Theme Of Raymond's Run

Theme essay

Squeaky from the story “Raymond's Run” really wants something; but she doesn’t clearly state that in the story. When you first read the story you might think she wants her brother to be treated normally or that she wants to be faster than everyone. However, when you look deeper into the story you will really see that Squeaky just wants to be liked and have friends. In “All American Slurp” the narrator named Lin wants the same thing because she moved to America from China, with her family. Lin wants to make friends and attempts this by blending in and trying new things. Squeaky from “Raymond’s Run” wants friends but there are some obstacles in the way from her getting what she wants. In the story she wants to protect her older brother, Raymond, and she thinks the only way to do so is by being mean to other people. Squeaky, has experienced all the mean things people have said or done to her brother just because of his disability. When she’s mean she feels the power of making others who have hurt her brother run off and feel scared. This emotional revenge

One example is when her family tried the raw celery and “zip zip zipped” the celery strings of the celery and that wasn’t normal for Americans. Another example is that when they were ready to eat there was a buffet but they did not know that, so they grabbed chairs and sat down. As you can see, differences in culture make it hard to fit in. Lin’s food at lunch, style of dress and language makes it tough to fit in. She has obstacles with her family because they are strict and will not allow her become Americanized. Even a simple pair of jeans becomes an argument and the difference between girls and boys in the Chinese culture arises when her brother gets to have a pair and she does