This Historical Fiction analysis will be over the books a Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story In Nine Innings and Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek. In Deborah Hopkins book, Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story In Nine Innings, a young girl, Alta Weiss, aspires to be play baseball (2003). Throwing baseballs came nature to her and she wanted to use her skills to compete against other players. This book takes place in the late 1800s, in which only boys were allowed to play baseball. She grew up in Ohio, where early in her life learned how to throw corncobs to scare the cats away. Another book by Deborah Hopkins, Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek, tells of the early adventures of Abe Lincoln and his frontier friend (2008). In the early 1800s, Abe Lincoln, around age 10, …show more content…
Alta discovers her talent when she was only 2, as she hit a tomcat on head with a corncob. As she grows up she continues to practices her talents and uses them to gain fame in the world of baseball. Similarly, through the formal criticism, a key theme of friendship is present in Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek. As a child Abe finds a friend that leaves a lasting impact on his life and without that friendship, he would have not learned the importance of relationships. Through the translational criticism, Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story In Nine Innings motivates girls to realize they can put in hard work to become competitive with others. Alta shows that she is willing to step out the box that society places her in and ends up playing baseball with some of the best players in the league. In comparison, of the translational criticism, the friendship that is presented in Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek allows the reader to reflect on their relationships and childhood. The friendships made can make a significant impact on their outlook on life, passions, and …show more content…
Austin is not a key figure in every history textbook, but his friendship with Abraham Lincoln allowed him to play a key role in the background of one of America’s greatest leaders. Comparing Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story In Nine Innings and Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek, text-to-text, allows the reader to notice that each historical fiction story plays a role in history. Both main characters begin the stories by not knowing what their future holds but by the ending they have made an impact that only few can mention.
Synthesis Toward Critical Understanding To consider all components of Girl Wonder: A Baseball Story In Nine Innings, the main idea would be that no matter where you come from you can make an impact and change society norms if you stay determined. To summarize Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek, friendships are important factors for life that can make a positive impact for future life decisions.
Consideration of Teaching
Hutch, the main character of The Big Field, has played baseball all of his life. He has always played shortstop, the same position that his father dreamed of playing as a professional. “Hutch, had always thought of himself as the captain of any infield he’d ever been a part of” (Lupica 1). Hutch finds himself being demoted to second base because there is another player, Darryl, on his new team that is expected to go pro and also plays shortstop. Hutch struggles because he does not want to play second base and his father does not support him because he does not want baseball to break Hutch’s dreams like it did his own. Hutch is betrayed by his father and Darryl when he finds them practicing together. Hutch has to learn to adjust and eventually becomes friends with Darryl, the up and coming shortstop. He understands that if he wants to win, then he needs to work together with Darryl. His father also comes around and finally gives Hutch his approval. Students should read this book in a high school English classroom because it demonstrates how relationships can be difficult, but teamwork can help to solve many issues.
The film “A League of Their Own,” depicts a fictionalized tale of the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. This league was started during World War II when many of the Major Leagues Biggest stars were drafted to the war. MLB owners decided to start this league with hopes of making money while the men were overseas fighting. Traditional stereotypes of women in sports were already in force before the league even begins. One of the scouts letts Dottie, one of the films main characters she is the perfect combination of looks as well as talent. The scout even rejects one potential player because she is not as pretty as the league is looking for even though she is a great baseball player. The player, Marla’s father said if she was a boy she would be playing for the Yankee’s. Eventually Mara’s father is able to convince the scout to take Marla to try outs because he raised her on his own after her mother died. Her father says it is his fault his daughter is a tomboy. In this case the film reinforces the traditional stereotype that mothers are in charge of raising their daughters and teaching them to be a lady, where fathers are incapable of raising girls to be anything other than a tomboy. The focus on beauty also reinforces the traditional stereotype that men will only be interested in women’s sports when the females participating in
During Graff’s childhood, he was not able to relate to readings that he was given in school. Instead, Graff was interested in baseball. Being that Graff was interested in baseball, he would often find himself reading books and magazines about baseball and baseball pla...
For this Women of Diversity Group Project, my group chose to write about female pioneers in sport. Within that category I chose female pioneers of softball. During this paper I will discuss the history of the sport and female participation in the sport. I will also give some statistics and make comparisons between females and males involved in softball and baseball.
Many women have taken up the positions of engineers, factory workers and many more jobs normally occupied by men. Many women that wanted to help with the war effort had worked, bought war bonds, donated clothing and foods and anything else needed to help and support our troops. Some women now had the opportuinty to play baseball and still help promote help for the war. However the idea of women playing baseball and acting like men was completely absurd during that day and age. That year of attendance of The AAGPBL approached one million, with the players completely defined the image of a respectable lady, the girls played ball with a new baseball of fast pitching, stolen bases and injuries, epically skin abrasions from sliding to bases in short skirts. Though the female ball players were skilled and athletic, their required uniform were one piece dresses and had to wear makeup at all times so that it was a reminder to the spectators that these were indeed women playing in the field( ). No player was allowed to drink, smoke, date, cut their hair short or be seen in public with slacks or shorts. Every player were required to join and had to endure “charm schools” where they were obligated to learn ladylike behavior. Though there were many limitations and requirements for the female players this new form of
Women don’t receive the spotlight in sports very often. Usually, the men in baseball, football, basketball, and soccer have higher salaries and are paid attention to more. This wasn’t the case with a special league of female baseball players. These ladies sparked a thought in peoples’ heads in the mid 20th-century. Could women really play a professional sport instead of staying home to do the housework? From 1943-1954, women in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League helped to change the rights women were believed to have in society and in the workplace as they began playing a professional sport as a form of entertainment. Men, who would usually fulfill this role, were drafted into the military with the responsibility to serve during the war. The AAGPBL quickly became a world-winning group of women athletes and kept baseball and peoples' hopes alive during a time of weakness in American history.
The importance of softball in my life goes unnoticed by others, but I owe everything I am to this sport. I am an organized, cooperative woman who does not let failures affect my work ethic. Although my friends and family do not give my softball career much credit, I am confident that the lessons I’ve taken away from this sport have proficiently prepared me to step up to the plate and score a successful
In 1970 only 1 in 27 girls participated in high school sports, today that ratio is 1 in 3. Sports are a very important part of the American society. Within sports heroes are made, goals are set and dreams are lived. The media makes all these things possible by creating publicity for the rising stars of today. Within society today, the media has downplayed the role of the woman within sports. When the American people think of women in sports, they think of ice skating, field hockey and diving. People don’t recognize that women have the potential to play any sport that a Man can play, with equal skill, if not better.
As Paige and I walked across the field towards our team I felt euphoric. Four long years of work, sweat, and dedication had led up to this night. It was the perfect end to my senior year of softball. The scoreboard just beyond the mass of sweaty, screaming softball players read 15-0. This was the final score of the district championship game, a game my team had never won before. The applause and cheers of the fans echoed in my ears for hours afterward
Through the use of protection and sacrifices for one another as well as good morals, these are key points of Huck Finn and Jim’s growing friendship. Mark Twain also uses Huck’s conscience to show his changing attitude towards Jim. Jim would do anything for
All of the films that we watched provided different perspectives on how the image of women is situated in our culture. From the first movie, Dare to Compete, which highlighted the development of women's participation in sports, to Love and Basketball, which fully accepts women's participation in sports, we examined a range of views and opinions on the proper role of women in sports.
Ring, Jennifer (2009). Stolen bases: Why american girls don’t play baseball. Chicago Il: University of Illinois Press.
Portrayals and stories of women in sport and film are varied and unique to the woman, but some common threads can be found throughout these films. Understanding the culture of sport and how women are depicted as athletes in movies shows how society at large views women. The perseverance and strength of women athletes in unjust or unfair situations regarding their sport is a very important and all too common theme. Often in movies with women athletes, are breaking a mold or breaking assumptions about women. Such is the case in the three movies I will examine further: Bend It Like Beckham, Girl Fight, and Love and Basketball. Another main theme of women in sport and film is the unifying nature of sport to bridge all sorts of differences and gaps through its emphasis on teamwork and cooperation.
It’s 1980,summertime in Michigan . Baseball little league was only for boys. Until Madison a twelve year old girl decided she could be just as good as the boys. So off to try-outs to prove she could play. Entering tryouts she could hear the boys snickering and whispering about her. It was her time to bat, they were all saying that she couldn’t do it. When Mr.Week threw the ball and she swung, all the boys were amazed of what she could do. When it was time for Madison to throw to Mr.Weeks she was the best one to throw on the team.
In some ways, women today face more pressure to be perfect than ever before in history. The feminine ideal of the past has been replaced by a new face — stronger and more independent, but under no less pressure to conform to society's expectations than her predecessors. Today's woman must be all that she was in the past, and more. In addition to being beautiful, feminine, and demure, she must also be physically fit and academically and socially successful. It is no longer appropriate for a woman to depend on anyone, for that would imply subordinance and inferiority. Instead, woman must fill all of these roles on her own. Although achieving independence is an important step for women, it brings added pressure. This is especially visible in films about women in sport. These women experience these pressures at an intense level. They are expected to be phenomenal athletes, and are not held to a lower standard than men. However, they must also be beautiful — if they are not, they face the possibility of discrimination. Added to this is the pressure that they are representative of the entire gender. Films about women in sports show the intense pressure on female athletes to fulfill all aspects of the ideal woman.