The perspective of society carries much significance due to its power to completely alter an individual’s values or views; and therefore reflecting the individual’s identity. In the short story “On The Sidewalk Bleeding”, by Evan Hunter, one facet of identity that is apparent, is that identity is mainly created and developed by society. The story highlights how wrong decisions come with a price, how the people you associate yourself with define you, and how your values become evident in difficult situations. As the short story progresses, a dramatic change develops in Andy’s perspective and values as a Royal, from positive to negative; however, society chooses to remain with its own perceptions.
Every decision is to be made with extreme care,
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As Andy became a part of the Royals, he began imitating their actions. He began participating in jumps and rumbles, bringing pain and grief to many. ‘No, he thought, I can't be dying, not from a little street rumble, not from just being cut. Guys get cut all the time in rumbles’. If rumble members got cut often, it meant that there were other people dying and other people who have been or are being severely injured. As Andy participated in more events that were related to jumps and rumbles, he acquired the collective identity of a Royal and couldn’t obtain his own individual identity. Even as he was stabbed, the culprit had said ‘That’s for you Royal!’, and when the story draws to an end, the cop at the scene also says ‘A Royal.’ despite being told Andy’s name. Andy had associated so much with the Royal gang members, that his own individual identity became inseparable from the Royal’s …show more content…
As Andy approaches his near end, he comes to realize that the street fighting he participated in throughout his whole life, and the Royal title he cherished held no value for him. ‘He was filled with sadness that his life would be over at sixteen. He felt all at once as if he had never done anything, never seen anything, never been anywhere. He wondered why he'd never thought of them before, wondered why the rumbles and the jumps and the purple jackets had always seemed so important to him before’. Andy was only now able to realize the one thing that was so important to him - Laura. ‘Someday he would marry Laura. Someday he would marry her, and they would have a lot of kids, and then they would get out of the neighborhood. They would move to a clean project in the Bronx, or maybe they would move to Staten Island. When they were married, they had kids’. Andy had planned so far ahead in his life with Laura, and yet he spent his time fighting gang members, which now seemed pointless. The last moments were the turning point for Andy. In those last moments, Andy’s perspectives on himself, his title as a Royal, and his values had dramatically changed. ‘I'm Andy, he screamed wordlessly, I'm Andy. Andy came to recognize himself as Andy rather than a Royal; and he only came to realize this after being ambushed and while lying on the sidewalk
Consequently, Andy’s soul withered further into hopelessness as each and every person who came to his rescue, turned their backs on him. Through a final desperate ambition, Andy broke free of the bonds that were pinning him down: “If it had not been for the jacket, he wouldn’t have been stabbed. The knife had not been plunged in hatred of Andy. The knife only hated the purple jacket. The jacket was a stupid, meaningless thing that was robbing him of his life. He lay struggling with the shiny wet jacket. Pain ripped fire across his body whenever he moved. But he squirmed and fought and twisted until one arm was free and the other. He rolled away from the jacket and layed quite still, breathing heavily, listening to the sound of his breathing and the sounds of rain and thinking: Rain is sweet, I’m Andy”. In these moments, Andy finally overcame his situation, only in a way not expected by most. Such depicted scenes are prime examples of human nature at it’s worst, as well as the horrors that lay within us. However, these events, although previously incomprehensible by his limited subconscious, led to a gradual enlightenment of the mind and heart. Furthermore, the experiences taught him
and Mrs. Leonard were not satisfied with their income; as a result, they used to go through other trash and pick free items. Mrs. Leonard gave very miserable time to Andy while he did not do as she wanted. While Andy was in Faster home, social worker rarely visit him, and his mother also visited him once in awhile. Living in the foster home, he also met with someone who taught him to write poems. Since the age of fourteen, he worked and started to save for his future life. There used to be a time when he was bitted up by Mrs. Leonard, and she used to warned him by saying that she would called social worker. Only one time Andy met with his grandmother during those eleven years of foster care. By being in loveless childhood, but it kept a roof over his head and got him through high school. Regardless being in the foster family who was not willing to accept him as their own, he remind very strong. Andy achieved many honors in his school, took part-time job, and determined by everywhere by his bicycle. With the help of his teachers and counselor, he succeed to graduated from the high school, and figure out what he wanted to with his life. Ultimately, Andy earned a full-scholarship to go Wesleyan, then later he went on to Harvard Law
...h his writing of “A&P”. This story shows that no matter who someone is, where they are from, their gender or their age, the basics do not change. People, are continuously at war with their need to feel something about themselves that sets them apart from others. By nature, people desire self expression, and some form of individualism. However, the desire inevitably will lead us to a cross road and a decision must be made. Humans, regularly have to battle both internal and external controls when it comes to making decisions in order to comply with social norms and avoid upsetting the delicate balance between what is socially acceptable and individualism.
First, Andy was stabbed because he was a Royal. “That’s for you ,Royal!” (Para. 2) was what Andy heard after he was stabbed. This shows Andy was categorized as a Royal because he was stabbed not for any actions that he had performed, but for wearing his gang’s jacket.
Taylor, S. (2009) ‘Who We Think We Are? Identities in Everyday life’, in Taylor, S., Hinchliffe, S., Clarke, J. and Bromley, S. (eds), Making Social Lives, Milton Keynes, The Open University.
Throughout a lifetime, one can run through many different personalities that transform constantly due to experience and growing maturity, whether he or she becomes the quiet, brooding type, or tries out being the wild, party maniac. Richard Yates examines acting and role-playing—recurring themes throughout the ages—in his fictional novel Revolutionary Road. Frank and April Wheeler, a young couple living miserably in suburbia, experience relationship difficulties as their desire to escape grows. Despite their search for something different, the couple’s lack of communication causes their planned move to Europe to fall through. Frank and April Wheeler play roles not only in their individual searches for identity, but also in their search for a healthy couple identity; however, the more the Wheelers hide behind their desired roles, the more they lose sense of their true selves as individuals and as a pair.
In general, identity means how one sees himself/herself and others around in order to distinguish himself/herself as different. David Snow differentiates between the ‘individual’ and ‘collective’ identity as “personal identities are the attributes and meaning attributed to oneself by the actor, they are self-designations and self-attributions regarded as personally distinctive.” (Snow 2) On the other hand, the “collective identities attributed or imputed to others in an attempt to situate them in social space. They are grounded in established social roles.”(Snow 2) This research paper aims at examining the role of ‘collective’ identity that is formed on the expenses of the ‘individual’ identity and how this leads to physical and psychological repression in Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” and Isaac Babel’s “My First Goose.”
...Boyarin overcome his fear of being labeled by the society by sticking up to his morals and ethics. This shows that an individual’s fear of being labeled by the society can depend on the situations they face which shape their strategies of personal identity.
One of the biggest fears in today's world is the idea of not fitting into society. Evan Hunter's story “On the Sidewalk Bleeding,” explores the theme of the importance of personal identity. This will be shown through an analysis of how external reality plays a critical role in defining who people are, how personal identity is a crucial aspect of how individuals grow and the fact that no matter how hard you try, you can never erase the troubles of your past. One aspect of identity that is evident in Hunter's story is how external reality plays a critical role in defining who people are. While individuals may wish to be many things, the world plays a role in who people are and how people perceive others.
He then continues to say, “Do you want to miss a match? Blow your ride?” The pressure that his dad puts on him to be rebellious like him made Andrew get into detention in the first place simply because he got caught. Andrew describes that he “taped Larry Lester’s buns together”, he then goes on to say “that the bizarre thing is that I did it for my old man.” This further proves that Andrew’s dad has influenced the way he has behaved, and his parent-adolescent conflict worsens as his push for freedom establishes a harsher, goal-seeking father. Instead of becoming close in a new, harmonious way, it appears Andrew and his father will eventually distance themselves from one another. He wonders if he will end up like his parents or not: “Oh God, are we gonna be like our
Identity is primarily described primarily as what makes a person who they are. While it is seen as an individual asset, one’s identity can be shaped and persuaded not only by life experiences, but by society as well. Bryan Stevenson speaks on several controversial issues and proclaims certain societal problems and the typical behaviors noticed in response to them. How one approaches the issues that are spoken about may expose their true identity. Stevenson argues that how one reacts to racial inequality within the criminal justice system may regulate their identity. In addition to that, how dealing with the nation’s history may force a growth on one’s identity, eventually bringing peace and acceptance to the nation. Lastly, how one views the
The Search for Identity in This Side of Paradise In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel This Side of Paradise, Amory Blaine searches for his identity by "mirroring" people he admires. However, these "mirrors" actually block him from finding his true self. He falls in love with women whose personalities intrigue him; he mimics the actions of men he looks up to. Eleanor Savage and Burne Holiday serve as prime examples of this. Until Amory loses his pivotal "mirror," Monsignor Darcy, he searches for his soul in all the wrong places.
People are scared to help him because they think once they tell the cops the guardians will find them and hurt them. "He‟s a Royal. We help him, and the Guardians will be after us." Whenever one of the strangers think about helping Andy they see the royals then rethink about actually helping him. Another reason the strangers wouldn't want to help him is because they think the guardians will found out and be after them. The couple doesn't want to get involved with the gangs because they think they might get killed getting involve with the gangs. Andy tried his hardest not to be remembered as a royal but as soon as the cop seen Andy's royal jacket the cop immediately wrote this. "He took out his black pad. He opened it to a blank page. “! Royal,” he said." Even though Laura was telling the cop Andy's name it seemed like he was just ignoring her and writing down royal. Andy tried with all his effort to not to remembered as just a royal. Andy cared about this so much he tried to take his royal jacket off while he was bleeding so this caused him a lot of pain from doing
“I have never thought that traits that are strong in childhood disappear; they may go underground or they may be transmuted into something else, but they do not vanish”(Davies). Identity is the very foundation for expression and interpretation of the human spirit which comes from the experiences and influences of life. Failure to develop social skills in childhood such as self worth, morality, and emotional expression has a detrimental effect on adult life. Robertson Davies fully explores the nuances of identity and the influence of upbringing in his novel Fifth Business. The inescapable influence of childhood ultimately shapes identity in adulthood.
Zora Neal Hurston’s book, Their Eyes Were Watching God, reveals one of life’s most relevant purposes that stretches across cultures and relates to every aspect of enlightenment. The novel examines the life of the strong-willed Janie Crawford, as she goes down the path of self-discovery by way of her past relationships. Ideas regarding the path of liberation date all the way back to the teachings of Siddhartha. Yet, its concept is still recycled in the twenty-first century, as it inspires all humanity to look beyond the “horizon,” as Janie explains. Self-identification, or self-fulfillment, is a theme that persists throughout the book, remaining a quest for Janie Crawford to discover, from the time she begins to tell the story to her best friend, Pheoby Watson. Hurston makes a point at the beginning of the novel to separate the male and female identities from one another. This is important for the reader to note. The theme for identity, as it relates to Janie, carefully unfolds as the story goes on to expand the depths of the female interior.