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Biological versus social influences on personality
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Influences of society in personal development
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When we think of individuality, typically our minds flood with fear. Fear of being too alike or too ordinary in our current society. In the book, An Abundance of Katherines, a recurring theme is “Individuality is bittersweet.” The main character, Colin Singleton, is a washed up child prodigy. He has a very specific type when it comes to girlfriends; her name must be Katherine. Colin fears of being too “ordinary” and believes that he is losing his individuality. After his 18th Katherine breakup, he decides he must go on a road trip to anywhere the road takes him. Eventually, he comes across a family that he and his best friend Hassan decide to stay with for the Summer. Colin meets Lindsey, an unique teen who doesn’t know what she wants from …show more content…
the world yet. Colin and Lindsey have one thing in common; their shared desire to be unique. “You're a very special person.
Colin would hear this a lot, and yet—somehow—he could never hear it enough (pg. 35)” As Colin struggles with individuality, he feels the need to be reminded that he is special and unique, which relates to the theme by being an example of his constant fear. As the story progresses, Colin and Lindsey become closer, which is an odd experience for Colin. Being a child prodigy, Colin doesn’t have a particularly great set of social skills. But as they grow closer, Lindsey shows Colin a few social tricks up her sleeve. “It occurred to him that he'd never done anything else in his whole life. Anagramming; spitting back fact she'd learned in books; memorizing ninety-nine digits of an already known number; falling in love with the same nine letters over and over again: retyping and retyping and retyping and retyping. His only hope for originality was the Theorem (Pg. 93).” As Colin chases after his Eureka moment, he develops “The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability”. In the midst of a recent breakup, Colin adopts this theorem that predicts when and how two people break …show more content…
up. Exploring the topic of individuality, it evident in the book that Colin values it greatly.
It is inferred that Colin believes he is nothing if he is not unique. However as time progresses, Colin loses his sense of what separates him from everyone else in the world. This causes him to act on the situation and go on a journey of self-discovery. “I'm nothing. The thing about chameleoning your way through life is that it gets to where nothing is real. Your problem is—how did you say it—that you're not significant? (14.55)” Lindsey shares her personal thoughts with Colin while they become closer. This is the point where Colin discovers that they share the same base of thinking. Lindsey doesn’t know who she is anymore, but for different reasons than Colin. She has hid behind the curtain to fit in, while Colin has become washed up and lost sight of himself. Lindsey also struggles with individuality and discovering who she really is. Near the end of the book, Colin makes a huge discovery, and finally has his “eureka moment”. “Colin's skin was alive with the feeling of connection to everyone in that car and everyone not in it. And he was feeling not-unique in the very best possible way. (Epilogue, Pg. 13)” He discovers that he doesn’t need his unique being to feel like an individual. Colin feels okay about being like others around him, which is a huge accomplishment for
him. In conclusion, Individuality is bittersweet. Throughout the book, we gain substantial evidence about this theme. Although many people pride themselves on being unique individuals, it is clear that being so unique isn’t the best. It is okay relate to others and enjoy common activities. It is clear from the book that being ordinary is okay too. An Abundance of Katherines is truly an inspirational masterpiece when relating to the topic of self confidence and motivation. The theme of this book was very clear as the story progressed. When choosing individuality, remember that it is okay to be like everyone else.
Of Nightingales That Weep Chapter 1 This chapter is about Takiko and her first family home. It tells a lot about her family. They talk about the war in this chapter also. Takiko’s mother decides that she will remarry after her father dies.
As the protagonist, Taylor leads a life far from the ordinary, and gains matures and gains worldly knowledge through a journey most couldn't dream of. Deciding to leave her home in Pittman County, Kentucky she was the one to get away, both in mind and body. The culture of where she grew up didn't fit her personality, and she decided she wouldn't let herself fall into the life of the other people in her town. She bought a car and hit the road, with no plan or destination to adhere to. This journey shows the type of personality she possesses, and throughout the journey how it advances. Taylor was already quite an admirable person, and she already possessed many good traits. She was already independent and knew there was more to see in the world than what there was in Pittman County. She knew that there was room for improvement and infinite things to learn in the world, she just didn't know what they were. Sadly, most of what she lea...
“Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of man's desire to understand.” -(Neil Armstrong) Colin Watson is a teenage boy who has a tendency to get into mishap regularly, however as time goes on change occurs. The novel entitled “Marked” written by Norah Mcclintock, portrays a breathtaking situation many young adults are unaware of. This Canadian author surely knows how to grab the youth's attention. The protagonist of this story had some harsh history in his past, he has changed over time to become a better person. Due to this gradual change, he was recommended a job that required commitment. The issues Collin has to face due to this job brings advantages and disadvantages with multiple risk factors and difficult decisions. Mcclintock
We don't see many people in the world who express individuality. However, we see popularity and amount of followers we have on our Instagram to represent our reputation in the public. In the novel, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, we can see that individuality can still be expressed even if the whole school despises you. The main character, Stargirl, demonstrates how to be yourself and how it's better to be yourself than to become someone else.
This book teaches the importance of self-expression and independence. If we did not have these necessities, then life would be like those in this novel. Empty, redundant, and fearful of what is going on. The quotes above show how different life can be without our basic freedoms. This novel was very interesting and it shows, no matter how dismal a situation is, there is always a way out if you never give up, even if you have to do it alone.
“The Jilting of Granny Weatherall,” a short story by Katherine Anne Porter, describes the last thoughts, feelings, and memories of an elderly woman. As Granny Weatherall’s life literally “flashes” before her eyes, the importance of the title of the story becomes obvious. Granny Weatherall has been in some way deceived or disappointed in every love relationship of her life. Her past lover George, husband John, daughter Cornelia, and God each did an injustice to Granny Weatherall. Granny faces her last moments of life with a mixture of strength, bitterness, and fear. Granny gained her strength from the people that she felt jilted by. George stood Granny up at the altar and it is never stated that she heard from him again. The pain forced Granny to be strong.
Human; relating to or having characteristics of a person(Merriam-Webster). A human is truly just a soul combined with characteristics of other people, and this is proven by Jenna Fox; the main character in The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson. After finding out what her body is made up of, Jenna along with other characters think she is not human. Despite this Jenna Fox has always had the key elements it takes to be a human been. Jenna for one has a past and memories that make up her life even after the accident. More importantly it is unfair to call her a “monster” when she shows characteristics similar to that of other humans. Needless to say, Jenna just as any other human isn’t perfect, and she later learns that in order to be one hundred percent human she must have the same chances of succeeding in life as any other human would. Jenna Fox is human because she has a soul regardless of her differences.
"Experience, which destroys innocence, also leads one back to it" (Baldwin). All experiences spring out of innocence. Sarah Orne Jewett expresses this through the story “The White Heron.” She uses the story to show how easily innocence can be influenced. "For Jewett, it seems to have been a personal 'myth' that expressed her own experience and the experience of other women in the nineteenth century who had similar gifts, aspirations, and choices" (Griffith). Her personal experiences include her living in Maine with her dad and two sisters. She had a medical degree but turned to writing because of poor health. She represented many women during the hard times of the 19th century.
When life becomes overwhelming during adolescence, a child’s first response is to withdraw from the confinement of what is considered socially correct. Individuality then replaces the desire to meet social expectations, and thus the spiral into social non-conformity begins. During the course of Susanna’s high school career, she is different from the other kids. Susanna:
self and it takes place within Colin himself. Colin’s father cheated on his mother with a whore when he was a boy. He and his mother went out to buy Christmas gifts for his father on Christmas Eve. When they returned home Colin heard his mother screaming at his father to leave with the whore that ran out. They had later learned that it went as far as his father renting an apartment with the woman. This influenced Colin more than it did his mother, who never once cried. Because of his father cheating, Colin made it a second job to him to murder whores in his basement, then have the girls clean it up. The conflict was never solved, and Colin never saw his father again. What happened to Colin influenced the story greatly. If Colin’s father had never cheated, or wasn’t caught at least, then Colin wouldn’t have become the person he did. He wouldn’t be bent on having a perfect, “pure” family, never to kidnapped the girls.
Kincaid manipulates Lucy’s character to work for a lovely almost perfect couple. Lewis and Mariah are introduced as the perfect two to begin with, only to later emphasize the betrayal that takes place between them. Confronted with the infidelity taking place in yet another household she was part of Lucy describes, “I saw Lewis standing behind Dinah, his arms, around her shoulders, and he was licking her neck over and over again, and how she liked it” (Kinkaid 79). The description of Lewis licking and holding Dinah includes distinctive visual imagery that helps the reader imagine Lewis tongue running through Dinah’s deceiving neck over and over again. By adding visual imagery Kincaid makes the infidelity happening more realistic and allows the reader to bring Dinah to life and see her as she backstabs a friend who only saw how lovely and sweet she was. Additionally, Lucy mentions, “Hours before I had walked into a room and heard Mariah say to Lewis, “What’s wrong with us” (Kincaid 78)? The quotation is an example Mariah’s character reaching out to Lewis in hope that something can be done to save their marriage if only they find the problem. Kincaid demonstrates to the audience how the consequences of Lewis’ disloyalty affect her and
The narrator meets Tyler and realizes quickly that Tyler is everything he is not. The narrator is disappointed in his life when he compares it to Tyler’s. “I am nothing in the world compared to Tyler. I am helpless. I am stupid, and all I do is want and need thin...
This novel by S.E Hinton , “The Outsiders” shows a crucial point that everybody is special is some way and be known as who they are not as a group. The important message of the story is that individuals should not take people for granted. Instead, treasure those close to you and understand them.
For example, the narrator asks Sheila out to the the fair. When they get to the fair, they walk around for a while and Sheila sees Eric Caswell. Sheila loves him so much that she tells the narrator that she will be going home in his corvette. “There will be other Sheila Mant’s in my life, other fish in the sea, and I though I came close once or twice, it was the secret, hidden tuggings in the night that claimed me, and I never made the same mistake again” (5). The narrator realizes that Sheila loves Eric Caswell more than she loves him, after he finds out that she will be going home in Eric’s corvette. He also realizes that he will not get every girl that he asks out to love him, which is an important life lesson to learn. In conclusion, the narrator finds his identity through significant moments with
Ordinary people is a heart wrenching story of an ordinary family in grief and evidence of self-destruction. Judith Guest takes us through the path of death, alienation of affection and attempted suicide that threaten the existence of the ordinary people. Calvin and Beth Jarrett a well to do couple living in Lake Forest, Illinois are faced by two tragic accidents which occurred the previous year. Their younger son Conrad, the only witness to his older brother’s boat accident blames himself for the incident and tries to take his own life by slitting his wrists with a razor. The author is concerned to look at what happens to ordinary people when faced with extraordinary circumstances and how it affects their lives.