In Just Lather, That’s All, Hernando Téllez tells the readers about the struggles of indecision. The indecision of whether to kill Captain Torres and save many people or let him continue murdering the rebels. The barber was contemplating whether he should kill the barber with his shaving knife or not, and he did not end up killing him. I thought that this move was selfish because by killing the Captain, he would be able to save his people; and might as well take a chance, because the Captain was going to kill the barber, a rebel, eventually. The main conflict of the story was man versus himself, he starts questioning himself about the aftermath of the murder and taking things into consideration. Also, the barber mentioned that the captain “...came to me for a shave. And I perform my work honourably…” (127). It is evident that the barber is too scared to do the dirty work for everyone else and knows how to respect the Captain as every other customer. Therefore the barber, in my opinions, is a coward. …show more content…
This proves how he is afraid to murder because he will lose his title. Also, the barber claims that “ Torres must be sweating as much as [him]....But he is not afraid.” (126). This proves that the barber was a coward because he was scared, scared of the Captain, scared of the aftermath and how people will view him. He starts wondering whether he will be a hero or murderer to the people. While he’s convincing himself not do murder him, he states that “[n]o one else deserves to have someone else make the sacrifice of becoming a murderer.” (126). The barber is obviously selfish and craven as he wonders why he should be the one killing him and dealing with all the problem when anyone could do that. He points out the advantages and disadvantages of murder, and this demonstrates how he doesn’t have enough courage to endure the
The world of English Literature captures the minds of millions of people worldwide. The stories that are read are new and old and continue to capture the attention of people even to this day. Each piece of literature can go in-depth into settings, themes, characterizations, have great styles and the thing most people enjoy... conflict. Most people don't understand or see the messages these pieces may have in them. Hidden sometimes within complex statements or meanings that the everyday person might not recollect. These "treasures" are waiting to be found and are gold waiting to be found.
Blue Bird was about fourteen. They were taken in and made to feel at home.
The main character is a boy named Ledge. In the book when someone turns 13 they will receive a special power called a Savvy. When Ledge received his Savvy, he was hoping he could impress his father by gaining the power to run really fast. Later he found out he gained the power to build and destroy objects. He was really disappointed and only thought of his father. Later he learned that running isn’t what he wanted to do, and learned that he can use his Savvy for good. He found he is a great sculptor and he can create great works of art. Ledge didn’t discover he could build at first. He thought he could only break things. He discovered he could fix things when Ledge and his cousin took his cousin’s car
Strong, self-contained, Independent, mild-mannered, and courageous are all words that come to my mind when I think about my grandmothers. These are also words that I think of when I look at other black women throughout history. Over the duration of this course I have learned about the tenacity and strength of African American Women. There are many hardships that come along with being an African American female. The trails that African American women have faced molded us into the strong people that we are today.
The book I read was Pretties by: Scott Westerfeld. This book is the second book in a trilogy. The first book is Uglies. You will understand Pretties better if you read Uglies.
"Las Papas" by Julia Ortega is a story that tries to convey a simple yet a very realistic message. The story tries to reveal the fact that how over the years, as generation changes, we lose touch to our family values, our history as well as our very own culture. Las Papas is a Spanish word for Potatoes. The story is based on a man and his son. The man tries to pass on his family culture and history to his son, which in this story is more of connected to potatoes. Potatoes in this story symbolizes the memories and history of his family and his motherland Peru. This story highlights the fact and difficulties relating to the migration of people from one country to another, the hardships they face to adjust and settle in new place and how over the course of time, in the process of
Although these last words seem full of meaning, they can be interpreted as being so vague that they are devoid of any specific rationalization. In spite of this, they have several explanations, mainly relating to his life and the choices he made. As Kurtz succinctly verbalizes the terrible visions “of ruthless power, of craven ter...
Becoming an accepted member of a country you do not feel is your home is an immaculate task that can be intangible at times. For Nadira and her family, this task proved to be more difficult than they originally thought. For this Bangladeshi family, obtaining citizenship was problematic, but after the September 11th terrorism attacks, it seemed almost impossible. Immigrants come to the United States for many reasons, including religious freedom, a fresh beginning, or tackling the American Dream. Even though it did not feel like home, Nadira, her sister, and her parents wanted to stay here because returning to Bangladesh was not the best option for them. How did Nadira find the courage to fight for her family’s acceptance in a world that is so brutal?
The short story, Ashes for the Wind by Hernando Tellez, the central conflict is focused around two groups, the all-powerful government and powerless farmers. The struggle that is going on is one that is commonly seen in poor third world countries where the government controls everything and where the people make up the complete work force. The story reveals Juan Martinez’s inner beliefs, that he is a stubborn yet proud man that will stand for everything that he owns even if that means death. Even after voting for the wrong side, Juan protects his family from the evil that is the law. Arevalo’s motivations were such that he did not stand up for the family that he grew up with. His betrayal of the political system and his father leaves Simon’s
The 1959 novel, Pocho, by José Antonio Villarreal is an insightful cultural exposition told primarily from the vantage point of Richard Rubio, the coming-of-age son of immigrant Mexican parents who eventually settle in Santa Clara, California, after many seasons of migrant farm work. Although fiction, the story likely mirrors some of the experiences of the author who was born to migrant laborers in Los Angeles in 1924 and was himself a "pocho" - a child of the depression era Mexican-American transition. ("I am a Pocho," he said, "and we speak like this because here in California we make Castilian words out of English words." p 165)
Many people would say that to be born a Mexican is to be born a Catholic. This perpetuating stereotype has forced many Mexican families to raise their children as if no other religions options even existed. In the book Pocho by Jose Antonio Villarreal a young boy by the name of Richard Rubio finds himself being raised Catholic by a traditional Mexican family. Richard, struggling to find his place in the world, has his parents religious beliefs pressed down on him forcing him to conform to a religion he does not agree with. Throughout the course of the novel the Catholic religious beliefs imposed on Richard affected his personality in many ways. By the end of the book it is clear that not allowing others to find their own spiritual calling can have drastic effects on their ability to recognize who they are. Many of the spiritual problems Richard faces in book are common to a number of Mexican children. Through the use of my personal experiences in being in a situation similar to that of Richard's, I intend to support my claim that forced beliefs may have damaging effects on a person.
First, murder as a means of revenge is unjustifiable in the short story "Just Lather, That's All" because the barber is too proud to kill. The barber loves his profession and admitted in the short story "I am a good barber, the best in the town, if I may say so." (Tellez, pg 2-3). This quote helps prove the thesis because the barber is proud to say that he is the best barber in town so he would not like to jeopardize is career to murder someone as a revenge. Secondly, the barber is too proud of his profession than to be a rebel, and has told the readers "Yes, I was secretly a rebel, but I was also a conscientious barber, and proud of the preciseness o...
Powder, a short story written by Tobias Wolff, is about a boy and his father on a Christmas Eve outing. As the story unfolds, it appears to run deeper than only a story about a boy and his father on a simple adventure in the snow. It is an account of a boy and his father’s relationship, or maybe the lack of one. Powder is narrated by a grown-up version of the boy. In this tale, the roles of the boy and his father emerge completely opposite than what they are supposed to be but may prove to be entirely different from the reader’s first observation.
A person's ability to develop is due to two factors, maturation and learning. Although maturation, or the biological development of genes, is important, it is the learning - the process through which we develop through our experiences, which make us who we are (Shaffer, 8). In pre-modern times, a child was not treated like they are today. The child was dressed like and worked along side adults, in hope that they would become them, yet more modern times the child's need to play and be treated differently than adults has become recognized. Along with these notions of pre-modern children and their developmental skills came the ideas of original sin and innate purity. These philosophical ideas about children were the views that children were either born "good" or "bad" and that these were the basis for what would come of their life.
Throughout 'The Spanish Tragedy', by Thomas Kyd, there is a constant theme of justice and revenge. Justice is the supreme law of the land; without justice, a country would fall into disrepute and those who are readily concerned with the status of society would have no grounds to stand upon. Therefore, those in power venerate justice. Revenge, however, upsets the delicate balance that holds Spanish society together. Hieronimo does his best to maintain a civil attitude towards incrimination and justice, but his plans for revenge lay waste to the very law he professes to adore. A series of carefully plotted steps, coupled with thoughts of revenge, reveals the descent of Hieronimo into madness and thereby fueling his rejection of justice.