In the Name of Love
In most short-term high school relationships love and separation anxiety are a commonality; however, when it comes to Eleanor Douglas and Park Sheridan, those two ordinary traits become magnified. Even when hanging out with friends, the thought of a lonely TV dinner in a dimly lit living room isn’t as appealing as it sounds. But when you add love to the equation, all consistency comes to a screeching halt. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell, conveys the strong theme of young love. Distance and barriers are other key themes in the book, because from insurmountable distances and hardship, Eleanor continues to love and Park and vice versa. In their song There is a Light That Never Goes Out, The Smiths monotonously pass on the notion that love is forever: hence the repeated line “There Is A Light And It Never Goes Out.” Also, much like the book, the themes of distance and barriers are ever-present in the song.
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Because of this, she enjoys to go against the grain and to rebel in her own ways. She rebels in the story by establishing and maintaining her relationship with Park without her parent’s consent. One of the main barriers in the book is Eleanor’s house and family. On top of the horrific tell tale signs of abuse, Eleanor and Park can’t outwardly show their affection for one another anywhere near Eleanor’s mother or near her house. While this is because her mother is seemingly unaware of the relationship, it is noticeable that she is at least suspicious if not fully cognizant of what is going on. She notices small changes in Eleanor, such as her not wanting to be around her house or her family anymore. The song also speaks to a questionable home life with the line “Oh, please don’t drop me home. Because it’s not my home, it’s their home, and I’m welcome no more.” Because of many reasons Eleanor and Park didn’t want to go home either, and with a situation like theirs it’s hard to blame
She is taking care of herself by making the effort to go out, walk, and visit the park. The pigeons that others view with scorn are a joy to her. She watches TV at night, perhaps reliving some of her own personal romances, her faithful companion at her side. In the end, hers the only light on in the apartment building, leaving you to wonder where are all the other people. Are they out on the town, working, or perhaps hiding from the world in their apartments? I wonder, how this interpretation would change if the main character were a young girl, just beginning her life. We would see this as a new beginning, someone starting life with awe and wonder, someone who may not have much but is building a life and a future. We see Eleanor watching TV and instantly assume that she is sad and little else to do with her life. Yet if that same picture was of a young person we would assume they were binging on Netflix or their favorite TV show. Why is it then when the picture is of an older woman we naturally assume that she is lonely and unhappy? I think the world has a view of the older generation that is not always pleasant. People see the older generation as burdens, someone to be pitied. When I see this cartoon, I am filled with
When people lose their dignity, they also lose a part of the very thing that makes them human. Despair, hopelessness, fear and apathy are all ways a human can lose their humanity. The eyes provide a window onto the soul, and thus a view on the person’s mental state. The eyes also function in reverse, as a symbolic gesture of control over someone. All of this is present in Night, by Elie Wiesel, an account of human tragedy, human cruelty, human dignity, and the loss thereof.
Consequently, she became paranoid and started to grow very hostile in her own thoughts. She does not directly express her hostile and negative feelings to the others. One of Eleanor’s dark thoughts was how “[She] would like to watch her dying,” referring to Theodora, as she smiled back to her saying “Don’t be silly.” Eleanor constantly battled herself mentally and what she portrayed as reality. She was constantly questioning herself and how she might look. “Is she laughing at me? Eleanor wondered; has she decided that I am not fit to stay?” A self-doubt thought, that Eleanor had when Theodora was painting her toenails. “Why me, she wondered, why me? Am I the public conscience? Expected always to say in cold words, what the rest of them are too arrogant to recognize? Am I supposed to be the weakest, weaker than Theodora? (86,103,117). The feelings and thoughts that Eleanor experiences are not that of a rational adult, rather, they stemmed from an unhealthy state of
The Illegal, and Some Great Thing by Lawrence Hill both contain several important themes. To explain, The Illegal features the main character’s loss of innocence, and the racism towards people because of their country of origin, and ethnic background. Next, Some Great Thing includes the themes of racism and prejudice towards not only the protagonist, but also to French Canadians because of the colour of their skin, or the language they speak, and the courage of characters to stand up for what they believe is right.
Harry Mulisch, through his novel The Assault, conveys the Nazi Occupation in the Netherlands in 1945 giving full emphasis on the impact to people’s lives. Anton Steinwijk, the protagonist of the novel, experiences traumatic experience when the military assaulted and killed his whole family. His wish to leave what has happened to him in the past is influenced largely by his devastation and undesirable perception of the war from what he has experienced. Additionally, people around Anton also encourage him to expect a peaceful future, away from the war. Light and darkness symbolizes Anton's perception of the war and volcano ashes representing trails of his past, which influences how Anton reacts at times of trouble and when approached with information of the past.
One major theme in the novels Counselor Ayres’ Memorial and The Sound of the Mountain is love. Both novels present relationships with different types of bonds between the characters. There is the theme of romantic love shown through the recently established relationship
because her father was sent to a mental institution. A few years later, Eleanor's father
“Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope! A belief in things not seen. A belief that there are better days ahead.” President Obama’s 2004 keynote speech gives a timeless message of hope that especially resonates with minorities who face an uncertain future. Similarly, in her novel Beloved, Toni Morrison develops the theme that hope in the face of forced dehumanization, through the relationship between darkness and light, gives the oppressed a purpose and the ability to overcome and thrive despite persecution.
In the poem “Song in a Minor Key”, Dorothy Parker uses optimistic imagery and peaceful yet morose tones throughout the poem to develop a message regarding the theme of relentless love, and how death may be the only way to reunite true lovers. Parker contends that in order for love to go on forever one needs to maintain their strengths and hopes.
Our protagonist, Eleanor, is nurturing, attentive, and full of love. She states she is drawn to weaknesses in her husband, and frequently shows that she enjoys simply loving and looking out for others. Protective and strong, she the perfect example of a good mother.
Love, however, is not the only factor that creates and maintains a relationship. Love has the power to bring people together, but can also break them apart. In addition, it can lead to irrational decisions with terrible consequences. In this short story Margaret Atwood shows the powerful effect that love has on people’s lives. At first glance, the short stories in "Happy Endings" have a common connection: all the characters die.
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Park comes over and brings Eleanor to his house and tells her to wait in the truck. He
Eleanor would not quite do anything for her friend. Even though she regarded Catherine as a true friend, Eleanor still puts family loyalty before Catherine even though she disagreed with her father. Nevertheless, both Isabella and Eleanor’s friendships in Northanger
The short story, “Unlighted Lamps,” by author Sherwood Anderson is about a relationship between a father and his daughter. Their relationship is a stressful one because neither of them talk to each other, nor show their emotions. Throughout the story, you find out why their relationship is the way that it is, and why it is hard for her father to talk to her. The unlighted lamps in the story represent flashbacks of memories wherever light dances across something.