People are not always what they are portrayed to be, which is the central theme in The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer. Matt Alacran, the protagonist, is a clone of El Patron. Everyone in the Alacran estate treats Matt badly because they believe that he is can't think for himself, but he is not what he is portrayed to be. When Steven, Emilia, and Maria found Matt in the poppy field house Matt got injured. They ran him back to the house so that a doctor could treat Matt. Rosa started to get glass out of Matt’s foot when Mr. Alacran walked in and was disgusted with the sight. Mr. Alacrán was furious with Steven for bringing Matt into the house. As Steven started to explain what had happened to Matt Mr. Alacran said, “You idiot! You need
Though people say “First Impressions are Important”, it is more important to not judge someone based solely on first impressions, as getting to know someone new could help develop a better understanding of one’s self. In Delusion Road, by Don Aker, Willa Jaffrey, a spoiled popular girl, had started grade 12 with a kind boyfriend and a ton of friends, though within minutes of starting school, Keegan Fraser, a new student, had angered Willa and her friends. However, soon after she got to truly know him, she began dating Keegan, and her life began to change as she discovered herself – Changing into a kinder person and realizing the troubles everyone else was facing. Her self-discovery
The book, “The House of the Scorpion” by Nancy Farmer is a 3 time award winner and a fantastic novel in the genre of utopia and dystopia. Matt is a clone saved from the burden of having a blunted intelligence. Evidence from the book supports this was a faulty move. The novel also says why El Patron blunts their intelligence; it's fully out of greed. Overwhelmingly, it seems that these things played a big part in the outcome of the novel, and why Matt is such a interesting, dimensional character in the book.
Our class has been reading a book called “Brown Girl Dreaming” for the past two weeks. The author, Jacqueline Woodson talks about her life growing up. For example she talks about how her mom and dad divorced when she was young. She talks about how she moves to Greenville and how her grandpa is like a dad figure, and how her mother came back with a pale skinned baby after she went to New York. Character traits make up a person, and while reading the book, you can see what Jacqueline is like during her childhood. Jacqueline has many character traits, such as being jealous of her older sister, being naive, and she is also respectful.
House to House, written by David Bellavia, is a memoir about his tour in Iraq, specifically the second battle of Fallujah in November 2004. Born in New York, the staff sergeant joined the war with the desire to be the guy who would play John Wayne in charge of the machine-gun nests as shown in the movies. Over the course of this novel, Bellavia successfully emulates John Wayne’s traits as a hero. He demonstrates valor and instinct leadership as he leads his third platoon into kill zones constructed by Fallujah’s militant insurgents. He uses his past relationship with his dad and the failure to live up to his standards to drive him to gain respect and satisfy his own status as a man tested by trials of combat. Bellavia exposes his readers
In today 's society, how do we describe someone as "a good person". The judgment falls to other people and how they compare or contrast themselves to the person, who falls under questioning morality. Another problem can lie within the imperfections of the normal human and the few that see through and fix their problem can only improve. Here we will analyze and reflect the comparison between the author Wes Moore’s life pictured within his story of The Other Wes Moore, where Wes categorized his differences between his doppelganger, the Wes Moore in prison for a life sentence, and my life. Each step in the book concludes the beginning of early childhood to early adulthood stopping at the present of the book’s conclusion. Still, we are left questioning the perfection of “good” things in the author’s life, through his schooling, sports, neighborhood and household influences, and opportunities.
Jasper Jones was written by Craig Silvey, a Fremantle-based writer. The story revolves around two young boys Charlie and Jasper Jones who live in a small town in Australia. One day Jasper find Laura bruised and hanging form the tree. He is the rebel in the town, people think he murdered Laura regardless of the truth, so he asks Charlie to help him and they work together to find the truth behind Laura’s death. During the long summer, Charlie witnesses racism, brutality and hypocrisy. He is forced to rethink his ideas about morality and ethics. In the end of the story, Charlie has completely changed his mind about how to distinguish right from wrong. I identify with Charlie as I am an Asia girl that who sometimes is treated differently from
It is evident that Saul had found his escape in hockey since he was first introduced to the game. He mentions that "[a]t night in the dormitory...I would get out of bed and stand in the aisle...mimic the motion of stickhandling. I pictured myself...with the puck tucked...on the blade of my stick...I'd stand there, arms held high...and I would not feel lonely or afraid, deserted or abandoned..." (Wagamese 62) It is clear to see that Saul is already beginning to feel less alone even though he has not started to play on the ice yet. He finds comfort within the concept and idea of the game that helps to make the horrific experiences at St Jerome's bearable and somewhat pleasant. The game transports him to a different time and place that pushes all of the negativity in his mind
The play “A Raisin in the Sun” by Lorraine Hansberry has many interesting characters. In my opinion, the most fascinating character is Ruth because of her many emotions and captivating personality. She goes through extreme emotions in the play such as happiness, sadness, anger, stress, and confusion. Ruth is very independent, firm, kind, witty, and loving.
Farmer’s novel, The House of the Scorpion, follows a character by the name of Matteo Alacrán, who is a clone living in the futuristic world where huge advances and discoveries of scientific technologies have been completed. Matt faces constant hardships from other people, and is treated poorly as if he is an animal, just because he is a clone. In The House of the Scorpion, Farmer creates a futuristic society in which a very powerful person, by the name of E...
What if there was a world with clones? There would be a way to live for up to 100 years effortlessly, have easy transplants, and maintain a precise memory. But, the recipient would be taking organs from someone else. "So what", he or she may justify, "they're clones, they are inferior. They don't matter because they are stupid." But what if someone had the power to allow them to be of normal intelligence? He or she might think that he or she is doing the clone a favor, but when the clone is killed for spare parts it's an even worse situation than with a retarded clone. Not for this "bandido" (Farmer 37). El Patron is a cruel, selfish, heartless man who clawed his way to power in his youth and rules people with fear, though he is powerful, he is always nagged by the fact that he may lose everything. There is no way on earth he would let that happen.
Everyone has that one person in their life that they see as a father figure. What if you had two? And what do kids need more, a father or a dad? That's the question Brad Whitaker asks several times during the movie. And while many believe they're the same thing, Brad disagrees. “Anyone can be father,” he implies. “However not everyone has the patience and endurance to be a dad.” However, Brad proves to be partially right. An accident left him infertile, and he is unable to live his dream as a father; or so he thinks. Therefore, he found a loop-hole by marrying a beautiful woman, Sarah, who has two young children, Dylan and Megan. Brad is determined to be the best DAD he can ever be.
Nimona, a book that takes place in a world of medieval times with magic and technology, introduces us to characters with their rules and principles that they support or break. The main characters with rules that amplify the story line are the Director, Goldenloin, and Blackheart. The Director’s rule of removing anything that threatens her power is reinforced, possibly causing her downfall, Goldenloin’s rule of doing what's best for the people is shown to be reinforced, helping the people out even if it means losing his life, and Blackheart’s rule, similar to Goldenloin’s of never killing any humans progressively vanishes throughout the book when he overlooks his sidekick possibly causing some deaths, afterword in the middle of fights, and when he puts the importance of his sidekick over the citizens.
A prominent theme in The House of the Scorpion is that genetics do not determine one's character. This applies to many characters, but it is demonstrated most clearly in Matt. He is El Patron's clone; his DNA is the exact same. Scientifically, they could be considered the same person. But Matt is different, because he has different experiences, different values, and makes different choices.
People tend to want change something about themselves to make them feel better of who they are. The author, Judith Ortiz Cofer and her family immigrated from Puerto Rico to the United States in 1954. She struggled with her own identity due to the transition of coming to a whole new different setting. The story “Volar” by Cofer, a young girl tries to escape her reality by having dreams and reading the fantasy world of comic books. In her dreams, she describes the physical changes she is experiencing, for instance her legs would grow longer, her breasts be larger, and her hair would go straight and turn gold. This is what seemed to be her desire look which is like Supergirl. However, Cofer depicts the young girls’ appearance “…find myself back in my body: tight curls still clinging to my head, skinny arms and legs and flat chest unchanged” (234). She points out her “flaws” instead of embracing her own body. She wants to have the physical characteristic of superhero and like be able to fly. Therefore, her identity is affected since being a superhero is not realistic and the story of a superhero being unstoppable does not exist. She considers her body to be unacceptable and there is nothing she can do to change it. A story, affects her identity because she admires superhero characteristics but she is weak. She wants to be someone else rather than her own self. She
In “The Stone Angel” by Margaret Laurence Hagar is her own tragic hero. Hagar Shipley unfulfilled life is the result of her tragic flaws. Hagar flaws are that she is filled with pride that overcomes her in a negative way that impacts her relationships. Also, that she is very stubborn and will never show her true emotions, which leaves her life with many missed opportunities. As well as, her insensitivity toward everyone that has come and gone in her life and never willing to change for anything or anyone. Through out the whole novel Hagar most represents the stone angel.