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Summary of the man who was almost a man
Summary of the man who was almost a man
Analysis of a man who was almost a man
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In the story, “The Man Who Was Almost a Man” the gun and the mule are two apparent symbols that contribute to the meaning of the story. They both relate through the character Dave, a teenager who desires power, respect, and independence. The gun represents Dave’s idea of manhood, specifically Dave’s desire to be a man. The mule, most importantly, the death of the mule, symbolizes Dave, his growth into a man, and the passing of childish ways.
Impulsively, Dave buys a gun thinking that it will make him a man because he believes the qualities of a man come with the gun itself. He has no interest in what his mom has to say about that subject; Dave disregards her opinion and her wishes. Instead, he manipulates her to give him the money to buy the gun. He makes her believe that he was going to buy the gun for his father, but had every intention to keep the gun for himself. He then proceeded to buy the gun despite the fact that he does not know how to shoot one, nor has he even handled a gun before. Upon waking up the next morning, Dave ties the gun to his thigh and runs off to work to avoid any confrontation with his mother. After plowing two rows, Dave decides to pull the gun out and shoots it, accidentally hitting Jenny, the mule,
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with a bullet. The mule died, and Dave instinctively buried the gun in the ground. Denying the fact that he killed the mule, Dave makes up an unbelievable lie about how the mule died. This eventually leads to Dave digging up the gun and running away by getting on a train to go to a place where he could be the man he wishes to be. Moreover, owning a gun gives Dave the opportunity to feel more like a man, which is part of the reason he is so persistent on buying one. The fact that he is still treated like a child when he is almost an adult makes him upset and causes him to crave his independence even more. For some reason, he feels that the only way that independence will come, is through a gun; he believes that “a man oughta have a gun”. Thus signifying how important the gun is to him, and how he believes he is ready for the power and responsibility that comes with a gun. When Dave held the gun, he felt a “sense of power” and that people “would have to respect him”. Immediately, Dave feels different as a result of holding the gun; he feels like a man with power, and he likes that feeling. Also, the reluctance of Dave to give up the gun to his mother symbolizes Dave’s unwillingness to give up the power he just acquired. Joe, the man who sells Dave the gun, jokes with Dave by saying, “Your ma lettin you have your own money now?”. Joe is referring to the fact that Dave’s mother is the one who controls Dave’s money regardless of the fact that Dave is almost considered an adult by age. Once he fired the gun for the first time, he had an “itch” to fire it again, symbolizing how once Dave has a taste of the power and independence, he continues to want it more and more. After he fires the remaining bullets in the gun, he points the gun at Jim Hawkins’ house to let him know he is a “man”. Thus signifying that Dave believes he is a “man”, and other people should view him the same. The gun gave him the confidence he needed to run away and let him be the “man” he wishes. In addition, the mule is a significant symbol in the story that symbolizes Dave himself. Even Dave realizes the similarity between him and the mule by saying, “They treat me like a mule, n they beat me”. He compares himself to the mule because the mule was stuck on the farm and died there, and similar could have happened to him if he hadn’t run away. For example, Dave would’ve been stuck working on Mr. Hawkins’ farm until the day he dies. Another comparison is the way they are treated; Dave believes that both himself and the mule are treated poorly. The reader can infer that the mule was not treated that great because when the mule died, no one really cared. Jim just laughed it off and didn’t seem to be hurt by the loss. Dave feels he is treated the same way because he is not given the respect and independence he feels he deserves. The death of Jenny is basically the transition of Dave going from childhood to adulthood. It leads him to make the decision to run away from the life he is destined to live. Since the mule is a symbol for Dave, the death of the mule is signifying that the child in Dave is dying, and he is turning into a man. Both the mule and the gun play a significant role in shaping the meaning of the story.
Dave wanted the gun to be the solution to all of his problems, but he was unprepared for the responsibility he was about to face. The mule was a symbol for Dave and how he would end up dying on the farm if he hadn't gotten away. Making the decision to leave town was the only way to get out of his predestined fate of working on the farm and being his own man. The symbols lead to Dave making the decision to abandon his home and start a life somewhere else. All he wanted was power, respect, and independence; they were all things that he believed he could get through the gun, and the gun is what gave him the confidence to take the leap into his
adulthood.
As I read Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, I find myself being completely consumed by the rich tale that the author weaves; a tragic and ironic tale that concisely and precisely utilizes irony and foreshadowing with expert skill. As the story progresses, it is readily apparent that the story will end in a tragic and predictable state due to the devices which O’Connor expertly employs and thusly, I find that I cannot stop reading it; the plot grows thicker with every sentence and by doing so, the characters within the story are infinitely real in my mind’s eye. As I consider these factors, the story focuses on two main characters; that of the grandmother, who comes across as self-centered and self-serving and The Misfit, a man, who quite ingeniously, also appears to be self-centered and self-serving. It is the story behind the grandmother, however, that evidence appears to demonstrate the extreme differences between her superficial self and the true character of her persona; as the story unfolds, and proof of my thought process becomes apparently clear.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige, and even his life for the welfare of others.”-MLK Jr. In the book A Lesson Before Dying, Ernest J. Gaines explores the relationship between a student and a teacher in Bayonne, Louisiana, in the 1940s, and how their actions affect the society they are living in. Jefferson, a young black man, is accused of a murder, and is sentenced to death because of his race. Miss Emma, Jefferson’s godmother, wants Grant Wiggins, an educated black teacher to “make him a man” before Jefferson dies. Even though Grant was reluctant that it would amount to anything, but he gave his word that he would try, and soon after a couple of visits to the jail, Grant starts to develop a bond with Jefferson. As the book progresses, Jefferson learns that you need to take responsibility for your own actions, you should always be humble, one should never submit their dignity no matter the circumstances, and always remember that even heroes are not perfect.
in "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" Flannery O' Connor uses symbolism to give more meaning to her short story. O'Connor writes a story of a Grandmother versus a Misfit, or good versus evil. This short story is about a family going to Florida, who takes a turn down a dirt road, which only causes them to get in an accident, and be found by the Misfit. This encounter prevented them from ever arriving Florida, because the Misfit ends their lives. Using symbolism, O'Connor creates a story with much meaning to the Grandmother, nature, sky, woods, their surroundings, roads, and cars to portray the constant battle between good and evil.
because the author is saying that you need to repent and ask for forgiveness to
allows the reader to know that Invisible Man is the protagonist right away. The comment
"A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor is a short story that depicts a family's vacation to Florida that turned into an abysmal tragedy when they met with the Misfit, a convict who escaped from prison. This story is meant to be interpreted as a parable, whereby O'Connor made skilful use of symbolism to bring about messages such as the class-consciousness and the lack of spiritual faith that exist amongst human.
At a young age Dave had to learn how to play games with his mother as a sort of survival tactic to stay alive in his household.
Flannery O’Connors’s “A Good Man Is Hard To Find” is filled with irony. Verbal, dramatic, and cosmic, without irony of these kinds, this short story would not be as powerful as it is. O’Connor’s use of several different kinds of irony helps in communicating a strong message about humans and human condition and to successfully engage her readers.
This picture to me is saying that even when a mule deer has died and the only thing left is bones and its horns, there is still life with that deer. The deer has lived a life that none of us could have imagined, no one but that deer could tell the story of its life. The mule deer is a symbol of living and how nature can be so hard on animals. The picture makes you feel like the deer is staring at you and that maybe it is trying to tell you something. I know the excitement that comes with hunting and when you shoot that deer and come up to it, there is nothing in this world that feels better. It is really hard to explain the feeling that comes with hunting, but this picture is a deer that has died and it could have been by a hunter or it could have been just old age or disease. It is hard to tell with this picture what has happened to the mule deer.
In every single novel, the importance of the symbolism is probably as important as the language the novel is written in. Author uses symbolism to create memorable scenes that have a hidden meaning behind their original face value. Symbolism especially plays a huge role in the novel by Albert Camus, ”the Outsider” , where author’s examples imply various emotional short-cuts and serve as a helper to understand the inner world of the main character – Meursault. This is a thought-provoking novel, which brilliantly illustrated Albert Camus’s theme of absurdity. One interesting aspect about “The stranger” is the protagonist, where in his life there are no certain meanings and motives for his actions and his life overall. The absurdity of the protagonist has no rational explanation. Each of the many actions by Meursault have huge influence on the description of the indifference of the world, where symbolism used by the protagonist underlines the human’s dignity and unimportance of the world. In the provocative novel “The stranger” by Albert Camus uses symbolism such as the crucifix, th...
He wanted to keep the gun because he wanted to own something that made him feel like a man because he worked all the time and made wages just like any other man.... ... middle of paper ... ... The situation between Dave and Mr. Hawkins illustrates how he could not be a man because Hawkins was basically making him a slave for the next two years. Dave jumping on the train going someplace else illustrates his hopes of leaving his poor, miserable life in hopes of a new, better life where he can be a man.
The central element of this novella is its symbolism. This novella has plenty of symbolical forms, such as people, creed, and some of the animals. Candy has several terms of symbolism, for example his disability is a symbol of the migrant workers who are just literally forgotten about, they are forgotten when they are no use to the owners. Candy’s dog is a symbol of a life only for advantage to others Lennie also for shadows this, he is belittled of his mind but enormously commented for his strength. Also he is compelled to lie about the fight he had with Curley, this is a symbol of typical male society in the, “Depression era”.
In "A Good Man is Hard to find" by Flannery O'Connor, one is struck by the unexpected violence at the end of the story. However, if the story is read a second time, reader can see definite signs of foreshadowing that hints to the ending of the story. Through O'Connor's technique of strong imagery to foreshadow the people and the events in the story is very compelling. There are two significant times that she uses this technique. They are the description of the grandmother's dress and the graveyard.
Ralph Ellison uses several symbols to emphasize the narrator’s attempt to escape from stereotypes and his theme of racial inequalities in his novel, Invisible Man. In particular, the symbolism of the cast-iron is one that haunts the narrator throughout the book. Ellison’s character discovers a small, cast-iron bank that implies the derogatory stereotypes of a black man in society at the time. From its “wide-mouthed, red-lipped, and very black” features, to its suggestion of a black man entertaining for trivial rewards, this ignites anger in Ellison’s narrator. The cast-iron bank represents the continuous struggle with the power of stereotypes, which is a significant theme throughout the novel.1 The bank plays a significant role in the book by aiding to the author’s message of stereotypes, the narrator’s search for an individual identity, and his languished desire for equality.
The beginning of Invisible Man is the most important passage throughout the book, the wise words spoken from the narrator’s grandfather hold significant meaning. The narrator’s grandfather’s words of wisdom were too maintain two separate identities, one being of a mentality of a good “slave” to the white people. This identity is to be the “yes man” to the white men that were seen as the superior race during this time period, 1930s. The second identity that the narrator’s grandfather mentioned is the mentality of bitter hatred towards the white men. This personality is like a cunning man waiting for the right moment to strike down his enemies that play a role as friends in public appearance. The narrator’s grandfather gives this advice to the narrator because he does not want him to struggle throughout his life.