The theme in both of these passages is that if you help people out when they’re in need, you might feel good too. In the story, “Clearing Paths to the Past,” the narrator lives in a house which has a sidewalk that many children walk through to get to school. When it snows, he has the responsibility of shoveling the long sidewalk, to clear it for the kids to get through. His grandparents used to live on a farm, before they moved to the city. His grandmother couldn’t care less when they moved, but the grandfather, “continued to plant fields in his head, and cultivated his new small patch of land as if it were his sustenance.” The narrator sees him shoveling the same way as he did his grandfather, “clearing the path for others.” He finds this
The story “Clearing Paths To The Past” and the poem “To Be Of Us” both have a common theme. They both talk about people getting done what needs to be done. The man in the short story had an obligation. That obligation was to clear the sidewalk even if other people didn’t. He wanted to help the kids get to and from school without having to walk through snow to do so. He wanted to be like his grandfather and make other people happy.Just like the story the poem also talks about how Marge Piercy , the author, loved people who got the job done. She likes people who put work before themselves. She says “I love people best who jump to work head first.” She saying that she likes people who don’t complain about having to do it and just do it. That is
If the place at the end of the sidewalk seemed an enticing heaven, the place outside of the sidewalk’s end is hell. Here there is “smoke”, not “wind”, and the first color mentioned is “black” as opposed to “white”. There are “pits” where an ironic “asphalt flower” grows, since nothing can really grow in asphalt; no life can be produced, and no beauty can be found. The mention of asphalt and black smoke indicates that the poem’s reality entails industrialism, and unexpectedly, Silverstein describes this place very realistically, which contrasts with the unrealistic twists that the place at the end of the sidewalk entails. And so, with such an unappealing reality, who wouldn’t want to journey to the sidewalk’s end and experience a purer world? To answer that question, Silverstein encourages everyone, “us”, to walk to the end of the sidewalk. There’s an interesting emphasis on walking in a “measured and slow” manner, and such descriptors are associated with old people, or adults; once the “chalk-white” arrows are mentioned, we get a suspicion regarding who is leading us to this place at the end of the
When the boys are shoveling the railroad tracks for money to help the trains pass along on the Boston and Maine line, they seem to have matured more. They are not only doing this for the money, but also to help the country out in a time of need. By doing this, they are not only doing this for themselves, but for the country and their self-satisfaction
Frost uses a lot of imagery to inform the reader of the other choices. Both roads had been traveled the same, but had different appearances. The grass could have given the illusion that the road in the second stanza would provide better opportunity. There is a saying, “don’t let the green grass fool you,” meaning although the grass is green, it doesn’t have to be the best choice. The yellow wood could represent that it was time for a change to take place in his life just like when the leaves change color in the fall of the year. From a biblical point of view, a chang...
Have you heard of the book Maniac Magee? Maniac Magee becomes an orphan at the age of three. His parents died in a trolley accident and ran away after living with his aunt and uncle for 8 years. Maniac’s real name is Jeffrey. He is a kind hearted person who is athletic and he’s always thinking about others. Maniac has trouble finding a permanent home and being accepted in the black community even though he’s white. In both the movie and book they have similarities and differences.
When applying it to our daily lives we see that we are more likely to deem a person ‘good’ or ‘generous’ if they spared their time to go and work with displaced people from war struck regions of the world out of compassion and the need to give back to the society, as oppose to those who go only because they feel it is their duty.
Frost begins the poem by describing a young boy cutting some wood using a "buzz-saw." The setting is Vermont and the time is late afternoon. The sun is setting and the boy's sister calls he and the other workers to come for "Supper." As the boy hears its dinnertime, he gets excited and cuts his hand on accident. Immediately realizing that the doctor might amputate his hand, he asks his sister to make sure that it does not happen. By the time the doctor arrives, it is too late and the boy's hand is already lost. When the doctor gives him anaesthetic, he falls asleep and never wakes up again. The last sentence of the poem, "since they (the boys family and the doctor) were not the one dead, turned to their affairs" shows how although the boys death is tragic, people move on with their life in a way conveying the idea that people only care for themselves.
Lois Lowry expresses the connection between pain and happiness by contrasting the community’s life and the experiences of Jonas and Giver. While the community is very painless they also don’t feel true happiness “During his twelve years in the community, he had never felt such simple moments of exquisite happiness” (Lowry 172)this quote shows that in twelve years Jonas doesn’t feel the kind of happiness that he felt after receiving the memories for a few months. The parallel between Jonas’s happiness and his receiving of the memories makes an obvious correlation that leads the reader to think
“Sometimes it 's easy to walk by because we know we can 't change someone 's whole life in a single afternoon. But what we fail to realize it that simple kindness can go a long way toward encouraging someone who is stuck in a desolate place.” ~ Mike Yankoski
In week one I examined a right versus right scenario that involved the company’s diversity recruitment
In “A Worn Path” colors are used to emphasize the depth and breadth of the story, and to reinforce the parallel images of the mythical phoenix and the protagonist Phoenix Jackson. Eudora Welty’s story is rich with references to colors that are both illustrative and perceptive, drawing us in to investigate an additional historical facet of the story.
The speaker is at spot in the road where it is splitting, he can see that both paths are equally worn. The speaker then goes through a dilemma, where he doesn’t know which path is the better one to take, the speaker know that he has to pick one of them and there is no turning back once he (Frost Early Poems). How the reader interprets the speaker’s point of view is based on each stanza, the organization and form of the poem, and the use of a metaphor with the poem and the path of life.
Have you ever had a day in your life that just seemed to be bad just because it wanted to be? Have you ever thought that the whole world was against you? You probably thought, “This day sucks.” Or, as some drama queens might say, “This is the worst day of my life!” In Robert Frost’s Poem, “Dust of Snow,” Frost explores the idea of one simple thing affecting the rest of your day in a positive way, even if you think the day will never get better. I believe that this poem is about allowing something to make your day better, even if what happens is a seemingly simple thing.
When we sacrifice our time to help someone in need, whether it is a great or small need, we become a part of their life and can help alleviate heavy burdens. We feel good for looking outside ourselves and contributin...
This poem thematically explains that wealth has no eternal purpose. Life is about the relationships you make and the impact you have on society. The person of interest in this poem is a man called Richard Cory. A distinguished figure said to have been the envy of everyone. From the way of in which he walks, to how he dresses, and how he relates to his community. The other entity in this poem is the “town’s people.” Known in the poem as the “people on the pavement”. The town’s people live and work in less desirable conditions. Their work is tedious to say the least. Most likely construction or another job of that nature that leads to blood, sweat, and tears. The poem begins with Richard Cory’s visit downtown. Now, the author uses the word “whenever”.