A Small Good Thing Analysis

He “[invites] Janie to be…herself” and he “does not limit her to a particular role” (Domina 315). As a result, there are no expectations for Janie to fulfill. She has no need to conform to a certain type of behavior or appearance, which allows her to finally reconcile the differences between internal and external versions of herself. Professor Deborah Clarke describes Janie’s time with Tea Cake as an opportunity for Janie to flourish and learn how to “formulate a self which is not predicated upon oppression” (Clarke 607). Because Tea Cake does not impose societal expectations upon Janie, she is able to navigate a relationship in which her innermost self that she has kept hidden can now rise to the surface.

After reading the essays, “Lunch” and “Feet in Smoke”, the reader comes to realize the privilege and importance of family stories. Both essays portray a heartbreaking story of losing a member of the family either through death or losing them mentally.

In the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, by Mark Haddon, Ed Boone is the father of a brilliant boy, Christopher, who has signs of autism or a similar disorder which makes him very particular, and have extremely rigid standards. Ed constantly overworks himself to please Christopher, and make his son feel as comfortable as possible even though Christopher never thanks him. A similar idea is expressed in “Those Winter Sundays”, by Robert Hayden, where a boy reflects on all his father has done for him even though he and his family never acknowledged all of the effort and labor his father put into making them happy, healthy, and free from these labors. Both the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime and “Those Winter Sundays” suggest that a parent will go to great lengths for their children's prosperity and comfort even if their children never say thank you.

“Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin and “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman are two stories that reveal the consequences of individual suffering. These consequences include estranging relationships, bitter behavior, and even illness, addiction, or death. Throughout each of these stories, Sonny and John’s wife, known as the narrator of “The Yellow Wallpaper”, continue to suffer due to John’s and Sonny’s brother’s, known as the narrator of “Sonny’s Blues”, failure to meet obligations and familial compassion. Neither the narrator in “Sonny’s Blues” nor the husband, John, in “The Yellow Wallpaper” serve as the villains of the stories, however, I believe we are able to see how both their inabilities to effectively

David Foster Wallace’s short story “Good People” uses the themes of division, isolation, and loneliness to suggest how communication can overcomes these psychological problems. These themes, prominent in the story of a young couple struggling with how to react to an unwanted pregnancy, are present in many of Wallace’s stories, and come from his own struggles and literary influences.

Lee’s essay “Magical Dinners” and Slater’s “Tripp Lake” are two stories that allows you to see different situations that involve a parent and a child. They both struggle with different things one being with dramatic life changes that come with being a foreigner moving to the united states and one being a childhood camp experience and the mothers maternal fear of the daughter.In Magical Dinners it showcases the story of the authors mother and the frustrations of living in a place with unfamiliar food,language and faces. In Tripp Lake the author is the narrator and you see the mothers feelings convey through her daughter being able to do things she wasn 't when she was younger. In these two stories we will look at the impact both mothers had on there child 's lives and trying to please them through the events , actions and motions involved.Based on reading the two stories Magical dinners and Tripp lake i found that they have similarities that produce two different results.

Later in chapter two, Foster explains that the act of eating together symbolizes various types of communion. He uses many novels as examples to help prove this point. First, a meal’s description may take the place of describing sexual intercourse. In Tom Jones, a couple’s meal includes sucking on bones, licking fingers, and groaning, clearly demonstrating more than simply eating dinner. Additionally, a meal symbolizes an act of sharing and peace. The novel Cathedral tells of a discriminatory man who doesn’t gain respect for a blind man until he shares a meal with him. Finally, a failed meal has a negative connotation, bringing disappointment to the story. In Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, a mother tries to have a family diner, but continues to fail. The family

Although Janie and Tea Cake’s marriage has its share of arguments and alterations, Tea Cake’s influence

2. How does Tea Cake get even with Mrs. Turner for meddling in his marriage?

Nice To Eat With You: Acts of Communion (Chapter Two) from How to Read Literature Like A Professor expressed that literary communion is always written deliberately to show an act between friends and can be used as a way to bring characters together or to tear them apart. The chapter talked about how everyone shares at least one thing in common, which is death, and how once you recognize that it's smooth sailing. That next to mortality all of our differences are tiny details that play a big factor in how different all of our lives our when compared next to each other.

Following suit with the chapter I neither agree nor do I disagree with the extremes of the topic at hand. To say that technology holds no value and only presents problems for those who use it, is being close minded to the potential value that technology holds for us. On the other hand, saying that the use of the technology holds no back lash or consequence is acting in a naive manor towards the situation. There are faults with both but there is also a lot of truth to both. In my experience the use of technology in too high of a quantity can often lead to self absorption and disconnect throughout a society. In the article, "Small Change" by Malcolm Gladwell, he states that "The platforms of social media are built around weak ties. Twitter is

“Boys, dinner!” Ma yells. We all bound to the dining room, having barely eaten anything all day. We see the same dinner we have every night, lentil soup, but it never gets old. I guess when we’re this hungry anything tastes good. We say grace and dig in, although we are still a little sad because of Pa’s death. After dinner, we all gather around the radio and listen to the latest news. Then we hit the hay after a long day, ready to do the same thing

Thomas Foster explains to his audience that authors only take the time to write in detail about an event as boring as his or her characters eating a meal to show how the characters get along; either in a positive manner or a negative manner. It is a tool that authors use to connect different characters with a common activity: eating. If the meal is finished without hassle, then, Foster explains, it shows that the characters have an equal footing which is a good sign. In the case in which the meal is interrupted, then the reader can assume that there is a negative connotation and that something is wrong.

The tone of this story is one of fear, regret, and guilt. The story first leaves the reader with impression that it may be a recount of the life of a daughter who was lost due to neglect. Soon it is evident

In the story “The God of Small Things," the term family can be defined as persons that an individual cares about. The obligations of the family members appear to be influenced by the bold ties. Despite the disputes among some family members, the blood ties obligate them to express care and love towards one another. Just like in real life situations, the novel explains that family relations can be frustrating, complicated, and confusing. In most cases, it is apparent that most individuals are forced by the family ties to stick together. The failure to express care towards one another is seen as one of the factors that prompt families to fall apart.