Paul E. Johnson, with the help of painstakingly thorough research, tells the story of a drunken, deviant, death-defying daredevil that would create his own fame from his many daring stunts. This daredevil, Sam Patch, would become an American icon through folklore and storybooks for his magnificent jumps from the tops of waterfalls into the waters below. The book begins with a look into Sam Patch’s lineage. The most important of Sam’s ancestors’ was his father, whom was a drunkard and ultimately a failure to the family. He lost everything and left the family to fend for themselves. As a young boy, Sam began working in a mill, where he eventually became one of the best “mule spinners” in the town of Pawtucket. It was there that he and a group of other young boys his age began jumping over the Pawtucket Falls, a large waterfall in the town. They treated it like an art, and eventually became known throughout the town for their refined “style.”
In his twenties, Sam Patch had made a name for himself as among the best mule spinners around, and in his mid-twenties, he left Pawtucket and “reappeared in Paterson, New Jersey- twelve miles west of New York City…a bigger factory town than Pawtucket…” (Johnson, 41). Paterson was well known for being the site of Passaic Falls as well, which would play a large role in Sam’s life. He began work at one of the mills as a high-ranking mule spinner for a man named Thomas Crane. Thomas Crane eventually began making his workforce mad by moving dinner hour forward an hour, treating the workers poorly, etc. He also began construction of a building on the river that the Passaic Falls are on, and right next to the falls as well. This was an outrage to many of the workers, as they used the area around the f...
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...elebrity, starting in the rural countryside of South Carolina with little education to becoming a president of the United States of America (Foner, 379).
Sam Patch, the Famous Jumper does an excellent job of tracing Sam Patch’s life from birth until death. The details that are included in it is exhaustive, and almost unnecessarily so. Every facet of Sam Patch’s life, every character that he meets, everywhere that he goes, Johnson does a phenomenal job of providing details for all of them. The only limits of the book were the ones that history created, and not the author (lack of relevant records, false information, etc.) However, the book does become too thorough at times, and it becomes tedious and tiring to read. As an account of the life of Sam Patch, however, Johnson would have a very difficult time creating a better, more detailed account of this American icon.
Out of the 43 presidents that have served for the United States, the most recognizable and exceptional president by far was Abraham Lincoln. Through childhood, Lincoln seemed always interested in politics, not knowing how much publicity and significance he would get. The three authors of the Grace Bedell and the President’s Beard, Lincoln’s Famous Address, and The Rise of a President all agree with the fact that Lincoln was a fanonimal president. During just four years of office, Lincoln made a memorable picture for himself, led a war between many different parts of the U. S., and made one of the greatest speeches the nation has ever seen.
Life is like an ascent, the more you climb, the higher you will get. J. C. Burke skilfully undertakes this philosophy as a source of inspiration for ‘The story of Tom Brennan’. It is not another crazy adventurous tale with a heroic storyline that seems unrealistic; the novel is about individual representation as Burke insightfully illustrates the long and slow journey of Tom Brennan, navigating through his road of self-discovery that eventually leads to his destination and achieves his “ticket out of the past” (Burke, pg 182).
West Virginia is stereotyped as a poor state, a state that suffers badly from poverty. Most people fail to see the positive things about West Virginia, such as their beautiful environment that allows great vacation places that are always neglected along with minerals and goods that are produced throughout the United States of America and used worldwide. Although, West Virginia is stereotyped as a poverty based state, it has much to offer.
Born December 29, 1808; Andrew Johnson embarked on a political campaign that watched him rise from absolute destitution to the heights of President of the United States. Andrew Johnson was born in a log cabin in Raleigh North Carolina.(1) His parents Jacob and Polly were both illiterate, hence, Andrew had basically no education during his youth. Jacob Johnson, Andrew’s father, passed away when Andrew was quite young, leaving Polly to take care of Andrew and his brother William four years his senior.(2) With next to no money, Polly Johnson did the only thing she could to make ends meet.
John Calvin Coolidge, soon to be the 30th president of the United States, was born on Independence Day, 1872 in Plymouth Notch, Vermont. His father, who was also named John Calvin Coolidge Sr. was a hard working farmer, storekeeper, and businessman. Coolidge Sr. cared for his son after his wife died of tuberculosis when Calvin was just twelve. Abigail Grace Coolidge, Calvin's younger sister died when she was just fifteen, a few years after their mother had died. After Coolidge graduated Black River Academy, he went on to study law at Amherst College, Massachusetts, then passing his bar exam in 1897, which is an exam students must take before they can become attorneys. A year later after his bar exam, he opened his own law office in Northampton where he handled real estate deals (land and buildings) and bankruptcies. He gained reputation for being a hard working man and solving problems his own way --by staying out of court. Shortly after, he married Grace Anna Goodhue, a teacher at Clarke School for the Deaf. They had two sons, one of which was Calvin Jr., who passed on from an unt...
In the Maclean family, fly-fishing was portrayed as the link that brought the father closer to his two sons. Not only did the family strongly believe in their Presbyterian values, but they believed that fly-fishing was an important way to release their frustrations and just relax together every Sunday after church. In Norman Maclean’s novella, A River Runs Through It, a sport that started out as a hobby transformed into a tradition that brought discipline and structure into a family that seemed as though they would never be able to get along. In everyone’s life there is one activity that brings him or her these same feelings and emotions, it is just up to them to find it.
In the novel, A Hero’s Journey, Joseph Campbell, an American mythologist, writer, and lecturer, states that “every decision made by a young person is life decisive. What seems to be a small problem is really a large one. So everything that is done early in life is functionally related to a life trajectory” (Campbell). In mythic criticism, the critic sees mythic archetypes and imagery connecting and contrasting it with other similar works. Certain patterns emerge, such as a traditional hero on a journey towards self actualization. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer portrays this hero’s journey. The protagonist of the novel, Chris McCandless, hitchhikes to Alaska and walks alone into the wilderness, north of Mt. McKinley. He had given $25,000 in savings to charity, abandoned his car and most of his possessions, burned all the cash in his wallet, and invented a new life for himself. He thought that the reality of the modern world was corrupt and uncompassionate, so he went on this journey in order to find a life of solitude and innocence that could only be expressed through his encounters with the wild. During this ambitious journey to find the true meaning of life, Chris McCandless exhibits a pattern like the type explained above. In Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, Chris McCandless follows this mythic pattern, seeking to be the traditional hero who spurns civilization, yet he discovers that modern heroes cannot escape their reality.
In conclusion, the biography of Sam Houston was a very interesting and informative read. Campbell did a great job of informing the reader of Houston’s achievements. This book is definitely an easy read to follow thanks to the style that Campbell approached in writing this book. This biography gave an insight on Houston’s life that not many people had known from their past history classes.
Sam Houston was as legend reports a big man about six foot and six inches tall. He was an exciting historical figure and war hero who was involved with much of the early development of our country and Texas. He was a soldier, lawyer, politician, businessman, and family man, whose name will be synonymous with nation heroes who played a vital part in the shaping of a young and prosperous country. He admired and supported the Native Americans who took him in and adopted him into their culture to help bridge the gap between the government and a noble forgotten race. Sam Houston succeeded in many roles he donned as a man, but the one most remembered is the one of a true American hero.
Jon Krakauer, fascinated by a young man in April 1992 who hitchhiked to Alaska and lived alone in the wild for four months before his decomposed body was discovered, writes the story of Christopher McCandless, in his national bestseller: Into the Wild. McCandless was always a unique and intelligent boy who saw the world differently. Into the Wild explores all aspects of McCandless’s life in order to better understand the reason why a smart, social boy, from an upper class family would put himself in extraordinary peril by living off the land in the Alaskan Bush. McCandless represents the true tragic hero that Aristotle defined. Krakauer depicts McCandless as a tragic hero by detailing his unique and perhaps flawed views on society, his final demise in the Alaskan Bush, and his recognition of the truth, to reveal that pure happiness requires sharing it with others.
President Carter entered office with a humble but solid background. He grew up on a peanut farm in Georgia but continued on to serve in the Navy and become the Governor of Georgia. President Carter studied at Georgia Southwestern College and Georgia Institute of Technology before transferring to the United States Naval Academy and earning a Bachelor of Sciences Degree in 1946. He also did graduate work involving reactor technology and nuclear physics at Union College. The topics he studied were very relevant to the energy issues he conquered during his presidency. After serving in the Navy for 7 years and frequently moving to better positions, President Carter was elected to serve as a member on the Georgia State Senate. He made many advances in the quality of education for all children. However, he made many more changes once he was elected as Governor of Georgia. First, he launched a statewide kindergarten program and made strides to improve education for mentally handicapped children. As Governor, President Carter also promoted equal rights for women and all races. His great actions as Governor gave him experience to become an effective President and make changes to improve the gover...
The Long Walk has become something of a national pastime in America where every year, hundreds of teenage boys apply to compete. Only a hundred boys are selected to try to be the last man standing. The winner receives anything they could ask for. We experience The Long Walk through the eyes of sixteen year old Ray Garraty. We see firsthand (or sometimes the fallen ones name is murmured slowly along the lines that remain standing) as one by one, the contestants fall from exhaustion, pain, mental anguish, or because they simply fell below the required 4mph speed. He makes friends with several and is forced to see them fall to the hail of bullets when they’re given their third and final warning.
After finishing his schooling, LBJ took his first steps in the political world. At a state railroad commission meeting, a former governor, Pat Neff, never showed up to give his speech. This gave LBJ an opportunity of a lifetime. LBJ stood up with great confidence and made a speech for him, showing his skills in public speaking. The speech, although generic, had a great affect on his political career. His initiative gave him his break into politics because a man by the name Welly Hopkins. After hearing the speech, Hopkins felt Johnson was a bright man and appointed him manager of his campaign. Later he recommended him to Richard Kleberg, who was a federal representative for the state of Texas. This was his passage into Washington. As secretary for Kleberg, he did most of the work and worked his way on up the government ladder to become President of the United States. These factors of initiative, ...
Abraham Lincoln was an intricate yet prosperous person, shown through his movement from poverty to politics. Lincoln was born to poverty in Kentucky in 1809 and settled in Illinois at the age fifteen. He was captain of the militia in Illinois during the Black Hawk War of 1832 and served four terms as a Whig in the state legislature and in Congress, from 1847 to 1849. Lincoln strayed away from politics for a little while to return to law but his interest rekindled as a result of the Kansas-Nebraska Act .
American success history recognizes the contributions made by two of its renowned leaders. The two are regarded as heroes despite the obvious differences between them abound. The two figures are regarded with comparable amounts of reverence even though they lived their lives in different ways. Nevertheless, both Benjamin Franklin and Fredrick Douglas gained their status through treading pathway of hard work. This paper, therefore, seeks to discuss the experiences that shaped the lives of both Franklin and Douglas. It also seeks to analyze the life of Fredrick Douglas as presented by John Stauffer. In comparing the two personalities, I will lay much emphasis on the role education played in making better the lives of Franklin and Douglas. In this regard, it is worth noting that although their education was not that formal, it shaped their lives immensely. Franklin education, for instance, came while working under his brother James as an apprentice printer during his teen years. On the other hand, Douglas’s tale is much bleaker, but it depicts the use of wits coupled with natural talent to pull oneself to a respectable stature (Zafar 43). It is clear that Franklin persuasive rhetorical skills, which came in handy, in writing and oratory skills were natured by induction to printing apprenticeship as well as a great access to a variety of books. Critiques in later years would argue his love for books and learning made Franklin become an accomplished speaker, thinker, author, and a statement. In a nutshell, access to books and love for learning shaped Franklin’s Character to a great extent.