Open
Family relationships are not always easy. You have grown up in a different generation and a different world than your parents did, and your grandparents did, and therefore it can be difficult to understand one another. This is a problem that the tennis player Andre Agassi in his childhood has experienced and writes about in this extract from his autobiography “Open” from 2009.
He begins his autobiography with the lines “My father’s mother lives with us. She’s a nasty old lady from Tehran with a wart on the size of a walnut on the edge of her nose”. Already here his relationship with his grandmother has been established as problematic, as the first thing we must know about her is her walnut sized wart. He sees his grandma’s only purpose
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This was the way his father was taught how to fight, although his true compassion was tennis. Since no one else in Iran played tennis, he had no one to compete with, and therefore he pressured Andre Agassi to play, although it may not have been what he wanted to accomplish with his life “She should tell him to back off, ease up, that tennis isn’t life”. His relationship to his father is troubled as well – he even nicknamed the father “the dragon”. His favorite family member is his uncle Isar whom he has heard about all his life, but first meets after Isar has escaped from Iran. In appearance, his father and uncle are identical, but to Andre Agassi is their behavior the exact opposite of each other “My father is shrill and stern and filled with rage. Uncle Isar is soft-spoken and patient and funny”. His uncle helps him with his homework and will gladly explain it to him as much as needed, whereas his father would lose his temper if Andre Agassi did not understand it after the first explanation. Uncle Isar’s calm speaks to Andre Agassi, who finds it hard to understand his father’s rage. His relationship with his siblings is not mentioned in this extract, but in the end of the extract he comments on his mother. She again is a
Amir’s mother, Sofia, dies in childbirth; Amir inherits her love of literature and probably her looks to some extent, but, her being dead, never receives any motherly love or guidance, which could have helped him out of the cowardly hole he later digs himself into. Amir’s father’s best friend and business partner, Rahim Khan, tries to give Amir the motherly love he clearly needs, fostering Amir’s love of writing and steadfastly standing up for him when Amir’s father, Baba, criticizes him, but Rahim Khan does not do enough to instill honesty, courage, and strength of conviction in young Amir. Amir’s best friend, Hassan, a servant a year younger than Amir, is everything Amir is not: athletic, brave, loyal, honest, and kind, inciting jealousy in Amir. Assef, a local bully, poses a real threat to Amir, hating Amir for the crime of befriending a Hazara (oppressed ethnic minority), but Amir is protected by Hassan, allowing young Amir to freeze and not stand up for himself in Assef’s presence. Last, but most importantly, is Amir’s father, Baba, and his views on Amir: he blames Amir for Sofia’s death,
Do you remember what I told you that night? That if I hadn’t seen the doctor pull Amir out of my wife, I’d never believe that he is my son? Well, that thought had been crossing my mind a lot these past weeks. Just yesterday, I took him out to watch the yearly Buzkashi tournament. Before we had left, I had sensed a sign of discontent from Amir, but I shrugged it off as if he were tired. Buzkashi was Afghanistan’s passion. It was not possible that an Afghan was not interested. While we sat in the upper bleachers, Amir often looked confused or bored. He would look up at the chapandaz then back down at his fingers. I had told him the sight of a book at the Buzkashi was unbearable, and that he could last a few hours without burying his face in one. Although his eyes were on the horses, I knew by his gaze he knew next to nothing about Bazkashi. So I decided to point out my long time favourite chapandaz, Henry Kissinger. Before Amir had time to respond, I saw his eyes dart to the far end of the stadium. A chapandaz fell off his saddle and was crushed under the hooves of the horses. Slowly, Amir’s face changed from shock to mournful. How is it that this is my son? This rather quiet, bookish, feminine
2. Grandfather is a man that is very religious and an extremist. For him religion and God are everything and if you hadn’t respected those two you were a terrible person. His wife was a woman who thought that marriage wasn’t necessarily for love and just for being a good housewife. I think that in a way she feared him. She was also twenty-five years younger than him. They did have two sons together, but at the end it didn’t work out for he killed her.
Iran’s conflict between modernism and fundamentalism can be seen in the novel’s focus on the political prisoners. Marji encounters various men that were incarcerated for holding extreme leftist views, including her uncle, and the consequences they faced. In the chapter “The Heroes” Marji is exposed to the various torture methods induced to make the prisoners betray others who shared their discontent. This can be seen when Marji’s father asks about Ahmadi and Siamk, the newly freed prisoner, tells them, “… Ahmadi was assassinated. As a member of the guerrillas, he suffered hell” (54). In making this comment, Ahmadi shows the intensity with which fierce opponents were persecuted. Additionally, the never ending arrests and deaths of these political opponents show the
This highlights the realistic atmosphere prevailing as well as reflects the true meaning of relationship. The readers are exposed to the mother-son relationship. It can be seen that even if the narrator is a twenty-year old law student, he is still the little boy who needed his neck scrubbed from the point of view of the mother. Whatever good advice the son gives, it is not followed and instead he is given a lecture. This is a typical mother-son relationship which shows that no matter how much a child grows, he always remains a little kid for the mother. Moreover, the readers also notice the routine life of the narrator and his mother. The boy used to accompany his mother to work and help her which makes a four-hour job becomes two. There is solidarity, strong family bond and understanding between them because although he did not like his mother
Thesis: Khaled Hosseini strongly argues the importance of family coming together despite their differences because family is all a person has in the end.
Amirs father, Baba, is a strong man very set in his ways. He represents the independent culture of old Afghanistan. He instills his ideals of masculinity on Amir, and believes he should be stronger, more sports oriented, and able to stand up for himself. “Of
Most families are complicated but supportive. For example, a family could argue a lot, but still love one another. In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” mama still supports her daughters even though, they’re not around much. Their issues are not unique because my family has its issues, too. The family in “Everyday Use” and my family both have similarities and differences regarding siblings, bonds, and mothers.
Amir’s misadventures begin as a boy living in an affluent Afghanistan world. On the day of his birth, his mother hemorrhages to death. Robbed of any feminine influence or comfort, he goes to his overshadowing Baba for love and acceptance. His father denies his only son the tenderness he desires, leading Amir to believe his father despises him. After all, Amir’s
Portrayed as spiritual and intellectual in contrast with his crude laboratory assistant Aminadab, Aylmer becomes disturbingly obsessed with a birthmark on his wife’s countenance. The plot of the short story revolves around the man’s attempt in removing the mark, which results in the death of Georgiana. In the very beginning of the story, the audience discovers through the narration that Aylmer views his wife’s birthmark as more than a congenital, benign irregularity on the skin. In reality, the primary reason why he becomes severely obsessed with the birthmark is because in his eyes, the mark symbolizes something. Aylmer proceeds to further clarify his inner thoughts by replying to his wife, “This slightest possible defect, which we hesitate whether to term a defect or a beauty, shocks me, as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection” (Mays 340). Although Georgiana is initially mortified and even goes as far to question the existence of the marriage between them, the narration later sheds light and explains that the precise reason why Aylmer is excessively bothered with the birthmark is because he regards Georgiana as virtually the embodiment of perfection. As a consequence, perceiving a flaw on his wife’s image that clashes with the concept of her beauty inevitably leads him to feel aggrieved and begin to judge the birthmark as a dangerous blemish residing on her skin.
Amir was a son of a reputed father and he gets to attain school and he gets to learn and experienced many things. For example, he gets to participate in the poetry recitation where he is much interested in and sports although it wasn’t his choice. Whereas, Hassan as a servant stayed home to do the household work. Hassan made Amir’s breakfast, cleaned his room and did all the household chores while Amie goes to school. Though Hassan desires to get the education but there wasn’t a chance given to him as a servant. Therefore, despite illiteracy he would passionately listen to what Amir would read for him. Additionally, Amir grows up as young child who longs for his father’s love and approval. He lives with inexplicable jealousy of Hassan. Whereas, Hassan grows up as a young child serving under Amir and respecting Amir’s order. Hassan is cheerful, loyal and loving. He always attempt to please and serve Amir. Moreover, Hassan wasn’t privileged like Amir as he had to undergo insult and defamation by other people around
Amir and Baba never got along, which caused Amir to believe that all father-son relationships are like his. Amir does not understand that parents are supposed to unconditionally love their children, like the love Hassan receives from Ali. Showing the differences in Amir and Hassan’s reactions to this story due to their relationships with their fathers explains the significance of having a bond between father and son.
Taking place in the late 1970’s, Marjane Satrapi’s “Persepolis” exemplifies a profound illustration of the county of Iran, including aspects of its people and political structure. Unlike a conventional composed novel, the story of Persepolis is expressed through both textual and visual representation; otherwise known as a graphic novel. Through the experiences of the ten-year old character Marjane, the reader is exposed to historical events, movements, crises, and motives that occurred within Iran. Furthermore, the novel has gained much praise in its portrayal of emotions that occurred through the people of Iran. Although there has been tremendous support of the account of Marjane, there have been a few critics of the novel, attacking its overall literary value. For instance, New York’s Ithaca College student paper called The Ithacan, slammed the role Persepolis had on the literary society. In fact, they went as far to say that the novel “...is worth broaching but its literary value, in terms of building vocabulary and furthering comprehension, falls short.” An absurd statement, to say the least. Not only is Persepolis of literary value, it is a glimpse into the past. It allows the reader to understand the various conflicts that the people of Iran were facing. Through the account of Marjane, the audience is exposed to elements of Iranian history, gender roles, religion, and political fluctuation.
All women in their lifetime go through an experience that makes them feel proud and dignified to be a woman. Marjane Satrapi strives to find this feeling of self-worth and the satisfaction of being a woman in Iran as she grows up during her war torn childhood in her bildungsroman, Persepolis. Marjane experiences both positive and negative moments throughout the memoir such as growing up alone in Austria, speaking against women's dress codes, and her constant struggle to make her grandma proud, all which help her learn independence and help form her into a strong feminist woman.
Every child, especially in their younger ages craves the attention of their parents, the same way Amir does with Baba. In the beginning of the novel, Amir seeks for his father’s approval and love, which is needed by every child. One of the main father and son examples in this novel is Baba and Amir’s dysfunctional relationship. Near the beginning of the novel, it is evident that Baba expects more from his son and wants him to live up to the expectations of a high class member of society. Also since Baba is known to be very well respected, he expects his son to be like him in terms of bravery, physical and social expectations. However, Amir is not able to live up to Baba’s expectations,