The Finisher by David Baldacci, an award-winning author, is an excellent and thrilling novel. The main character, Vega Jane, is an ambitious and daring girl with more than one trick up her sleeve. She participates in the Duelem, a semiannual event in Wormwood, that has noticeable similarities to the Roman gladiatorial games. She is not unlike the gladiators forced to participate in the games but she is definitely not identical. The Roman gladiatorial games were regularly organized fights, with many people and animals forced to participate, taking place throughout the day.
Vega Jane, a 15-session old Wug, has always been told that no one can ever leave Wormwood because the Quag that surrounds it is filled with danger and death. And she always
…show more content…
Many gladiators were prisoners of war and/or criminals being brought to justice through the games but, on the very slim chance that they survived, they would be free. Cartwright (2012) explains that, “a gladiator was a professional fighter who specialized with particular weapons and fought before in large purpose-built arenas throughout the Roman Empire…” The games did not only have gladiators fight but also other people being punished by death. Hopkins (1983) adds that those who participated in the games were professional gladiators, prisoners of war, and criminals condemned to death. There were many kinds of gladiators, all specializing with different weapons and techniques. There were more than 30 kinds of gladiators, from beast fighters and horseback riders to spear fighters and mounted bowmen, indicates Alchin (2015). Men were not the only ones who could be gladiators. Andrews (2014) reveals that there were women gladiators, though rarely, and that the Roman emperors sometimes engaged in fights that took place with blunt weapons. The contestants of the games were not always men or slaves and many played in the games by
Laura Hillenbrand’s novel Unbroken incorporates the improbable life of the main character, Louie Zamperini. She introduces both the inspiring and powerful journey that Louie encounters in his life as he grows up. Hillenbrand looks to and successfully does catch the versatility of the human soul. Zamperini’s story including his involvement in World War II gives a persuasive stage in which the author demonstrates numerous qualities of Louie. Leaving readers to appreciate his courage, quality, grit and above all else, his bravery. “Confident that he was clever resourceful, and bold enough to escape any predicament, [Louie] was almost incapable of discouragement. When history carried him into war, this resilient optimism would define him.” Louie
Hope and joy can be hard to find especially when times are tough. This is a situation in Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse , the character Billy Jo and her family are living in the time of the Dust Bowl and are struggling financially . Her father is a farmer in a time where nothing grows and after an accident Billy Jo’s mother passes away. This is a big part of Billy Jo is effected emotionally and shows seems very sad. Billy Jo has to move and has to move on and find joy and hope even in tough times.
Louie Zamperini survived almost two months at sea facing starvation, extreme thirst, and shark attacks. During WWII, Louie was captured and taken to many Japanese prison camps where he was drained emotionally and physically. Though his conditions were obviously not ideal, Louie kept up his lively personality and found ways to take care of himself to survive. In the novel Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand uses both internal and external conflict to show the theme people can stand up against enemies even when the odds seemed stacked up against them.
People have goals everyday, believe it or not some people think that dreams aren't worth it. I believe that it is worth it to dream because it gives a person a goal, it makes them feel good, and it makes them stronger. I know this from The Pearl, A Cubs video, the Susan Boyle video, and We Beat the streets.
Julius Caesar is mentioned throughout the book, A Long Way Gone, many times. In A Long Way Gone, Ishmael would be reading Julius Caesar or a soldier would be reciting some of the speeches in the play. In Chapter 12 of A Long Way Gone, Ishmael is called over to talk with Lieutenant Jabati. Then, Lieutenant Jabati showed Ishmael the book he was reading, which was Julius Caesar, and asked Ishmael if he had ever heard of the book. Ishmael had read the book in school, and began to recite a speech from the book. After this happened, Lieutenant Jabati and Corporal Gadafi used emotional arguments to motivate the people in the village to stay there and support the military. Also, Lieutenant showed all the people in the village dead bodies to help
The Chosen by Chaim Potok is a phenomenal novel about two Jewish boys who live in two very discrepant worlds because of the impressions of their fathers.The Hasidic Rabbi, Reb Saunders wants his son, Danny Saunders, to perdure the family legacy and become a Rabbi. Mr. Malter, Reuven’s father, is an Orthodox Jew who is easy going about what he wants his son to do. Throughout the book, both Reuven and Danny face problems and sufferings that helped them both to become stronger and get through the hard times they faced.
It is culturally expected that as a human being’s age increases, so does the amount of control they have over their own lives. However, when adolescents are allowed to have too little or too little great amount during their formative years, it can adversely affect their decision making process. In The Walls Around Us, Nova Ren Suma crafted young adult characters who, due to either having not enough or too much control over their own lives, react violently when placed in stressful situations.
The gladiators competed against one another for the sake of public entertainment at festival games. Although some gladiators fought wild animals, the combats usually featured a pair of male human contenders. They fought in diverse styles depending on their background and how much training they had endured. Originally as captured soldiers, they were made to fight with their own weopons.
A gladiators life was far from easy. Most were slaves, prisoners of war, or hardened criminals, therefore they were not free men. Often times they were trained and forced to take part in the events, hoping for their freedom if they were to conquer their grim fate and survived for a few years (wik). This was depicted in the most recent movie GLADIATOR. In this film Russel Crowe Maximus' starts out as an army general under Marcus Aurelius, until Commudus murders his own father out of spite for his fathers loyalty to Maximus and not him. He then inherits the title of king, and condemns Maximus to a gruesome fate as a slave/gladiator. Though this doesn't sound like the ideal life, to some at the time is was an appealing, so much so that some free men degraded themselves so they could battle in the games. Was it for basic living? Possibly but more than likely it was for the Fame and Prestige of a Gladiator. These free men were known as Professional gladiators.
Many events took place at the historical Colosseum. Most of the events that were scheduled involved either death and/or destruction. A few of the events were chariot racing, the feeding of Christians to lions, and gladiator fights. At a causality rate nearly 50% died each ‘show’. The chariot racing, which was very popular with the Romans, was held at the Circus Maximus and was seen as a family event. Many people today see Roman entertainment as cruel, but not all forms of entertainment
As the main performers of the most popular entertainment in a war plagued world, gladiators are often perceived to live a very tragic, wasted life- one that is filled with risks and danger at every turn. But even so, it is an opportunity for the people to rise above social barriers and ultimately became superstars. Few emerged glorious, and those who do must face a cruel path in their everyday life. Follow along on the journey of the success and failures of Ancient Roman gladiators, as we trace the beginning of the gruesome sport, the gladiator’s daily life, hardship, as well as the stories of the l...
It is said that the Romans were known for their honor and glory as a reflection of the society they lived in. This may perhaps explain why the gladiator games were popular to the citizens, because the Romans enjoyed observing these characteristics throughout the battles. Most of the time the contestants were slaves, these individuals were bought and traded at the coliseum with the intentions of battling in these games until their death. Soldiers that were captured at the end of a battle were chained to one another as they marched hundreds of miles back to Rome.... ... middle of paper ...
In the story My Favorite Chaperone, by Jean Davies Okimoto, I believe the theme is how working together makes life's struggles easier. The characters show this theme throughout the story. As children immigrants, the main characters struggle with combining a new culture with their family culture to find a new identity without bringing shame to their family. In the story, Maya, the main character, faces issues in how to fit in with a new world in America. In this new world there are different rules and expectations while she still has to respect and follow her family's traditions and rules. This conflict is shown when Maya wants to go to a school dance, but knows her parents would never let her go especially after she gets in trouble for
But Gladiators competed much differently than professional athletes do today. Gladiators were forced to fight for the entertainment of others and were considered slaves. (“The Roman Gladiator”). Gladiators did not just fight for friendly sport either, they had to fight to the death. This made the gladiatorial games so exciting for the people watching.
Noah is the one of the main characters of The Notebook. He is the hero of this novel. Noah represents true love and true loyalty. In a way, The Notebook is similar to every modern day romance movie, and Noah represents the “dream man” that all the girls always imagine of having. The characters in movies are used to symbolize ideas, and in this novel, Noah represents true, faithful, committed love. Noah remains loyal to Allie even in the situation where he is unsure whether they will ever meet again or not.