A human being develops and grows throughout their life through many challenges and sometimes it takes an event in one’s life to change a person. In the novel “The Caine Mutiny” by Herman Wouk, is a novel about Willie Keith, a chubby and well educated son from an upper class family who joins the Navy. Willie goes into the Columbia University School of Journalism, which has been converted for the war effort. He is almost rejected because of his physical reasons of not being fit, but his Princeton background saves him from being rejected. As soon as he stepped in this navy life and went through a long journey with the navy crew , Willie became more independent, responsible and courageous.
First of all, before Willie joined the navy he
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However, there was one more change in hi life that made him obtain a higher status in the ship and that was when the kamikaze plane hit The Caine. Willie did not panic as he use to and was able to take control of the situation even while some of the crew were abandoning the ship. “Now all hands, this is the executive officer. I ask you not to abandon ship. I’ve had no damage reports from any space but the after fireroom. The noise you heard was some ready ammunition popping on the galley deck-house. Things look pretty bad there for a minute. The captain gave permission to abandon but he also gave permission for volunteers to stay aboard and try to save the ship.….If we abandon it we’ll all get dumped into the personnel pool in Okinawa. If we stick with it we’ll probably pull an overhaul in the States. Stay with the ship.”(Wouk 438) Willie could have never stayed so calm if it hadn’t been for his navy training. When he was first described in the novel he was living the easy life and did not had to encounter danger sitaution so he had no courage. Now, Willie has learned how to take responsibility for and also overcame his fear of danger and became
The definition of compassion: sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others. As this definition shows compassion shows concern for other that every person would love to have. In The Chosen written by Chaim Potok, Mr. Potok really presents compassion in his book. Not only does he display compassion in one of his character but in every single one he gives them compassion that is expressed in different ways. He goes into detail example of compassion with each of his characters and really emphasizes the true meaning of compassion. Three main character that he shows compassion through in different ways are, Reuven, Mr. Malter and Reb Sanders.
Eugene Sledge’s With the Old Breed is a memoir of a junior soldier during the island hopping campaign in the Pacific theater during the Second World War. Written over thirty-five years after VJ-Day, his narrative carries the weight of emotion while brilliantly depicting the struggle of the individual soldier at the tactical level. As Sledge recounts his experience, he writes like a patriarch attempting to preserve his legacy through the account of his physically arduous and morally dubious ordeal. Already an established classic, Sledge’s memoir has resurged since becoming one of the narrative mainstays for the television mini-series The Pacific.
Sean Parnell was a normal college student, partying on the weekends, going to class when he wanted, and being as carefree as one could be. A year later, he becomes the leader of a forty-man platoon at the ripe age of twenty-four. After being the leader of the platoon for only eight short months Parnell claims he “had enough knowledge to know that he didn’t know anything” (page 27). The job of ...
Your fate is not based upon anyone’s actions other than your own. Both Wes Moore’s experienced a circumstance in which they required a second chance. The decision of how to use that second chance is the vital part to succeeding, for the difficult part learning how to “distinguish between second chances and last chances” (Moore 67). Wes— The author— was given a second chance after joining military school. Although it was originally an unfortunate turn of events, Wes quickly learned the opportunities that surrounded him were to fade rapidly if he did not improve his way of life. This experience is an example of how a single person can set themselves up for success or failure based upon their individual
As the reader can distinguish throughout the book, both men went in completely different paths after starting in the same position. The difference between both of their stories is the author’s positive role model and the other effects of the military academy. It does not have to specifically be the military academy to shape someone to be successful, but discipline and a father-like figure can make the difference. My father is fortunately in my life, and has shaped me into the person I am today. He has taught me numerous lessons that have gotten me to this point in my life. I am privileged enough to also have close successful cousins who often give me advice on how to become as successful as they are. With the help of a positive role model and a positive environment, the ability to become a good person, as well as successful can be obtained.
“Two roads diverged in a wood and I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” At some point in life one is faced with a decision which will define the future, but only time will tell whether or not the choice was right or wrong. The Boat by Alistair MacLeod demonstrates that an individual should make their own decisions in life, be open to new experiences and changes, and that there is no way to obtain something, without sacrificing something else.
Based on a true story, this biographical drama centered around Antwone “Fish” Fisher. In the beginning of the story, he was a sailor prone to violent outbursts. On the verge of being kicked out of the Navy for repeated fighting, he is sent to a naval psychiatrist for help. Refusing to open up, Dr. Davenport slyly slips his way into getting Antwone to talk. Antwone eventually breaks down and reveals a horrific childhood with neglect and abuse. With the help of Dr. Davenport, he is able to face his past and strive for success to find the family he has never met. At the same time, he is able to turn his life around and change it dramatically. In the end, he is reunited with both his father’s side of the family and his mother who has abandoned him.
In the short story “The Most Dangerous Game”, there are two main characters, Sanger Rainsford and General Zaroff. The story starts off with Rainsford and Rainsford’s hunting partner, Whitney, on a yacht heading to Rio de Janiero to hunt big game animals. Rainsford ends up becoming trapped on Ship-Trap Island, and that is where he and the reader are introduced to General Zaroff. Unfortunately for Rainsford, General Zaroff is not your normal General. General Zaroff and Rainsford are similar and different in many ways, and even though Rainsford believes that Zaroff is a sick individual, at the end of the story he becomes more like Zaroff than he realizes.
In their respective life journey, both Wes Moores often found them facing with some hard choices or decision to make or standing at a crossroads of life change without knowing which way to turn. Therefore, “for all of us who live in the most precarious places in this country, our destinies can be determined by a single stumble down the wrong path or a tentative step down the right one” (Moore xiv). During their early childhood, both Wes Moores struggle at school and had troubles with the law. However, for the author Wes Moore, attending the military school was the biggest turning point in his life. Aware of his mother’s determination, his family’s sacrifice, and encouragement from classmates and instructors as well as the influence of role models, the author Wes Moore finally made up his mind that he wanted to succeed in the military school. At the end, the author Wes Moore fulfilled his dream and did well academically from then on. On the other hand, the other Wes Moore had tumbled on a series of missteps along the road: dropping out of school, getting involved with drug trade, committing violent crimes, and being a father of four when he was so young and immature. Even though there was a time when he tried to reinvent himself: joining the Job Corp, getting a high school diploma, and finding some decent jobs, the reality and his making-quick-money mentality eventually brought him back to the original path with no return. At last, by committing an armed robbery that left a police officer dead, the other Wes Moore irreversibly drove himself to the dead end of life. Obviously, based on their early life experiences, both Wes Moores would have gone the same route to failure. Nevertheless, at some critical points of their lives, the author Wes Moore made some good choices with intervention and guidance of good people while the other Wes Moore lost his footing under undue
Moore quote including said, “It was a different psychological environment, where my normal expectations inverted, where leadership was honored and class clowns ostracized” (96). The quote The (author) Wes Moore seen in his Military School that the lower freshmen was respects the higher ranking. The (author) was very amazed that in his military school the students were respect their superior and follow their command and their honor code rules to obey by. At the Military School teaches (author) Wes Moore about learn the discipline, leadership, and teamwork. The military do care about the (Author) Wes Moore successes. The (author) Wes Moore have the stronger mentor giving him the responsibility of their trust on him to force him to change his bad behavior that impact his teenage and adulthood
Before going to Alaska, Chris McCandless had failed to communicate with his family while on his journey; I believe this was Chris’s biggest mistake. Chris spent time with people in different parts of the nation while hitchhiking, most of them whom figured out that McCandless kept a part of him “hidden”. In chapter three, it was stated that Chris stayed with a man named Wayne Westerberg in South Dakota. Although Westerberg was not seen too often throughout the story, nevertheless he was an important character. Introducing himself as Alex, McCandless was in Westerberg’s company for quite some time: sometimes for a few days, other times for several weeks. Westerberg first realized the truth about Chris when he discovered his tax papers, which stated that “McCandless’s real name was Chris, not Alex.” Wayne further on claims that it was obvious that “something wasn’t right between him and his family” (Krakauer 18). Further in the book, Westerberg concluded with the fact that Chris had not spoken to his family “for all that time, treating them like dirt” (Krakauer 64). Westerberg concluded with the fact that during the time he spent with Chris, McCandless neither mentioned his
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding is a peculiar story about boys stranded on an island, and the plot and characters relate to many prevailing events and problems. A specific problem that is currently occurring is the mutual hatred and enmity between North Korea and South Korea. This is a current event, but the North and South’s hostility has been ongoing since 1945, when Korea was split into North and South, Communist and Capitalist. When the 38th parallel(Border between North and South Korea) was created, Kim Il-Sung ruled the North, and Syngman Rhee ruled the South. As of now, a power hungry dictator, Kim Jong-un rules the north, and an optimistic president who wants to see change was recently elected in the South, named Moon Jae-in. In Golding’s book, Ralph is a character who aimed to keep everyone alive and to stay together. Jack on the other hand, wanted to have fun and hunt, and although he also wanted to be rescued, he made no effort to help. In this sense, North Korea is a clear representation of the character Jack and his quest for power, and opposingly, South Korea is a representation of Ralph and his strive for order, democracy, and civilization.
In Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried the issue of maturity is an ever occurring theme within the novel that sets out to tackle and open up for discussion of it on a broader level. Specifically within the chapters "Friends" and "Enemies" it is clear that both Lee Strunk and Dave Jensen are wedged in a personal psychological war. This issue faces many young adults but is perverted by the war and the tragic loss of innocent life. Many feel that the purpose of O'Brien's The Things They Carried is to show hardships and reality of war. While that is true, the most important issue and debate brought up is the rapid transformation of our young soldiers while they have to face the atrocities of war. Although, Lee Strunk and Dave Jensen originate as bitter enemies, they conclude there relationship as friends who have maturely evolved due to there encounters in war and self reflection.
Abrashoff begins the book by informing the reader of how his story begins; when he is given command of the USS Benfold. The Benfold was the Navy’s most advanced guided missile destroyer the Navy had in 1997 and its command was to be one of the Navy’s top innovators. Unfortunately, Abrashoff points out some flaws with the Navy’s personnel management that I found to be shocking. First, was that “nearly 35 percent of the people who joined the military annually, wouldn’t complete their enlistment contracts.” (p.2) Such turnover can be understood by many business managers in the service industry, but unlike the quick and cheap training process for them, the cost for the military (taxpayers) is astounding. Abrashoff estimates that it cost roughly “$35,000 to recruit a trainee and tens of thousands more in additional training costs to get new personnel to the basic level of proficiency.” (p.2) Curbing this trend on his own ship and eventually helping to achieve a decrease overall in the mil...
The military provides you with training to become more mentally tough. It always stays busy; you don’t have time to think about anything besides the training or job you are performing. This organization can provide you with a sense of belonging, family, friends, and hope. It instills in you that no matter what the circumstance’s, you have the strength to overcome. These protective factors gained through his military service helped him become more resilient. His anger is also a protective mental factor used by Antwone to not face his true emotions. While this is negative, his anger has helped him by concentrating on others and situations instead of himself. Antwone enjoys drawing, and writing. He displays academic intelligence by being able to learn two languages. Those are crucial positive and resilient protective factors for Antwone. Despite his trauma and stubbornness, he is able to seek help and accept it. Not forgetting to mention, he is also able to demonstrate positive emotions and create positive relationships, with Lieutenant Commander Davenport and Sailor Sheryl. Antwone eventually achieves closure with his family, and in return that helps him deal with his