“It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog.”(Mark Twain) means that the quantity and power of you and the people who support you isn’t what wins confrontations but it’s how determined you and everyone supporting you is. Maria Teresa embodies that through her struggle in prison while she goes through her pregnancy. While Mate was in prison she was pregnant and it caused her to become weak and starved “Minerva excused me from class. I felt like my insides are trying to get out. I’ve gotten so thin, I’ve had to take in the waistbands of all my panties and stuff the cups of my brassiere with handkerchiefs”(235). Minerva’s class was where they analyzed literature. This quote shows Mate’s toughness for her to
go through her pregnancy and ailing in prison. Another example of Mate’s courage is when she was being tortured at La 40 “When he touched me with it, my whole body jumped with exquisite pain. I felt my spirit snapping loose, soaring above my body and looking down at the scene”(255) Mate was being tortured because the prison guards wanted her to persuade Leandro. Mate shows courage because she was still not giving in and doing what the guards wanted her to do. The shock Bug Eye delivered also caused Mate to have a miscarriage, Mate’s very courageous for going through this terrible incident and being resilient enough not to give into the guard’s wishes. Mate’s courage shows when “Bloody Juan gathered up my clothes, but I wouldn’t let him help me. I dressed myself and walked out to the wagon on my two feet”(256) Mate shows she’s still strong after being shocked and having a miscarriage. In conclusion, Mate’s role in In the Time of the Butterflies is to be courageous even when she’s pregnant in prison while she’s sick and at La 40 she was shocked causing a miscarriage.
Although not entirely good, Mayella is more a victim of circumstance than a bad person
“The way [one] expresses both the agony of life and the possibility of conquering it through is the sheer toughness of the spirit. They fall short of
The novel Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals has many themes that are shown. One of the major themes that stuck out to me was inner strength and perseverance. Inner strength means to have Integrity of character: resoluteness of will: mental resistance to doubt or discouragement. Perseverance means steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.
In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee, the author, wrote about the journey of a little girl, named Scout, as she grows up. Scout’s father Atticus serves as a grand part of her aging because he teaches her many life lessons. The most significant of all the lessons and a pivotal moment in the novel occurs when Atticus tells Scout that “you never really a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them,”, which contributes to one of Scout’s intellectual changes and the theme, understanding requires time (Lee 372).
...he shows us her character, not by how she gives herself respect, but by the continued respect that she gives to others: even her tormenters. Her secret shame was kept inside, and it was an impossible burden to bear. She was brave.
“She's lost a little battle here today, but it's a minor battle in a big war that she's winning and that she'll go on winning” (pg. 109).
She was our friend.” (Lee 59) This was how Scout described Miss Maudie, Scout was explaining her perspective of herself and that she wants to be treated like an adult and that the only one to do so was Miss Maudie. Consequently, this helps the reader understand Scout. Also, Miss Maudie helps to develop Jem’s character by giving him a big cake when he’s supposed to have a small one like Scout and Dill.
It is Mayella's deceit that brings Tom Robinson to trial. Though she may not be forgiven for this lie, Atticus and Scout feel sympathy for her because of the terrible poverty in which she lives. Whenever Scout feels sorry for Mayella we do as well as we are viewing the trial from her point of view.
The author George Elliot once said “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Appearance can be very misleading, and you shouldn't prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone. This philosophical idea has been included in many works of literature, including the timeless classic To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. The novel takes place in the town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Many citizens of Maycomb tend to make judgements based on outward appearances alone. In the novel, Lee uses minor characters such as Boo Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson to convey the book’s theme of prejudice.
“Intense love does not measure, it just gives. “ (Mother Teresa) This sentence perfectly describes the character Clarisa in the short story, “Clarisa” written by Isabel Allende because of her giving nature and devotion to helping other people. In this short story, Clarisa is the model of gentility and compassion by giving absolutely every thing she had, and even spends “…the last cent of her dowry and inheritance,” (434) and, “In her own poverty, she never turned her back on the poverty of others” (434). For these reasons, they people that know Clarisa hold her in high esteem, and continually portray her as saint like. Allende helps the reader understand the admiration others have for Clarisa through the use of imagery, similes, and diction.
It is not light that we need, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. --Fredrick Douglass “If the Lion told the Story” In "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass", Douglass uses his trials and tribulations to show that mental strength can overcome physical abuse while also showing us how faith is something that one must have to stay true to one’s self. “I was covered with blood.
“Something’s wrong with me, it’s something about me. It has to be because all these people cannot have changed” (Go Set a Watchman 239). To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is considered a literary masterpiece among many. It’s forward thinking ideas makes it a profound novel for it’s time. Another book by Harper Lee is Go Set a Watchman, printed 55 years later. The novel is the first draft of To Kill a Mockingbird that Lee had sent into the publishing company. Here, you can read an article on Harper Lee’s publisher. There are many differences between the characters of TKAM and the same ones in GSAW. One that stood out the most is the difference between Scout’s internal conflict in To Kill a Mockingbird and in Go Set a Watchman. In TKAM, Scout
Reading minds isn’t something that humans are normally able to do, but is it impossible? Each person has their own mind and their own lives, everyone is their own. Many people have their own points of views that don’t always add up to what others may see. Though, books have great ways of showing this; in books, when a situation is happening or a character is thinking, outsiders are often unaware of the thoughts that aren’t their own. Where She Went and To Kill a Mockingbird show many examples of this, through internal conflicts, being someone no one else knows and is different on the outside than the inside. In both novels, characters go through the universal theme, things aren’t always what they seem.
Scout Finch, the youngest child of Atticus Finch, narrates the story. It is summer and her cousin Dill and brother Jem are her companions and playmates. They play all summer long until Dill has to go back home to Maridian and Scout and her brother start school. The Atticus’ maid, a black woman by the name of Calpurnia, is like a mother to the children. While playing, Scout and Jem discover small trinkets in a knothole in an old oak tree on the Radley property. Summer rolls around again and Dill comes back to visit. A sence of discrimination develops towards the Radley’s because of their race. Scout forms a friendship with her neighbor Miss Maudie, whose house is later burnt down. She tells Scout to respect Boo Radley and treat him like a person. Treasures keep appearing in the knothole until it is filled with cement to prevent decay. As winter comes it snows for the first time in a century. Boo gives scout a blanket and she finally understands her father’s and Miss Maudie’s point of view and treats him respectfully. Scout and Jem receive air guns for Christmas, and promise Atticus never to shoot a mockingbird, for they are peaceful and don’t deserve to die in that manner. Atticus then takes a case defending a black man accused of rape. He knows that such a case will bring trouble for his family but he takes it anyways. This is the sense of courage he tries to instill in his son Jem.
Sophie Scholl once stated, “stand up for what you believe in even if you are standing alone.” I believe it is important to stand up for what you believe in because it can make a difference and you may influence somebody else. It builds up courage and makes you stronger in speaking up about your opinions.