Which child was the favorite in your household? In many families, there is a power structure revealing who are the favorites and who are not liked as well. This theme is carried over into many literary works, as poems, stories, and plays often show different power levels in one family. In Eudora Welty’s story “Why I live at the P.O.,” there is an excellent example of this. There are multiple people in the family, and each one of them has a different role in the formation of the family function. This reality is woven throughout the entire story, setting the stage for much of the conflict and themes. In this story, Sister and her younger sister, Stella-Rondo, bear a very one-sided relationship. Sister believes that since “Stella-Rondo is exactly twelve months to the day younger,” this is the “reason she's spoiled” (Welty, p.1). The story reveals Sister’s longstanding jealousy of Stella-Rondo, which could stem from the fact that the younger girl is the favorite in the family. She also harbors resentment towards her younger sister, as Stella-Rondo broke her up with her boyfriend, Mr. Whitaker, and then proceeded to marry him herself. Stella-Rondo lied about her sister to Mr. Whitaker in order to accomplish this. In addition, Stella- Rondo views herself as more superior than Sister as that is the way she has been regarded in her family as the …show more content…
Sister and Stella-Rondo both contribute to the escalating problems that their family has because of them. The power structure of the two individuals leads to a variety of conflicts and arguments. The rest of the family and their relationships are then centered around the way that Sister and Stella-Rondo interact. We see through them that having good relationships with our family brings far more happiness than strife with them
Conflict between the main characters in fictional stories can be so thick, you need a razor-sharp knife to cut it; that is definitely the case in the two literary texts I recently analyzed titled “Confetti Girl” by Diana Lopez and “Tortilla Sun” by Jennifer Cervantes. In the first text, tensions mount when a social butterfly of a teenage girl and her oblivious father lock horns over the subject of homework. In the second passage, drama runs high when a lonely child and her career-driven mother battle over the concept of spending the summer apart. Unfortunately, by the end of both excerpts, the relationships of these characters seem damaged beyond repair due to their differing points of view - the children end up locked behind their barrier-like
As this occurs, the story takes on a comedic aspect from the view of the reader, and we lose our sympathy for Sister. Sister lives in China Grove, Mississippi, presumably a very small town with only a few occupants. She lives with her mother, grandfather and uncle in their home, being the center of attention for the duration of the time until her younger sister, Stella-Rondo returns home. The return of Stella-Rondo sparks a conflict with Sister immediately because Sister is obviously envious of her and has been even before she came back to China Grove. The reader gets clear evidence of Sister’s jealousy toward Stella-Rondo when Sister says “She’s always had anything in the world she wanted and then she’d throw it away.
sisters in the picture. All they really did was argue over dresses. She continues to say that the sooner we get rid of the fairy tale stories, then we might embrace on to our community. Family values changed for her ideal life and she now is wondering how to find her new self. She also realized that her shattered family is putting things back together again. Life is not always about fairy tales and paper dolls. When we judge family, it does not matter what kind we are judging it like a book cover and not the book that is inside of the over. We do not know what is inside if we do that. Living in this life is a crazy mixed up world no matter what your family may look like it is still family. This is the reality of life. Treat it as if you were treating
Twisted Sisters, a novel written by Jen Lancaster, is about Reagan Bishop, a psychologist who struggles accepting that her sister, Geri, is the family favorite. She ends up discovering some things she never knew about her sister. The theme of this book is definitely friendship. Reagan was named after the president Ronald Reagan, because she was born not long after he was elected. She grew up in Chicago with an older sister, Mary Mac, and a younger one, Geri. Reagan couldn’t be more different from her two sisters, she was tall with dark brown hair, blue eyes, and a love for academics. On the other hand, her sisters had a short and plump physique accompanied by red hair and freckles. Reagan moved on to a prestigious private college and fulfilled her dreams of becoming a psychologist. She was very careful about what she ate, and she loved going on long runs. Reagan was even featured on a cable show titled, I Need a Push! You’re probably thinking, wow, Reagan’s got a lot running for her, right? Wrong. She was a psychologist with a few issues of her own. In this paper, I will explain the ...
During the course of the story we see many references that Sister is envious, even jealous of Stella-Rondo. Sister thinks that because “Stella-Rondo is exactly twelve months to the day younger [than she is] that she’s spoiled.” (108) A person exactly one year younger than another sibling is no more or less spoiled than the other person. Sister says Stella-Rondo has “always had anything in the world [she]wanted.” This seems to bother Sister because she thought she never got everything she wanted. “Papa-Daddy give [Stella-Rondo] this gorgeous Add-a-pearl necklace”. There are some benefits that naturally go along with being the younger sibling. This does not mean that Sister has to behave the way she does. True, she never references Papa Daddy buying her anything or giving her “everything” she wanted, but she has to take into account what he has done for her. Papa Daddy got her the Post Office job “through [his] influence with the government”, which Sister thinks is the “next smallest P.O. in the entire state of Mississippi”.
In the excerpt from the book Moon Tiger by Penelope Lively, a story is told from the perspective of a brother, sister, and a mother. Lively utilizes diction, imagery, and personification to set up a complex relationship between the characters. The short story illustrates how dynamics of a family are viewed differently depending on the person.
Point of View in Eudora Welty’s A Visit to Charity. Every now and then point of view is worth writing about, because only every now and then point of view is actually seriously considered. In Eudora Welty’s “A Visit to Charity,” the third-person limited point of view of the little girl, Marian—her self-consciousness, descriptions, and fear—exactly portrays what a little girl might experience in a nursing home.
When two siblings are born together, and are close in age, many people wonder whether they will be the same or different altogether. A “River Runs through it” shows two brothers who grew up in the same household, and grew up loving to do the same activity fly fishing. Both brothers were raised in a very strict presbyterian household. Norman is the older brother, and he is much more responsible and family orientated. Paul is the irresponsible younger brother; Paul as an adult was not at home much anymore. Both brothers were loved equally as children, but how they view and use love is what separates them. Paul and Norman differ in behavior and character.
Napier notes the influence the strief in David and Carolyn 's relationship has had on the structure of the family. The roles and structure of the family has been tacitly agreed upon by all members as a way to help the parents avoid confronting their marital problems. In addition to Claudia 's role as a surrogate to the parents fighting, Don is placed as a supportive and therapeutic role in the family. He serves as the calming influence in the family and frequently defuses intense situations. The structure of the family is both an outcome of the parents dysfunction and the source of the problems that have led the family to
...d longs for her elder sister and mother. Frances is a good person – at heart – and is always looking out for her younger sister. Moreover, even though she has different views that her father and will always do the opposite of what is expected of her, it is seen that this insecurity is caused by James indeed. Frances feels that in order to gain security in her life, she must perform these actions. She feels compelled to live her life the way she does. Frances’s naughty and mischievous behaviour can be viewed as a weakness she possesses, and she longs to correct these weaknesses by her actions. She is not a role model by any means, but she is by no means the Devil’s advocate. A sincere heart – compelled by circumstances – does its best to make the situation turn out for the better than the worse, and Frances, through her love for her mother, inevitably does just that.
The author uses imagery, contrasting diction, tones, and symbols in the poem to show two very different sides of the parent-child relationship. The poem’s theme is that even though parents and teenagers may have their disagreements, there is still an underlying love that binds the family together and helps them bridge their gap that is between them.
Stella-Rondo brings out jealousy in Sister that causes tension between them. Sister hates that Stella-Rondo married Mr. Whitaker since Sister supposedly had him first. She feels like Stella-Rondo broke them up by lying. Most likely, Sister is upset because she was not the one to end up with the guy she liked, but she displays her feelings childishly. Sister’s snide comments towards her sister are the real reason that Stella-Rondo turns their family against her. Stella-Rondo’s lies about her daughter, Shirley T., increase Sister’s jealous feelings. Stella-Rondo claims that Shirley-T. is adopted, but Sister does not believe her. Sister wants her family to see through Stella-Rondo’s lies and realize that this two-year old child is not adopted. She points out that Shirley-T. is the “spitting image of Papa-Daddy” (359). Sister cannot stand that Stella-Rondo left Mr. Whitaker after only staying married to him for two years. The fact that “the first thing she did was separate! From Mr. Whitaker!” when Stella-Rondo got married and moved away infuriates Sister (359). Consequently, Sister makes sure her family knows that she had him first. In the heat of the moment at the end of the story, Sister starts saying that Mr. Whitaker left Stella-Rondo, not vice versa, which only builds up more tension.
begins a story of one family, three sisters, and quickly expands to a story of
In conclusion, co-dependency and rivalry is very common in the world today. Though it is not a big issue out in the open, it is an emotional attachment that only one can define. In this short story the two main aspects of having siblings is the theme which revolves around codependency and rivalry. Having siblings is a part of everyday life and problems do occur which sometimes makes a person, or changes a person in ways. In this situation, Pete and Donald are completely different people but they are in fact very dependent upon one another.
.... Instead of simply being a sister, I became another guardian – always watching. Similarly to my demeanor when I was younger, I let my anger consume me. This time, however, it would be directed at a different source. My already-fragile bond with my sister nearly capsized. She absolutely hated me for the spite-filled words I threw harshly at this boy of hers. She completely resented my involvement in her relationship.