Robert Smalls Life by Ivyonna Egan Robert Smalls was a legend, a hero and will never be forgotten. Robert's early life was a struggle with his dad, a slave, and his mom, a maid, and him also born into slavery and working underage in the fields with no freedom. After being enslaved, Robert dreams of escaping from the fields. Robert knew there was no way to escape. Robert is a good person.
The First Decision Reef, the main character in the novel, The First Stone, by Don Aker, makes a bad decision and ultimately has to deal with the consequences. To begin, Reef latches his anger onto a stone and deliberately throws it over an overpass into oncoming traffic. The stone causes a major accident between not one, but several cars and severely injures a teenage girl. Fortunately for Reef, the Judge sentences him to live at North Hills Group Home, and to volunteer at a rehabilitation centre. This punishment changes Reef’s life for the better.
‘The Demon Shark: II Predator or Prey?’ embodies the ecocriticism literary nature of ‘The Boy Behind the Curtain’ with Tim Winton maintaining a ruthless frontier attitude to the preservation of the environment by pointing out the unfair “[routine vilification]” of sharks, which has led to most of them “[disappearing] globally without an outcry”. In this particular passage, Winton disapproves of the media variously describing the shark as “a terrorist” and “an insidious threat”, even though we are “far more likely to die on the toilet”, or in a car accident, or from a bee sting than from a shark encounter. Winton draws parallels between the prejudice against sharks and discrimination in human society, influencing my creative response regarding
Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson is an Indigenous mythology-based story that follows sixteen-year-old Jared as he struggles with his powers, relationships and overall life. The theme of family, specifically the decisions and roles of Jared's family, significantly affects his personal growth. More particularly from the actions of Maggie Moody, Phil Martin and Nana Sophia. Maggie Moody, Jared's mother, affects Jared's morals and how he feels about violence, Phil Martin, Jared's father, affects Jared’s emotional maturity, and Nana Sophia embodies the feelings resulting from the abandonment of a family member. Maggie's violent approach to life has desensitized Jared to violence, making him less emotionally vulnerable since violence requires a lack of empathy.
The Merriam Webster dictionary defines childhood as “The early period in the development of something.” For some children their childhood is idyllic and some of the best, most carefree years of their life. Unfortunately, one cannot control their childhood. Many children who grow up with parents that are in and out of jail, alcoholics and or drug addicts, grow up to be just like them.
It is often that many celebrities have so-called Cinderella stories, coming from nothing and building themselves up to greatness. Some of the most iconic figures in the world came from poverty-ridden areas, but were gifted with other valuable attributes. Things such as intelligence, athleticism, character and more give those gifted with them an advantage over others, leading them to rise to the top. But sometimes, it’s not what one is born with, it is how they make use of their situation to strive for the best possible outcome. In The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls has a similar problem, growing up in mainly West Virginia, having only her siblings to try and get out.
Jared Martin struck me as an interesting and relatable protagonist. I enjoyed his portrayal's complexity and authenticity as I read the pages. I identified strongly with Jared's life's journey, struggles, and exploration of his own identity. He was an interesting and compelling character because of how he handled the difficulties that came his way, which drew me into his story. The novel's insightful and accurate portrayal of Indigenous characters and their experiences was what really caught my attention.
In a person’s childhood, most of their major decisions that they are faced with in life are made by their parents or guardians. Parents make the decisions for them because they want the best for their children, and want them to have a good chance to survive in the real world when they reach adulthood. After childhood however, they must make decisions for themselves, which will eventually lead them towards their dreams or the life their parents were afraid of. In the book The Other Wes Moore by Wes Moore, the decisions that were made for the author Wes Moore, led him away from living the life of a criminal, to living the life of a very successful man. In his life, Wes’s mom (Joy) made most of the important decisions that led him to success.
What make´s a father a Good father, In the Book The Glass Castle, by Jeanette Walls, a memoir, there is a family of 6 and their father and husband Rex has been argued to be a lousy father and even questioned if he should have custody of his kids. In this essay, I will be showing and proving with evidence that Rex Walls is a fit father for his family. Rex was always a little laid back and he also has had numerous alcohol issues, having issues like that while in poverty, isn't a way to get out of helping your family but Rex doesn't seem to let that bother him. He's always moving his family around and trying to keep them safe, he even takes them and runs from the federal government.
In The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin wants to find out if shaping or defending our identity is more real to us than achieving our humanity. He wants to know because all his life he has been troubled by religion and movements that made him question something. That something was, is it important to shape an identity and defend it or to achieve humanity? Baldwin went around about his life and each time he'd pick up a few things here and there that told him a little bit more. A little bit more for his question he's so wrapped up in whether he knew it or not.
In Night, Elie values his relationship with his father as crucial for survival in the concentration camp. During the separation of men and women, Elie loses his mother and sister but sticks with his father. Elie says “There was no time to think, I already felt my father’s hand press against mine: We were alone” (29). Despite losing his mother and sister, Elie stays attached to his father for support and comfort. Furthermore, Elie’s father is tired and wants to rest, but Elie pushes him to go to a shed to get some rest while they watch over each other.
Do your parents ever tell you that you can’t do something and you get mad? In the poem,"What my Father Said" by Alan King, the speaker's attitude towards not being able to play football with his friends changes. The speaker changes from feeling mad at his father in the beginning. On the other hand at the end, being grateful that his father didn't let him participate. Therefore, the speaker's attitude towards not being able to play changes.
James Baldwin’s concept of the ‘innocent country’ is how America is in a position that permits discrimination towards people of color, one-hundred years after their emancipation from slavery (Baldwin 10). A permissible discrimination that has allowed people of color to be recognized as something lesser than a human being. Within Baldwin’s essay The Fire Next Time, he writes of a rhetorical concept of innocence, which can be recognized as the racist social norms of America (5). Problematically, this allows the mental perception of a person to commit a hate crime, and believe that their offence is permissible since racism continues to be normalized.
Frank Smith was the owner of his own private law firm in New York City. Frank wanted all of his children to go to law school and join the family business. He had two sons, George who was twenty six and Tom who was eighteen. George did as his father wanted and went to law school, eventually joining him in the family business. While Tom who lays around the house all day, he only wanted his part of his inheritance that he was allowed to touch when he turned eighteen.
I strongly wish to participate in this field camp because I have always been fascinated with both Iceland's environment and it's culture. Being a part of this opportunity would be a dream come true and I am certain that each part of the course would be an unforgettable experience. Participating in the field camp would be a wonderful opportunity to explore all of the different scientific, sociological and historical components the country has to offer. As a second year environmental science student with a strong interest in cold temperature climates, I believe that getting to experience Iceland's environment first hand would be truly inspirational. The experience would help me better grasp the concepts that I am currently learning in
