First of all, there were many occurrences of bigotry against those less fortunate. On the other hand, there were a few occasions when those of lower standings were treated fairly, as was the case in the story “The Guest”. Daru treated the Arab more than fair; he treated him as an equal. But for the most part, prejudice was a prominent feature of the characters in the stories. One example would be in the story “The Heavenly Christmas Tree”. The little boy i

Lastly, seemingly good people in these stories experienced many hardships. In contrast, other people, who appeared to be more deserving of hardships, also went through rough times. An example of this would be in the selection “Downtown”. Ryo was not a great person. She cheated on her husband and went against her vows. She, along with the good-hearted people, went through some rocky times herself. So as you can see, it was not only good people who had these experiences, but also people who lived more mislead lives. In the story “One Soldier”, the man seemed to be a good person. He was at war fighting for the good of his country, but he came down with beriberi. He suffered tremendously before his death. Page 481: “Moaning, despairing, he writhed on the floor. The buttons of his blouse were torn away, the flesh on his neck and chest was scratched and bloody, his army cap was crushed, the strap still about his chin, and one side of his face was smeared with vomit.” Also, in “The Heavenly Christmas Tree” the little boy was so pure and innocent, yet he still suffered immensely. He was alone on the streets, cold, hungry, poor, helpless, and desperate. He could not even bend his fingers enough to pick up a coin. He did nothing wrong, but he still suffered. Another example is from “Damask Drum”. The old gardener hadn’t done anything wrong, but he was still mocked and made a fool of by the princess. His feelings were hurt to such an extreme that he felt the need to kill himself. He obviously felt very crushed, and humiliated. In “Forty-Five a Month” the little girl was so excited to go to the cinema with her dad that she left school early, and got very dressed up. She was so worked up that she couldn’t concentrate in class, and kept asking what time it was. When she got home, she put on a nice outfit and powdered her face. She waited outside for hours waiting for her father, but he never showed up. She had not done anything wrong, but she was still exposed to these experiences, and never got to do much with her dad, whom she dearly loved. Another story that possessed this trait of an unjust world was “A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings”. This was an angel, and obviously he was a good person. He never complained, he was always patient, and only got upset once, when his wings were burned. But even though he was a good person, he was still treated like an animal. There was absolutely nothing justified about how he was treated. Lastly, the poor man in “Come Dance With Me In Ireland” was an apparently good person. He said he would never serve a guest bad sherry, and he thumbed his nose at the two old women for treating him so poorly, becaus

Some topics in this essay:
Christmas Tree”, Dance Ireland”, Lonely People”, Pelayo Elisenda, Guest” Arab, Unjust World, Enormous Wings”, Guest” Daru, little boy, angel treated, people stories, unjust world, Heavenly Christmas, enormous wings” angel, lower social standings, “the heavenly, rough times, poor decisions, people stories experienced, christmas tree”, heavenly christmas tree”, tree” little, “the heavenly christmas, economic status,