This can’t be happening thought Bill. Man I’m in so much trouble, there’s no way I can get out of it. I’m stuck. Bill had just wrecked his parent’s BMW in an accident, and they had no idea that the expensive car was even missing from the garage. And a terrible thing had happened as a result of the crash. A young woman lay dead in the passenger side of the vehicle, swarmed by medics. Bill had escaped injury, but as his body was still at the crash site, his mind wasn’t. He was in total shock at what had happened. If I only left the car in the garage and didn’t try to “borrow” it, Lisa might still be alive….Bill tried to imagine that it wasn’t real, that he was in his bed dreaming, but no, he was responsible for the destruction of his parents’ car and his the death of his girlfriend. It was as if his mind wasn’t registering, as if it was in some far away place. He just couldn’t come to grips with what had happened. This is a classic example of severe shock. The event that took place was so strong that the mind has trouble working. While in Bill’s case where he had indeed had an accident, the realism of the situation dwarfs the mind as if a small comet hurtled towards a blazing sun. But this is just one aspect of realism. The whole of realism is made up of the fact that our lives, the world, the universe, it’s all real. And as much as our minds would want to deny it, everything will stay real, and for most people they just make the best of it. But for the rest of the people, they invent new ways to get around the feeling that a wall has been placed in their path. All this goes to say that people must be original and “keep it real” to survive the physical and mental fatigue life throws at them and also that everything will always be real and we must be in touch with our minds to harvest the realness.
Bret Harte tells of a story where a group is outcast into the world to fend for themselves during the winter season. After they have been exiled and are outside the city walls, most of the group can’t handle the situation presented before them, as quoted, “As the escort disappeared, their pent-up feelings found vent in a few hysterical tears from the Duchess, some bad language from Mother Shipton, and a Perthian volley of expletives from Uncle Billy.
"The Outcasts of Poker Flat" is a short story by Bret Harte about a western town that has banished a
Even though our bodies are in one place, our minds may be in another. In Martha Stout’s essay “When I Woke Up Tuesday Morning, It Was Friday,” the author introduces us to the idea of dissociation. Dissociation is when one’s mind is away from the body and he or she does not know what is going on in the physical world. Those that have traumatic histories may experience this. But because of dissociation, victims may not know if they had a traumatic past because a memory of it never really formed. Stout also finds that individuals may use dissociation as a way to protect themselves from trauma. Sometimes the slightest and smallest piece of a traumatic memory may bring into play the dissociation. When these individuals experience dissociation and become their “flyaway selves,” they do not remember what happened to them in the time they were “away.” For example, whenever “Los Angeles” was mentioned to Julia, one of Stout’s patients, she would “flyaway” as a way to protect herself from remembering any of the traumatic experiences that happened to her when she lived in Los Angeles. But Julia did not remember going through any traumatic experiences in her history because the memory never really formed. When she would “flyaway,” Julia would blackout and not recall any of the things she had done in the days previous to her “waking up” again. Stout came to the conclusion that Julia was abused as a child and as a way to escape during the abuse, she would become dissociated with her surroundings and what was happening to her. To not remember one’s own past puts them on a very vulnerable and difficult trail; dissociation may seem a way to protect oneself, but at the same time it’s harmful.
The mind is a very powerful tool when it is exploited to think about situations out of the ordinary. Describing in vivid detail the conditions of one after his, her, or its death associates the mind to a world that is filled with horrific elements of a dark nature.
Memory is one of the overarching themes of this narrative, and within that we identify one of the first examples of dual experience. On one side of the coin lies what indeed happened—Being in distress, becoming intoxicated, driving away while gazing through binoculars in a truly reckless manner, and all while coping with a devastating loss. Now exploring the other side of it, as in what we wish to remember—the narrator says this in regards to what he
Alcoholism becomes an enemy to Native Americans because it creates neglection. In other words, alcohol separates the parents from their offspring, which makes the children despise it. This is true in Sawyer’s video because Robert, a young Indian, despises alcohol for corrupting his mother. Robert cries to Sawyer about the pain he receives when his mother visit him: “‘She calls me [negative] names. She says, I’m not her son and all that stuff. She doesn't want to be by me anymore’” (Sawyer, A Hidden America). Robert’s heart-breaki...
Bret Harte wrote The Luck of the Roaring Camp in 1868. This work truly demonstrates the balance between the weakness and goodness of humanity. The story takes place in a poor mining town in California, called Roaring Camp. There was only one woman in the town named Cherokee Sal. She was pregnant and died after giving birth, later having her body thrown over a hillside. The miners were then left to figure out what to do with her child. Harte describes the men of the camp as reckless, fugitives, and criminals. He presents these immoral men in a romanticized way, allowing the readers to see that they have some inner good qualities. This story stands out because it was unlikely to see how these rough miners would be able to possess good moral qualities. The men
The Outcasts of Poker Flat, a regionalistic piece of literature written by Bret Harte, takes place in a settlement called Poker Flat. A secret group decides to unjustly clean up the town by exiling anyone they don’t like. The story starts with four exilees travelling through mountains from Poker Flat to the closest town of Sandy Bar. While travelling, one of the outcasts steals their mules, leaving the others alone during a snowstorm with little supplies. While the plot proves itself as interesting, the setting, characterization, and symbolism help aide the story and take it to a whole new level.
I climbed upstairs, seething with a rage mixed with adolescent hormones and self pity. I reached my bedroom, threw back the drapes, approached the window from where the air conditioner was perched and jerked open the window. To my horror, the air conditioner tumbled backwards out the window, end over end and landed squarely on the roof of my fathers two day old Buick. The Buick roof crumpled like a piece of paper. Meanwhile, the air conditioner had bounced off the car and landed sharply on our paved driveway. The whole incident took no more than a few seconds and yet my mind played it back in horrific, slow motion. I surveyed the scene. My dad's Buick looked like somebody had taken a sledge hammer and swung a lethal blow to its middle. The air conditioner lay in a heap of scrap metal beside the car.
I unwilllingly walked through the entrance of regret and guilt. With teary eyes from what happened the night before, I didn’t know what I could say. All I thought was ‘It was an accident’ but that didn’t matter anymore.
In society, any accidents are perceived as negative outcomes illustrate a terrible ending that has taken place but in reality it can be perceived as something positive in the long run. By obstructing the 2005 Camaro and the three teens, it occurred that no one was injured and everything was calm. Accident by Dave Egger represents how a bad decision becomes a point of conflict and symbolism within the theme of the story.
After going through a negative experience such as a trauma, we often try to avoid dealing with it. As anxiety builds up we unconsciously distort the truth by implementing defense mechanisms. In the novel “Room,” Ma uses two defense mechanisms to avoid facing the truth.
It was a typical, nonchalant morning for thirteen-year old Kaely Camacho. She was on the way to her mother’s house to get ready for school, riding with her father, and older sister. At this exact moment Sandor Guillen, a thirty-nine year old man, was speeding down the highway in his Range Rover, evasive and extremely intoxicated. In less than a millisecond, the two vehicles collided causing a fatal impact. Kaely’s father and sister were not seriously harmed but as they turned around to check on Kaely, their hear...
In life many people are hurt or “damaged” and need to find a way to heal. The characters in the movie “Crash” experienced a lot of hurt and some realizing that they did not even know they were hurt to a major event happened.
“Car Crash While Hitchhiking” is told in the first person by a narrator who claims that he can perceive future events, the story jumps around in time. The story is primarily focused on an automobile accident and its aftermath. Under the influence of drugs and alcohol, the narrator maintains that during the thunderstorm he can distinctly identify every drop of rain, even going so far as to recognize each droplet by name. The line that captures this “I knew every raindrop by it’s’ name” (Johnson, 1992, p. 288) this magical heightened awareness is in part a side effect of the drugs he is on. Eventually a family a man and his wife, Janice, and their baby gives the narrator a ride, and he falls asleep. The family’s car is struck by a driver who has apparently fallen asleep at the wheel. Covered in blood and trying to carry the baby to safety, the narrator seeks help from a truck driver passing by. After telling the events of that night, the story moves several years ahead in the future where the narrator is admitted to a hospital for medical treatment of his substance abuse. At the time a nurse is injecting him with vitamins, and while hallucinating that he is in a rural back drop. Causing the narrator dis believe that he can help anyone, including the reader. Here is where the conclusion of this short story is reach leaving the reader with a bleak outlook on the
She slammed the door behind her. Her face was hot as she grabbed her new perfume and flung it forcefully against the wall. That was the perfume that he had bought for her. She didn't want it anymore. His voice coaxed from the other side of the door. She shouted at him to get away. Throwing herself on the bed and covering her face with one of his shirts, she cried. His voice coaxed constantly, saying Carol, let me in. Let me explain.' She shouted out no!' Then cried some more. Time passed with each sob she made. When she caught herself, there was no sound on the other side of the door. A long silence stood between her and the door. Maybe she had been too hard on him, she thought. Maybe he really had a good explanation. She hesitated before she walked toward the door and twisted the handle. Her heart was crying out to her at this moment. He wasn't there. She called out his name. "Thomas!" Her cries were interrupted by the revving of an engine in the garage. She made it to the window in time to see his Volvo back out the yard. "Thomas! Thomas....wait!" Her cries vanished into thin air as the Volvo disappeared around the bend. Carol grew really angry all of a sudden. How could he leave? He'll sleep on the couch when he gets back. Those were her thoughts.