable character as well. Often times we see our flaws as a disadvantage and something that can only do a disservice. Flaws and imperfections make us all unique and that is what sets us apart from the other people in the world. Laura’s imperfections are often pointed out by her mother and she cannot help but see them in a dismal way.…
Judith Guest’s Ordinary People conveys the complex emotional and physical hardships that can arise from an unexpected tragedy among a seemingly average family. The development of seventeen-year-old Conrad Jarrett, the book’s protagonist, is dire in determining how his family and friends respond to the death of his brother, Jordan. The evolution of Conrad’s character throughout the novel provides insight on the five stages of grief and the multitude of ways they can be experienced. Though teeming with pivotal moments in Jarrett’s development, one instance in particular, the death of a close friend, Karen Aldrich, is significant in determining his choice to continue to live with grief, or die without exposure to feeling. Karen’s death is indicative of Conrad’s shift towards dependency on others, anticipated…
To cope with reality, Jamal escapes through his writing and the game of basketball. Since his father left, Jamal reads books and constantly writes. He seeks assistance from acclaimed author William Forrester, to help improve his writing skills. He especially finds comfort in basketball not only because he excels at it, but also because “it’s where he gets his acceptance from.”…
He also goes into depth about his own life and how he grew up." I hated book and cared only for sports," he states that he was more interested in sports than Shakespeare."I was desperate for the approval of the hoods," He talks about how he wanted to fit in with the "hoods" and also tries to be smart, but not show it too much, for fear of being beat up. These are excellent examples of how schools should try to tap into these hidden…
The character I have chosen from Alice Walker's novel, 'Everyday Use,' is Mama. Mama is a single parent raising two daughters. Mama describes herself as a “large, big-boned woman with rough, man-working hands. She proudly tells of her ability to kill and clean hogs as “mercilessly” as any man. I believe these skills were acquired out of sheer survival and necessity. Mama starts the story recalling the dreams she often has in which she and Dee reunite on a television talk show. In this dream she has described herself almost as if it is the woman that she wished she was for example she states she is “a hundred pounds lighter, her skin like an uncooked barley pancake.” Although she says the way she looks in the dream is the way her daughter would want her to be, I think she longs for that as well.…