... of value judgments. For instance, these people, being very sincere about their religion, are likely to see anything out of the ordinary, such as a black-veiled minister, as a serious issue that undermines their faith. On the surface, the first sight of the veil not only confuses the congregation, but scares ... character trait held by this community is its inability to cope with even the slightest bit of change. Something as trivial as a man covering his face with black crape paper literally whips this community into a frenzy. "I don't like it" (p.102), cried the old woman, "Our parson h...

• Word Count: 810
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... Shirley Jackson writes about has a totally different outcome then most conventional lottery .The lottery is played to actually pick out that years sacrificial "human" lamb. The black box that holds all the folded paper with the names of the town folks is the perfect symbol of death; not only is everyone's name in it but ... is married so this child draws with her husbands family. This leaves the two adults and three children, five slips of paper are placed back into the black box and each one of the family members draws their own slip back out of the box. This brings us to Mrs. Tessie Hu...

• Word Count: 826
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In the novel "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison, Morrison provides an interpretation of how whiteness is the standard of beauty, which warps the lives of black women and children, through messages everywhere that whiteness is superior and beautiful. In the short story "Recitatif", Morrison removes all racial codes from the narrative, for which racial ... . Furthermore, Morrison's family struggled financially during the Great Depression, similarly to the MacTeer family in the novel. Through "The Bluest Eye", Morrison makes a statement about how vulnerable a young black girl, such as herself, is...

• Word Count: 1083
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

In Hawthorne's The Minister's Black Veil, literal and figurative language had a great relevance to the story. The use of personification and similes improved upon the understanding of the story. The veil was often personified to ... ceremony. The central theme held the essential interpretations about life. Hawthorne tries to tell that everyone has their own black veil, which symbolizes one's secret sins in life that is not lifted until death. The concept of the black veil in The Minister's Black Veil is similar to the scarlet "A" in The Scarlet Letter. In both of these pieces of Hawthorne, h...

• Word Count: 436
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... deal with the theme of death. This theme is conveyed by techniques such as characterisation and word choice. The "Black Cat" is about a psychotic animal lover who acquires and befriends a stray black cat until a moment of madness occurs where he cuts out its eye and hangs it. Later, the man finds ... him to die drunk with no oxygen. A piece of characterisation which Poe uses to tackle the theme of death is when the insane narrator in "The Black Cat" pounces for the animal, after a few drinks, clutching a pen-knife and tears one of its eyes out with the weapon. This incident happens ... . ...

• Word Count: 750
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

In the short story "The Man Who Was Almost a Man," by Richard Wright, depicts a boy who has the need to own a gun. In most cases you would think that someone wanting to own a gun is for protection, but that is not the case in this ... ...

• Word Count: 683
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... the minister, Mr. Hooper was a proper, well-dressed rather ordinary minister. He was well liked by his congregation, but there was nothing special about him. He appears one Sunday wearing a black veil that covers all of his face except his mouth and his chin. The minister's wearing of the veil has a dramatic effect on his congregation from that day forward. The ... the veil has on the minister himself. The entire story is a parable about sin and how we cannot hide it from ourselves or anyone else. I believe the minister wore the black veil because he had sinned and he wanted to demonstr...

• Word Count: 597
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

The Black Cat The Cask of Amontillado The Tell-Tall Hart By Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allen Poe themes for these three stories all have similarities. There are bizarre situations and themes ... neck. These are short gothic horror stories. The one theme, they all have in common, I believe is how easy it is for man to down slide into insanity. In "The Black Cat" we see the story of a man who reaches his end through insanity, with the help of alcohol. At the beginning of the story he is pictured as a lover of ... animals, with many pets. His favorite was a black cat named Pluto. As he drank more a...

• Word Count: 869
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

In Edgar Allen Poe's The Black Cat, there is symbolism weaved throughout the story. At the beginning of the story there is a brief history told about the narrator's life and his strong affection for animals. The ... ...

• Word Count: 394
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... cliffhanger, there are multiple signs throughout that point towards their son's death. "Signs and Symbols" takes place within the United States where a boy suffers from "Referential Mania" which is a condition that makes one believe that objects around them are conspiring against oneself. This condition leaves their son ... rain, and the dying bird the parents encounter on their way to visit their son. Some other clues that point to the boy's death are playing cards, the wife wearing a black dress with no make-up, and the birthday present that the parents were bringing their son. The fi...

• Word Count: 1066
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... . The whole village is against him and they make him sign a paper, where it says that he promises them to recommend the village in his guidebook. B: An Essay In this assay I would like to talk about Neville and his view about the western world, the village and the villagers" point of view and the theme of the story. The meeting between ... ...

• Word Count: 1237
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... Almost A Man", the author, Richard Wright, renders the role of protagonist to a seventeen-year-old black boy named Dave. This aforementioned character grew up during the late 1800's in a time when black men were treated inferior to their just as equal counterparts and the only thing that was keeping him being ... among his peers. Dave feels that the gun yields great strength when he says, "Could kill a man with a gun like this. Kill anybody, black or white." (278). This may demonstrate that he has now realized the potential he holds with the strength gained from having this gun. Finally,...

• Word Count: 874
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... hour would change his life and town forever. He left his house like he always did and walked to the bus stop. He saw across the street a rather handsome boy in his class with a beautiful blonde girl. Except this wasnt just any girl, this was Candice. A girl he adored since the 3rd grade, in fact she was ... But every time he thought of her he felt serenity. He thought she was single and this kept him sane. The next 10 seconds would live in infamy. The boy gave her a kiss on the lips while groping her. This show of Affection not only tainted Doms soul but his whole well-being was affected ...

• Word Count: 975
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... For young men, a gun symbolizes masculinity and allows them to act as a man. However, in some cases, a gun brings out the youthfulness that still lives in a boy trying to become a man. In the short story "Almos" A Man" by Richard Wright, the main character, Dave, believes having a gun will make him a man but ... instead creates the opposite effect of behaving childish. Despite the fact that everyone thinks of Dave as a boy and treats him like one, he still believes he should be treated as a man. At the beginning of the story he says to himself, "Ahm ol ... the mule. Rather than admitti...

• Word Count: 630
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... to let blacks kill themselves while they [whites] sit back and watch with amusement. The "Battle Royal" itself represents the many hardships that black people endure while they fight to be treated equally in this nation. The harsh conditions that the boys" face in the battle royal is horrendous ... segregation of public places were issues that were constantly debated or fought over. These battles are somewhat represented by the brutal fighting of the 10 black boys in a ring, being witnessed by whites in high social standing. As the white men viewed the battle they became consumed by the ...

• Word Count: 1103
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... puts everything into perspective, which makes the reader feel like he is experiencing what is happening in the story. " I hoped that the boy, my brother's son, would soon come across the broad black area of plowed ground, carrying the jar of cool water."(1) The uncle had his mind on the water and not on his work. This ... he is doing, and it adds suspense to the story because you aren't sure what might happen next. "I almost ran over the snake and I was thinking of the boy, and the water- (1) This proves that the foreshadowing that had been demonstrated came true. " the gleeful of brutal...

• Word Count: 454
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... wearing a tie to bring her there on the bus. Julian is quite the opposite of his mother; he does things just to spite her. For example, she still thinks of black people as slave, so he goes and sits next to them on the bus. I think he is trying to give her a reality check. I think that the bus ride symbolizes all ... people coming together despite their race or religious background. When the mother offered a little black boy a penny the mother of the boy took offence and shoved Julian's mother to the ground. It was at that point in the story where Julian realizes how truly helpless his ...

• Word Count: 1004
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... that she is a very religious person so that it is easily conceived that she would be very touched by the murders in Tucson. The way Oates describes Arnold as "a boy with shaggy black hair, in a convertible jalopy painted gold" (Oates 150) initiates fear in the reader. Since Oates is very religious it is easily inferred that she associates Arnold with the devil ... because his hair is black which stands for evil and he is driving a old beat up jalopy which is unattractive like the devil. She also says that "he wagged a finger [at Connie] and laughed and ... devil because at the time Arn...

• Word Count: 1228
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

... themes that stand out the most in this book. The most prominent theme in this book of course is racism, both inside and outside the black race. Outside the black race is a collection of characters that display the many evils of racism. Although the slaves are freed at the very beginning of the story ... her, however, because they disprove of her associating with such people, believing them to be unworthy of an education. Racism, both inside and outside the black race is the driving force in this book. Symbolism is also present in Gaines" novel. The river discussed at the beginning of the...

• Word Count: 1101
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

Search for One's Identity Richard Wright's, "The Man Who Was Almost a Man", is a fictitious short story about an uneducated black boy's quest to become a man. Growing up in the early 20th century was a very hard task for most black people. The lack of education was one of the hardest hills they had to overcome to make it in a world dominated by whites. The story ... centers upon one seventeen-year old boy who has very low self-esteem caused by his peers. He believes that owning a gun ... ...

• Word Count: 704
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... of the morals the stories are trying to portray. First off the word assimilation can be compared to Blue Winds Dancing. In this story a young Indian boy feels that he doesn't fit in with white society. In the story he notes how the people who aren't a part of society are considered outcasts. People ... who don't want to buy stuff they don't need aren't considered a part of society. The boy couldn't live with this society so he left to go back to his own home and village. Near the end of the story he states that he felt ... important part of society. To Kill a Mocking Bird is this last ...

• Word Count: 687
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... own and use one responsibly. It would be crazy to give a child a gun and expect him not to kill himself or someone else. When the day comes that a boy finally gets this status symbol, he is elated, and feels very powerful. Assuming he is ready to control this kind of power, it can be a good self-esteem builder. ... is not ready to own a gun. It is obvious by his reaction to having it in his hand. "Could kill a man with a gun like this. Kill anybody, black or white. And if he were holding his gun in his hand, nobody could run over him; they would have to respect him." (Wright 278). Dave w...

• Word Count: 999
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... 's top falls off, which embarrassed Andy to great extent. "Andy saw that her mothers swimsuit top had come off, so that her breasts swayed free, her nipples looked like two black eyes. Embarrassed, Andy looked around: except for two women under a yellow umbrella farther up, the beach was empty." The magnitude of this quote shows the embarrassment Andy had towards her ... mother being a woman. Andy reacts more like a little boy, because she didn't want to see that part of a woman's physique. Andy comes to the realization of her being a girl, and the doe's connection with her. She takes an...

• Word Count: 704
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... okay? Kiss kiss kiss. Then the two fight. You Dumbbell! He's mine. Oh no he's not, you stinky!- Except, there really isn't a boy doll there to play with so they have to pretend he's there. This is probably all they know how to play with them since they are so poor ... and don't get out much. The characters also describe a bought boy doll as "stupid-looking- perhaps because they've never had a brand new doll that didn't have anything wrong with it. They also made it perfectly ... clear that if it came down to choosing between a boy doll and more clothing, they would prefer more clothing...

• Word Count: 789
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

In his short story "A & P" John Updike utilizes a 19-year-old male to show us how a boy gets one-step closer to adulthood. Sammy, an A & P checkout clerk, talks to the reader with first person narration. The setting of the story ... characterization of Sammy, Updike uses a simple heroic gesture to teach us that actions have consequences and we are responsible for our own actions. Sammy is a 19-year-old boy conveying a cocky but loveable male attitude. He describes three girls entering the A & P, setting the tone of the story. "In walk these three girls in nothing but ... pretty pale...there w...

• Word Count: 725
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School