An underlying theme of “Useless boys” is the author's commitment to a different path in life from his father's. The poem captures the tone of the author's feeling about his father’s warehouse job and his feeling that it is not a life for him. I relate to this feeling by wanting to forgo my own path in life, often, in the past children were groomed from an early age to follow in the footsteps of their parents; the baker's son would be a baker, the daughter a mother and wife, and so on through history. In more recent history we came to a new outlook in which our parents would plan and indeed choose a path for us in an attempt to mold us into “better” versions of themselves. Thankfully in this day and age this generation is far less beholden …show more content…
Growing up my parents had always been the type to direct me in the right path from a very young age. They would constantly show me the proper procedures in life and direct me towards the path the leads greatest to success. Throughout the countless years of their teachings, they had an ultimate goal set, and that goal was to make me commit to that specific path. Growing up I saw how my father's life was, and at a young age, he was my role model. I had always wanted to become successful in life, and in the previous maturing years, i realized that i did not want to be like my father, but an even better and more successful person than my father could ever become. I have attained the thought that I can become the best person if i strived for it. This is a goal that I have set for myself, and to pursue and accomplish this goal, there will need to be a strong commitment to achieve it. Commitment is a remarkable force that drives the mind of any person. Without this powerful force, people will not become what they strive to be, what they foresee themselves to become, and it will establish a downwards slope away from their goal. No matter what goal is set or what
Take note of how the father approached the mistakes made by his son. "I fouled up some screens once, You broke them out with a chair" I feel showed the negative feeling I got when I read the poem. That also makes me believe that it was an apprenticeship. To me parents even if they get upset at something you do, don't go about things in that matter. The son was trying to learn something from his father and rather than explaining and showing the son how to do it correctly or the mistakes he made the father destroys the work. ...
Humans are all different in nature. We think deeply about issues and then react according to our values and beliefs. This helps us pick the best possible course of action. In “Useless Boys” the narrator doesn’t want to make the commitment because he believes that it does more harm than good to a person. He also states that he has had a problem with others keeping their commitment, for example, his father, who is never around.
In “Useless Boys” the writer, Barry Dempster, creates a strong feeling of disappointment and shame in himself and society as he looks back on his youth to when him and a friend made a promise to each other to “not be like their fathers”. Dempster expresses a sort of disgust for the capitalist society his world seems to be built around, a life where even if you’re doing something you initially enjoyed you end up feeling trapped in it. The poem is a reflective piece, where he thinks back on how he truly believed he would end up happy if he chose a different path than that of his parents. The author uses simple diction and syntax, but it’s evident that each idea has a much deeper meaning, which assisted in setting a reflective/introspective mood.
Patricia Young’s poem Boys is a representation of implied heteronormacy in society. Young uses tropes and schemes such as allusion, metaphors and irony to convey the ways in which heterosexuality is pushed onto children from a young age. Poetry such as Boys is a common and effective medium to draw attention to the way society produces heteronormativity through gendered discourses that are typically used to understand sex. Boys does an excellent job at drawing its readers to the conclusion that it is an ironic poem trying to emphasize the over-excessive ways in which we express heterosexuality in daily life.
This poem presents a picture showing that a group of black young boys who were hanging out in the hall of pool and do a lot of illegal activities rather than going to study at school just like other students with the same age as them. These black young boys are always worried about their role in the society and cannot get the according secure feeling although they are still in the young ages. They are so little that many of them have no clear idea about the society and their future as the blacks. They are always in the confused and chaos states so as they feel lost to some extent. These black young boys are talking big in order to cover the internal instability. (Cummings, 2005) They would like to show to other people that they are the naughty and tough guys instead of trying to seek some help. They hold the point of view that they have been abandoned by the society and they have no...
I was raised in an encouraging household where both of my parents greatly valued education. Although they were high school graduates, neither could afford to attend college; a combination of family and financial woes ultimately halted their path. As a result, my parents frequently reminded me that getting a good education meant better opportunities for my future. To my parents, that seemed to be the overarching goal: a better life for me than the one they had. My parents wanted me to excel and supported me financially and emotionally of which the former was something their parents were not able to provide. Their desire to facilitate a change in my destiny is one of many essential events that contributed to my world view.
As we grow older, we often have stages. We want to be a racecar driver, a veterinarian, or an astronaut. But then after a few years those change. Maybe to more realistic jobs or goals. A lot of people’s influences come from what their parents have become, or what they want them to become. Most times you will pursue your parents goal for you because you trust them. But imagine that your parents have totally opposite ideas for your future. Along with an elder that has a huge impact on you. What side would you chose? You couldn’t chose your mother’s side without your father
My parents have always pushed me to be better than they were. They knew that if I wanted to be successful I needed to go to college. In highschool, they always made me put my education before anything else. My parents didn’t go to college so they would always tell me to not make that mistake because their lives could have been easier if they would of just invested a few more years into their education. They would also tell me about all the opportunities that missed out on because they decided not to further their education.
When I was younger, I wanted to go to the mall with all of my friends and no parents for a birthday party. I was so excited that I got invited to go that I had already told all my friends that I could and that I would see them there. At home, I went to my dad to ask if I could go (thinking the answer would be yes) and he exclaimed “NO” and stared at him shocked because I had already told all my friends that I could go. Questions ran through my head, “why not? I already told all of my friends I could!” I asked. He just stared at me and said “It is very dangerous going alone and I don’t want you to get hurt. End of discussion” and that was it. I flew up to my room and slammed the door because I was so angry and I started thinking to myself that it was so unfair. Then I saw things from his perspective, I wouldn’t want my kid running around in a huge mall without any parents, it was dangerous. I gained a new perspective by putting myself in his shoes and seeing why he wouldn’t let me go to the birthday party. This new perspective helped me understand why it was bad and helped me make better choices in the future. As I was coming-of-age I realized my father’s perspective.
I never once in my life sat down with myself and really thought about what my parents had to go through and all the sacrifices they had to make in order to ensure that I have a better life and a brighter future. Thinking back now, the frustration I feel eats away at me constantly that I was not more thankful and did not do more to help. This is most definitely a lesson that is learned better late than never. Going forward now I have three main focuses for when I enter college, the first is undoubtedly God and my spiritual life, which forced me to have this revelation. The second focus has to be my family, which I appreciate and value more than ever now. The final focus I have, but certainly not the least, is to be successful in my endeavors throughout college. Seeing how much my parents cared for me by seeing them work as hard as they could just so my siblings and I could live a better life gives me all the motivation in the world to work as hard as I can to not only give back to them, but for my future children to live an even better life than I
Because I am stubborn, like my father, I found it difficult to look at the wrong in myself. I did not want change as I was comfortable with the way my life was, but the day I graduated high school, I began to look at my life in a different way. I became emotional, thinking this was it, my life is over, but then I looked at my family, but more specifically at my mom, and I overheard her conversation with a family friend of ours and I heard her ask how she was taking her only daughter graduating high school and then I heard my mother’s words, she said, “ if it weren’t for her staying home
Many writers construct nature imagery by deploying figurative language throughout their work. Natural imagery is a prominent theme in the works of William Blake, particularly in his 1789 poem ‘The Schoolboy’ published in the poetry collection ‘Songs of Innocence’. He uses the theme of restriction and identity within the background of a natural setting to explore the juxtaposing relationship between the restriction of education and the freedom that the natural world can allow. Blake’s own perception of restriction, and love for imagination and creativity, combined with his hatred of formal learning becomes an undertone of the social commentary that is expressed throughout the poem. The impact that vivid imagery can have upon the reader is further
I can be completely open and honest with them about anything, and it’s really nice to know that things are that way with them. No matter how many mistakes I make, they both continue to have faith in me, and believe that I have a good head on my shoulders. That put my mind at ease knowing that they trust me, and my judgement. That’s exactly why no matter where I go in life, or how far away I may move, my parents will always be an important part in my life. I tell them I want to shoot for the stars, and they’ll tell me to aim for the moon. They believe in my dreams and ambitions, and they want me to go for them. It’s really nice knowing that I’ve had them to lead and guide me this far. It makes me feel more confident as I head into adulthood knowing that I have had them to prepare me to take the right path. It’s like a lovely little guideline that’s forever forged into my mind, and it gives me a sense of comfort, and the confidence I need to go for the things I want. They push me to go to college and see what I’m interested in doing for a career. They want me to be completely confident in the career that I choose, and to give the job my best
Up to this point, all the major decisions in my life were made by my parents. To make this decision on my own for my future and where I want to spend the next four years of my life proves that I am moving on from being a carefree child to becoming a responsible adult. “In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” by Theodore Roosevelt.
The poem recreates and examines the moment of the child's confrontation with the fact that life is not what it seems. The experience transforms the boy's perception of the world. No longer is it a place for unquestioning sensuous delight. It is a dynamic world of uncertainty. The success of the poem derives from the effective way Haney builds up a totally convincing account of a childhood experience that deals with the excitement, pain and confusion of growing up.