In everyone’s life, there comes a time where they have to make their own decisions. In Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the Cheshire Cat tells Alice, the protagonist: “that depends…on where [she] want to get to” when Alice asks: “where way [she] ought to go” (Carroll 62). Alice learns about growing up and making decisions that impact her future throughout the story, similar to the central character in “The Taste of Melon” by Borden Deal. The protagonist initially undergoes a journey from doing unrealistic tasks to someone who thinks critically before they act. The main character begins to have a realistic outlook on the world after he steals Mr. Wills’ seed melon with the thought that crime is widely accepted. The protagonist also becomes more knowledgeable in his dealings with the world when he attempts to repair his relationship with his neighbour after making an ignorant decision. As children grow up they become more aware of others, which the protagonist realizes in “The Taste of Melon” after he steals Mr. Wills’ prized melon intended for seeds. In “The Taste of Melon”, the protagonist experiences a difficult transition from childhood to adulthood.
As the protagonist becomes more aware of the world as he grows up, he changes his idealistic view on theft from a harmless activity to an activity that causes physical and emotion harm for himself and others. As the protagonist is swimming with his friends, he contemplates taking Mr. Wills’ melon. The protagonist thinks about what his actions might cause but eventually he justifies his theft by saying “it [was not] considered stealing to sneak into a man’s melon patch” and continues to say a loss of melons is expected (Deal 131). The protagonist perc...
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In “The Taste of Melon” the protagonist experiences a transition from childhood to adulthood while learning many valuable lessons. The protagonist thinking evolves from an idealistic mindset to a realistic mind as demonstrated by his views on theft. The transition from ignorance to knowledge is undertaken by the protagonist as he mends his relationship with Mr. Wills. The protagonist begins to focus on others as he offers Mr. Wills the remaining seeds that he could find after stealing the prized melon. Coming of age is a topic that is often experienced by characters in many short stories, thus making it a popular theme.
Works Cited
Carroll, Lewis. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. London: Acturus Publishing, 2008. Print.
Deal, Borden. "The Taste of Melon." Sightlines 9. Ed. Barlow-Kedves, Alice, et al. Scarborough: Prentice Hall, 1999. 130. Print.
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Lewis Carroll, world renowned author, known most for his tale of literary nonsense published almost a century and a half ago, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Several conditions of Carroll’s life molded and shaped his writing. Evidence from Carroll’s book, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland ,one can conclude that Carroll has engraved moments from his life, people around him ,as well as his beliefs and love of logic into his story, considering these are the things that Alice Liddell would recognize.
Rhetorical Analysis of “The Pleasures of Eating” by Wendell Berry In the article by Wendell Berry titled “The Pleasures of Eating” he tries to persuade the readers of the necessity and importance of critical thinking and approach to choosing meals and owning responsibility for the quality of the food cooked. He states that people who are not conscious enough while consuming products, and those who do not connect the concept of food with agricultural products, as people whose denial or avoidance prevents them from eating healthy and natural food. Berry tries to make people think about what they eat, and how this food they eat is produced. He points to the aspects, some which may not be recognized by people, of ethical, financial and
Suffering from the death of a close friend, the boy tries to ignore his feelings and jokes on his sister. His friend was a mental patient who threw himself off a building. Being really young and unable to cope with this tragedy, the boy jokes to his sister about the bridge collapsing. "The mention of the suicide and of the bridge collapsing set a depressing tone for the rest of the story" (Baker 170). Arguments about Raisinettes force the father to settle it by saying, "you will both spoil your lunch." As their day continues, their arguments become more serious and present concern for the father who is trying to understand his children better. In complete agreement with Justin Oeltzes’ paper, "A Sad Story," I also feel that this dark foreshadowing of time to come is an indication of the author’s direct intention to write a sad story.
Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland follows the story of young Alice trapped in the world of Wonderland after falling down through a rabbit-hole. The rabbit-hole which is filled with bookshelves, maps, and other objects foreshadows the set of rules, the ones Alice is normally accustomed to, will be defied in Wonderland. This conflict between her world and Wonderland becomes evident shortly after her arrival as evinced by chaos in “Pool of Tears” and Alice brings up the main theme of the book “was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I am not the same, the next question is who am I?” (Carroll 18). After Alice fails to resolve her identity crisis using her friends, Alice says “Who am I, then? Tell me that first, and then, if I like being that person, I’ll come up: if not, I’ll stay down here til I’m somebody else” (Carroll 19). Hence in the beginning, Alice is showing her dependency on others to define her identity. Nevertheless when her name is called as a witness in chapter 12, Alice replies “HERE!” without any signs of hesitation (Carroll 103). Close examination of the plot in Alice in Wonderland reveals that experiential learning involving sizes leads Alice to think logically and rationally. Alice then attempts to explore Wonderland analytically and becomes more independent as the outcome. With these qualities, Alice resolves her identity crisis by recognizing Wonderland is nothing but a dream created by her mind.
Many have compared life to a journey over the course of which, one experiences many tumultuous changes and transitions. On this journey, the human body continually undergoes a developmental pattern of physical, mental, and social modifications. Even in the realm of literature, fictional characters inevitably follow this fate. In literature, the stage between childhood innocence and adulthood transforms characters, this is frequently referred to as "coming of age". Because all humans experience this transition, it establishes "coming of age" as a timeless universal literary theme. Among such "coming of age" novels is Lewis Carroll’s tale about a seven-year-old Victorian girl named Alice. In the novel, "Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland", Alice falls into the curious world of Wonderland. Alice assuages and manages inter-conflicts, such as her identity. Through the confusion, experimentation, and uncertainties of the Wonderland between childhood and adulthood Alice realizes in her unconscious state that she is changing from simple child into a young woman.
There comes a point in everyone’s life when they go through an experience that enables them to come to age, and transition into adolescence. In Virginia Sneve’s short story, “The Medicine Bag”, Martin learns a valuable lesson on judging others as he comes to a realization on what a true Aboriginal is. In addition, he understands that his assumptions about his friends’ attitudes were inaccurate. Martin also moves from a phase of thinking of himself solely to thinking of others, as noted when he starts to reflect on his grandfather’s feelings. The protagonist, Martin, definitely moves from childhood to adolescence, as he comes of age and changes into a more mature and knowledgeable individual during his grandfather’s visit.
This subject unifying all of the poems was chosen due to its rich symbolism and place in popular culture, as well as for its variety and commonness in daily life. Each a dramatic monologue delivered by a different character, the poems delve into characters’ psyches, each revealing the instinctual processes stimulated by a specific fruit. For instance, in ‘Cherries’, the speaker reminisces about and grieves for their lost lover, prompted by the sight of cherries being sold at a greengrocery—a fruit they would always enjoy