In the novel We Were The Mulvaneys the author Joyce Carol Oates gives the readers an insight of the thoughts of one of the characters, Judd Mulvaney. Judd, who a young boy around the age of eleven or twelve, is on his driveway by a brook and he’s looking down just watching the brook’s water flow by; spending his time thinking alone. Oates put a lot of symbolism of death with the thoughts Judd is having. It gives the reader a clear idea of what Judd is feeling about reality.
A man you have never met might be the man to save your life. In the story “ On the Rainy River”, a Young man named Tim was drafted into war, and his only escape was Canada. Along his trip he came across a cabin owned by Elroy. Elroy gave Tim food and shelter, and gave him a chance to make a life changing decision.
The Color of Water, a memoir written by James McBride, describes the struggle James experienced growing up in a poor family with eleven other siblings while going through a racial identity crisis. Throughout the book, the chapters alternate from James’ point of view to his mother’s point of view, both individuals accounting their difficult childhoods. These different perspectives come together and make one lucid piece of writing. During the course of the book, the reader will learn that James encountered many obstacles in his life. However, these difficulties molded James and made him grow as an individual.
Can an experience change a person’s outlook on life? One might think that are the toughest person, but eventually they will realize they are not the only one. The exact same idea is shown in T. Coraghessan Boyle’s short story “Greasy Lake.” The short story “Greasy Lake” is about three friends, the narrator, Digby and Jeff. One night the narrator and his friends go to Greasy Lake in the narrator’s mother’s car.
The article “ Into the Dark Water “, by Lauren Tarshis has many quotes from 17 year-old Jack Thayer, a passenger and survivor of the Titanic. Tarshis used these quotes to intensify the article and make it more interesting for the reader. The story feels more real with these quotes. She also used quotes to give the reader the emotions that Jack had and make the reader feel as if they were there.
Swimming in High Tides The two anomalies in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Awakening, Edna Pontellier and Huckleberry Finn, head to the water to find themselves. On their journey, they recognize they do not fit in to the society around them, and water is the only safe place for them. When they reach the water, it opens up new opportunities for both of the characters,finding out who they really are. The water in both books represents a rebirth, that forces the characters to find themselves, ultimately knowing they only belong in the water.
Water- an everyday need so simple that nobody ever thinks about it. Daniel Wallace’s novel Big Fish uses water as a way of symbolizing life. In the book, a father called Edward Bloom tells stories to his son, William, but this is all he ever tells to Will. When Edward starts dying, Will ends up taking him to a river and Edward magically turns into a fish. In Edward’s stories and his transformation, water symbolizes life.
In chapter 10 of Pat Conroy’s novel, The Water Is Wide, Pat Conroy takes the children of Yamacraw Island to Washington, D.C. This trip was a great learning experience for the kids and was the farthest that any of them had ever been from home. They toured museums, shopped for souvenirs from street vendors, and ate hot dogs from hot dog carts. This trip taught many lessons to the children, and even to Mr. Conroy. Pat Conroy learned that trips are unpredictable in nature, and cannot be planned to the letter.
Reader Response of “On the Rainy River” The short story “On the Rainy River” by Tim O 'Brien explains to the audience that all men are influenced to go into war, and that they should hide the fears and emotions that they may have along the journey. Throughout the short story the author explains his journey and opens up about his emotions when he was sent to war. Being the audience of this short story explains to you what every man must go through if they were to be sent to war.
Kate Chopin created a very complex character named Edna Pontellier in her novel The Awakening. Mrs. Pontellier is peculiar because her thoughts are consistently drury and she is insatiable. Chopin uses many different strategies to develop Mrs. Pontellier’s character such as imagery but the most prominent strategy is symbolism. Symbols featured in the story include birds, two lovers, a widow, and water. Whenever water appears in a story or novel it can often represent baptism, rebirth, and/or death.
David Foster Wallace’s commencement speech “This is Water” at Kenyon College is often thought of as one of the most influential speeches because it calls the graduates to observe the world around them through a different lens. However, he does not accomplish that by calling the graduates to action, but instead challenges them to use their education. He also appeals to the students’ emotions through his use of ethos, logos, and pathos. Although people mostly only remember the antidotes, it is the message associated with reoccurring emotions and literary devices throughout the speech that moves the reader into action. Wallace is able to captivate his audience and persuade them to view the world without themselves at the center through his tactful use of rhetoric.
In Kate Chopin’s “The Awakening”, the main character, Edna Pontellier, becomes awakened to herself, her need for nonconformity, and her strength through water and the sea. The water and sea serves a multitude of everyday purposes such as swimming, bathing, and drinking. However, Edna’s experiences with water are extremely symbolic, “awakening” her as a woman(48). In her first experience of swimming- in which she had “attempted all summer to learn”-she grew “overconfident” and “wanted to swim far out, where no woman had swum before” (47).
The Unusual Message Reading the commencement speech “This is Water”, written and delivered by David Foster Wallace to students and their families at Kenyon College was nothing like what I was expecting it to be. I can imagine the listeners that were present were just as shocked as I was when they finally grasped the message he was presenting to them that day. Normally when someone delivers a commencement speech to students graduating, it's more along the lines of “be all that you can be” or “You can do it” with emphasis on the word “you.” No one really tells you to think of others first at that point in your lives. However, Wallace did just that.
This research paper on Saul Bellow’s novel Seize the Day is Qualitative research which is descriptive in its literary form. Its objectives is to throw light on the symbolic function of water imagery and how it serves different purposes at different points in the novel and dominates Wilhelm’s ‘pretender soul’ and real soul that entangled between the enormous life seems to offer and the unromantic reality of the world. The present research paper gives a psychoanalytical reading of the representation of the protagonist Tommy/Wilhelm Adler’s character. The other aspects discussed in this research are the link between water imagery and history. Saul Bellow is a Jewish American author and greatly influenced by Jewish philosophy and humanism.
2% of earth’s fresh water is frozen in ice caps; and, only 1% of earth’s fresh water is available to consume. 2. Unfortunately for our planet, supplies of water are running dry at an alarming rate. The world’s population continues to soar; but, that rise in numbers has not been matched by an increase in supplies of fresh water. Let’s talk about what is going on around the world; I will mention to you just a few major cities, and show you how they are dealing with water shortage.
