John Smelcer's The Trap

People change main characters in many books. Johnny Tremain is no exception. In Johnny's case it was the Lyte and the Lapham families. Both the Lapham family and the Lyte family probably did not mean to change Johnny, but they did. Johnny was orphaned after his mother died but was able to stay in the Lapham's house and to be an apprentice to Mr. Lapham, an elderly silver smith who educated Johnny in this art. He was always Mr. Lapham's favorite because Johnny was the finest apprentice out of the three that were there until Dove, one of the apprentices, passed Johnny a cracked crucible. Johnny's thumb then got grown into his palm when he healed. After the injury, Mr. Lapham and the whole family found Johnny useless and queer (because of his thumb). " `Don't touch me! Don't touch me with that dreadful hand!' Issanah squealed." After then Johnny grasped the fact that he went from the top to the bottom in a matter of days. It taught him that nothing is forever. Furthermore, Mrs. Lapham a widowed mother of four, was probably the cruelest Lapham of all, after he got crippled. She told him that he was only good for picking rags. She also virtually shooed Johnny out of the house. This made Johnny go find a better life outside of the Lapham's shop. It also taught him to be independent. There is usually more than one family that changes a dynamic character like Johnny. The Lyte family also helped Johnny in his transformation. The Lyte's are Johnny's rich relatives that claim they are not related to Johnny. Johnny has a silver cup to prove his relation, but the Lytes still deny any relation to Johnny and claim that he stole the cup from them. When Johnny was first looking for a job, he thought he could go to the Lytes and ask for some money.

Johnny once was a teen who wasn't cowardly, and stood up for his gang. He was a good man in a rumble and kept his mouth shut around the police, but things changed when he was jumped by the Socs. The assault left him more anxious than ever, and ended up carrying a six-inch switchblade in his back pocket, despite that he was the most law-abiding of the gang. In addition, Johnny didn't do well in school, he had failed a year in school and never made good grades (Hinton 65). But even so, Johnny is more than a quiet, anxious kid who does poorly in school. Notably, when Ponyboy and Johnny were hiding in the church, the pair occasionally read a book called Gone with the Wind in order to pass the time. While they were reading, Ponyboy remarked, "It amazed me how Johnny could get more meaning out of some of the stuff in there than I could--- I was supposed to be the deep one... and I guess his teachers thought he was just plain dumb. But he wasn't. He was just a little slow to get things, and he liked to explore things once he did get them" (Hinton 65). This shows that he is able to comprehend the message and/or significance of a story or concept, albeit it takes him a long period of time. Although he was high-strung, quiet, and seemingly believed to be dumb by his teachers, Johnny is, in truth, quite reflective and

The climax of the story is when Miles is shot by the Bonewoman. The reader comes to realize that Miles’ choice to live life on the safe side was a mistake:

Darryl’s life is worth fighting for. “You can’t buy what I’ve got.” ‘The Castle’ directed by Rob Sitch, about one man, his family and neighbours on the verge of being homeless. Darryl Kerrigan, the “backbone of the family” won’t stand for that. Of course no one can buy what he has. He’s spent almost his entire lifetime building what he has, why should he give it up? Darryl’s way of life is simple yet filled with family values. 3 Highview Crescent is the home to Darryl, his wife Sal and their 3 children: Wayne, Steve, Tracy and Dale. (Wayne currently being in jail.) The house is made up of love, and simple family values. Darryl’s also added bits and pieces to it. He’s added on so much to the house, his own personal touch. His neighbours, also in the same bout are almost family to the Kerrigans. Jack and Farouk are another reason why Darryl’s ready to take matters into his own hands.

He knows that Ponyboy has a chance because he is very smart. How they both reacted to not having parents shaped and effected who they are. “Johnny was high-strung anyway, a nervous wreck from getting belted every time he turned around and from hearing his parents fight all the time(2).” This explains how Johnny was effected by his parents. His parents constantly fighting and beating him made him who he was. A part of him was effected by all the chaos and pain he had to go through every day. “We're poorer than the Socs and the middle class. I reckon we're wilder, too. Not like the Socs, who jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks, and get editorials in the paper for being a public disgrace one day and an asset to society the next. Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old souped-up cars and hold up gas stations and have a gang fight once in a while. I don't mean I do things like that. Darry would kill me if I got into trouble with the police.” Social roles are a part of self-image that makes a person who they are. In the novel Ponyboy explains the groups that the Greasers and Sochs were split into. This

Hutch, the main character of The Big Field, has played baseball all of his life. He has always played shortstop, the same position that his father dreamed of playing as a professional. “Hutch, had always thought of himself as the captain of any infield he’d ever been a part of” (Lupica 1). Hutch finds himself being demoted to second base because there is another player, Darryl, on his new team that is expected to go pro and also plays shortstop. Hutch struggles because he does not want to play second base and his father does not support him because he does not want baseball to break Hutch’s dreams like it did his own. Hutch is betrayed by his father and Darryl when he finds them practicing together. Hutch has to learn to adjust and eventually becomes friends with Darryl, the up and coming shortstop. He understands that if he wants to win, then he needs to work together with Darryl. His father also comes around and finally gives Hutch his approval. Students should read this book in a high school English classroom because it demonstrates how relationships can be difficult, but teamwork can help to solve many issues.

The major themes of the book are directly related to the themes which John Demos uses to tell this story. The storyline moves on though the evolution of one theme to the next. The function of these major sections is to allow the reader to relate to John Williams overall state of mind as the story unfold. By implementing these major themes into his work, John Demos make it possible for the reader to fully understand the story from beginning to end.

At the beginning of the novel, Johnny Tremain, Johnny was very proud. Proverbs 8:13 says, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” In the story, the proud youth slowly learned this lesson. In the opening, Johnny refused to be friends with the other apprentices, Dove and Dusty. He felt as if he was too good for them although he knew he could easily become their friends, for it says on page five that, “He knew his power and reveled in it. He could have easily made friends with Dove, for Dove was lonely and admired Johnny as well as envied him. Johnny preferred to bully him.” Dove was fed-up with Johnny’s boastful attitude, so when Johnny was constructing a sugar basin and asked Dove to get him a crucible, Dove gave him a cracked one...

With a new century approaching, Bruce Weigl's twelfth collection of poetry, After the Others, calls us to stand on the millennium's indeterminate edge. This book, opening with the last four lines of Milton's "Paradise Lost," parallels our departure from this century with Adam's fearful exit from Eden, beyond which is "all abyss, / Eternity, whose end no eye can reach" ("Paradise Lost"). Weigl posits that we stand at the century's uncertain gate naked, cold, and greedy; he refers often to a looming future, to give our collapsing present more urgency. We've forgotten, he says, how to love and live simply, how to write honestly and well.

Expository Essay Jon Spayde says in his book "The Unbearable Lightness of Choosing”: “Freedom of choice as we view it in America liberates and defines us, but it also has a tendency for us as separate from a broader landscape of relationships and connection. But choosing right- the right partner, the right path, the right faith, even the right product- is hardest when we feel most isolated. And we feel isolated when we are reduced to homo economicus ("economic man"), that pure subject of market research and libertarian politics, left to our own inadequate devices to do the right thing- pick the healthiest food, the safest car, the right school for our kids, the best president. The sheer volume of information, pseudo-information, and persuasion directed at us when we are in homo economics mode is simply intolerable.” Here I totally agree with Mr. Spayde as he has that explicit thought about American nation. He has defined the fact that “We feel isolated when we are reduced to homo economicus ("economic man"), that pure subject of market research and libertarian politics, left to our ...

Alexander Stowe is a twin, his brother is Aaron Stowe. Alex is an Unwanted, Aaron is a Wanted, and their parents are Necessaries. Alex is creative in a world where you can’t even see the entire sky, and military is the dream job for everyone and anyone. He should have been eliminated, just like all the unwanteds should have been. He instead comes upon Artimè, where he trains as a magical warrior- after a while. When he was still in basic training, and his friends were not, he got upset, he wants to be the leader, the one everyone looks up to.

David Malter was part of the Jewish sect that took on a more modern approach. He is very understanding, and he cares very deeply for his son Reuven. Reuven and his father's relationship would be considered healthy by most people. They love each other very much, and they have a very open communication with each other.

Brian Turner's "The Hurt Locker" captures his personal and painful experiences during his time spent in war and furthermore, express the tragic events he witnessed. Brian Turner's poem is miraculously able to gather multiple first hand accounts of tragic, gory, and devastating moments inside a war zone and project them on to a piece of paper for all to read. He allows the audience of his work to partially understand what hell he himself and all combat veterans have endured. Although heartbreaking, it is a privilege to be taken inside "The Hurt Locker" of a man who saw too many things that should not ever be witnessed by anybody. Turner's words bring to life what many have buried deep inside them which subsequently is one of the major underlying problems facing combat veterans today. Reading this poem, I could not help but wonder what the long term effects of war are on a human being, if it is worth the pain, and how does a combat veteran function properly in a society that is unfamiliar with their experiences?

In the book The Chosen, by Chaim Potok, Reuven Malter is shaped by everyone around him. During this interaction his character becomes more developed and engaging. Through the interactions, it becomes apparent that Reuven’s father is always teaching his child how to improve himself. The conversations between Reuven and his father help prepare Reuven develop the mentality and the personal qualities, such as wisdom, compassion, and tolerance, necessary to become a rabbi.

"When a trout rising to a fly gets hooked on a line and finds himself unable to swim about freely, he begins with a fight which results in struggles and splashes and sometimes an escape. Often, of course, the situation is too tough for him."