Have you ever wanted to be a superhero? In the story, “Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie, he creates an extended metaphor to show the reader the connection between superman and himself. Sherman Alexie and Superman have many similarities. They were both considered weird and strange by society. The reason for this was that Superman failed once and everybody thought he wasn't good enough. They both want to save lives together for the better. Superman and Alexie are breaking down doors, saving lives, and making sure to keep their confidence and stay strong. Superman and Alexie save lives to help people. It is superheros jobs to do that. In the text Alexie explains, “I am smart. I am arrogant. I am lucky. I am trying to save our lives.” Alexie
The quote “i read with equal parts joy and desperation “, from the passage superman and me by sherman alexie, helps to refine and develop his claims and further the story . this quote he talks about reading out of desperation ,what he means by this is that reading is the only this quote furthers the claim by emphasizing the fact that he has to learn to read to save his life.
To your average white American kid, a comic book is cheap entertainment— a leisure, a novelty. Your run of the mill issue of "Superman," perhaps the most generic superhero of all, is something to be read once, maybe even merely skimmed, while in the bathroom or the doctors' office. When finished with it gets thrown away mindlessly or tossed aside to join a mounting stack of similarly abandoned stories of fantastical heroism. However in the eyes of the young Indian boy, Sherman Alexie, as depicted in his essay, "Superman and Me," a tattered comic found in a donation bin was much more than that— it was a life line.
Intelligence is a tool a plethora of uses. It can be used to help people out or it can destroy humanity. It can also help a person in bondage find ways out of out. Ignorance is bliss but it’s easier to control a bunch of buffoons than a bevy of intellects. Reading rips open the doors to knowledge that can help break the shackles of ignorance in a way “saving lives.(paragraph 8)” In Sherman Alexie’s “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me” he tells his story of his journey through life and how reading saved his life and made him dangerous to the authority higher than him due to being able to think independently from them.
Life can have lots of obstacles. Some good and some bad. To better your life, you need to learn to overcome those obstacles. “Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie introduces that you have to push towards the goals you want in life, which will bring success and joy in the future.
The personal challenge faced by Sherman Alexie in “Superman and Me” can be described as a hardship to change the view on the American Indian, or better yet educate his people towards the path of the pursuit of knowledge despite their circumstances. Against the odds of being born in an Indian reservation and the constant struggle of poverty Sherman Alexie surpassed the stereotype, he succeeded his dream and became a successful author. Overcoming the bondage of class and the place of your birth is a common theme in my life. Coming from Latvia to the USA, a country where I didn 't speak the language and didn 't have the know how of the education system has set me behind a lot in life but I persevered and have found success in my life step by step
The pressures of society and many factors against us can at times seem impossible to overcome, however, these limitations are only the ones we place on ourselves. Whether it’s during the adolescent years as Sherman Alexie explained in “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me”, about the struggles of overcoming the stigma bound by his culture where “A smart Indian is a dangerous person, widely feared and ridiculed by Indians and non-Indians alike”, as well as having the courage to break free for his own benefit. In addition, this theme was also explored in the later years of adulthood as demonstrated in Malcolm X’s essay, “Learning to Read” where he’d become so frustrated while kept in prison, unable to quite express himself as he did
Gary Engle describes Superman as the ultimate American, “Superman is the greatest American hero” (Engle, 677). After reading three comic books I notice an occurring theme of wanting to protect what is good, even though the comic books chosen span over eleven years. Several distinct things to Superman’s personality are his cape, the respect he has for others, the respect others have for him, his intelligence, his protection of all life and what is right, his origin, and the sacrifices he makes. Superman is considered to be the greatest American hero of all time.
Sherman Alexie illustrates through the short story, “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me,” how he developed the same reading and writing skills taught in a classroom solely from a Superman comic book. Alexie’s situation was unique from not only non-Indians but Indians as well. Alexie’s family was not privileged, which was the case for most of the people who lived on the Indian reservation. They, Indians, had access to very limited resources which ceased any aspirations they had at being successful. Alexie, as a young Indian boy, was not supposed to be educated by the societal norms expressed of his era. However, Alexie refused to fall victim to a stereotypical uneducated Indian boy. As a product of an Indian reservation, Sherman Alexie informs his audience, mostly dedicated to Indian children that he did not fail simply because of the joy he had for reading and writing.
Shayne Koyczan’s poem, “For Lois,” contains many clever instances of figurative language that help to express ideas about the impact that love can have on an individual. Perhaps the most important uses of figurative language are the allusions to Superman and Lois Lane, and the irony that exists throughout the poem. The allusion to Superman brings to mind preconceived ideas about strength, masculinity, and perhaps even near invincibility. Superman is traditionally a strong character who is able to “save the day.” However, “For Lois” paints a very different picture of Superman, as in this poem the speaker (presumably Superman) expresses a deep love and vulnerability as he states, “my heart is tied to the fate of yours” and “you are my weakness,”
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” -Malcolm X. Ever wondered how difficult it might be to achieve greatness while others around you are constantly attempting to bring you down? In Sherman Alexie’s essay “Superman and Me”, the author informs the reader of the struggles he has experienced as a young American Indian boy striving for success. Alexie faces poverty and stereotypes while growing up, yet despite these challenges, he wants to learn, which shows the reader how education can be a gateway for success.
The conflict theory in this case discusses the lack of resources that are down to nearly nothing and about how the lower classes are having to constantly compete for them. It shows you how the poor are controlled by the rich. The film “Waiting for Superman” takes a closer look into the public school systems around the United States from the poorest of the poor all the way over to the suburbs. The parents of these students are obviously sending their children to school with the high hopes that they are going to excel academically, but the reality of it is that most of the children that are either born into or somehow end up in a position of poverty end up either dropping out rather than graduating. The upper class will place their children into schools where they are offered quality education. With the way that our nation is growing, I am confident in being able to say that the gap will only expand and the poor will continue to suffer in the educational department as well as others. While the lower class students in public school are failing and dropping out, the upper class students are too busy bettering their future. Our country states that “every child has a dream”, and that “no child will be left behind”. How true is that claim exactly? Yes, it is true that every child has a dream, but how many children are being left behind because they are stuck in poverty? There was one scene in the movie where the charter schools had to draw numbers just to give a child a chance at a better education. That is highly disturbing that a child has to suffer through something as humiliating as that. Our public system does not encourage academic growth, it hampers it. Over the years a lot of money has been put into trying to fix our public schoo...
One way that one’s identity is formed it by his/her surroundings. As one lives life, he/she gains influences from others around them. As shown in Sherman Alexie’s “Superman and Me”, Alexie says, “My father loved books, and since I loved him with an aching devotion, I decided to love books as well” (1). Since his father loved books and Alexie loved books, Alexie has been influenced by his father who is part of Alexie’s surroundings. Later in Alexie’s story, he shows that as a native american, he is expected and ceremonially accepted if he fails school (1). His culture was a big influence on his identity because he did not want to fail school, so he defied the expectation of failure. One’s identity is created partly through one’s actions, which are influenced by one’s surroundings, showing that identity is
that's what heroes do," Superman inwardly responds, thinking about the lives that he has saved over the years; he knows for a fact that many of them wouldn't save his. "You stand up and do what's right, without conforming to what other people would do. That's what makes being a hero so special. Being apart of something greater than yourself or your family is a good way to live, believe it or
Waiting for Superman is a 2010 documentary that focuses on the wrongs and solutions to the education system that has been instilled in America. The film features Geoffrey Canada and his importance is obvious but at the same time completely obscured. Michelle Rhee takes a front in this documentary as both the hero and the villain, in the sense that in order to fix what has been wronged she has to make choices and decisions that others view as unnecessary. The documentary itself focuses on the lives of those the education systems has wrong which include 5 children (Anthony, Daisy, Francisco, Bianca and Emily) who in some way, shape, or form have need the education system to save them and give them the kind of education that they need. We follow
In this essay we will be comparing the two short stories from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie "The Thing around Your Neck" and Raymond Carver "Are These Actual Miles". In these two short stories we will be exploring how both the authors challenge relationships and how different consequences have huge effects on them. Also differences of cultures influence conflict between one another. Adichie looks at the cultural clash between America and Africa. Carver focuses more on materialism and the breakdown of relationship due to bankruptcy.