For most everyone maturation is a process we must all undergo. For a girl at the young age of eleven, it seemed so far ahead in the future, but soon enough her mud throwing days were over. This was the life of Lyra Belacqua. Even though she didn’t get to have quality time with her family, having mud wars and making friendships with kitchen boys was the origin of Lyra’s childhood, that created the mischievous girl raised in Jordan Collage. The novel The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman, tells of a young orphan girl that gets sent away with a female scholar named Mrs. Coulter to be taken care of instead of staying in a college filled with men. After she has been with Mrs. Coulter for some time Lyra realizes that her new caretaker has been …show more content…
The more time passed the more Lyra was being hunted by Mrs. Coulter and her minions. Lyra had to remain a secret while they found out about Mrs. Coulter’s plans with the children. Later they find out that Mrs. Coulter is researching kids because as they grow up something they call dust sticks to people which is also a symbol of sin or the opposite of innocence. As Mrs. Coulter describes, “Dust is something bad, something wrong, something evil and wicked” ( 282 Pullman). Before Lyra went on the mission she thought growing up was a bad thing and didn’t want to grow up herself. Now that Mrs. Coulter is making the process of growing up doesn’t happen by cutting souls, growing up doesn’t seem so dreadful. Lyra is being exposed to all those ideas but she knows now that the natural way of life is that way for a reason. What is the point of trying to correct sin by committing a sin in …show more content…
Iorek was looking for his armor that was stolen from him by the other bears that cast him out unjustly when he was the rightful leader of all the bears. However in pursuit of his special armor and his rightful place, he unknowingly helps Lyra sharpen her best skill, lying. At the Jordan College in which her childhood was, she always told amazing tales to the other children as well as plausible lies to get out of trouble. Lyra had an amazing talent of telling clever lies on the spur of the moment. As Lyra was helping Iorek she was caught by the king of bears that wanted to become human. Using this fact against him she managed to deceive him as it states, “I can become your daemon; but only if you defeat Iorek Byrnison in single combat”(339 Pullman). A daemon is the soul of a human that takes on the form of an animal and since bears are not human they do not have a physical form of their soul. Thus in having a daemon the bear would become human in the most physical and proper way. By telling Iofur, the bear king that she was a daemon, she was able to trick him in having a fair fight with Iorek. If Iorek wins then he will get his rightful place on the throne of the bears. This may have been the biggest, most clever yet risky lie Lyra has ever told. This was when she had really started to use her skills in such a way that it became a gateway to development and courage. This
Barbarian Nurseries by Héctor Tobar is the novel not only about Latino culture, history, and immigrant right, but most importantly, the novel attempts to deliver the idea to readers about the unique perspective of the word “barbarian” of Tobar. According to the dictionary and the origin of the word, there is more than one definition of barbarian. During the mid-fourteen century, the word barbarian represents the foreign country from Latin barbaria. From 1610s, the barbarian was started to define as the rude, wild person. In the novel, the characters of barbarian are both Araceli and Scott and Maureen Torres-Thompson referring to different definitions of the word.
The way and rate that people mature at can be directly attributed to the values and beliefs of the society that surrounds an individual. It is undeniable that society’s perspective on many controversial issues will generally be adopted by the younger generations in a given society. Moreover, the exposure to significant events, coupled with the major influence of family members, can have an enormous impact on how an individual matures. Additionally, family members greatly help each other develop into moral adults by instilling in each other values that will ultimately determine an individual’s character. In Harper Lee’s timeless classic, To Kill a Mockingbird, the constant reiteration of Atticus Finch’s values, in conjunction with the exposure to significant events, assist in Jem and Scout’s maturation into virtuous adolescents.
Childhood is crucial to the lives of teenagers and young adults. The experiences, advice, influences that people receive during their formative years is what they carry with them through the rest of their lives. Any emotional turmoil during this period of growth can have serious implications on individuals as they grow older. The book, The Catcher in the Rye, and the movie, Good Will Hunting; tell about the lives of two emotionally troubled young men: Holden and Will. Both of them suffer from emotional blockades in life that are rooted in their childhoods. They both are afraid to connect with others, have little self-value, and little motivation. These complications that Holden and Will face as they mature and grow up affect them in similar ways. Through the encouragement of unexpected mentors Will Hunting and Holden Caulfield, both capable individuals, learn to dismiss the fear of attachment and overcome their disillusioned youths.
Through the three children in the story’s development, the author realistically portrays the coming of age in a world distraught with prejudice and racism. The three characters start out the start as naïve, ingenuous children, but grow up to be smart and mature by the end of the novel. Jem learns about true courage and who Boo Radley really is, a person completely contrary to his original misconceptions. Scout learns about the complacence with which a person can ignore injustices and that people are not always what the populace holds them to be. Dill learns that prevarication can lead into a very inauspicious life that can cost a human being’s life. As the characters grow up, they obtain new knowledge, learn new lessons, or understand the different aspects of life and society.
Everyone goes through different changes as they grow up. Maturing, coming of age, and doing the right thing are important themes in Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. This theme is most often seen in the character Jeremy “Jem” Finch. He portrays this theme when he begins to enter puberty and becomes a young man. Jeremy starts to become more independent, wiser and more able to comprehend adult situations; Jem begins to get a better grasp on things. Other characters that demonstrate this theme are Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, and Arthur “Boo” Radley. Harper Lee shows how Scout comes of age in similar ways to Jem. Scout begins to grow up and become more tolerant of others by “putting herself in another person’s skin”. Boo displays his “coming of age” in a somewhat different way than Jem and Scout. There’s a scene in To Kill A Mockingbird where Boo has the chance to do the right thing by putting himself in harm’s way in order to save lives, and he takes the chance. To Kill A Mockingbird is a book that is overflowing with the theme “coming of age” (whether it is shown through the main character or others). This theme is important to the story because these characters are a small example of the changes that Maycomb needs to undergo. Jeremy Finch is the character in which this theme is most represented in.
High school students in many American schools first read this book in an English class, which has been a staple for many schools. A required reading assignment exposes many more people to the book. Even though the book is considered to be a children’s book by many, it is still enjoyed by people of all ages.
Harper Lee was the youngest of four children, a situation that often made her feel it was necessary to act out: “As a child, Harper Lee was an unruly tomboy. She fought on the playground. She talked back to teachers. She was bored with school and resisted any sort of conformity” (Stark). Her sister, Alice, who was fifteen years older, agreed with this description, admitting that Harper “isn’t much of a conformist” (Shields 2). In fact, Harper tried her best to be incongruous and not blend in with the other kids. She was often thought of as a social outcast to people who didn’t know her. Countless would agree that she often acted impetuously and without thought. She had not the restraint and self control as a child should, and often caused harm t...
Scout's narration and the character's dialog prove that Alexandra is characterized by her traditional values while Miss Maudie is characterized as a modern woman. The issues of gender roles are still a large part of society today and it affects a majority of adolescents because they feel the need to conform and ignore their individualism and that is why this novel is still relevant to society today.. The lessoned to be learned here is to be comfortable in one's own skin and don't listen to negative feedback if it is not constructive.
...ities. Love is a long hard road and cannot be reached by taking a straight, clear-cut path. Even though throughout the scene Hermia and Lysander are in constant conflict, a resolution is eventually reached. Hermia and Lysander remain in love, proving that true love can prevail.
In John Connolly’s novel, The Book of Lost Things, he writes, “for in every adult there dwells the child that was, and in every child there lies the adult that will be”. Does one’s childhood truly have an effect on the person one someday becomes? In Jeannette Walls’ memoir The Glass Castle and Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner, this question is tackled through the recounting of Jeannette and Amir’s childhoods from the perspectives of their older, more developed selves. In the novels, an emphasis is placed on the dynamics of the relationships Jeannette and Amir have with their fathers while growing up, and the effects that these relations have on the people they each become. The environment to which they are both exposed as children is also described, and proves to have an influence on the characteristics of Jeannette and Amir’s adult personalities. Finally, through the journeys of other people in Jeannette and Amir’s lives, it is demonstrated that the sustainment of traumatic experiences as a child also has a large influence on the development of one’s character while become an adult. Therefore, through the analysis of the effects of these factors on various characters’ development, it is proven that the experiences and realities that one endures as a child ultimately shape one’s identity in the future.
...st in school by learning about Hitler and the horrible historical events that have happened in the world. Her maturity is expressed by what she has learned about the world around her and can apply those things to her every day life. Moreover, Scout has matured greatly in the novel and she has learned many lessons about life, family, and womanhood.
The adult world is a cold and terrifying place. There are robberies, shootings, murders, suicides, and much more. If you were to be a small child, perhaps age 5, and you were to look in at this world, you would never know how bad it actually was, just from a single glance. Children have a small slice of ignorant bliss, which helps to keep them away from the harsh of reality. It isn’t until later, when they encounter something that opens their eyes and shows them, that they truly start to understand the world we live it. Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird shows the many differences between the simplicity of being a kid and the tough decisions and problems that adults must face every day.
As a child grows, many people influence their development as a person. Some people impact more than others, and a select few really leave their mark. In Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird,” several characters play this role. Among them, Miss Maudie Atkinson, a woman who proves herself a strong character, prevails as the one who has the greatest impact on Scout Finch, the protagonist of this novel. As Scout matures and grows up, her views on the world around her change. Through subtle yet effective ways, Miss Maudie teaches Scout many life lessons about being humble, judging, and attitude, all of which ultimately have a great effect on the kind of person Scout develops into and her outlook on the world.
In her story, Boys and Girls, Alice Munro depicts the hardships and successes of the rite of passage into adulthood through her portrayal of a young narrator and her brother. Through the narrator, the subject of the profound unfairness of sex-role stereotyping, and the effect this has on the rites of passage into adulthood is presented. The protagonist in Munro's story, unidentified by a name, goes through an extreme and radical initiation into adulthood, similar to that of her younger brother. Munro proposes that gender stereotyping, relationships, and a loss of innocence play an extreme, and often-controversial role in the growing and passing into adulthood for many young children. Initiation, or the rite of passage into adulthood, is, according to the theme of Munro’s story, both a mandatory and necessary experience.
A. “Reading Little Women.” Temple University Press (1984): 151-65. Rpt in Novels for Students. Ed. Elizabeth Thomason.