That Was Then, This Is Now

676 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Economic factors leading to poverty

That Was Then, This Is Now

1.The perceive that were having a rough time financially because of their constant obsession with hustling, petty and sometimes not so petty crimes. The first clue was how the pair couldn¡¯t They were also very serious about their hustling and stealing. Judging by the way they scope out the vulnerable people and the amount of time they spend doing it, it seems they¡¯re not doing this for the fun fooling and scamming people. (¡°Mark, who was scouting out the two guys playing pool, came up and sat down to say there ain¡¯t nobody here to hustle. Pg.10). Since they spend a lot of time stealing and hustling it sends the message that they need a lot of money as soon as possible and that the little that they have is quickly running out. In fact, the very first and last paragraph in the first chapter was all about how Bryon and Mark are planning to go to the pool hall and hustle (¡°Mark and me went down to the bar/pool hall about two or three blocks away from where we lived with the sole intention of making money.¡± Pg.9).

When Bryon was unable to pay for a coke and the fact that he only had a dime on him suggested that he didn¡¯t have much money (page 10). Also, when Mark told bartender Charlie to charge it to his bill, it demonstrated that the boys didn¡¯t have a steady flow of money and that they were going from steal to steal just like how some people live from paycheck to paycheck.

Bryon mentioned that his mother was in the hospital and had to have a very expensive operation. It was so expensive that they had to sell most of the little that they had. Including their transportation, a probably cheap and old Chevy; their television; and practically anything they can live without. Yet they are still short of money and the boys are forced to find jobs. Especially Bryon because what he made from hustling wasn¡¯t enough and he didn¡¯t like to still anything other than a pack of cigarettes. Bryon ended being unable to contribute as much as he wished when he said he had an extremely difficult time finding a job.

2. Bryon has trouble with authority because of a bad personal experience with them. Bryon was beaten by two cops who found him drunk and took him to a remote area and left him there afterwards.

Show More
Related

  • What´s The Great Gatsby The Great American Novel?

    595 Words  | 2 Pages

    This novel depicts greed on several occasions through out the novel. One example of this is when Gatsby is left twenty five thousand dollars by Dan Cody as a legacy, but from what one is led to believe Ella Kaye refused to let

    Read More

  • Dream Deferred in A Raisin in the Sun

    1053 Words  | 3 Pages

    Walter has long dreamed of making his family’s condition better, of giving them wealth that his low-paying job is unable to do. Nature appears to be against Walter and his family, for they are living in a poorly maintained tenement apartment while surrounded with racism. Walter understands this situation, so he decides to use the $10,000 check for an investment in order to exceed his primitive state. In mid-morning, he excitedly asks his family about the check’s arrival, “Check coming today?” (Hansberry I.i.868). The check is one of the few reasons that forces Walter to get up each morning, so he will eventually be able to obtain success and self pride. Walter views the check as the only solution to all of his problems, so once Mama receives it, Walter confronts her and begs for her “financial” support. Walter exemplifies his sudden, new-found confidence to Travis when Mama unexpectedly entrusts him with the remaining $6,500, “…your daddy’s gonna make a transaction . . . a business transaction that’s going to change our lives” (II.ii.885). Walter is finally ready to realize his dream, and he has all the possible confidence he can acquire. He foresees the significant change that awaits his family when the money is invested. Unfortunately, nature has different plans for the Youngers. Whe...

    Read More

  • Juxtaposition In Freakonomics

    1478 Words  | 3 Pages

    The first detail the authors selected is the fact that drug dealers still live with their mothers at home. Drug dealing has been painted by the media as “one of the most profitable jobs in America” (Levitt 83). However, that is not the case. Drug dealing works much like a business in America, namely crack dealing in Chicago. In the novel, there is the example of the Black Disciples, a crack gang in Chicago. Their group is organized into a multitude of franchises that report back to the board of directors, providing the board with a large cut of the profits made on the streets. The leader of each gang made a large sum of up to $100,000, but “the foot soldiers earned just about $3.30 an hour, less than the minimum wage” (Levitt 93). This detail of the drug dealers was selected to appear in the novel to show how “conventional wisdoms” are false and misleading. The media at the time was stating that drug dealers made large sums of money participating in the illicit drug trade, but that was not the case. Drug dealers did not even make enough money to move out of their mother’s home. Foot soldiers worked for less than the federal minimum wage at the time, but the “conventional wisdom” was that the foot soldiers were making large sums of money. This detail causes the reader to question what they see in the media, and readers see that there exists a complexity behind

    Read More

  • Grapes of Wrath

    615 Words  | 2 Pages

    A difficult struggle lied ahead for the people. They left with everything they owned. There was so little, they strapped it onto, usually to a rundown old pick-up truck. With Steinbeck trying to show the real life issues intermitanly introduced all the political aspects and outlooks of the depression. He would, in odd chapters, show the aspects that lay for everyone, not just the Joads. Stein beck often showed the prejudice and hatred for the migrants. Somewhere around the middle of the book an ³okie² family stops at a roadside 66 truck stop. They are hoping to buy some bread with the mere money they have rationed. The waitress is very bitter and tries to get rid of the man. She turns down his needs for a half a loaf of bread. her boss turns and reprimands her. The man is sold a small amount of bread for his money. The man turns to see his little boys gazing at the candy case.

    Read More

  • Greed in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

    479 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the book, money symbolizes a social evil as it destroys lives of people corrupted by wealth. In the first chapter, Fitzgerald treats money as if it was a cookie cutter for social classes and tells how wealth divides the society into different groups. For instance, East Eggers have "inherited money" whereas West Eggers have newly acquired money. Tom is an example of an East Egger who has "prestigiously" inherited quite a lot of "old" money. Gatsby is a West Egger who by boot legging, swindling and doing favors for others, has acquired "new" money.

    Read More

  • Metamorphosis Essay

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...urther thinks, “people’s troubled relationship represents the effect of capitalism brought by industrialization in the town. I believe people care more about improving their financial status without caring about its effects on other people. For example, my father does not care about what I am going through provided he made money for the family”. Samsa finally supposes that his father’s hostility towards him show lack of appreciation for his money.

    Read More

  • Wild Plums

    611 Words  | 2 Pages

    Another example of their poverty is when the family goes to the slumps to pick up a plow that Mr. Slump had borrowed. The author explains that the Slumps just left their tools where they unhitched but, the little girl’s family had a shed where they put the machinery when it was not being used. Obviously the Slumps are not as openhanded as the little girl’s family, and are being treated as inferior because of this.

    Read More

  • Zoos Essay

    965 Words  | 2 Pages

    Zoos have been with us throughout our history, and can provide a good barometer of public beliefs and values at any given time. Therefore it seems necessary to explore whether in today’s society contemporary zoos are a means of educating and conserving or still seek to control and exhibit animal others for human benefit. In order to make this assessment there are a number of contributing factors. Firstly it is important to establish context by considering the history of zoos and looking at the changes from the early menageries to contemporary zoos who strive to be institutions of refuge for animals facing twenty-first century global challenges. This links into how the physical space of zoos has changed over time and whether these advancements have made any crucial difference to the welfare of animals. Following this conservation, education and scientific research will be explored in detail in order to assess whether they provide good enough motives for keeping animals in captivity. I will seek to argue that although attempts have been made to point zoos in the direction of conservation and education, in my opinion the concepts of dominance and human superiority are still at the core of modern zoos.

    Read More

  • Materialism In A Raisin In The Sun

    1269 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the beginning of the play, Walter is foolish and quarrelsome, with his heart set on becoming affluent. As he grasps how hard work his father worked and how hard his family works, he reasons that living by his standards is more important than gaining wealth, and he stops feeling resentful towards them. This play highlights how many members of society focus more on making money than living by their ethical

    Read More

  • Zoos and Exotic Pets: Humanity or an Abomination

    987 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first point of view from this issue is the side that believes humans, zoos and other facilities should be allowed to keep animals. The places that captivate animals believe that they are doing a favor to the creatures. They believe that they are saving them from being killed by humans. They say that if they would not have taken in these animals they would have died in the wild. They say they’re giving them a fresh new start and a place to live without worry. For example, in this article they state that zoos try and h...

    Read More

  • What Happened To M & M

    637 Words  | 2 Pages

    Cathy and Bryan go to tell Mr. and Mrs. Carlson about what happened to M&M. Mrs. Carlson is distraught but Mr Carlson deems in as a phase. Cathy gets fired up and yells that it isn’t phase and that it is serious. Abruptly, the whole family walks in and everyone is sobbing uncontrollably. Bryon feels uncomfortable so he leaves. He and Mark are talking about the incident. Mark says that they have nothing to worry about and that he is just sleeping around at different houses. Byron exclaims that it's more then that. The next day, M&M hasn’t come home. Over the next few weeks Bryon and Cathy run up and down the Ribbon trying to find him. Bryon has gotten a job at a grocery store and is trying to change his attitude. He is serious about getting

    Read More

  • Corruption Of Money In The Visit By Friedrich Durrenmatt

    1400 Words  | 3 Pages

    The author shows that money can change a characters behavior. You see this behavioral change in Claire by the way she dresses and acts as she is above everyone. In the beginning

    Read More

  • Essay About Zoos

    919 Words  | 2 Pages

    For hundreds of years, eager visitors have journeyed to see animals from various parts of the Earth. Zoological institutions have been provided a place where both wild animals and humans can convene in a controlled manor. A zoo’s purpose is to conserve wild animals’ lives, educate visitors, and provide a site where wild life research can readily take place (Demartoto). Many hold a positive view on zoos. Some believe that zoological institutions provide a safe environment for animals and provide the animals with the best care. However, many find zoos to be guilty of stealing animals’ freedom and dignity. Animal welfare has become a major issue within zoological institutions. The question of whether or not zoos are actually

    Read More

  • Hester

    610 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hester had expensive tastes and she insisted in keeping up the latest style. The “expensive and splendid toys” that filled the nursery were more than the parents modest income could afford. Paul asked for an explanation of luck. Hester responded by saying “it’s what causes you to have money”, quickly making a connection between luck and wealth. And while she discovered she had a knack for sketching “furs and dress materials” she adored, making hundreds of pounds per year did not appease her elegant tastes, for it still wasn’t enough to keep up her extravagant lifestyle. When Hester found that she had mysteriously acquired five thousand pounds, she quickly asked for the whole sum at once. This money was not used to pay off the debts the household so sorely needed; it was used to purchase more cozy and unneeded items. The “sprays of mimosa and almond blossom” emanated from the home and was more pungent than before. Hester felt that her financial state couldn’t afford to buy a car but ironically she purchases tutors for Paul and expensive items for their home.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay: The Captive Animals

    926 Words  | 2 Pages

    Places like Zoos will argue that they are keeping these animals in cages to protect their species from extinction. A study done shows that when a pack of wolves was reintroduced to Yellowstone after being absent for nearly 70 years, that it had a tremendous effect on the ecosystem. The wolves helped to control the deer in the area so the vegetation could flourish. Other animals began to migrate to the park, so there was more animals helping the ecosystem grow. So, keeping animals in cages actually has an impact on the environment they are meant to be in.

    Read More

More about That Was Then, This Is Now

Open Document