... read certain books, I try to find if a character wants to change what they have done in the past to improve their future. "A Yellow Raft in Blue Water" stood out because no one wanted to change. As I slowly read farther into the book, one character wanted to change her life but changed her mind ... a person who grows the quickest in the book. Her mother has taught her well. As the book opens, Ray was in the hospital with Christine. She wanted to leave her mom but her mom taught her that leaving would be rude. From the beginning, Ray is level headed. Her personality in the ... water, she...

• Word Count: 1360
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... stopped and the tears would come, she would hold my hand. She missed out on things with my brother because she was with me wherever I needed to be. She missed out on work to stay home and help with my aftercare. She put her whole life and education on hold because she needed to be with me. She watched me struggle through pain, and all she wanted was to help. After ... who are still there. My mother is always there for those she loves which is something I am trying to emulate. Even though it gets me in trouble at times, my friends know they can count on me. All the late night conversatio...

• Word Count: 1453
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... had burned the house to the ground? (2128) Maggie is just like a little sister trapped in her big sister's shadow. Never wanting to tell her bigger sis no because she would be angry. The other story I am going to talk about is Monkey Business by Joseph Geha. This story was about a man who had lost his wife and the ... in just plain black and white. Whenever Dee comes home you can tell how shy Maggie is by the way she hides behind her mom. She has never stood up or back talked to Dee in her life. If there was something that she had or wanted and Dee wanted it too, Maggie would just let Dee...

• Word Count: 1361
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... to survival in the grand scheme. Clara Holdfelder had many things that most women her age would envy: loving parents who raised her well, a job with a somewhat steady income doing something she doesn't loathe, and a prospective husband who has a solid and bright future ahead of him. Miss Holdfelder did not seem content with her life, however. Clara Holdfelder did not know her ... afraid of finding out at the same time. If her family's social status was not as distinguished as her suitor, than she would feel as if she was not worthy. "Suppose you should marry me, and then some time you s...

• Word Count: 1657
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... 3-hour ride home. I wave at Roe, and then walk through the front of the lobby of Silicon Valley Inn and Suites. I look out at the clean blue and gold sign on the front lawn. This is home. My parents manage a small hotel in Sunnyvale, California. As I walk through the elegantly decorated lobby towards our ... my mom had vacuumed just minutes ago. The chairs are pushed in exactly where they belong, on top of the carpet's worn spots. The curtains are blue with little silver diamonds embroidered into them and match our carpet. When I think of home, the first thing I think of is our family m...

• Word Count: 1709
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

The Power of a Mother's Love In the story "Red Mocassins" by Susan Power, she tries to get her readers to feel a certain way about specific characters in her story. The story pushes me to be annoyed with Joyce, and genuinely like Anna. Power portrays Joyce to be lazy, inconsiderate, selfish and, most importantly, a ... in the text demonstrate the qualities of each of these two women. Because of this evidence in the text, it is obvious that this author wants me not to like Joyce, and feel compassion towards Anna. Power makes Joyce look like a bad mother right from the beginning of the story. ...

• Word Count: 1383
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... . Sam knew exactly why he was doing this. The two in the room had a history of being violent, and she could tell that he didn't want her hurt. For a while they just stood there, listening. It was only when the woman screamed something about him and his sister that he decided that it was time to intervene. He banged on the door ... be insane."" Her eyes widened as they moved over to the caller I.D. Not again. I am so tired of my children having to call me at all hours of the night because my ex can't control his wife, she thought as she picked up the receiver. "Hello? Mom?- the unsteady v...

• Word Count: 2008
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

... eyes were filled with pain and weakness and her lips set straight and stern in a way I could not tell whether it was of anger or regret. She whispers for me to come with her. I clime down the cold metal bed frame on to the worm carpeted floor to follower her out into the hall. We tip to ... quot; I was so young and unable to grasp how what happened next would affect me. My mother hands me the camera and simply asks me to take some photos to the best of my ability to capture the images she needed. She stud up using me as a support to sand and slowly walks over to middle of the room pushin...

• Word Count: 1379
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... but he cares for Amanda and Laura. They all have their individual roles in their household, Laura on the other hand sits by quietly, and she's considered the timid peacemaker of the house. In the Wingfield residence, their family struggle of accepting the present, due to how difficult things come to ... of the helpless sister he loves" (csun.edu) In fact, Tom himself says that he's tried abandoning Laura before. "Oh, Laura, Laura, I tried to leave you behind me, but I am more faithful than I intended to be! I reach for a cigarette, I cross the street, I run into the movies or a bar, I bu...

• Word Count: 1324
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography

... and I remember thinking to myself it was probably my brother calling, as usual, to see if dinner was ready. My mother hollered for me to come downstairs to answer the phone. I figured she must've really had her hands tied, so I ran downstairs trying not to miss the call. "Hello,"" I said, still trying to ... heart started to race because I had rarely heard my father's voice since he moved back to Santiago, Dominican Republic seven years earlier. His voice was very distinctive to me and it was one that I could never forget. I hesitated to answer and as my hands started to sweat, I said,...

• Word Count: 1679
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... sweetened with sugar into the teacup, and threw this into the sea. And then she opened her fist. In her palm was a ring of watery blue sapphire, a gift from her mother, who had died many years before. This ring she told me, drew coveting stares from women and made them in attentive to the children they guarded ... Your funeral will be very small. Our mourning time for you will be very short." Then Popo said something worse. She said, "Even your mother has used up her tears and left. If you do not get well soon, she will forget you." Rose Hsu Jordan seems complex. On page 193 there is an...

• Word Count: 1322
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... be revised. A mother is a walking encyclopedia. Her children expect her to know where the sun goes at night, why the sky is blue and where kittens come from. A mother is a master mechanic who can get a pant leg out of a bicycle chain and fix anything with tape and a hairpin ... of interaction for the next five years or so will be a single word, "Mooooooooooooommmmmmm and then, somewhere down the line a mutual respect is formed and she becomes your best friend again. The bond that mothers and daughters share is a bond that affects their entire lives. Lessons on life are learned by each .....

• Word Count: 2133
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... even sun tan lotion was thought of, we meant business. The sun was shining, a cool breeze was present. As soon as we saw the clear blue sea we ran towards it with joy. Before we jumped in my father told us to wait, we had forgot to tie the safety rope around the raft ... stopped laughing. The lifeguards were already notified at this point, our prayers were obviously working, from no hope to something. Having my uncle and those two other men with us helped my brother and me a great deal in confidence and comfort. One of the other men noticed that the raft was deflating, as if ... the ag...

• Word Count: 1992
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School

... or should I have expressed it as every kids dream. I heard the wake from the boats crashing against the boardwalk as the sky transformed from a clear blue to neon orange. Voices smoothly flowed beyond lips commencing from a sense of relaxation and comfort. I breathe deeply, captivating my surroundings, for I was merely eight ... what do you want to do, watch T.V?" I questioned my brother. "Hey, ummm, I have to show you something." Normally I would be excited, but the worry in my brother's eyes did not lead me to cheerful emotions. I followed my brother back into my father's bathroom. He ...

• Word Count: 1625
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... She's always the one I want to please, so I try not to complain too much, no matter how badly I want to. I have been busy spending most of my summer babysitting my mother's, boyfriend's, grandchildren, a infant boy and a toddler girl. They are cute kids, both with blond hair and blue eyes. Of course, I don't think they are as cute as me ... want. I never ask them, what it is they actually do for a living, so I just assume they work for a large banking firm or something. After seeing all the boxes of canceled checks, it just seems obvious. Besides, every time I would find a twenty dollar b...

• Word Count: 1664
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... continue having sex with Darlene while they watched. Instead of turning his hatred towards the two men, Cholly felt anger towards Darlene, even though she was a victim. When the men left, Cholly's thoughts turned violent towards Darlene, "Cholly raised himself and in silence buttoned his trousers ... and father, Pecola displayed many symptoms of having psychological issues. However, none were as pronounced as her fixation on her eyes, which she wishes were blue. This obsession over simple eye color might lead many to believe Pecola developed a case of Body Dysmorphic Disorder, or BDD. Acc...

• Word Count: 1567
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... but was feeling very nervous deep down inside her brain she was having all these bad thoughts inside her saying "What if something happens to my Sajda, or what if she runs away with someone?" The thought of that left a cold shiver running down her spine, she was even having second thoughts about going to Pakistan and ... mum, Saida was going to ask Sajda what have you been doing today, but couldn't bare the shame if Sajda was to tell the truth, and she felt like she was a bad mother and hadn't brought Sajda up the normal Muslim way of life. The next morning Aisha came around and was tal...

• Word Count: 1345
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... it offers an attainable freedom. Both "space" and "solitude" contradict this attainable freedom because they are only possible for Mrs. Pontellier if she encloses herself within the sea. The "space" she craves for is something she cannot have on land because she is responsible for looking after her husband and children. This smothers her and makes her follow "whatever impulse moved her" (Chopin 32) instead ... focus on herself: "I want to be let alone. Nobody has any right---except the children, perhaps---and even the, it seems to me---or did it seem..." (Chopin 105). If she decides to ...

• Word Count: 2199
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... a whole new set of problems at school. "He is unsupportable," read part of one of the nicer letters that came home from school. My mother had bitterly warned me, that if I didn't "shape up" she was going to call my father. They had been separated since I was about three years old and since then he had always lived in a different part of ... pulled up around the corner in her dark blue Ford LTD. Maan I ran like it was the JURA and I had just ripped off some hubcaps! It was too late, even with my uniform on she recognized me, and she ran me down like I was an escapee from Juvy. Man, I was...

• Word Count: 2241
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... the family go to Tennessee to visit relatives instead of Florida for vacationing represents but her first alteration. Her suggestions come supported however, as she adds, "Here this fellow calls himself the Misfit is a loose from the Federal Pen and headed toward Florida..." giving the reader the ... the grandmother climbs in the car before anyone else, just as June Star predicts. "She wouldn't stay at home for a million bucks," June Star said. "Afraid she"d miss something. She has to go everywhere we go." (O"Connor 392). She dresses in a manner so that if anyone finds her dead on the hi...

• Word Count: 1477
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... Julian considers his mother to be an embarrassment because of her overt display of racism. None of his mother's actions is free of racial overtones and she is ostentatiously racist in disregarding the wishes of Carver's mother. Her action conveys a complete dismissal of the wishes of the child's mother and emphasizes ... and criticizes her actions. The narrator describes her eyes as "sky-blue, [they] were as innocent and untouched by experience as they must have been when she was ten" (397). This implies that she is innocent, like a child, she does not know what she is saying and doing, b...

• Word Count: 1330
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... daughter. Amanda tries to hold Tom down by insults and guilt. "You know how Laura is A few days ago I came in and she was crying." She would say, "She has an idea that you"re not happy here."(Williams, 1110) Throwing their past and his responsibilities in his face is a way of ... her keeping present time preserved. For Amanda she stays in the past, hoping that no one in the family will ever leave with out her. Living in the past gives Amanda something to always hold over her family. Amanda always speaks about the past saying things ... control over, and needs to hold on to. When her hus...

• Word Count: 1336
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... Joys of Motherhood Let it be known that Buchi Emecheta, the author of The Joys of Motherhood, does not consider herself a feminist. She has said herself that she identifies much more with the term womanist. Whatever you call it, Emecheta clearly identifies with the plight of the Nigerian Woman in her novel ... The Joys of Motherhood. The story, set in colonial Nigeria around the time of the Second World War, paints a picture of life in the ... the same time. By tying womanhood and motherhood together, the inextricable link is made. Nnu Ego cannot be a real woman unless she is a mother, i...

• Word Count: 1252
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... eager to be astronauts. When they want to be something a little bit unusual for their gender, parents usually doubt and ask them why. Take an example of my 5-year-old niece. When she was asked what she would like to be in the future and answered that she wants to be a police, her family started ... methods of upbringing and raising their son to their daughter. Since they know that they will get a baby boy, they start to paint the baby room with blue color and, later, buy "masculine" type of toys such as robots, car toys, gun toys, etc. They believe that pink is a little too feminine ... ...

• Word Count: 1274
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... asked his mother to acquire any type of book that he could read. Upon hearing this request from her son, she somehow got a hold of an old copy of Webster's "blue back" spelling book for him to read. This was one of the first instances Washington started to develop his ... in educating his own students. Not only did he teach his students the basics of schooling, such as mastering a trade or mathematics, but General Armstrong also offered something far more important than the fundamentals of a general education. In a quote by Washington that stated, "The older I grow, the more I am convinc...

• Word Count: 2105
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School