Julius Lester Essays

  • Critics of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    1432 Words  | 3 Pages

    Despite these condemnations though even the staunchest opponents of Twain find certain redeeming qualities that make it hard to promote all out censorship. One of the most stringent dissenters of Huck Finn is Julius Lester, Newberry Award winning author of the children’s book To Be a Slave.  Lester argues that one of the primary concerns of lit... ... middle of paper ... ...hite man.  This pseudo-parenthood relieves Huck of any lifelong responsibilities to Jim and also allows Twain to eventually

  • The State of Despair in American Beauty

    1418 Words  | 3 Pages

    resulting consequences they must face. In the movie American Beauty, the character of Lester Burnham must make many important choices that could either lead to his ultimate happiness, or draw him further into his despair. In the movie American Beauty, it is evident that Lester Burnham is in a state of despair. Lester’s dull and monotonous voice introduces the audience to his daily routine of life. When Lester declares plain and simply, “This is my neighborhood, this is my street, this is my life

  • The Motivation of Lester in Child of God

    1750 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Motivation of Lester in Child of God In the novel, Child of God. Lester Ballard committed heinous crimes against innocent victims. He murdered people in cold-blooded fashion and raped women when they were dead. What makes a human being do this may tell us a lot about criminals and humans themselves. In this paper I will try and analyze some of the core issues that lie at the heart of this story. Why did Ballard do what he did, to what extent is he responsible and what should have been his

  • House of Sand and Fog

    600 Words  | 2 Pages

    story of the conflict between people of different races who have an inability to understand each other. They each want possession of a small house in the California hills but for very different reasons. On one side, there is Kathy Nicolo and Sheriff Lester Burdon who want the house from which Kathy was evicted. It previously belonged to Kathy’s father and she is reluctant to relinquish possession of it. Then there is the Behranis, a Persian family who was forced to flee to America in fear of their lives

  • Comparing Ulysses And American Beauty

    2876 Words  | 6 Pages

    In a film set almost 100 years later in an American suburb, another virginal seductress flips her dance skirt, giving admirers a peek at her panties, and inspires Bloom's modern incarnation, Lester Burnham, into a similar burst of auto-eroticism.   The "metempsychosis" of Leopold Bloom into Lester Burnham isn't the only astonishing similarity between Ulysses and American Beauty. When screenwriter Alan Ball accepted the 2000 Golden

  • American Beauty

    1491 Words  | 3 Pages

    American Beauty, directed by Sam Mendes in 1999, is one of the best and most unique films I have ever seen. One of the opening scenes of the movie starts with a view of Lester Burnham, his attractive, blonde wife Carolyn Burnham and their daughter Janie and what seems to be what seems to be the Burnhams picture perfect life and picture perfect marriage. The suburban house with the clean cut lawn and perfect garden, white picket fence, the oak trees lining the street, the two cars parked in the driveway

  • The Film American Beauty

    3373 Words  | 7 Pages

    The main character, Lester Burnham, is faced with many choices that could either lead to his ultimate happiness or draw him further into his despair. Carolyn Burnham, Lester's wife, is faced with a loveless marriage that exists only because she does not possess the willingness to break the cycle. This cycle involves protecting their daughter by staying married. In reality, children of a marriage such as this are often the biggest victims of this sham. Jane Burnham is Lester and Carolyn's daughter

  • David Hicks Speech

    951 Words  | 2 Pages

    in her house. Eddie Ray Branch, her grandson, testified that he visited his grandmother on the day that she was killed. He was there till at least 6:30 p.m. Lester Busby, her grandnephew, and David Hicks arrived while her grandson was still there and they saw him leave. They then went in to visit with Ms. Heggar. While they were there, Lester repaid Ms. Heggar 80 dollars, which he owed her. They left around 7:15 p.m. and went next door to a neighboring friend¡¦s house. David Hick¡¦s went home alone

  • The Victims in McCarthy's Child of God

    1222 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Victims in McCarthy's Child of God In Cormac McCarthy's Child of God, Lester Ballard is a recluse who is shunned by the people of his community. Because of his morose nature and his bizarre habits, he stands out among the small rural community. The rejected Ballard turns from being a harmless recluse to a murderer. While he is clearly a victimizer, he is also a victim himself. He is the victim of his own ostracization from the community that he was a part of. While the victimization that

  • Biography of Alvin Ailey

    1013 Words  | 3 Pages

    moved to Los Angeles to look for different job opportunities. There, Ailey’s interests took flight and he became involved in dance. Ailey attended the Thomas Jefferson High School. His school friend in 1949, Carmen De Lavallade, introduced him to Lester Horton. Horton’s multi racial dance school covered a wide range of styles including modern, jazz, and classical ballet. After eventually leaving the college track, at the age of 22, Alvin joined the Horton Dance Company. Ailey participated in different

  • Beauty And Reality In American Beauty

    3079 Words  | 7 Pages

    Grotesque atmosphere by escalating such disparity to a peak at which the protagonist Lester Burnham irrevocably bursts to death, posing a proposition of man’s raison d’être. The urge to merge in the society contradicts individuality. Carolyn, Janie and Lester– the Burnham family sets the framework and motion of the film. They epitomize three levels of mergence in the society or release of their individuality. Wife of Lester, Carolyn is a real estate saleswoman who craves for success. She wears delicate

  • Jazz Improvisation Essay

    1073 Words  | 3 Pages

    No one could truly write a paper on a jazz artist without starting on where everything started. Jazz has been called America’s classical music. Along with the blues, its forefather, one of the truly native music to develop in America. We all know how jazz is known as improvisation and its rhythmic form. Also originated from the African American communities of New Orleans in the 19th and 20th centuries. Yet its impulsive, risky ventures into improvisation gave it critical cache that the blues lacked

  • Alvin Ailey's Role In Modern Dance

    1073 Words  | 3 Pages

    was introduced by a classmate to the most influential person that would be the foundation for his future successful career in modern dance, Lester Horton (DeFrantz 1). Alvin was captivated by Lester’s work, which focuses on building a strong body, and made the executive decision to start his dance training in 1949 when he was eighteen years old. Because Lester Horton’s dance company embraced diversity, and accepted dancers of all ethnicities and backgrounds, Alvin was given the opportunity to do something

  • The Hero's Journey in Cameron Crowe's Film Almost Famous

    1385 Words  | 3 Pages

    (Campbell 72) William goes to meet the famous rock critic, Lester Bangs, who is being interviewed at a local radio station. Over lunch, Lester initiates his role as MENTOR to the aspiring young journalist, warning him against making friends with the rock stars lest he lose his objectivity to write about them. “You have to build your reputation on being honest… and unmerciful,” he says repeatedly. Seeing that William is serious about his quest, Lester offers him a bona fide writing ass... ... middle of

  • Billie Holiday: One Of The Greatest Jazz Voices Of All Time

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    Personally one of my favorite artists of all time, Billie Holiday, is known to be a true artist known in American pop and jazz history. She lived an emotional and challenging life, with plenty of stories to tell and enough sorrow to fill a songbook. Holiday sang with incredible profundity, sophistication, and her unique vocals is still considered to be one of the greatest jazz voices of all time. Billie Holiday, born Eleanora Fagan Gough on April 7th, 1915 was born in Baltimore, Maryland. She was

  • Billie Holiday Essay

    1537 Words  | 4 Pages

    Legendary jazz songstress Billie Holiday once said in response to the exclusion of African Americans from jazz clubs on the notorious 52nd Street, “You can be up to your boobies in white satin, with gardenias in your hair and no sugar cane for miles, but you can still be working on a plantation.” The comparison between the jazz world, or more specifically 52nd Street, and a plantation show the immense racial tension between blacks and whites in the early to mid part of the twentieth century. In

  • Billie Holiday

    929 Words  | 2 Pages

    Billie was born to the name, Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915. She was born in Philadelphia but grew up in the Fell's Point section of Baltimore. Her mother, was just 13 at the time of her birth; her father, was 15. Holidays' teenage parents, Sadie Harris (aka Fagan) and probable father, Clarence Holiday, never married, and they did not live together for a long time. Clarence, a banjo and guitar player worked with Fletcher Henderson's band in the early 30s. He remains a shady figure who left his family

  • Billie Holiday

    2150 Words  | 5 Pages

    Billie Holiday Billie Holiday was born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but spent most of her poverty stricken childhood in Baltimore. Lady Day, as she was named by Lester Young, had to overcome many tragedies in her lifetime and yet still became one of the most popular jazz-blues vocalists of all time. Billie's Parents, Sally Fagan and Clarence Holiday, were both born in Baltimore. They married as teens and soon Sally gave birth to Eleanora Fagan. Shortly

  • Identity In American Beauty

    1825 Words  | 4 Pages

    Mendes, 1999), the audience listens to Lester, played by Kevin Spacey, as he prepares the viewers for what is to come while introducing them to the character the story is centered around, but in this narration, the ending to the movie is already spoiled. Going to the cinema is an adventure, individuals see plot arcs adjusted to represent a director’s vision and for films that provoke the interest it’s usual for the viewers to be on the edge of their seat

  • Black Jazz Musicians

    947 Words  | 2 Pages

    extraorginary music resulted from the healthy competition and collegiality that grew among musicians of significantly different backgrounds and styles. Among the musicians who marked the sound of Kansas City then were Bill "Count" Basie, Bennie Moten, Lester Young, Eddie Durham, Jesse Stone, Walter Page, Oran "Hot Lips" Page, Mary Lou Williams, Eddie Barefield, Henry "Buster" Smith, Ed Lewis, Jimmy Rushing, Joe Turner, Pete Johnson, Jay McShann, Claude "Fiddler" Williams, Dick Wilson, and Charlie Parker