Hook:
In a not so ordinary book about blacks and white, written by Mallory Black we can clearly relate with what is happening to characters. This is because of betrayal.
Thesis statement:
Betrayal is one of the predominant themes in naughts and crosses. The different types of betrayal shown are family betrayal, friendship betrayal and belief betrayal.
First paragraph:
Sometimes people who we think our our friends are the ones that can hurt you the most. The theme friendship betrayal is shown when Callum invites Sephy to the beach and then kidnaps her. The beach, where Sephy and Callum used to meet and where she was captured, turned from a symbol of friendship and loyalty to a symbol of betrayal. "Could we meet tonight around nine o'clock at our special place. Its very important" Callum wrote in the letter. Sephy thought she was going to meet up with an old friend but it was the start of Callum's betrayal to their friendship. This shows us that Callum is like backstabbing Sephy and his friendship. "How ironic that Sephy, who had always supported the Liberation Militia's aim of equality for and between naughts and crosses, should now be subject to our tender mercies. The Liberation Militia have her now, Thanks to me. She would never have fallen into our hands if I hadn't set her up. I betrayed her. That thought more than any other, rips strips off whats left of my soul like some kind on insatiable hell-hound" Friendship betrayal not only goes from Callum to Sephy it also goes from Sephy to Callum. When there is a riot at Sephy's school and she screams, "Stop it! You're all behaving like animals! Worse than animals - like blankers!". Callum had never heard Sephy say that word, it was a very offensive.
Second paragraph:
Family is...
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...se why she was beaten up, "I believe my daughter was beaten up for sitting at your lunch table yesterday. You must be so proud of yourself." Jasmine said. Kamal Hadley betrayed the belief of having a close stable family he was never with his daughters or wife and when he did it was for other reasons not for love. Sephy tells us a little about this betrayal "Dad was never going to have and time for me and my sister and my mother. The only reason we'd been around at all was just because a 'stable' family was necessary."
Conclusion:
Betrayal is to give aid or information to an enemy of; commit treason against: betray one's country.To deliver into the hands of an enemy in violation of a trust or allegiance.It not only affects the person betraying but it also affects the person or people being betrayed. People get betrayed by their friends, family and beliefs.
Although the main character in the book was white, the author, Sue Kidd, does a great job of depicting the African American culture during the time. Whether it was Rosaleen getting beat up in jail, or Zach dreaming of being a lawyer, this book showed you what it was like being a minority during a time when rights where still being fought for. One of the smaller conflicts in the story was a man verses man conflict, when Lily and Zach started to like each other. Though they knew that a colored man, and a white girl could never be together, they both were attracted to each other. Were they not from different cultures, people would have been fine with them dating, but because Zach was black, it couldn?t work out.
People can be betrayed in a variety of ways for different reasons, by anyone in their lives. A close family member or a best friend could betray one. They may go behind one’s back in order for more personal gain, but sometimes they commit betrayal in the interest of one’s benefit. A not so close friend could betray one’s trust by telling a secret or situation that was told or seen in confidence that was broken for a juicy story or just slipped unnoticed. Some people betray their friends or enemies in order to make them look bad; such as spreading a rumor about said person.
Because of the thirst of superiority whites had, they wanted to restructure the behaviors of blacks in ways that would make them behave inferior. This was aided by the Jim Crow Laws enacted during the Jim Crow period. “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” in Uncle Tom’s Children explains how the natural behaviors of blacks were affected by Jim Crow laws. Wright explains how these laws affected him personally. Right from his childhood, blacks have been restricted from having anything to do with whites. Black children were brought up in ways that would make them scared of the whites. This continued even in his adulthood. Only few blacks were fortunate to work in places where whites were, but they were always treated badly. Wright got a job in an optical company, where he worked alongside two whites, Mr. Morrie and Mr. Pease. When Wright asked both of his coworkers Mr. Morrie and Mr. Pease to tell him about the work, they turned against him. One day Mr. Morrie told Mr. Pease that Richard referred to him as "Pease," so they queried him. Because he was trapped between calling one white man a liar and having referred to the other without saying "Mr." Wright promised that he would leave the factory. They warned him, while he was leaving, that he should not tell the boss about it. Blacks were made to live and grow up under conditions that made them regard whites as superior. Whites also used blacks’ natural behaviors against them by sexually abusing them. It is natural for people to have sex, but if they forced or abused sexually this means that their natural behavior is being used against them because sexual abuse is not natural. Sarah, in “Long Black Song,” is an example of a black female that was sexually abused by whites. Sarah was married and had a child but when the white man came to her house he did not hesitate to have sex with her. She resisted him initially
In the essay “How to Be Dead and Not Care”, Thomas Nagel replies to Rosenbaum and Epicurus by bring up an example of being betrayed by a friend. For example: let’s say your best friend sleeps with your husband and you die not knowing that they did that behind your back when you were living. Thomas Nagel would say it harms you even if you never found out. However, Epicurus, Rosenbaum and I believe it doesn’t harm you, because you never experience the
According to dictionary.com betrayal means "an act of deliberate disloyalty,”. Betrayal is something that is very prevalent throughout the novel The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini which is a story about the betrayal that a young boy named Amir does to his friend Hassan. Amir shows that he is a betrayer to Hassan when he belittles, plots, refuses to acknowledge their friendship, and walks away from Hassan. With each betrayal listed they progressively get worse and worse as Amir continues to show how little he really cares for Hassan.
Baldwin and his ancestors share this common rage because of the reflections their culture has had on the rest of society, a society consisting of white men who have thrived on using false impressions as a weapon throughout American history. Baldwin gives credit to the fact that no one can be held responsible for what history has unfolded, but he remains restless for an explanation about the perception of his ancestors as people. In Baldwin?s essay, his rage becomes more directed as the ?power of the white man? becomes relevant to the misfortune of the American Negro (Baldwin 131). This misfortune creates a fire of rage within Baldwin and the American Negro. As Baldwin?s American Negro continues to build the fire, the white man builds an invisible wall around himself to avoid confrontation about the actions of his ?forefathers? (Baldwin 131). Baldwin?s anger burns through his other emotions as he writes about the enslavement of his ancestors and gives the reader a shameful illusion of a Negro slave having to explai...
the racial hatred of the people. Black people were thought to be inferior to white people and in the 1960s when the novel was written, black communities were rioting and causing disturbances to get across the point that they were not inferior to white people. After Abolition Black people were terrorised by the Ku Klux Klan, who would burn them, rape the women, and torture the children and the reader is shown an example of. this in Chapter 15 where a group of white people, go to the county. jail to terrorise Tom Robinson.
The novel covered so much that high school history textbooks never went into why America has never fully recovered from slavery and why systems of oppression still exists. After reading this novel, I understand why African Americans are still racially profiled and face prejudice that does not compare to any race living in America. The novel left a mixture of frustration and anger because it is difficult to comprehend how heartless people can be. This book has increased my interests in politics as well and increased my interest to care about what will affect my generation around the world. Even today, inmates in Texas prisons are still forced to work without compensation because peonage is only illegal for convicts. Blackmon successfully emerged the audience in the book by sharing what the book will be like in the introduction. It was a strange method since most would have expected for this novel to be a narrative, but nevertheless, the topic of post Civil War slavery has never been discussed before. The false façade of America being the land of the free and not confronting their errors is what leads to the American people to question their integrity of their own
Janie Crawford, the novel’s main character, is an African American woman who eventually married three times throughout her lifetime. Her mother was raped by her schoolteacher and eventually gave birth to Janie, leaving her behind for Janie’s grandmother to raise her. A research article focused on Their Eyes Were Watching God concluded that “The devastating impact of the white discourse on black people which has targeted their identity is an integral part of this paper” (J Nov. Appl Sci. 1). It is evident in the novel that Janie (along with several other African Americans) are mistreated because of their skin color. This novel was set in the early 1900s, when although slavery was abolished, African Americans were not treated equally; the whites still held an unwritten superiority towards them. Although an imbalance of equality between whites and blacks is present, this novel should not be banned from the classroom because it teaches the cruel but true history of our nation. Our country’s history cannot be ignored like this, because it is a part of a valuable piece of literature and it makes society appreciate our new customs of equality that currently
During World War II and the Holocaust, there was not only mistrust for the government but there was also plenty of mistrust for prior friends and neighbors. In the graphic novel, “Maus (Volume I and II) Vladek Spiegelman makes it very clear to his son, Artie, that one cannot count on their friends. He makes the point that in time of hardship, friends will abandon you quite quickly. Vladek says, “Friends? Your friends…if you lock them together in a room with no food for a week…then you could see what it is, friends! (Maus, VI. 5-6). Throughout the novel, we see examples of this gloomy point proven repeatedly.
First of all, every human being needs to trust. Trust takes a lot to build, but at the same time it does take seconds to break. When being betrayed by someone they build trust with causes distrusts. “The Compass of Friendshp” is a book by William K. Rawlins, who discusses how a person betrays his friends friendship. “Most of us would agree that the loyalty and confidence of friendship is a scared of trust. Close friendship
There are numerous works of literature that recount a story- a story from which inspiration flourishes, providing a source of liberating motivation to its audience, or a story that simply aspires to touch the hearts and souls of all of those who read it. One of the most prevalent themes in historical types of these kinds of literature is racism. In America specifically, African Americans endured racism heavily, especially in the South, and did not gain equal rights until the 1960s. In her renowned book The Color Purple, Alice Walker narrates the journey of an African American woman, Celie Johnson (Harris), who experiences racism, sexism, and enduring hardships throughout the course of her life; nonetheless, through the help of friends and family, she is able to overcome her obstacles and grow into a stronger, more self-assured individual. While there are numerous themes transpiring throughout the course of the novel, the symbolism is one of the strongest prospects for instigating the plot. In The Color Purple by Alice Walker, numerous symbols influence and drive the plot of the novel.
Being betrayed my the ones who are supposed to be guiding the country and society to success can be the most devestating and destructive betrayals of all. However, The initial betrayal is not necesarrily the destructive part, it’s the retaliation. People arent going to just sit back and watch someone destroy their country, their home. They’re going to fight back. That one betrayal, that one broken promise turns into a huge mess. It’s the snowball effect, and that is the outcome of most betrayals. People are going to protect themselves and their country, not just watch someone destroy it. The line between actually being betrayed by the rulers and just disliking the way they run things is quite thin. Betrayal is when they take all the things they promised to do for the country and do the exact opposite, when as opposed to having the best interests of the people in mind, they care only about the interests an...
... It should be understood that Morrison's novel is filled with many characters and many examples of racism and sexism and the foundations for such beliefs in the black community. Every character is the victim or aggressor of racism or sexism in all its forms. Morrison succeeds in shedding light on the racism and sexism the black community had to endure on top of racism and sexism outside of the community. She shows that racism and sexism affect everyone's preconceived notions regarding race and gender and how powerful and prevalent the notions are.
Throughout the story, the writer uses the different lives of an African family and their union with an African American to show the cultural rift that occurs. Their daily lives show how people of different cultures strive to live together under the same roof. The clash of cultures is portrayed in the way they react to each other in the different circumstances.