What happens when a rich white woman from Georgia is taken hostage by a native group that has never seen a person with skin color that contrasts theirs? The aftermath is the death of a baby in the womb and a power struggle that would haunt the land of New Guinea for many years to come. In Outlaw by Ted Dekker, Julian Carter’s hope of starting a new life with her newborn baby, Stephen, is cut short when her boat is destroyed in a storm and she is abducted by an unknown group of natives known as the Tulim. Now surrounded by people who treat her as if she weren’t even human, Julian has to focus on her one and only chance of escaping the valley: to convince the natives that she can give them a child that will rise to be the warrior that they have …show more content…
When Julian is “put on trial” in front of all three tribes, native chiefs Kirutu and Wilam seemingly agree to have her put to death due to the color of her skin, as they have never encountered a white woman and immediately consider her a threat. However, before Julian is carried out to be executed, she pleads her case and tells them that she is capable of conceiving a child; the warrior that they have been waiting for. After hearing this, Wilam states something that leaves the entire valley shocked: “No, Kirutu. The white woman is mine. But her song and her dance are from the spirits, a great gift for this great day.” (Dekker 148). This shows that Wilam has gone against the law that he has lived by his whole life. Not only has he dismissed the sin of Julian’s existence within the Tulim valley, but he has also stated that she is his new wife. Wilam blindly disowned the customs that enforced his way of living in the hope that Julian may produce the warrior that has been predicted to save them from the darkness of human savagery. In addition to the possible birth of the highly anticipated warrior, Wilam would also increase his rule over the land as he would be considered the father of the savior. While Wilam prepares to face the consequences of his decision, the son of Julian is …show more content…
After being captured by Kirutu, Julian learns that her son Stephen, whom she presumed was killed in the boat crash, is still alive. Although this is good news, she also realizes that her son will have to grow up alongside the Tulim; a stark fate that she would never wish upon anybody. In order to secure her son’s future, she agrees to surrender to Kirutu as long as he hands Stephen off to a mysterious figure known as the Nameless One. Even though Julian knows very little about the Nameless One, she overwhelmingly trusts that he will do a better job in raising Stephen than any of the Tulim natives. Eighteen years after Julian sacrificed herself for Stephen, the Nameless One explains to Stephen why they are different from both the Tulim and the average human being: “You are Outlaw, dead to the laws of separation and death that cause insanity.” (Dekker 233). This shows that the way Stephen is being raised by the Nameless One is very different from any other culture worldwide. After taking Stephen under his wing, the Nameless One has raised Stephen to be a clairvoyant. Through his teaching, the Nameless One has shown Stephen how to be connected with all of the parts that make up a person: the physical body along with the omnipotent mind. Stephen is aware that there is more to life
To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic novel written by Harper Lee. The novel is set in the depths of the Great Depression. A lawyer named Atticus Finch is called to defend a black man named Tom Robinson. The story is told from one of Atticus’s children, the mature Scout’s point of view. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, the Finch Family faces many struggles and difficulties. In To Kill a Mockingbird, theme plays an important role during the course of the novel. Theme is a central idea in a work of literature that contains more than one word. It is usually based off an author’s opinion about a subject. The theme innocence should be protected is found in conflicts, characters, and symbols.
Although the main character in the book was white, the author, Sue Kidd, does a great job of depicting the African American culture during the time. Whether it was Rosaleen getting beat up in jail, or Zach dreaming of being a lawyer, this book showed you what it was like being a minority during a time when rights where still being fought for. One of the smaller conflicts in the story was a man verses man conflict, when Lily and Zach started to like each other. Though they knew that a colored man, and a white girl could never be together, they both were attracted to each other. Were they not from different cultures, people would have been fine with them dating, but because Zach was black, it couldn?t work out.
In a country like the United States of America, with a history of every individual having an equal opportunity to reach their dreams, it becomes harder and harder to grasp the reality that equal opportunity is diminishing as the years go on. The book Our Kids by Robert Putnam illustrates this reality and compares life during the 1950’s and today’s society and how it has gradually gotten to a point of inequality. In particular, he goes into two touching stories, one that shows the changes in the communities we live in and another that illustrates the change of family structure. In the end he shows how both stories contribute to the American dream slipping away from our hands.
The symbolism of the color black in literature, has a strong connotation that involves intricate depths and brings realization to the surface. In All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy, Alejandra embodies the characteristics of black, including mystery, power, and unintentional cruelty. Within the context of each passage and action of this character, the color black has a more complex and intricate meaning. McCarthy’s use of characterization, imagery, and point of view reveals the importance of symbolism and how it effects themes such as Romanticism versus Realism, and Masculinity versus Femininity.
Living during the early nineteen hundreds was not easy for African American women. Women gained power through marriage, but they still were looked down upon and treated like slaves. In the story “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” Zora Neale Hurston uses diction, symbolism, and foreshadowing to reveal how Janie sought to discover her own identity marrying three different men who helped her discover her independence leading to the fact that women were poorly treated during this time period and deserved more respect than they received.
I chose to read the novel The Whiskey Rebels by David Liss. This story is told from two very different points of view and takes place in Philadelphia and the Western frontier between the years 1788 and 1792. The novel starts off with the point of view of Ethan Saunders who was a spy for George Washington during the war but who is now viewed as a disgrace because of rumors that he committed treason during the war. One day while he is at a bar he gets news that Cynthia Pearson who was to be his fianceé many years earlier, asked him for help finding her missing husband Jacob Pearson. He only agrees to help Cynthia because he still loves her. In
The story in 1 Kings 19:1-21 is the conclusion of Elijah’s ministry. Because of this, the author introduced the characters in previous chapters. In order to gain an understanding of the characters in the context of the narrative, prior chapters must be consulted. The main characters of the story are Elijah and Yahweh, surrounded by other lesser characters in this specific narrative.
After reading three different stories by three different authors, there are many similarities shared that are woven in these stories. Andrew Solomon’s Son, Beth Loffreda’s Losing Matt Shepard and Susan Faludi’s The Naked Citadel have similar themes relating to society’s tendency to not accept gender or sexuality. Son is about Andrew Solomon’s search for identity and being forced by society and his parents to become someone he is not. Losing Matt Shepard showed us how media affects society into thinking a certain way and having set images on what homosexuals should “look” like. The Naked Citadel showed us how society still has a clear gender bias. What these three stories have in common is the blatant hypocrisy of society and the human mind.
she became Father Damien. This calls into question how important an identity Sister Cecilia is
In the short story, “Hills like White Elephants”, by Ernest Hemingway, is based on determination to abort a child. Hemingway introduced the readers to Jig a naïve girl, who lacks self-confidence and an American man who is self-indulgence. Jig and her partner made an adult decision to conceive a child, but are not capable of keeping the unborn infant. Jig is in a position of contemplation, where she has to decide her own seed over infatuated love because she does not want her decision to affect their relationship. The man she has unconditionally love for does not condone to her pregnancy. The American man specifies the abortion as a “simple operation”. He tries to persuade Jig into the operation, but does not realize life will not remain the same after the surgery is complete. Hemingway helps readers visualize the situation of abortion by comparing Jig pregnancy to the scenery and fictitious objects.
In this novel, Rich Marshall who is also an antagonist meets a woman who has an African American kid who he mentally bullies so bad that she thinks she is the “wrong color”.
Escaping poverty was one of the themes of “A Raisin in the Sun.” The family’s chance of escape becomes a reality when a $10,000 check arrives in the mail. Everyone is wanting to spend their money for their own dream, each with their own way of escaping poverty. Walter believes that investing all the money into the liquor store will put the family higher in the ranks while earning them more income, therefore they would no longer be poverty-stricken. He believes money is everything and wants his family to have the best. This can be seen when he tells his son, “[without even looking at his son, still staring hard at his wife] In fact, here’s another fifty cents…Buy yourself some fruit today – or take a taxicab to school or something!” (pg 1.1.59).
Death can both be a painful and serious topic, but in the hands of the right poet it can be so natural and eloquently put together. This is the case in The Sleeper by Edgar Allan Poe, as tackles the topic of death in an uncanny way. This poem is important, because it may be about the poet’s feelings towards his mother’s death, as well as a person who is coming to terms with a loved ones passing. In the poem, Poe presents a speaker who uses various literary devices such as couplet, end-stopped line, alliteration, image, consonance, and apostrophe to dramatize coming to terms with the death of a loved one.
Robert, the story of the Prodigal Son is very unique, and based on your outlined; you will be exposing some underline theological concepts and interpretation that will assist the readers in understanding the content of the text. My thoughts does operate with Dr. Klauk comment regarding your thesis, however, may I suggest some things that helped me: First, your thesis statement must take a position? Second, you must be specific. Your thesis must consist of one to two sentences. This will help you in being more precise. Third, it must convey one main idea. Lastly, it should spark some form of discussion. In reading some of your past threads, you are were very analytical. I know that God is going to reveal to you a thesis statement that will
As Stephen grows, he slowly but inexorably distances himself from religion. His life becomes one concerned with pleasing his friends and family. However, as he matures he begins to feel lost and hopeless, stating, "He saw clearly too his own futile isolation. He had not gone one step nearer the lives he had sought to approach nor bridged the restless shame and rancor that divided him from mother and brother and sister." It is this very sense of isolation and loneliness that leads to Stephen's encounter with the prostitute, where, "He wanted to sin with another of his kind, to force another being to sin with him and to exult with her in sin.