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Summary Of Paul's Case By Willa Cather

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The story of “Paul’s Case” by Willa Cather, is about a teenager that is disappointed about his life and adores his job in a theater, he desperately wants to be part of it, by stealing money; when he acknowledges his wrongdoing are discover, he ended his life. The confrontation between his teachers and Paul brings the negative feelings against him. The relationship with his father was bad, at the point to avoid going home. Paul refused to accept his reality, and he tries to create a fake life that takes him to make many mistakes. Paul does not accept himself, he feels odd, out of place in school and at home; the place he feels good is theater and New York. Disappointment is what Paul feels through the story, he believes that he deserves a different life full of money and fame. The sub-theme is the isolation created around Paul’s life, he feels rejected by his peer, teachers, and his own father. The uncontrolled desire to have a glamorous lifestyle the easy and fast way. Paul is a rebellious young man that goes against the rules and society to accomplish his dreams. …show more content…

He enters the room “suave and smiling” Thinking that he is looking impeccable, but his outfit did not fit right. The narrator describes “Belladonna…Glassy glitter eyes” his teachers believe that he was under the influence of drugs. Private meeting at school with a students and teachers is about misconduct and is described as “baptism of fire” something can cause fear. He was born in Colorado a state that is cold and known by snow, which can be associated with the color white of innocence in him, as young person. Paul felt miserable at school and it was obvious by “force animation of his

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“Something started to bother me immediately.” At Paul’s new school he sees a tall grey wall that reminds him of something in the past. Which doesn’t give a good example of the school in the first place. Also, Erik, Paul’s brother, is hated by Paul in the beginning of the book. Also like Erik, Paul’s dad doesn’t

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Paul's life is hard. His brother Erik makes choices that affect him drastically. In this book, Tangerine, Edward Bloor talks about the choices people around Paul's life make and how they affect him. As it says in the story, Erik spraypaints Paul's eyes. Erik did this when Paul was just five.

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Paul seems educated to Rick and Elizabeth but under the surface Paul does not truly have a true understanding of his teachings. Rodriguez and the film Six Degrees of Separation both emphasize the importance of role models and the effects these teachers inflict on their students. In the promotional material of the film Jenna Gibbs asserts that the film tagline delves into a deeper subtext “For Paul, every person is a new door to a new world,” a catchy phrase that foreshadowed the story’s theme of interlocking human connections and community.” (Gibbs 903) When Paul meets Rick and Elizabeth it is an opportunity to play the part of a teacher but Paul is just an actor who has memorized his lines to pretend to be the son of Flan Kitteridge. Paul like the scholarship boy must rehearse his thoughts and without the direction of others Paul would be lost.

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Edward Bloor’s Tangerine suggests that Paul’s choices, big or small, has a huge impact on the development of Paul’s character. The first choice, Paul choosing to go to Tangerine Middle School, is caused by a bit of reasons, which allows him to join the soccer team. First, Paul sacrifices attention to join Tangerine’s soccer team. “‘I don’t mind if you never pay any attention to me for the rest of my life, just give me this chance’”(Bloor 59).

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In the story, their choices affect Paul by causing him to have low self esteem, fearing his brother and feeling isolated. A choice made by Paul’s mom drops Paul’s confidence very rapidly. Her reluctance to be strict with her eldest son cause Paul to not be assertive enough. Throughout the novel, readers can point out that Paul is very similar to prey, while Erik acts like the hungry predator. In the novel, the author wrote,” Forget it dad, forget it mom, someone has to pay for this...

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This shows that Paul will be more brave about standing up for himself and for others. Paul realizes that when he made this choice he did a lot of justice for Luis Cruz and other people that Erik hurt. Accordingly, Paul’s choices have shaped Paul’s life and have made him what he

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However, this lavish lifestyle didn’t last long as on the eighth day of his adventure, he gets news of his father coming to New York to get Paul. As soon as new of Paul’s father going to New York surfaces, the reality of this lifestyle comes into focus. Living like this isn’t something Paul needs, but he rather thinks he needs. His desire has overcome his life by turning his wants into false

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Flowers have many meanings behind them and have many uses, such as complimenting the dinner setting, or showing affection to that special someone. For example, the Carnation flower in general symbolizes love. However, this is not the case for Paul. In the short story “Paul’s Case”, Willa Cather uses symbolism of the carnation to contradict its true meaning through his teacher’s perspective, glass-cased flowers, and his eventual death.

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Lastly, when Paul was testing his eye sight, he observes. “Suddenly I felt the hot breath of a predator on my neck. I screamed in terror. Erik laughed and ran over to Mom and Dad. He had snuck up on me from behind, from somewhere back around ten o’clock.

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Paul’s Case, as alluded to earlier is a story about a certain young man who is a Calvinist and he is clouded by feelings of not belonging to this life. According to the story he lived on a street named Cordelia located in Pittsburgh, and we are given an impression of a street cluttered with cookie cutter houses and city dwellers that seemed like suburbanites. According to the author, there was an aura of despair in that city. This same aura extended even to Paul’s own room. His life was a life of misery having been surrounded by a father that abused him, teachers that never cared and classmate that misunderstood him and this caused Paul to feel he is not worth to be in their presence or even company.

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Willa Cather’s short story, “Paul’s Case” is about a young man who is determined to make his aspirations a reality by all means necessary. That meant being deceitful as a start of gaining control and social status and telling lies to get to where he felt like he belonged, but where did he belong? This desire was the beginning of a journey that would eventually leave him with nothing. There is something unusual about Paul, something that can only be explained by his demeanor and actions throughout the story. With that said, I intend to construct a complete character analysis of Paul as he searches for satisfaction.

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Even though Paul starts off as a weak kid who is insecure, he learns that he’s not at fault for who he is, and gains confidence in himself. In the beginning of this novel, Paul starts off doubting himself due to the thick glasses he wears. “I could stop trying to be what everyone else is and accept being a freak. They could open a new exhibit, starring me.”

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[and] lulled by the sound of the wind...and the cool fragrance of the flowers, he sank into deep drowsy retrospection,” (Paul’s Case, 481). Despite Paul feeling like, “the kind of boy he had always wanted to be,” (Paul’s Case, 482), in New York, he experiences mild anxiety by being in an entirely new place, and therefore, his hotel room is not complete without the endearing familiarity of his

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Meanwhile, Paul himself is another character whom Morrison uses to achieve mimesis. He keeps his emasculating torments as a slave in a “tin can” where his heart used to be, which he is unwilling to open because he feared if Sethe “got a whiff of the contents it would really shame him” (Morrison 85). His time as a slave made him see himself as a property rather than a man, which results in his loss of identity and repression of emotions, as well as prevents him from connecting with Sethe. His inability to convey his love prevents him from accepting and moving on from his trauma, and therefore creates pity.

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Tenessee Williams is one of the most outstanding playwrights in American Theatre. His play The Glass Menagerie premiered in Chicago in 1944 and was an instant hit. It is set in the days of the Great Depression of 1930s when unemployment, inflation and shortage of necessary things had made the lives of people all over the world miserable. The playwright has sought to evaluate this era that caused financial as well as emotional trauma through depiction of the plight of a middle class family living in St. Louis, Missouri. The play deals with the memories of Tom Wingfield, an officer in the Merchant Navy, who had deserted his poor mother, Amanda, and disabled sister, Laura, in order to pursue a life of adventure but suffers from acute remorse due to his realisation of what his helpless family must have gone through in his absence.

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