Struggle can be defined as a determined effort with difficulties. In our idols, we have seen people take their struggles and alter them into opportunities for success. Dr. Martin Luther King was arrested multiple times in his fight for Civil Rights; Cesar Chavez and the other migrant farm workers were sprayed with pesticides and they still succeeded in changing the working conditions. Everyone living has had some struggle. Some such as the daughter described in Sweetness or the members of the college and career panel have had the luck and skill to turn those struggles into success. However, others continued to struggle for years while never truly thriving. The narrative Sweetness by Toni Morrison tells the story of a light-skinned african …show more content…
Growing up, Mr. Felix had moved all over Southern California, getting expelled from almost every school he attended. Mr. Felix ultimately got involved in selling drugs at his schools, resulting in his expulsion from more places of education. Eventually, he was sent to a continuation school for his diploma and then was forced to leave and continue his education at an adult school. After being removed from his adult school, he had essentially given up on his education and was arrested for his illegal sales. After getting released on parole, Mr. Felix could only work hard labor jobs due to his lack of education and criminal record. While working, he reverted to his former practices and was caught yet again selling narcotics. Soon after he was arrested and was ordered to come to court to receive his sentence. Ironically, he showed up, surprising the judge. The judge fortunately granted Mr. Felix parole. During his time on parole, he was helping his friend move when he was struck by a moving vehicle, shattering multiple bones in his leg and putting him in the hospital for months. While in the hospital, he had a sort of epiphany on how he would like his life to change. As compensation for his injuries, Mr. Felix was given a large sum of money which he then used to continue his pursuit for higher education. Mr. Jesse Felix is now a student at California State University San Bernardino, working towards his …show more content…
These boys were never given the chance to live the life of the typical young men. Chuck, the older of the brothers, was 18 when he had gotten into a schoolyard fight and charged with aggravated assault. Unable to pay his fees, he sat in a county jail for the remainder of his senior year. The majority of the charges were later dropped and he was released with only a few hundred dollar fee. Unable to afford the charges, there was eventually a warrant out for him. Later that year, Chuck and his eleven year old brother, Tim, were in a car when they got pulled over while driving the car belonging to Chuck’s girlfriend. The officer ran the license plate, which came up as stolen in California. Although neither boy knew the history of the car both were arrested for receiving stolen property and accessory to receiving stolen property. Chuck and Tim were never given the chance to recover from their charges. At a young age, they were forced to the prison system unable to get
On the way over to burglarize the home, the group of 5 juveniles rode their bikes and stop on the way to feed some ducks, then dumped their bikes in some bushes. At the last minute, two of the five juveniles took off. Leaving behind Kane, who didn’t want to be labeled a scaredy-cat, and 19 year old Alvin Morton and 17 year old Bobby Garner. The group of juveniles expected the house to be empty, but found 75 year old Madeline Weisser, and her son 55 John Bowers were in fact at home.
The family moved in with an older couple who offered to help them. With limited supervision, Nathaniel was a constant source of aggravation for his mother. Police reported that Nathaniel was suspected in over 22 local crimes, ranging from assault to armed robbery. He, in fact, had been arrested five days before Greene’s murder on the charge of robbery. All this by the age of eleven.
Toward the end of Beloved, Toni Morrison must have Sethe explain herself to Paul D, knowing it could ruin their relationship and cause her to be left alone again. With the sentence, “Sethe knew that the circle she was making around the room, him, the subject, would remain one,” Morrison catches the reader in a downward spiral as the items around which Sethe makes her circles become smaller in technical size, but larger in significance. The circle traps the reader as it has caught Sethe, and even though there are mental and literal circles present, they all form together into one, pulling the reader into the pain and fear Sethe feels in the moment. Sethe is literally circling the room, which causes her to circle Paul D as well, but the weight
In closing, Francisco faced many hardships throughout his life. He had to adapt to his life here in the United States, deal with being a male in his family, as well as face discrimination. Through all the hard times, family and getting a good education were always his top priorities. With the help of his teachers and counselors, he was able to succeed in school, unlike the majority of the students. Francisco is a true hero in the eyes of many Hispanic immigrants who come to the United States and strive to be the best they can be.
While serving as an incredibly impactful piece of indirect characterization for Denver, there are many dynamics of this paragraph that I found intriguing. There are so countless powerful phrases within the short excerpt making it almost too difficult to decide where to begin. Nevertheless, I think beginning with my relation to the words is an acceptable starting spot. This girl is clearly hiding from the world that she fears, whether it be from personal experience or what her mother has taught her, she is afraid to face the world and attempts to take refuge in a secret room. This is so similar to all human being as running away from our problems or fears is a common instinct that, in fact, propels the dilemma to greater proportions. I know
July 15, 1999, was an ordinary night for Kristopher Lohrmeyer as he left work at the Colorado City Creamer, a popular ice cream parlor. Kristopher had no idea that his life was about to end. When Michael Brown, 17, Derrick Miller and Andrew (Andy) Medina, 15, approached Kristopher and demanded his money and his car keys. Before the boys knew it shots had been fired and Kristopher was dead. About an hour after the fatal shooting of Kristopher Lohrmeyer, all three men were in custody and telling their version of the night’s events. Michael and Derrick who had run away after the shooting confessed to police and named Andy as the shooter. According to the three boy’s testimony, they had only recently met and needed away to get some quick cash, so they developed a carjacking scheme and headed to Andy’s house to pick up 2 stolen handguns. The three boys were uneducated and had spent most of their time on the streets in search of drugs. The judge ruled that they would be held without bail and there was probable cause to charge them all with first-degree murder (Thrown Away, 2005).
The man then pulled a gun and assaulted the boy, he didn't shoot him but by forcing him to lie on the ground while he raped and sexually assaulted the young girl. Three weeks later he is pulled over for running a stop sign. Then the park ranger noticed a resemblance between Raymond and the sketch of the crime. When the park ranger brought him in a couple days later in 10-15 minutes the kids pick him out as the guy who did it("Raymond Towler"). Lastly he is exonerated after serving 30
middle of paper ... ... As for the boys themselves, may they eventually get justice for the wrongs they went through. Works Cited “Crime scene or dump site?” wm3truth.com/crime-scene-or-dump-site/ n.p. 2011 Web.
The difference of color is seen through the eyes, but the formulation of racial judgement and discrimination is developed in the subconscious mind. Toni Morrison’s short story “Recitatif (1983)” explores the racial difference and challenges that both Twyla and Roberta experience. Morrison’s novels such as “Beloved”, “The Bluest Eye”, and her short story “Recitatif” are all centered around the issues and hardships of racism. The first time that Twyla and Roberta met Twyla makes a racial remake or stereotype about the texture and smell of Roberta’s hair. Although they both were in the orphanage because of similar situations, Twyla instantly finds a racial difference. The racial differences between Twyla and Roberta affects their friendship, personal views of each other, and relationship with their husbands.
-Toni Morrison uses strong diction to resonate the central message that the most unexpected people/places have the deepest meaning in life. In the novel it states,“ In the safe harbor of each other’s company they could afford to abandon the ways of other people and concentrate on their own perceptions of things.” (Morrison, 55) Toni Morrison shows how they were important in helping each other understand the world around them. By the author using the word abandon, she displays how they needed to escape the world when it came to focusing on their relationship. She could have easily used “they left the world” but by using the word abandon it adds more depth to just how powerful they were to one another. Toni Morrison used perceptions to help relate to the powerful bond of their friendship. In the novel, Sula and Nel saw things very different. Sula perceived the world with its imperfections by rebelling against society. Nel perceived the world in a warped sense and felt the need to follow society’s rules. Sula was an unexpected force in Nel’s life, which impacted her view on the world and her future.
What is a healthy confusion? Does the work produce a mix of feelings? Curiosity and interest? Pleasure and anxiety? One work comes to mind, Beloved. In the novel, Beloved, Morrison creates a healthy confusion in readers by including the stream of consciousness and developing Beloved as a character to support the theme “one’s past actions and memories may have a significant effect on their future actions”.
Many controversies occurred in the town. Evidence was small and the debate of whether the teens were innocent or guilty was very unclear. In early 1994, all three teenagers were found guilty and put in jail for life. Several books have been written about the case. A lot of people have found that it was unfair for these boys to be convicted since there was said to be no hard evidence. Two books in particular explore deep into the case. They both consider people involved, and the unfairness of the entire case. Each author has an opinion as well.
Toni Morrison. The Oxford Companion to African American Literature. Eds. William L. Andrews, Frances Smith, and Trudier Harris. New York: Oxford UP, 1997.
So often, the old adage, "History always repeats itself," rings true due to a failure to truly confront the past, especially when the memory of a period of time sparks profoundly negative emotions ranging from anguish to anger. However, danger lies in failing to recognize history or in the inability to reconcile the mistakes of the past. In her novel, Beloved, Toni Morrison explores the relationship between the past, present and future. Because the horrors of slavery cause so much pain for slaves who endured physical abuse as well as psychological and emotional hardships, former slaves may try to block out the pain, failing to reconcile with their past. However, when Sethe, one of the novel's central characters fails to confront her personal history she still appears plagued by guilt and pain, thus demonstrating its unavoidability. Only when she begins to make steps toward recovery, facing the horrors of her past and reconciling them does she attain any piece of mind. Morrison divides her novel into three parts in order to track and distinguish the three stages of Sethe approach with dealing with her personal history. Through the character development of Sethe, Morrison suggests that in order to live in the present and enjoy the future, it is essential to reconcile the traumas of the past.
The novel Sula by Toni Morrison exemplifies the new feminist literature described by Helene Cixous in "The Laugh of the Medusa" because of the final portrayal of the two main characters Nel and Sula. However, it is clear throughout the novel that both Cixous's and Gilbert and Gubar's descriptions of women characters are evident within this novel. The traditional submissive woman figure paradoxically is set against the new woman throughout the novel. It is unclear whether the reader should love or despise Sula for her independence until the very last scene. Although both the perspectives of Cixous and Gilbert/Gubar are evident within the text, ultimately it is the friendship of the two women that prevails and is deemed most important. This prevailing celebration of womanhood in all of its dualistic and mysterious aspects is exactly what Cixous pushes women writers to attempt.