“Great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance” -Samuel Johnson. This quote encompasses one of the underlying and pivotal concepts that I have learned this semester. This is the idea of perseverance. Perseverance has various forms and it shows up in every single book we have read this semester. I think that this quality is crucial to progress in both physical and spiritual life. I learned that perseverance was the key to success through my study of The Secret Life of Bees, Maus, and La Linea.
While studying the second book of the year, The Secret Life of Bees, I saw various illustrations of perseverance. This is the story of a young girl pursuing truth about her mother's death and along the way encountering some of the most influential people in her young life. Perseverance was a driving factor
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Early in the novel, Vladek was captured by German forces, he says to his fellow prisoners “I’m not going to die, and I won’t die here!” (Spiegelman 56) After being released, while trying to evade Nazi capture once again, and attempting to console his wife, Vladek says “No, darling! To die, it’s easy…but you have to struggle for life! Until the last moment we must struggle together! I need you! And you’ll see that together we’ll survive”(Spiegelman 124). This quote displays how determined Vladek is to live. He will do whatever it takes to be with Anja and to ensure her happiness, no matter what happens. Maus is the story of a survivor, and is filled will examples of perseverance. Without mental fortitude, physical stamina, and perseverance Vladek may have perished during the Holocaust. Without a doubt, perseverance was the key to Vladek's success of surviving the holocaust. Subsequently, our class moved on to the final book of the year that deals with the struggles of crossing the border into the United