The book Boy Overboard by Morris Gleitzman shows Afghanistan through the eyes of a boy named Jamal. Gleitzman is expressing his sympathy for refugees. The story follows Jamal as he and his family daringly escape to Australia to evade the government. Jamal grows and pushes himself as he comes across difficult situations, and is forced to adapt and be versatile. Jamal has to be brave to help his family, or they will perish, and he has to take a leadership role to survive and make it to Australia. Jamal is forced to grow up quickly, and his personality changes to fit. As Afghanistan is constantly overshadowed by war, Jamal has to be brave to survive, and keep his family together. He looks out for his little sister Bibi, as girls are prevented from going outside without an adult male. So Jamal is surprised when playing soccer with friends in the desert, and Bibi joins them, alone. He tries to get Bibi to go back home, but when she steps on …show more content…
a landmine, he knows he has to do something. She and his family are now in danger. So, displaying courage and bravery, he offers to switch positions with Bibi. “Okay, slide your foot off the metal plate, and I’ll slide mine on…” (pg. 18). Bibi is persuaded to shuffle off the mine, and Jamal shuffles onto it. He makes it onto the land mine successfully, switching with Bibi to not only save her, but also his family. He displayed both courage and leadership in this struggle for survival. After the landmine incident, Jamal and his family must travel to Australia by boat to escape the government.
They are officially asylum seekers. Unfortunately, when the family boards the two boats, they get separated. Jamal and Bibi board one boat, and their parents board the other. With nothing but a soccer ball for hope, Jamal and Bibi have to survive in the tough conditions. Jamal has to display his leadership skills to not only pull through, but also to control Bibi’s hot temper. And when pirates board the ship to steal jewellery and the girls, Jamal takes charge of the desperate situation, disguising Bibi and another girl, Rashida, as boys to fool the pirates. I take the knotted t-shirt off my head… put the t-shirt hat on Bibi’s head… “Quick, give Rashida your hat…” (pg. 142). Luckily, the pirates were fooled and Rashida and Bibi stayed on the boat. We see in this predicament, Jamal is able to develop his leadership skills and act quickly, and his personality continues to change from a boy to a young man as the setting
differs. In war-torn Afghanistan, Jamal is forced to grow up quickly, his traits and personality changing and adapting to each setting. He develops endurance for survival. “But things are difficult for us. Our people are not liked by many of the other people in this country...” (pg. 42). This quote refers to the government discriminating against certain people in Afghanistan. Despite everything he is up against, Jamal handles the conflicts well, saving him and others. Dispute brings out the best in Jamal as the story progresses, and he survives the journey with his family. He portrays character strengths throughout the book that help him and Bibi survive the landmine and the boat trip, such as bravery and leadership. Jamal also grows up quickly to act in cohesion with his surroundings as they change, with the soccer ball supplying Jamal and Bibi with hope to make the treacherous journey. They are reunited with their parents at the end of the journey, supporting the writer's contention, “I wrote this story to express my sympathy for children everywhere who have to flee to survive, and my admiration for the adults who embrace them at the end of their journey…”
In the book Boys In the Boat, Daniel Brown tells the story of the U.S.’s rowing team’s Olympic journey to gold in 1936. The games were held in Berlin, right under Hitler’s eye. Though the games were held in Berlin that didn’t stop Joe Rantz, the book’s main character, and his team from going for gold. The boys had to show perseverance and teamwork to even be able to row. From country boys, to gold medal winners, rowing and hardships helped them embody the American spirit of hard work and teamwork. The boys had to overcome hardships, to work hard, and they never stopped being a team in order to win gold in Berlin.
Hosseini writes, “ ‘How many orphans live here?’ Farid asked. ‘More than we have room for. About two hundred and fifty, ‘Zaman said over his shoulder. ‘But they’re not all yateem. Many of them have lost their fathers in the war and their mothers can’t feed them because the Taliban don’t allow them to work. So they bring their children here’ ”(253). An orphanage owner, Zaman, describes the current problems for the children of Pakistan. This scene shows the high verisimilitude of The Kite Runner. Conflicts with food and housing for orphans is a real problem; as well as, parents giving up their children so they can eat. This is all caused by the Taliban and the previous war raging in Afghanistan. The Taliban do not give opportunities for work or food to the parents who are still left to fend for their children. Fear is felt by all Afghans who even come in close contact with a Taliban member because the treatment Afghans have been given. Hosseini writes about the orphans to show that these problems can and will keep happening. Hosseini wants to prove how real his book can
Amir is, to be put bluntly, a coward. He is led by his unstable emotions towards what he thinks will plug his emotional holes and steps over his friends and family in the process. When he sought after Baba’s invisible love, Amir allowed Hassan to be raped in an alleyway just so that the blue kite, his trophy that would win his father’s heart, could be left untouched. In the end, he felt empty and unfulfilled with the weight of his conscience on his shoulders comparable to Atlas’ burden. Unable to get over his fruitless betrayal, he lashes out and throws pomegranates at Hassan before stuffing money and a watch under his loyal friend’s pathetic excuse for a bed, framing Hassan for theft and directly causing the departure of both servants from his household. Even after moving to America, finding a loving wife, and creating a career for himself in writing, he still feels hollow when thinking of his childhood in Afghanistan. Many years later, he is alerted of Hassan’s death and sets out on a frenzied chase to find his friend’s orphaned son. He feels that he can somehow ease his regrets from all of those years ago if he takes in Hassan’s son, Sohrab. He finds Sohrab as a child sex slave for Assef, who coincidentally was the one to rape Hassan all of those years ago. After nearly dying in his attempt to take back Sohrab, he learns that he can take the damaged child back to the states with him. Sadly, Hassan’s son is so
The protagonist of Araby is a young boy who is infatuated with his friend Mangan 's sister. The setting, and the introduction of the this woman is nearly identical to that in A&P. Joyce 's narrator spends his time “lay[ing] on the floor in the front parlour watching [Magnan 's sister 's] door” (Joyce 182). Immediately from the outset of the story, Joyce has rendered the narrator as someone who frivolously awaits his female interest with no other motivation. The main character then finally encounters Magnan 's sister personally, where she tells him about a bazaar near town called Araby. Joyce 's protagonist is shocked when Magnan 's sister “addresse[s] the first words to [him]” (Joyce 183) as he has spent a plethora of time yearning for an interaction with her. Joyce has implemented the idea into Araby that males are inherently reliant on females. Interestingly, Joyce has incorporated another male character in his story that is presented as inferior to his female counterpart. The purpose of the narrator 's uncle in the story is to slow the main character from going to Araby. The Uncle comes home much later than expected, and is chastised my his wife: “Can 't you give him the money and let him go? You 'v kept him late enough as it
“Araby” tells the story of a young boy who romanticizes over his friend’s older sister. He spends a lot of time admiring the girl from a distance. When the girl finally talks to him, she reveals she cannot go to the bazaar taking place that weekend, he sees it as a chance to impress her. He tells her that he is going and will buy her something. The boy becomes overwhelmed by the opportunity to perform this chivalrous act for her, surely allowing him to win the affections of the girl. The night of the bazaar, he is forced to wait for his drunken uncle to return home to give him money to go. Unfortunately, this causes the boy to arrive at the bazaar as it is closing. Of the stalls that remained open, he visited one where the owner, and English woman, “seemed to have spoken to me out of a sense of duty” (Joyce 89) and he knows he will not be able to buy anything for her. He decides to just go home, realizing he is “a creature driven and derided with vanity” (Joyce 90). He is angry with himself and embarrassed as he...
Amir goes through many events that take place in the book that change him, and the way he is perceived within the book. Amir is a young boy, who is tortured by his father’s scrutinizing character. Amir is also jealous of Hassan, because of the fact that his father likes Hassan instead of Amir. Amir fights for his father’s approval, interest, and love. This is when Amir changes for the good as he deals with the guilt of the rape of Hassan. Amir witnessed Hassan getting raped, but decides to nothing in order to win over his father’s interest. The guilt that Amir builds up is carries from his premature times as a child to his mature times. From Afghanistan to
The novel tells the story of, Amir. Amir is portrayed as the protagonist; the novel revolves around his recollection of past events 26 years ago as a young boy in Afghanistan. Amir is adventures and brave. Hassan is Amir’s closets friend and servant to his house and is portrayed as a subservient male, often supporting and accepting blame for Amir’s actions. Assef, Wali and Kamal are the “ bad guys” within the novel; Wali and Kamal hold down Hassan and Assef rapes him purely for ethnicity differences, as Hassan is a Hazara. Afghanistan boys are supposed to be athletic and true to Islam .The leaving of Soraya Hassan mother with another man gives the notion that women lack morality leaving behind there children .The Taliban laws are followed closely within Afghanistan and women are treated without any rights, beatings, stoning and execution become the reality for women who violate the laws. Culturally Afghanistan women are portrayed to be subservient to there husband only live and breath to provide children, cook food and clean their
Being a woman in Afghanistan is extremely hard and challenging. Women face many hardships and restrictions compared to men during their lifetime. These hardships include women having a lack of education, Not allowed outside without being fully clothed head to toe and not being able to play a sport or step foot into a sporting center or club.
The other source of tension in Amir’s life is his relationship with Baba, his hard-driving and demanding father. Desperate to win his father’s affection and respect, Amir turns to the sport of kite flying, and at the age of 12, with the assistance of Hassan, he wins the annual tournament in Kabul. Amir’s victory soon is tarnished when he witnesses a vicious assault against his friend, who raced through the streets of Kabul to retrieve the last kite, Amir had sliced from the sky, and fails to come to his aid. Amir’s cowardness is compounded by a later act of betrayal that causes Ali and Hassan to leave their home, and he now faces the nightmare, bearing the burden of his poor choices for the rest of his life.
One aspect of the novel that highlights this struggle is its setting, as it takes place during four time periods, each at a different stage in Afghan history. Throughout these unstable decades, the country’s government went through continuous upheavals with each new government advocating different
Although “Araby” is a fairly short story, author James Joyce does a remarkable job of discussing some very deep issues within it. On the surface it appears to be a story of a boy's trip to the market to get a gift for the girl he has a crush on. Yet deeper down it is about a lonely boy who makes a pilgrimage to an eastern-styled bazaar in hopes that it will somehow alleviate his miserable life. James Joyce’s uses the boy in “Araby” to expose a story of isolation and lack of control. These themes of alienation and control are ultimately linked because it will be seen that the source of the boy's emotional distance is his lack of control over his life.
The short story “Araby” written by James Joyce tells the story of an unnamed boy who lives on North Richmond Street. The short story starts off by giving the reader a brief overview about the boy's life and other relevant background information. It is soon expressed that the boy has a very intense infatuation with his friends Mangan’s sister. The story goes on to explain his interaction with this girl which leads him to attend an event later that week. By James Joyce’s use of literary devices, the short story is able to progress and give the reader an accurate insight into this young boy's life and experiences.
In the sea there are Crocodiles by Fabio Geda is a book about a boy who lived with his mother in Nava, Afghanistan until his mother took him to Kandahar, Afghanistan then to Quetta, Pakistan. She did this because the Taliban threatened to make Enaiatollah and his little brother slaves if his mother did not pay “back” the cost for the merchandise damaged in her husband’s/ Enaiatollah’s fathers crash caused by a gang. When Enaiatollah mother brings him to Quetta they stay in a hotel type place for illegals.
Mustafa feels tied and ultimately weighed down by his culture since he carries the burden of purchasing the land his father sold instead of prospering. In addition to running his business, trying to launch another, and raising his son, Mustafa took the responsibility to find his younger sister a suitor. He takes on and imposes this role without asking his sister for her opinion of the matter. Through his sister, however, Mustafa learns that he should let go of his guilt and try to find happiness in
The narrator alienated himself from friends and family which caused loneliness and despair, being one of the first themes of the story. He developed a crush on Mangan's sister, who is somewhat older than the boys, however he never had the confidence to confess his inner-most feelings to her. Mentally, he began to drift away from his childlike games, and started having fantasies about Mangan's sister in his own isolation. He desperately wanted to share his feelings, however, he didn't know how to explain his "confused adoration." (Joyce 390). Later in the story, she asked him if he was going to Araby, the bazaar held in Dublin, and he replied, "If I go I will bring you something.' (Joyce 390). She was consumed in his thoughts, and all he could think about was the upcoming bazaar, and his latest desire. The boy's aunt and uncle forgot about the bazaar and didn't understand his need to go, which deepened the isolation he felt (Borey).