Habibi
Craig Thompson is an acclaimed graphic novelist whose works are “intensely personal and occasionally, harrowing autobiographical” in content (Web, The Quietus). Thompson, “born in 1975 in Traverse City, Michigan, in the USA’s parochial Midwest” (Web, The Quietus). Raised by fundamental Christian parents, “by the time Craig was a senior in high school, his future career had already been mapped out by the tight-knit church community: to enter the ministry and become a pastor or a missionary (Web, The Quietus). Fortunately, Thompson chose a different path and spoke his messages through print. In the critically acclaimed novel “Blankets”, Thompson began the telling of his youth experiences, and his own abuses suffered, in terms of his own spiritual connections, rather than those imposed on him. In continuance to “Blankets”, with a very loose and somewhat smaller autobiographical inspiration, he spent seven years writing and constructing the imagery of “Habibi”, “a visual masterwork” (Web, The Washington Post). “Habibi”, the title itself, is an “Arabic word directly
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“When the land dried up with drought, my parents sold me into marriage” (Thompson, 10). Dodola is fearful of her new husband and the physicality of the act of sex itself is unbearable, which is graphically presented through artistry, as well as through the words of her new husband as he exclaims, “you should be proud of this mark, it proves you were pure” (Thompson, 14). Adversity number one is present at this point, child abuse. Dodola becomes her husband’s student in a sense and is given the gift of being taught to read and write to tell a story, which will prove to be a blessing for Dodola in the future, as she too will becomes a “teacher” herself to Zam (habibi). After her husband is murdered and she is sold at the slave market, Dodola flees with a small boy (Zam) to the desert and their journey
largely inferior to men at the time when this story was written. The story revolves around a couple Delia and Sykes, who have been unhappily married for 15 long years. It focuses on the turning point in Delia’s life when her husband wants her to go away from his life but eventually falls in his own trap and dies.
Starting with a brief introduction about our artist, Norval Morrisseau; he is an Aboriginal Canadian who lived from 1931 to 2007, and had been raised by his maternal grandparents. They were Christian devoted, who taught Morrisseau the religion's dogma. Morrisseau
The story begins late in the evening hours with Delia industriously sorting laundry on the floor of the home she has paid for by the sweat of her brow. “Just then something long, round, limp and black fell upon her shoulders and slithered to the floor beside her” (Hurston). It is a bullwhip, a practical joke gone too far. Yet in a quick moment it causes absolute fear. The physical manifestation of Delia’s fears for her marriage, Sykes violence and philandering, have snaked their way between the two of them and will eventually destroy their relationship. Instead of
Through having contrasting views from her family, Dee began to isolate herself from her old homelife, just like the main character in Araby’s obsession with Mangan's sister caused him to be blind towards his schooling and family. Dee’s mother had no education herself because she had grown up in a time of segregation when education was not seen as an important thing for females to have. Dee was somewhat ungrateful when granted the opportunity to study. This was shown by her mother saying “‘She washed us in a river ofma ke.believe, burned us with a lot of knowl edge we didn't necessarily need to know.’” This shows that after Dee began to think she was superior to her family because of her contrasting views and education, she began to isolate herself. Dee moving away from her family and abandoning her family's morals was similar to the way that the main character in Araby began to neglect and ignore all other components of his life after becoming infatuated with Mangan's sister. His responsibilities in his life seemed far less important than his study of his crush. This was clear when he stated things such as “I wished to annihilate the tedious intervening days. I chafed against the work of school,” or “I had hardly any patience with the serious work of life.” The distraction of his love for this girl led him to isolate himself and become blind to
The first glimses of romantic love one notes in this novel are the slivers of Offred's memeories of Luke, her husband from whom she has been separated. For the most part they are sense memories--she recalls most of all images of comfort: of lying in her husband's arms, of his scent, and of little details of his appearance--but also a sense of connectedness that gives her identity. And it is this that she misses the most. "I want Luke here so badly. I want to be held and told my name. I want to be valued, in ways that I am not; I want to be more than valuable" (125-126). And yet already the person as a whole is beginning to slip away. The life she is leading now is driving him from her reality--she says, "Day by day, night by night he recedes, and I become more faithless" (346). Her love for her husband is marked with guilt and regret even in the beginning--she misses all the little characteristics about him that she never took time to appreciate when she was with him. She even misses the arguments, and wonders, "How were we to know we were happy?" (67). The memory of her love for Luke, and her guilt at betraying him with other men, especially Nick, for whom she develops genuine affection, is a significant psychological factor throughout the course...
Father Gregory Boyle’s magnificently crafted novel, Tattoos on the Herat, exemplifies how Jesus is telling us how to live our life here on Earth. Father Boyle devotes his time managing a self-produced business to redirect the lives of both men and women on the consuming streets of Los Angeles, California. Gang members visit his HomeBoy Industries in search of a new beginning, one that which involves God and compassion. Despite their territorial enemies, Father Boyle teaches and explains the importance of God in their lives, and we are all brothers and sisters on the eyes of our Creator. Father G looks beyond these gangs members previously committed sins, and gives them a new perspective of how life should really spent.
Clair. In patriarchal societies men are the superior beings, and struggles the two characters face show the amount of power men have over women. For Ying-ying, her first marriage is arranged, so she did not have a say in who she married. Much like Mohammed, Ying-ying’s first husband committed adultery with no consequences to his actions. They both also left their wives as if they had become worthless, and even in his absence in Ying-ying’s life her first husband maintained had power over her. She is unable to marry until her first husband died and even after his death he still has hold on her because their marriage left a lasting affect on her. She carried her passivity into her second marriage and passed it n to her daughter. Zahra’s husband’s ability to divorce her also made him capable of having lasting affect on her life. She now has to struggle to find her place in a society fit for men, which is difficult because she does not have the education necessary to get a job that would allow her to make “an honorable living” (Abouzeid 77). The lack of education of women living in Moroccan society makes them dependable and inferior to men, socially and economically. With these disadvantages, the two women do find a way to cope with their loss in their patriarchal societies. Ying-ying decides that it is time to tell her Lena about her first marriage and her life mistakes so
Beginning with a seed and a leaf as his inspiration, artist Marlon Griffith creates artwork for his first solo exhibition, Symbols of Endurance (Gallery Booklet, 2015). From rough sketches to large mixed media installations Symbols of Endurance showcases a wide variety of works by Griffith. In Symbols of Endurance, Griffith successfully incorporates cultural representation, showcases talent from all across Toronto, and welcomes persons with disabilities. Ultimately, Symbols of Endurance is a powerful exhibition that effectively celebrates Canada’s diverse community.
On the night Hata seeks for Sunny at Gizzi's house, the pure figure of womanhood Hata longs for vanishes before his eyes. As he watches Sunny "run her hands over herself, pressing across the skimpy shirting and down her naked thighs and up again she was moving and dancing with every suggestion, and then finally she was touching herself in places no decent woman would wish ...
With the conflict of complete opposite parent-child dynamics, Kambili compares and contrasts these two relationships and learns from each one of them to mature into a young woman. “Imagine what the Standard would be if we were all quiet.’ It was a joke. Ade Coker was laughing; so was his wife, Yewande. But Papa did not laugh. Jaja and I turned and went back upstairs, silently.” Although Papa and Ade Coker seek to reveal the truth about the Nigerian government through the Standard, the Achike children are urged not to tell the truth about their own lives. In Papa’s perspective, being a good Nigerian entails two things - exposing corruption and strict adherence to faith. Papa believes that it is his duty to deliver his country and children to heaven. He holds up both to extremely high standards. Even though he is considered a hero for fighting corruption, his actions inside his own home make him a monster as Mama, Jaja and Kambili come to realize. On the other hand, Aunt Ifeoma is very liberal towards her own children. As a result, Aunt Ifeoma’s children are confident, able to speak their own mind and inquisitive. “Morality, as well as the sense of taste, is relative.” Obiora, as the son of a university professor in African studies, is encouraged to question authority. This statement opposes what Kambili and Jaja are taught. They are only offered one path to success. This discourse is at the heart of the book. There are no moral absolutes in Purple Hibiscus. Kambili loves her father even though he abuses her and her faith remains strong even when it is used as a tool for repression. Kambili learns this on her journey. Therefore, Kambili and Jaja both mature into adults, after gaining two different perspectives on faith, religion and
Kambili is characterized by her lack of voice. She stutters and coughs and can barely rise above a whisper. Both she and Jaja are sheltered and intimidated by her father. Both children, as they mature into adults, must overcome their father. While Jaja’s rebellions are more overt – missing communion, asking for his room key, taking the blame for his mother’s crime – Kambili’s are more personal. She does not reject her faith and compassion, but rather adapts them to fit her new, more complex, worldview. Through all of their hardships, Jaja remains Kambili’s hero.
‘Blankets’ is an autobiographical graphic novel written by Craig Thompson. As a coming-of-age autobiography, Blankets chronicles Craig's adolescence and young adulthood, his childhood relationship with his younger brother, the conflicts he experiences regarding growing up in a Christian family (and with the religion) and his first love. Though written chronologically, Thompson uses flashbacks as a literary and artistic device in order to parallel young adult experience with past childhood experience. The book deals with many literary themes such as first love, child and adult sexuality, and spirituality. However all these themes are represented in the form of ‘memories’ which in itself can be characterized as the most important theme/aspect of the novel. Craig Thompson shows us how some moments in our lives create lasting effects and how it is these moments/memories that serve to mold us into the person we ultimately become.
In conclusion, Nawal El Saadawi uses symbolism in relationship to the physical appearance of the protagonist, Firdaus and who she encounters throughout the work to convey emotions. Moreover, by concentrating on the eyes as a symbol of love and trust but also fear is coupled with strong elements of language to convey to the readers how Firdaus felt and what went through her mind. Significantly, the author contrasts clean and dirty to show the intentions of the various characters of “Woman at Point Zero”, which makes the work more understandable and relatable. Lastly, the growth and development of Firdaus’ self-esteem is also depicted in the contrasting of clean and dirty but also with the power Firdaus gained when she was independent.
Her mission is to take her life and use it for the greater good of people and giving them what they deserve. Though her life is resembling the parable of the good samaritan in the book of Luke in The Holy Bible, Leah’s is being led by a new set of “rules”. As her new beginnings take charge, she finds herself feeling new emotions; romantic emotions, fighting emotions, and an overtaking amount of inspiration. This leads into the rest of Leah Price Ngemba’s life. Relieving herself of the constant struggle to gain acceptance, Leah takes a stand not only in her battle to hunt, but in the relationship with her father.( Kingsolver, 356) In the wake of her mother’s mass exodus from the Congo, Leah abandons her second chance at a modern life of dishwashers and running water to fulfill her new life ambitions in Africa. Starting this new life as a submissive wife to Anatole, taking action was practically in the vows of their marriage. From the moment Anatole reveals an interest in learning more and gives Leah a chance in this gender biased culture, he becomes a staple in her heart. He became her teacher and her student. Anatole allows Leah to shape her beliefs into her own thoughts by empowering her ideas and aspirations. He allows her to teach math at the beginning in his school and then once they move on into their married life she taught English. (Kingsolver, 280) Leah began flourishing and her ideas began to be oriented in Congolese beliefs rather
Years after their marriages fall apart through polygamy and feelings of betrayal, when Modou experiences an unexpected heart attack and is unable to be saved, Ramatoulaye decides to write letters to Aissatou who is now in the United States with her four sons. In these letters, she talks about their memories together before they were separated from one another as well as providing Aissatou with news about her current life. She first writes about Modou’s death and the forty day funeral of her late husband, but soon moves on to their lives as being married women. Keeping the main idea of the story in mind, Bâ has her talk about their marriages, starting with Aissatou. Ramatoulaye recalls how Mawdo and Aissatou were madly in love but their marriage was never accepted by the groom’s family as she was “a goldsmith’s daughter” while he was a nobleman (Bâ, 2008, p. 17). Therefore, Mawdo’s mother did everything in her power to separate the two, one of which included marrying him off to her brother’s daughter, Young Nabou, meaning that Aissatou would have “a co-wife” (Bâ, 2008, p. 31). This forced Aissatou to leave him as she did not want this lifestyle. Three years after this incident, Modou married Binetou, their daughter’s best friend without Ramatoulaye having any knowledge of it, yet choosing to stay with Modou as a