How Does Dunmore Present Carla, the Narrator in My Polish Teachers Tie Carla, the narrator is presented in first person and as the main character of the story. She is portrayed as a decisive and strong willed person, who knows her own mind. However she is also shown as somebody who has lost part, or all of their identity, and wants to re-find it but isn’t managing. She is also probably not well educated, shown my various aspects of the story. The fact that she has a part-time job, paying “£3.89 per hour”, shows that she is not well qualified or educated to a high level.
White Oleander by Janet Fitch demonstrates how the protagonist, Astrid Magnussen, encounters herself with many struggles and obstacles that she must overcome. The only source of family that Astrid has is her beloved mother Ingrid Magnussen, which shows her charisma in her own egotistic way. The type of affection expressed from mother to daughter causes Astrid to feel suffocated due to the fact that her mother sees her as an extension of herself rather than a particular individual. This provokes Astrid to experience a difficult time setting aside from her mother’s suffocation and outgrowing to become the individual she wants to be. Ingrid’s imprisonment causes Astrid to experience solitude when she is transferred to a foster home.
Essay topic 16- By the end of the novel Isobel has faced the ghosts of her past and is ready for her future. Amy Witting’s ‘I for Isobel’ is a bildungsroman novel centred around the life of Isobel Callaghan a young girl who has difficulty finding a purpose in life and a place in the world. The novel showcases her challenging and abusive upbringing brought on by her wild and depressing mother and close to non-existent and un-loving father, her childhood demons linger as Isobel’s struggles to fit in with societies norms and conventions. Her erratic and joyless childhood leads her on a journey for normality, friendship and acceptance to no initial avail. However, in the latter part of the novel Isobel experiences moments which lead her to
“For though I'm small, I know many things, and my body is an endless eye through which, unfortunately, I see everything.”- Gloria Fuertes We are born learning. Those lessons learned in one’s youth are the most difficult and the most influential. In Jesmyn Ward’s novel, Salvage the Bones, Ward illustrates that wisdom does not necessarily come with age. The mistakes that Esch makes leaves her vulnerable to disappointment and suffering at a time in her life when she should be enjoying no responsibilities and not having to make life altering decisions. Although Esch eventually achieves wisdom after the hurricane, she pays a substantial price for having lived her life blindly.
Monique states, “You know, Alexis, this is what keeps me alive – the power of words. Words live forever they point out the right direction and express feelings simply without removing what complexity exists in them. The words you were never able to find explain your suffering – the absence of those words prevented us from growing together” (14) this quote clearly illustrates the struggle between Monique and her partner Alexis. Due to the absence of Monique’s father and mother, Monique grew as a very lonely child. Now as an adult Monique has a hard time adjusting from only being in her own company to sharing and being with someone other than herself.
The families experience fear, especially the children and wives, when there are break-ins and scares of intruders coming to turn them into the Nazi’s. They experience despair when months pass without any progression and a continuous lack of food and other necessities, but never lost their hope and looked forward to the radio announcement advertising the position of their county against the Nazi party. Although the families were undergoing hard times, they kept their heads and courage up, even in times of great trouble. The diary of Anne Frank has taught an enormous mass of people great lessons about her life and life during hard times such as the holocaust. This diary is a primary source and excellent example of how living really was during this time for an average teenager.
She makes it clear that she knows how hard it has been for her to overcome many obstacles to get to college and be where she is at now. She comes from a family that values a good work ethic and working as a farm worker is more important than reading books and at times sacrificing education. Castellanos argues, “At a young age-between eleven and fourteen-I began my intellectual and spiritual rebellion against my parents and society. I fell in love with books and created space of my own where I could dare to dream” (pg 341). In her culture being married and having kids was her duties as a Mexican.
Innocence is a child’s most prized possession, and ultimately what makes a child a child. “Marigolds,” by Eugenia Collier, exhibits the transition from ignorance to compassion in the main character, Lizabeth, through one instance. Living in rural Maryland during the Great Depression, Lizabeth feels as if there is not an ounce of hope in her life. Collier emphasizes Lizabeth’s living conditions, growing pains, and family situation, which all lead to her senseless act of destruction. These factors ignite Lizabeth’s rage like a match to gasoline, which, in the end, leads to her maturity.
A woman working in the same job as a man will usually earn less, despite the fact that she may have the same or better training, education, and skills required for the job ("Study Shows Female Managers in Britain Earn Less than Men, and Equality Could Be 57 Years Away." 2010). Women are consistently discriminated against in the workplace. Women only make 60 percent or less than their male counterparts in the same job position (Louis, 2010). Throughout history men are seen as the “strong/tough ones”; the belief is that they should be paid more than women in order to support their families (Loney, 2005).
The writer uses ‘utterly torn’ to describe Alison, which shows that her moods are entangled, and show her desperate in facing the choice of whether to decide to stay with her family or continue chasing her dream. It makes the reader understand Alison. Alison Hargreaves wants to fulfill her dream of climbing K2, while she wants to be back with her children, which is a difficult decision for her. Also, ‘dinking endless cups of coffee’ shows that Alison is struggling with the problem again. Readers can know that Alison is facing a great decision in her life and she has unwavering commitment to both her family and climbing.