In Rolando’s novel, Rites and Witnesses, there are many intriguing characters that are very complex despite the dialogical writing style used. Although there are only conversations and recorded testimonies, these characters reveal a lot about themselves through their words. One of the most notable witnesses is John F. Goodman. John Goodman is a unique character in how not only is he calmer and rational while presenting his views, but gives more detail about racial tensions through the stories he unveils about Klail City’s hate crimes. At the very beginning of his narrative John announces that he is seventy-four years old, which happens to make him the oldest person in witnesses section of the novel. His elder status is even portrayed through his storytelling, which happens to be quite repetitive in the first paragraph. This gives the impression that he is having trouble remembering as he keeps revisiting the fact that he had known George (Choche) Markham for many years. …show more content…
Army veteran and having witnessed and participated in much violence, John Goodman is actually a very peaceful man. Unlike many of the other witnesses who immediately begin listing the many reasons why they dislike Mexican people, John never mentions them as a problem. Other witnesses make it a point to curse and express their rage through profanity, but John uses a tone that is a lot less aggressive. During his discussion, he makes it a point to bring up the fact that he is married to a Mexican woman and even learned some Spanish during his time in Texas, which is proven throughout his narrative. At several points during his testimony, he adds words like “montón”, “camada”, “concuños”, and “bulto.” This can be seen as a major contrast in comparison to Rebecca Ruth Verser, who claimed that she hated Spanish language and wished that it would only be spoken in Mexico. With this, it can be assumed that John is more accepting to the Mexican culture than other people in the
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown,” and Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” utilize character responsibilities to create a sinister plot. For Hawthorne, protagonist Young Goodman Brown must leave his wife at home while he partakes in a night journey. For Poe, ancillary Fortunato covets a pretentious manner towards his wine tasting skills, and after being ‘challenged’ decides to prove his expertise by sampling Amontillado. Hawthorne and Poe showcase a theme of darkness but differ in their approach to the setting, characters, and fate of entrapment.
In John Demo's book, Mr. John Williams the main narrator uses four types of writing and one other last section to tell his story of captivity. The four parts are in chronological order: First the pastoral letter he wrote to those c...
A unique word choice introduces this essay, causing readers to be misguided. Staples begins by saying “My first victim was a woman…”(383). This choice of words obligated our minds to perceive this man as a criminal who was about to tell us his story. Staples allows himself to be portrayed as such a horrible person because that is exactly what people viewed him as. He uses self-blame as though he has accepted the fact of reality that he was viewed as a criminal and always will be. It seems as though he wanted to mislead us as readers so we would make the same mistake others did. A feeling of great guilt is created for judging this man that we barely knew. In such a simple way, Staples creates an ...
The society in question is refuses to reciprocate the equality envisioned by the narrator and without any intention of compliance continually uses this man to their own advantage. It is not only this exploitation, b...
The narrator’s father is being freed from slavery after the civil war, leads a quiet life. On his deathbed, the narrator’s grandfather is bitter and feels as a traitor to the blacks’ common goal. He advises the narrator’s father to undermine the white people and “agree’em to death and destruction (Ellison 21)” The old man deemed meekness to be treachery. The narrator’s father brings into the book element of emotional and moral ambiguity. Despite the old man’s warnings, the narrator believes that genuine obedience can win him respect and praise.
The narrator is haunted by his grandfather's dying words. Speaking to the narrator's father, the narrator's grandfather expresses his guilt and shame he is burdened with for being “ a traitor” to his race. The narrator's grandfather urges his family to kill the white man with kindness and obedience. After his grandfather's death, the narrator is invited to give his graduation speech to the city's upper-class white men. His speech is contradictory to his grandfather's last words by urging the black race to advance forward in society by humility and submission to white society.
This book is also one of the first non-fiction books that I’ve had to write a reaction about. I thought it was going to be difficult to write about a non-fiction book, especially this one, as most non-fiction books are more stories and character development and not cut-and-dry fact. Although this was a non-fiction account, the personal accounts Bales used (such as that of Ronald in Mato Grasso [Bales 127]) did have characters with personal stories, which made it much easier to both relate to the book as a reader and write about the book as a student. These small stories also gave me, as a student, more substance to write about then just numbers and statistics. Overall, Bales did an astounding job mixing those two separate entities, the statistics and the personal, to forge a lasting account of a fairly unknown problem in today’s world. Bales is desperately trying to enlighten the world about slavery, and with this novel, he is well on his way.
When reading Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” or Herman Melville’s “Bartleby the Scrivener,” the audience might notice how they are stories of men who become detached from the society after a notable change in how they act towards the world. However, while Bartleby’s disconnection stems from work-related changes, Young Goodman Brown’s disconnection is caused by a “spiritual” experience. I want to focus on how many things these characters have in common, to show what may have caused their change of view in the societies around them.
Finally, through symbolism the novels truly come alive. The symbolism present gives the reader a clear depiction of the cruelty that is to befall both men. It is truly tragic how close these horrific stories are, a sad testament to dark chapters in time honored establishments, American economy and Christian missionaries. If these are the consequences of such highly thought of establishments, is there anyway to stop oppression from overcoming the world? It tends to make one think.
is happy to speak his mind. Early on we discover that in fact John had
The author’s purpose is to also allow the audience to understand the way the guards and superintendent felt towards the prisoners. We see this when the superintendent is upset because the execution is running late, and says, “For God’s sake hurry up, Francis.” And “The man ought to have been dead by this time.” This allows the reader to see the disrespect the authority has towards the prisoners.
McCabe, Michael E. “The Consequences of Puritan Depravity and Distrust as Historical Context for Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”.”
Raymond Carver’s short story, “Cathedral,” portrays a story in which many in today’s society can relate. We are introduced from the first sentence of the story to a man that seems to be perturbed and agitated. As readers, we are initially unsure to the reasoning’s behind the man’s discomfort. The man, who seems to be a direct portrayal of Raymond Carver himself, shows his ignorance by stereotyping a blind man by the name of Robert, who has come to stay with he and his wife. From the very beginning, Carver shows his detest for Robert but over the course of the story eases into comfort with him and in the end is taught a lesson from the very one he despised.
The unnamed narrator of Raymond Carver’s “Cathedral” poses as an unreliable narrator for his unaccepting nature towards blind people along with his ignorant perception of many realities in his life that Carver presents for the reader to take into question. The narrator holds prejudice against Robert, a blind man whom the narrator’s wife worked with ten years earlier and eventually befriends. Unperceptive to many of the actualities in his own life, the narrator paints an inaccurate picture of Robert that he will soon find to be far from the truth.
Compare /Contrast and describe the changes, if any, that occur with Victor as a result of this encounter with Thomas (“This is what it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona”) and with the narrator of Carver’s “Cathedral and “Robert—the blind man.” When discussing “Cathedral,” please don’t forget to talk about the narrator’s wife, as she is crucial to the story. Consider: How does one character teach the other, and what does one learn from the other? How storytelling/art forms important in each work? How do disabilities (real or metaphorical), loss of identity, and alienation figure into each story? Marshal quotes from texts as necessary.