Adversity In Breaking Night

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Failure is often attributed to an overwhelming challenge. Individuals often blame their circumstances for their inability to achieve their goals. But contrary to popular belief, challenges and adversity are the necessary soil for the growth of success. By presenting both adversity and successes, the texts Breaking Night by Liz Murray, and Balotelli by Luca Caioli present the notion that great adversity can be the breeding ground for successful individuals. From the very beginning, both Liz Murray and Mario Balotelli had faced constant adversity. Murray had been born to poor, drug-addicted parents living in the Bronx. She recalled that as a child, “We never had any food in the house, Everything was filthy and the drugs were everywhere,” (thefreelibrary.com) …show more content…

After her mother's death, Liz would decide to pull her life back on track. She attempted and successfully completed 4 years worth of school in the span of two years. On top of her tremendous school load, Liz was also homeless and went door-to-door for environmental fundraising efforts. (poststar.com) “It kept me in enough turkey sandwiches to be alive,” she shared. (poststar.com) Mario also faced vivid challenges throughout his childhood and career. As a young child, complications with Mario’s intestines left hospital bills his family wasn’t certain they could afford. In fear for Mario’s survival, they gave him up for foster care, an act scarring Mario forever. “If I didn’t become Mario Balotelli then Mr. and Mrs. Barwuah would not have cared about me for anything... [they] had abandoned... [me] in a hospital” (Dailymail.co.uk) The rejection from his family would draw him away from his birth family, but Mario would still face the challenges and discrimination of an immigrant. In an important match against Roma, the Roma supporters could be heard at numerous points throughout the game producing monkey noises directed at Mario. (Theguardian.com) Even as Liz Murray's homelessness caused numerous, recurring challenges, Mario Balotelli would also face many recurring …show more content…

Liz was able to attain university funds in the form of a scholarship she won from the New York Times (). This was a large, and prestigious scholarship, which would grant Liz the ability to go to Harvard. She would go on to win several awards such as an Honorary doctorate of public service, Oprah Winfrey’s Chutzpah Award, and even had a movie based on her life. Likewise, Mario Balotelli earned his place as the high scorer for Italy in the UEFA European Championships (), making him one of the greatest soccer players to ever emerge from the Country. Additionally, Mario would also receive a bronze medal at the confederations cup, and several wins to his

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