Ellen Foster
Ellen Foster is the compelling story of a young girl who is thrust into
reality at a very early age. Written by Kaye Gibbons, the novel is a
documentary of the saga of growing up. It is a recurring theme, growing
up, depicted through many events over the course of this girl^s
childhood. This growing up theme is evident through the experiences she
has, as well as the many hardships she faces.
Ellen^s awkward situation of two dead parents forces her to lose her
innocence at a young age, and mature much faster than any other person
her age. This is shown through her in-depth observations about the
world and people around her, such as ^He was a big wind up doll of a
man.^ This metaphor depicts her father, a lazy drunk who dies early in
the book, probably from alcohol poisoning. Her life with him is one of
constant fear and hatred. She blames him for the death of her mother,
who overdoses on heart medicine to escape from her life. His drinking
habits take over his life, and Ellen is left at home alone, sometimes
for days at a time, to fend for herself. This is only one of the many
hardships she must face. After her father^s death, Ellen is forced to
move from house to house. She is miserable in all of them, but they are
still better than what she had to put up with before. When she finally
does reach a house which she likes, her aunt Betsy kicks her out after
the weekend, telling her that Ellen was only meant to visit for two
days. The torment she receives is not limited to her father. Relatives
like her aunt Nadine, who blames everything her daughter Dora does on
Ellen, instead of paying her the attention and love she needs, toss her
around like an Christmas fruitcake no one wants. These ev...
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... able to quickly adapt and work
just as well and as fast as anyone else. This adds to the speed of her
maturing, and gives her time to think. This work also adds to one of
the deepest and Ellen^s most profound line in the book, ^And all this
time I thought I had the hardest row to hoe.^ This quotation shows her
understanding of the life she has come to accept. She realizes now that
although her life has been the pits, there is someone who could have
had it worse off.
Ellen^s fictional pre-adolescence, though much harsher, is
essentially the same as that of any child. She experiences the
same confusion and events as any other regular child, but to a much
greater extent. Also, she is much more aware of her emotions, and is
very capable of expressing them. All in all, her life really isn^t that
different from any other, and is a metaphor for growing up.
sufficient changes to remove her from poverty. As much as she desires to work at a job which is
Within the document Madison states, "In order to lay a due foundation for that separate and distinct exercise of the different powers of government, which to a certain extent is admitted on all hands to be essential to the preservation of liberty, it is evident that each department should have a will of its own" (Madison, The Federalist, No.52. R83). Through the quote Madison states that the government is split into branches that act as their own separate entities. By having these branches be completely separate from each other, the government can assure freedoms and liberties for the people. Madison explains how having multiple branches protects the people by stating, "It is of great importance in a republic not only to guard the society against the oppression of its rulers, but to guard one part of the society against the injustice of another part" (Madison, The Federalist, No.52. R84). Madison states that by having separate parts of the government, one part can fight against the corruption of another. Having the government be separated into parts can also keep the entire government from being corrupted instead of just a fraction of it. Madison 's paper states that having the government be separated into parts can protect the liberties of the
...latively normal and happy life with her family in their new home in Vermont by adjusting to her new mental environment.
At the age of ten, most children are dependent on their parents for everything in their lives needing a great deal of attention and care. However, Ellen, the main character and protagonist of the novel Ellen Foster, exemplifies a substantial amount of independence and mature, rational thought as a ten-year-old girl. The recent death of her mother sends her on a quest for the ideal family, or anywhere her father, who had shown apathy to both she and her fragile mother, was not. Kaye Gibbons’ use of simple diction, unmarked dialogue, and a unique story structure in her first novel, Ellen Foster, allows the reader to explore the emotions and thoughts of this heroic, ten-year-old girl modeled after Gibbons’ own experiences as a young girl.
her father, and many times she would throw herself in front of her father to keep
Thomas Paine’s Common Sense an extremely influential piece of American history that helped shaped the future of our country. It gave many reasons of why the colonies should break away from Britain and declare independence. After being published, it sold well over 100,000 copies in the first few months. Paine was able to make all the reasons of why the colonies should break away from Britain available to many people and was able to convince them that these reasons were strong and worthy. There are many points that Paine makes throughout his writings but some of the bigger points were one, that the hereditary succession that was in place at the time was unjust. Paine also feels that Britain should not have any rule over the
herself, and how she was brought up, as I think this has had a big
First published anonymously on January 1776, before the Declaration of Independence, Common Sense offered American colonists a newfangled perspective that questioned the power of the monarch government and preserved ideas of equality, representation, freedom and independence. After King George III had refused to accept the Olive Branch Petition, Paine created Common Sense, declaring that the time had come for colonists to proclaim an independent republic. Thomas Paine’s accessible writing style allowed colonists to understand his theoretical reflections in a straightforward manner. Abstaining from complex Latin and philosophy references portrayed by Enlightenment era writers, Paine created Common Sense as a homily and established biblical references to display to the people. As a means to present a distinct American political manner, Paine intertwined independence with common disagreeing Protestant beliefs.
Center stage in Kaye Gibbons’ inspiring bildungsroman, Ellen Foster, is the spunky heroine Ellen Foster. At the start of the novel, Ellen is a fiery nine-year old girl. Her whole life, especially the three years depicted in Ellen Foster, Ellen is exposed to death, neglect, hunger and emotional and physical abuse. Despite the atrocities surrounding her, Ellen asks for nothing more than to find a “new mama” to love her. She avoids facing the harsh reality of strangers and her own family’s cruelty towards her by using different forms of escapism. Thrice Ellen is exposed to death (Gibbons 27). Each time, Ellen has a conversation with a magician to cope with the trauma (Gibbons 22-145). Many times Ellen’s actions and words cause it to be difficult to tell that she is still a child. However, in order to distract herself, Ellen will play meaningful games (Gibbons 26). These games become a fulcrum for Ellen’s inner child to express itself. Frequently, Ellen will lapse into a daydream (Gibbons 67). Usually, these daydreams are meant to protect herself from the harsh reality around her. Ellen Foster’s unique use of escapism resounds as the theme of Kaye Gibbon’s Ellen Foster.
had to carry on working the family farm by herself. With the death of his
was raised by an upper-class family who resented her and did not want her, therefore
her just the way she was. He encouraged her to be what she wanted to be,
Not being able to go to college is one reason why students’ shouldn’t drop out of high school. If you want a job that requires a bachelor or master’s degree you have to go to college to get. For example; if you wanted to be a Lawyer or school teacher or a business owner you would have to pass your GED test or make the choice to finish high school (“High School Dropouts”). If you still want go to college but you drop out you have to pass your GED test to go to college. If students’ would finish high school it would be a lot easier with a diploma than trying to get your GED to go to college, because if you finish high school with a diploma and don’t have to worry about taking any test to go to college. But if you don’t pass then you can’t do anything college related.
tragedies that befell her. She is an example of a melancholic character that is not able to let go of her loss and therefore lets it t...
Rumberger, Russell. “Dropping Out: Why Students Drop Out of High School and What Can Be Done About It” (Dec 19, 2012)