The children’s literature piece that I examined was Invisible Alligators by Hayes Roberts. In my analysis of this piece I set out to discover the main themes of this story and how they can be utilized in teaching children morals and life lessons. This topic question is significant as nearly all stories especially those aimed at children have an overarching message that is meant to be perceived by the reader.
The story of the Invisible Alligators is the tale of a monkey named Sari, who experiences a terrible day filled with troubles. After the troublesome day she was going to sit down in her bed when she saw that there was a plethora of invisible alligators beneath her bed. She followed the alligators underground and found that the invisible alligators were the source of not only her problems, but the all of the problems in everyone’s lives. On her way back to her bed after her ecounter with the invisible alligators she came upon numerous challenging problems, such as a broken bridge and was able to solve all of them. The main moral themes that I believe are displayed more than superficially in this story are: Bad things happen to everyone, along with finding justification as to why bad things happen, and that one learns to succeed through perseverance through in facing challenges and dilemmas.
In this story the concept that bad things happen to all people and that there is nothing that one can do about it is a central theme and lesson for the reader to learn and develop. When Sari follows the invisible alligators from her bed to their alligator catacombs she learns that that the alligators are the cause of all the worldly problems in everyone lives. The alligators say, “In this house I’m hiding the remote and this sheep...
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...e story when the invisible alligators take Sari into their headquarters and show her the record of the problems that they have cause her in her life, along with everything that she had learned as a result of theses problems.
In reading and analyzing Hayes Roberts story Invisible Alligators I set out to discover the main themes of this story and how these themes can teach children morals and life lessons that can be applied in their own lives. The main moral themes that I believe are displayed in this story are: Bad things happen to all people, good and bad, along with justification as to why bad things happen, and that one learns to succeed by overcoming difficult challenges. Theses conclusions that I have drawn from the question are significant because they describe the overall message I believe that Hayes Roberts is trying to portray to the reader in his piece.
This paper seeks to show the comparison and the scrutiny of “"The Mad Trapper"” as a novel and its adaptation as a film. Both as a book and as a film it provides a good fiction which attracts an affluent legacy of folks, fables and myths. Rudy Wiebe’s recent novel The Mad Trapper (1980), the legend, presents a basis for the frame. Further than any distress with chronological events, the writer categorically depicts legendary dimensions to intertwine his fiction into conflict. Weibe’s argument, nevertheless, is not merely involving thermo and Albert Johnson; his contention lies amid the impending desires of self independence and reliability and the problem of multifaceted and distant progress.
...ia J. Campbell. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1996. 39-65. Rpt. in Children's Literature Review. Ed. Scot Peacock. Vol. 82. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 14 Jan. 2014.
The book I read was The Island by Gary Paulsen. It is about a 15 year
As probably the best courtroom dramas of the twentieth century, Inherit the Wind is based on the famous, Scopes Monkey Trial. The play was printed virtually thirty years afterward and takes original authority in varying the true-life elements of the court case. The central conflict of the play is based on the Scopes Monkey Trial itself. Several themes are presented throughout the play, for example when Brady argues for religious values while Drummond argues for natural values and freedom of thought. The definition of a theme is an implicit or recurrent idea. We also see a theme of man versus society, furthermore, Bertram Cates versus the small town of Hillsboro. A third theme is appearance versus reality, or the difference between outward pretext and the basic truth. There are also quite a few symbols all the way through the play. A symbol is something that represents something else by association, resemblance, or convention, especially a material object used to represent something invisible. A symbol can also be an image that has multiple interpretations. For instance in Inherit the Wind, the small town mentality concept is greatly represented. The widespread significance of the court case is symbolized by the radio broadcast during the trial. External beauty is also significant when it is symbolized by the means of the rocking horse we learn about from Drummond's childhood. During the decade of the Scopes Monkey Trial, the conflict of evolution and the bible has massive relevance to the municipal and philosophical surroundings.
The moral of the story tells about an old African American woman named phoenix Jackson who was taking a journey from her home into town to seek some medication for her ill grandson. During this journey the story describes Phoenix Jackson facing struggles and obstacles against her eye sight and old age, as well as nature’s obstacles, thorn bushes and barbed wire. Thru these obstacles Phoenix Jackson is able to depict her poetic view of the world through symbolism. During the time period this story was written was in 1941 WWII had just begun, but not only that also of poverty that was a reality to many—particularly to blacks and people rural areas.
A narcissist is one who believes “he or she is ‘special’ and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special” people. They exploit others for their own advantage, lack empathy, and are “preoccupied with fantasies” or ideals that can be unrealistic. They believe they are the “primary importance in everybody’s life”. (“Narcissistic Personality”) Henry James’ theme in his short story, “The Beast in the Jungle”, is about a man, who is so egotistical and self-absorbed that he misses what life has to offer him, in particular, love, because of the narcissistic behavior he is doomed to live a life of loneliness and misery. John Marcher, the protagonist of “The Beast in the Jungle”, is about a narcissistic upper-class man who believes his life is to be defined by some unforetold event. He focuses only on himself and as a result, he neglects everything and everyone in his life. Marcher meets May Bartram, a woman who knows his secret, and instead of pursuing a romantic relationship with her, or even a genuine friendship, he uses her for his own benefit. Henry James utilizes a variety of literary devices to convey this theme in his story, such as the title, symbolism, dialogue, and the use of a limited third-person narrative. Henry James leaves us our first clue to the theme in the title, “The Beast in the Jungle”. When one thinks of a beast, they typically imagine something big and ferocious; Marcher’s ego was just that.
Grendel lives in a dark and gruesome underground cave with his mother and dozens of cold, unmoving creatures. He is very curious and, in his early years, finds a way to escape this terrible place and enter the world. Every night he wanders outside his cave, exploring the land around him. One night, he gets trapped in a tree. A band of human beings led by King Hrothgar approaches and, after some hesitation, attacks Grendel. They close in for the kill, but Grendel's mother arrives just in time to save him.
The theme of this story is actually stated in the story if it is read carefully and Crane reinforces it innumerable times. The theme of the story is man’s role in nature and is related to the reader through the use of color imagery, cynicism, human brotherhood, and the terrible beauty and savagery of nature. The story presents the idea that every human faces a voyage throughout life and must transition from ignorance to comprehension of mankind’s place in the universe and among other humans.
A theme within this novel is the loss of innocence. The existence of civilization allows man to remain innocent, therefore when the characters lost their innocence, the civilization was gone or corrupt. One example of the loss of innocence would be when Jack was unable to stab the pig during the hunt. At that moment, he lost his innocence which enabled him to kill without a recollection of civilization. Another example of the loss of innocence was when Roger was throwing stones and rocks at the other children below him. Roger was unable to actually hit them purposely because he still had his innocence, but this moment was the beginning of his inability of understanding human nature.
The adult world is a cold and terrifying place. There are robberies, shootings, murders, suicides, and much more. If you were to be a small child, perhaps age 5, and you were to look in at this world, you would never know how bad it actually was, just from a single glance. Children have a small slice of ignorant bliss, which helps to keep them away from the harsh of reality. It isn’t until later, when they encounter something that opens their eyes and shows them, that they truly start to understand the world we live it. Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird shows the many differences between the simplicity of being a kid and the tough decisions and problems that adults must face every day.
Through O’Connor’s religious background, the audience must closely analyze the true message of her story through her symbolism. Her shocking and grotesque ending of the short story challenges individuals by questioning what is good and what is evil. O’Connor’s symbolism found in her setting and main characters truly embody her view of modern society. She uses these elements as a representation for the realistic paths individuals struggle to choose between: the path involved in sin concerning money, good looks, and pride or the path towards God concerning morals, values, and respect for humanity.
Sometimes growing up we experience situations that can change our perspective on life. Especially, when these situations happen unexpectedly; we are in disbelief. In Toni Cade Bambara short story “The Lesson” written in first person; it delves into the struggle of a girl, Sylvia, who realizes the economic and social injustice surrounding her. However, with the help of Miss Moore Sylvia comes to grip with this issue, and opts to overcome it. In “The Lesson” Miss Moore wanted to impart on Sylvia and the other children is the value of a dollar, the importance of education, and to fathom the social and economic injustice that bounded them.
This leads to the fact that a beast really does exist within all human beings, but is only expressed when human instinct for survival becomes the main objective. At first the boys aren?t able to kill, but as survival instinct starts taking over, the reader?s are able to se the true character?s play out, and lives are compromised. ?You feel as if you?re not hunting, but- being hunted, as if something?s behind you all the time in the jungle,? (pg.53) proves that it?s every man for himself and people will do anything to survive. An example of this in the novel was when Robert became the ?pig,? and was wounded even though it wasn?t intentional, but the situation became worse when Piggy?s death happened as a result of all civilization lost and evil taken over.
In William Golding 's Lord Of The Flies numerous themes are presented to give us readers something to think about. Despite the fact that the group of boys stranded on the island got saved at the end of the novel, Golding 's main theme is that there is no hope for mankind, and that evil is an inborn trait of mankind. We constantly see this theme throughout the novel when the boys, split into two different tribes, participate in the death of Simon, and lastly we see this when Roger deliberately kills Piggy.
Anderson makes effective use of fantasy to teach a moral lesson. He builds up the story in such a way that the reader does not care for the validity of the incidents. The moral lesson is that the proud and the disobedient must suffer.