Jesus Gutierrez Martinez Mrs. Anderson English 9B 26 April 2024 Blade's Journey of Self-Discovery in "Solo" In the book "Solo" by Kwame Alexander with Mary Rand Hess, the main character Blade deals with identity and family struggles while showing strength and growth. Blade is having a tough time because his mom died, his dad is addicted, and he just found out he's adopted, which really messes with his head. Blade feels incredibly confused and lost due to the overwhelming challenges he faces within his family. The loss of his mother, his father's addiction, and the revelation of his adoption all contribute to his inner problems, leaving him questioning his identity and place in the world. In the book, Blade's inner conflict is vividly portrayed through powerful lines, such as "Motherless, / fatherless, / and yet not without love. Not without a grace. / …show more content…
As Blade confronts obstacles and adversity, he begins to see himself in a new light, gaining confidence and a deeper appreciation of his own worth and capabilities. Through his journey, Blade evolves from a hesitant and uncertain individual to a resilient and self-assured young man, illustrating the transformative power of self-discovery and personal growth. By the end of the book, Blade values forgiveness and understanding, recognizing the importance of empathy in human connection.Throughout the story, Blade undergoes various challenges and conflicts that lead to a transformation in his beliefs and values.Blade's journey to Ghana serves as a pivotal moment where he confronts his past and seeks to understand himself better even through the chaos of his family struggles.In the book, Blade's inner conflict is vividly portrayed through powerful lines, such as, "Motherless, fatherless, and yet not without love." Not without a grace. / Not without faith" (Alexander, page
A movie, “The Other Sister,” is about two mentally challenged people name Carla Tate and Daniel. Carla Tate, a 24-year old woman, return to San Francisco from a sheltered boarding school after long years. After rejoining with her overprotective mother Elizabeth, a gentle and thoughtful father Radley, and two young and older sisters, Carla announces that she wants to attend a local school called Bay Area Polytech, a normal vocational school. Nevertheless of her mother Elizabeth’s disapproval, Radley supports her to pursue her dream. On the first day, Carla meets a boy named Danny and helps him when someone calls him “retarded.” They both get close to each other and fall in love quickly. Carla envied Danny for living on his own, so
The book that i chose to do this speech on is Cowboy Ghost. Cowboy Ghost is about a boy named Titus who goes on a cattle drive through Florida in the early 1900s. The main character in this story is Titus. Titus Timothy MacRobertson is a small and weak 16 year old boy that wants to impress his father that kind of ignores him. His mother died giving birth to him and his father “blames” Titus for her death. His father (Rob Roy MacRobertson) is a strong, massive and hardworking man. His brother Micah is a 29 year old man that is described as being a second Rob Roy MacRobertson because of his strength and size, at the end of the book you find out that he was more like their mother. The cattle drive was going really good until seminoles (indians)
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take." Proverbs 3:5-6. In the book, Born Again, Chuck Colson was as deadly to political opponents as a lion is to prey. Colson was largely targeted by the media and dragged through the mud, after a scandal that led to an investigation of Nixon's White House administration. He had become a public scapegoat for the media. Through a long and taxing process, Colson was indicted and put in jail. However, through the straining process, he had found a path to God
What would you do for love? Would you break up a marriage or assassinate an Archduke? In the short story “IND AFF” by Fay Weldon the narrator must make a choice on whether or not to continue her love affair while examining the Princip’s murder of the Archduke Ferdinand and his wife. The story is set in Sarajevo in Bosnia, Yugoslavia where the assassination took place. Through irony, symbolism and setting, Weldon uses the parallel between the narrator and Pincip to show that seemingly inconsequential actions of an individual can have great consequences.
In today’s world there are millions of people who grow up in situations that make them powerless. Poverty, violence, and drugs surround children from birth and force them to join the cycle. In L.B. Tillit’s Unchained a young boy named TJ grows up in this environment. With both his mother and father struggling with addiction, he is often left alone on the streets to fend for himself. He turns to a local gang for protection and a sense of place in Jr. High, but is quickly taken out of the life he knows when his father overdoses and dies. TJ is sent to live in a foster home where he learns to care for others and meets a girl and falls in love with her. However, when his mother regains custody of him, TJ is forced back into the gang where he uses violence and drug dealing to stay alive. With help from his foster care manager he soon realizes that he can make it out of his life and return to his foster home and the girl he loves. A central theme of Unchained is that people have the power to make decisions to determine their future.
Creation Untamed, by Terence E. Frcthcim The book, Creation Untamed: The Bihle, God, and Natural Dísasters, by Terencc E. Fretheim, is a dedicatecl Olcl Testament theological interpretation of human sufTering, especially during a natural disaster. Frethcim explores on of the most disturbing questions in human life, about the presence and role of God when a natural disaster occurs. In answering the question, thc author provides an interactive analysis and a ncw perspective of human suffering and natural disasters offered by some well-known Old Testament incidcnces, such as the account of creation, Noah and the great flood, and the suffering of Job. The biblical excerpts provide the guide to Fretheim's discussion as hc highlights the natures,
In the short story, “Prospector’s Trail”, the author Cathy Jewison makes the characters seem like real people. This can be illustrated by some conflicts that are evident in the story; similarly in everyday life with everyday people. The characters also look authentic because the characters behave the same way the “average” human would and the reader is able to relate to them in some way.
Lying on the Couch by Irvin Yalom is about the therapeutic relationships and sometimes unprofessional relationships that can form. The primary focus is on Dr. Ernest Lash, whom works out of an office in a more privileged area of San Francisco under the supervision of Dr. Marshal Streider, a highly ambitious therapist who aims to be the president of the American Psychiatric Association, but is secretly pre-occupied by greed which ends up getting him into some trouble. Dr. Lash seems to truly enjoy his work and take pride in it. This novel opens up with Dr. Lash meeting with his one client Justin, whom after 5 years and many sessions has finally decided to leave his unhappy marriage. Justin then decides he no longer needs the help of Ernest
While reading the book Lying on the Couch by Irvin D. Yalom one would come to realize that there are ethical and legal issues that get in the way of numerous counseling sessions. The novel focuses on the struggles that any therapist can come across while working with their clients. Although with this storyline the boundaries and legal issues may have been taken to the extreme, it strongly depicts what could happen if one would choose to make unethical decisions. One must also have a sense of the true meaning of the counseling sessions
Transitioning from childhood to the adult world is a tough time in any adolescent's life. It is a time of discovery of one’s self and the world around them. John Knowles captures this struggle in his novel, A Separate Peace. This story follows Gene Forrester, his friend Phineas, and other boys during their senior year at the Devon School. Throughout the school year, Gene and his classmates notice changes in themselves and the way they perceive the world. There is one boy named Leper, however, seems to play a crucial role in Gene and Phineas’s self discovery of good and evil. In the novel, the author uses Leper’s character as a mirror through which Gene and Phineas’s identity is revealed to them. Through the use of biblical allusions the Genesis, Knowles creates Leper as a serpent like character who reveals the knowledge of the good and evil in Gene and Phineas.
Written by Katherine Holubitsky, Tweaked is a novel that shows the readers how dangerous drugs are to both the user and their peers. With the two year meth addiction, Chase continues to financially and emotionally drain out his family however; the problems becomes worse when Chase escapes from his dealer's house. Richard Cross, the man Chase attacked, died and as a result, Chase is charged with murder. His mother secretly proceeds to monetarily support Chase but when she was caught, the bond between the family members exacerbated. Time elapsed and Chase was finally caught when stealing a car however, he dies shortly after and overdose and becomes brain dead. Tweaked shows us the reality of how hazardous drugs can be through the physical
“Geronimo: an American legend” is a story of an apache warrior who fought against the United States in order to preserve his peoples culture. The film starts off, ironically, with the first surrender of Geronimo. His people are sent to a reservation called turkey creek. On this reservation they were expected to become farmers that would produce mostly corn. However the apache where not harvesting enough to sustain their community and had to rely on government checks.
Ayiti, by Roxane Gay, is a collection of fifteen short narratives about Haiti and its people, which gives the readers insights into the complex Haitian diaspora experience. The novel seeks to offer a deeper view into Haitian society and covers an array of themes such as the politics of survival, resiliency, and feminist culture in Haiti. Throughout the novel, Gay is highly critical of mainstream media because of how they depict and silo Haiti as a poor and helpless country. Haiti’s historical stance on censorship is well documented, and as a Haitian writer living in America, Gay is successful in giving agency to the voiceless by chronicling the stories of the Haitian diaspora. Ayiti explores stories that explain what it is like to be a Haitian
The play “Permanent Collection” focuses on an African-American man who has just taken over an art museum named Sterling North. While digging through storage, he finds eight African sculpture pieces and wants to add them to the collection at the Morris Foundation on the campus of a college. The Director of Education Paul Barrow is hanging on to the words of Mr. Morris and his vision because he doesn’t want anything to change at the museum according to Mr. Morris’ will, which contributes to the title of the play “Permanent Collection.”
The story of “Unwind” revolves around three main characters that are all scheduled to be sent to a harvest camp and unwound. Connor is a sixteen year whose family believes that he has caused too much trouble in society. Risa is a ward of the state, and due to budget cuts, is too expensive to be kept in the program. Lev is tithe, and individual that has been born with the purpose of being unwound. Connor one day discovers an unwind order in the house and decides to run away. With the help of an honest truck driver, Connor manages to slip away. However, Connor keeps his cell phone and the tracker inside gets him caught. The police attempt to arrest Connor but he resists arrest, runs through the traffic on the road, and grabs a tithed to use as a human shield. This event in turn causes a bus full of state home wards to spin out of control and overturn. Risa is one of the individual on that buss. Risa, Connor, and Lev all run into the woods. The next morning, while the three are gathering supplies such as food and clothes, they come across a storked baby on the door step. Due to past experiences, Connor decides to put all three of them in risk and decides to pick up the baby while a police car slowly passes nearby. Risa, Connor, Lev and the baby all get onto the school bus in hopes of not being suspected by the police car. Once they arrive at the school, they find the nearest bathroom and hide in it with the baby. Lev sees this as an opportunity to escape. As a tithe, he believes that it is an honor to live with the purpose of being unwound, so he finds his way to the school office and turns himself and Connor and Risa in. He then asks for a call, and calls his pastor, who to Lev’s surprise informs him that his face was purposely k...