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Significance of symbolism in literature
Significance of symbolism in literature
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Tony Hillerman's The Ghostaway
In a country that is the melting pot for many cultures, it is hard to interact with all of them. Tony Hillerman educates readers about one culture, the Navajos, through his novel, The Ghostway. After a shooting occurs in the quiet Indian reservation, a Navajo police Jim Chee, officer overcomes many obstacles physically, mentally, and spiritually to sort the case out and protect a young girl. He is constantly struggling with his identity, whether or not he should continue living his life as a Navajo or cross over to mainstream “white” life. Although the book’s main plot is about a murder and police investigations, a theme that the book is always making references about is cultural differences and how these mere differences can make things rough on people’s lives.
The Navajo culture is contains a lot of symbolism, filled with many beliefs, rituals, and traditions that are excluded only to Navajos which makes their interactions with the outside difficult. After a death in a Hogan, the Hogan has to be setup in a way to protect the ghost. When Jim Chee first went down to the Hogan he noticed what had happened, “ He could think of just one reason to block a Hogan’s smoke hole.”(18)The Navajo tradition is very spiritual and believes in spirits of the dead, they prepare the Hogan in a way so the spirit can do no harm to anyone so the block the smoke to keep the spirit inside.. Since he was raised not to enter a dead Hogan it stopped him from...
In the book Bad Indians, Miranda talks about the many issues Indigenous People go through. Miranda talks about the struggles Indigenous people go through; however, she talks about them in the perspective of Native Americans. Many people learn about Indigenous People through classrooms and textbooks, in the perspective of White people. In Bad Indians, Miranda uses different literary devices to show her perspective of the way Indigenous People were treated, the issues that arose from missionization, as well as the violence that followed through such issues. Bad Indians is an excellent example that shows how different history is told in different perspectives.
Out of the 156 whales they have taken into captivity from the wild, 129 are dead. Including orcas bred within SeaWorld, at least 165 have died in their facilities (Schelling). Another falsehood SeaWorld claims is that collapsed dorsal fins are completely normal and common of all male orcas. It is actually quite rare to find in the wild, while every single one of their male whales has a collapsed dorsal fin (“8 Shocking Facts…”). SeaWorld also guarantees that they never separate a calf from its mother and even have posted a picture of a baby and its mother as proof. What they didn’t tell the public was that soon after that picture was posted they shipped the calf off to Spain alone to a different park. A past trainer even said that there had been at least 19 separations of mother and calf that he knew of at his location. All of these factors previously stated added up have a large influence on the whales mentally. Many whales are afflicted by psychosis and anxiety and in turn are given drugs such as Valium to keep them performing in shows. There have been various occasions, often swept under the rug by SeaWorld and away from the public eye, where the drugs didn’t work enough (Schelling). There
Each person has a place that calls to them, a house, plot of land, town, a place that one can call home. It fundamentally changes a person, becoming a part of who they are. The old summer cabins, the bedroom that was always comfortable, the library that always had a good book ready. The places that inspire a sense of nostalgic happiness, a place where nothing can go wrong.
Culture has the power and ability to give someone spiritual and emotional distinction which shapes one's identity. Without culture, society would be less and less diverse. Culture is what gives this earth warmth and color that expands across miles and miles. The author of “The School Days of an Indian Girl”, Zitkala Sa, incorporates the ideals of Native American culture into her writing. Similarly, Sherman Alexie sheds light onto the hardships he struggled through growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in his book The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven in a chapter titled “Indian Education”.
Establishing an identity has been called one of the most important milestones of adolescent development (Ruffin, 2009). Additionally, a central part of identity development includes ethnic identity (ACT for Youth, 2002). While some teens search for cultural identity within a smaller community, others are trying to find their place in the majority culture. (Bucher and Hinton, 2010)The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian chronicles Junior’s journey to discovery of self. As with many developing teens, he finds himself spanning multiple identities and trying to figure out where he belongs. “Traveling between Reardan and Wellpinit, between the little white town and the reservation, I always felt like a stranger. I was half Indian in one place and half white in the other” (p.118). On the reservation, he was shunned for leaving to go to a white school. At Reardon, the only other Indian was the school mascot, leaving Junior to question his decision to attend school he felt he didn’t deserve. Teens grappling with bicultural identities can relate to Junior’s questions of belonging. Not only is Junior dealing with the struggle between white vs. Indian identities, but with smaller peer group identities as well. In Wellpinit, Junior is th...
“What You Pawn I Will Redeem,” by Sherman Alexie gives readers a look at the life of homeless, easygoing, middle aged Native American, Jackson Jackson. The story, which is set in Seattle, describes the conditions that Jackson finds himself in. Alexie’s choice of motifs emphasizes the significance of cultural and historical references. With these concepts in mind, the reader is taken through a journey of self-realization. “What You Pawn I Will Redeem” narrates the internal struggle Jackson feels trying to figure out his personal identity as a Native American. The story chronicles situations that illustrate the common stereotypes about Natives. Through Jackson’s humble personality, the reader can grasp his true feeling towards White people, which
I found this quote to fit perfectly with what I experienced in the deaf event that I attended the latter week. On Wednesday April 6, I went to Pizza Royal, an event that even though it was miniscule I can say with assurance I will remember for the rest of my life, surprisingly. I really did not know what to expect as I entered the restaurant, besides the fact that I was nervous my communication skills would be poor with a deaf person. As the night went on, I learned a lot of about the people I met there including characteristics such as, friendliness, mirth, and patience. The list goes on.
For example, factory farming is very efficient. By using less space the farmer actually saves money when factory farming, making the profit from selling the produce greater. Also, factory farming allows development of hybrid plants that are disease resistant. By plants becoming disease resistant the animals that eat the plants are becoming less prone to disease. This then helps the consumer who eats the animal because they are eating disease resistant food that allows them to have a better percentage of not catching harmful diseases. Factory farming also helps lengthens food availability and shelf life. With factory farming increasing products’ shelf life the value if the product increases. Well as it is efficient it is also inexpensive for farmers to use. Being inexpensive helps the farmer and consumer because prices for the resources to produce and product itself becomes cheaper and more affordable to the public. Also, it allows both producer and consumer to gain financially and improves the economy. Since factory farming is less dependent on manual labor it frees farmers from labor restrictions, this allows farmers to afford to hire workers trained in specialized tasks which then help the farmer produce
In conclusion Factory farms keeps their animals in small cages and used for money. The animals are getting sick and dying because of poor the condition. They need to be given more space and be given they love and care they need. The environment is also in poor condition because they don't really care just like their animals. But just like their animals the environment needs love and care too. Thats why all factory farms should be banned from the United states.
“What You Pawn I Will Redeem,” by Sherman Alexie gives readers a look at the life of homeless, easygoing, middle aged Native American, Jackson Jackson. The story, which is set in Seattle, describes the conditions that Jackson finds himself in. Alexie’s choice of motifs emphasizes the significance of cultural and historical references. With these concepts in mind, the reader is taken through a journey of self-realization. “What You Pawn I Will Redeem” narrates the internal struggle Jackson feels trying to figure out his personal identity as a Native American. The story chronicles situations that illustrate the common stereotypes about Natives. Through Jackson’s humble personality, the reader can grasp his
Sherman Alexie’s short story “Flight Patterns” is an intriguing story about many themes, including identity, stereotypes, and the illusions of society. The story is written from an American Indian’s viewpoint and provides and interesting and different perspective on identities and relations in America after the terrorist attack on Spetember 11, 2001. The main character William, a native American man who has a wife and a daughter named Marie and Grace respectively, leaves his family for a business trip. On his way to the airport, he encounters a black taxi driver, named Fekadu, who tells him his story. He is not sure whether or not he should believe it but by the end of their trip together William realizes how much he loves and cares for his
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria book reveals the Whites view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging effect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems.
Hamlet is a melancholic young man who does not value human life; however, he will do anything it takes to accomplish his main goal: revenge on Claudius for the death of his father. In his seven soliloquies we learn that Hamlet has become melancholic, violent, and suicidal. There are several incidences where these emotions are expressed. His melancholic attitude is very apparent in the second scene of Act I, when he suggests that his mother, in mourning his fathers death, is simply acting the part of a grief stricken widow, while he is a truly heart broken son. Another example from his first soliloquy of his melancholic state occurs when he discovers the rapid marriage of his mother and his uncle, where he finds himself both sad and mad at the fact that his mother could move on so quickly. Hamlet’s violent attitude can be blamed on the fact that his father was murdered and he wants revenge. An example of his violent attitude is in his sixth soliloquy where he sees the king praying in the church. Hamlet feels as though he should just kill him in that same instance, but then decides not to. Another instance of his violent behavior is when he sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths and feels no remorse in doing so. Hamlet’s suicidal state can be accounted for because he is a confused young man. Throughout the play his father had been murdered, his mother almost instantly re-married, he himself had gone mad, and thus he is confused because he has so many negative feelings towards himself and the easiest way out is suicide. Another example occurs in his forth soliloquy when he reasons whether suicide would be the better and quicker solution. All of Hamlet’s emotions cause him to have a clo...
There are various issues on Indian Reservations that have significant impacts on the lives of many Native American people, young and old. Among these are domestic violence, suicide, severe medical issues, and extreme poverty. These issues have a negative impact on family life, employment, and self motivation. A vicious cycle is created by the continuance of issues as generation after generation of Native Americans are exposed to similar conditions and find themselves struggling to adapt to a judge mental society and some cases, to survive. Two works of literature that portray the lives of Native Americans and their struggles are Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich and Where White Men Fear to Tread by Russell Means. The character Albertine
This form of bullying is considered indirect bullying because it is done by rumors, gossip, and the internet. “Cyberbullies often mock, harass, threaten or humiliate others through electronic messages, images, or video” (Funk & Wagnalls 1). Cyberbullying has grown tremendously since the growth of technology and equipment such as cell phones, tablets, and computers. “Cell phones, social media sites, chat rooms, and other forms of technology have allowed bullying to expand into cyberspace. This new form of abuse is known as cyberbullying” (Donegan 33). This can also happen on social media websites, chat rooms, text messages, and through emails. Victims who are being cyberbullied are often being bullied in person as