Ashes Short Story Theme

A decision is effective no matter what it may be. And Ashleigh, a girl from the short story “Ashes”, has to make a difficult decision. Ashleigh’s parents are divorced, but her father is the more supportive parent, her mother has a more negative attitude. “You’re one in a million.”-Page 2, Her father would tell her. “They’ll laugh at your dreams, even your mother-and she's a saint to have put up with me all those years-even she will discourage you from being all you can be. I hate to speak against her, but she’s not a dreamer, Ashes.”- Page 2, Her father said, explaining how Ashleigh’s mom is. And what he said is true. -“Her name is Ashleigh!” Mom shouted. “A name you insisted on. So why do you call her Ashes?” “That's

Ashleigh took the money since she loves her dad. Ashleigh loves how her dad says you're one in a million. “I knew I wasn't a one-in-a-million-girl,no matter how often Dad told me I was.I still loved hearing him say it”(Pfeffer, 2). Ashes loves how her dad makes her feel special whenever she sees him. In the story “Ashes” it says on the first page”And I realized he still called me Ashes, were Mom couldn’t hear him to be annoyed. And that made me feel special all over again”(Pfeffer). Ashes loves her dad since he is fun to be with.”I wouldn't have any other dad.” I told him.”My friends fathers, they just tell my friends to study more. They never tell them they have flair or style”(Pfeffer,2). Ashleigh stole the money due to the fact that she loved her dad and how he is fun

When Lori and Jeanette are growing older, they decide they want to move to New York City to start a new life, away from their parents. Lori and Jeanette get jobs and begin to earn money. They hide their earnings from their parents in a piggy bank they named Oz. One day Jeanette tries to find Oz to put her paycheck in. Instead she says to Lori “Someone has slashed him apart with a knife and stole all the money” (Walls 228). The kids knew right away who had stolen it. It was Dad. When Lori confronted Dad with the news about Oz, he started playing dumb, acting like he had not idea what was going on. But in fact he did steal the money. This action shows that Dad is very selfish and only cares about himself.

In the short story called, “Ashes” by Susan Beth Pfeffer, the protagonist is dealing with the complicated relationship between her divorced parents. Ashleigh, the main character, is questioned by her dad if she can borrow her mom's money for his own problems. Ashes, short for Ashleigh, like the compliments that she keeps receiving from her dad. Ashes complex relationship with her parents makes her choose between her mom or her dad. One lesson this story suggests is that no matter how much you love someone, you have to let them handle things on their own.

Whether you agree with Sigmund Freud, Alfred Adler, or Erik Erickson, theoretical approaches to human nature all agree that early childhood years play a major part of our conscious and unconscious decisions we make. For instance, even though both Wes Moore’s were brought up without a father in their home, the reality is that these absences meant something different to each of them. For Wes 1 his father died an unnecessary death due to lack of training of emergency personnel. He remembered his dad as being compassionate, loving, and kind. Wes 1 always knew that if given the choice, his father would have stood by him throughout his life. Wes 2, however, is left with negative fatherly feelings. In the three times they were together, his own father acted as though he didn’t recognize him. What’s worse is that Wes 2 knew that his dad didn’t want to know him, he chose to leave. That left not only a hole where there should have been a very important role model, it left rejection in its place. When Wes 1 was visiting Wes 2 in the jail and asked about the impact his father had on his life, the second Wes said, “Your father wasn’t there because he couldn’t be, my father wasn’t there because he chose not to be. We’re going to mourn their absence in different ways” (Moore page 3). Later in the chapter Wes 1 gets emotional thinking about how he misses his father. He was left,

Jeanette’s father is a man that is extremely smart in science and math, and an amazing storyteller, however he drinks/smokes way too much and can be very abusive. Her mother is a religious and tough woman, who could live with basically any situation and will go through with something until it is done. Jeanette’s tone to her parents, however, is not of happiness, but instead sadness, because of the father’s behaviors, and her mother’s stubbornness to stay with him. The tone towards their actions from Jeanette is dismay, because for almost all of their actions, both her mother and father don’t think about the consequences before they

Ashleigh knows stealing is wrong and that she shouldn’t do it but the rules might change when it comes to her dad. The short story “Ashes” by Susan Beth Pfeffer is a story about a set of divorced parents and their child Ashleigh. Ashleighs parents seem to come from two entirely different worlds, her father a dreamer her mother very practical. However being a dreamer may seem like a good thing it just might have swept her dad off his feet. When her father runs out of money from gambling Ashleigh must choose to either steal money from her mother or let her father be without any money. Ashleigh stole the money from her mother because she hears her father’s voice in the back of her mind reminding her she is one in a million, her dad has led her to believe that he will return all of the money she took from her mother by the end of the week and that her mother won’t even notice, and the dark grey ashes color sky at the end of the story symbolizes that she is going to steal the

In the story, it is also shown that the dad is always teaching Ashes to do the right thing. As shown by “ ‘I saw a woman

This opposition adds tension to the story. The story informs, “Mom was always bugging me to make friends, which I didn’t see the point of, considering we moved every few months. And we moved for all sorts of reasons: closer to the university for her…(paragraph thirty one)” This shows how the mom cared about her finishing her studies and not how her daughter felt. A few of the reasons why they moved was for the mom and not caring about the girl’s thoughts. That relates to the other character in Confetti Girl. Another idea the author illustrates is, “Opportunity? For me? Or for you? (paragraph thirty four)” This statement depicts that the mom cares most about her studies and is trying to make it seem like it is an opportunity for the protagonist.the girl realizes this as she argues that it is only is the mother’s chance to become successful. The mom did not put her child before her which is generally what parents do. The final quote that the author uses to show selfishness in the parent is, “‘I’ve brought your suitcase.’ She stood outside my door for what seemed like forever. I pictured her on the other side, arms crossed, head down. (paragraph forty four)” This shows the mom’s dedication to get her daughter out of her way and not thinking about her feelings. The mom only has her eyes set on finishing her university. The suitcase she had at the

Pat was very frustrated because she wanted to purchase a home but lacked the funds or credit to do so even though Pat was expecting shortly to receive a one-half million dollar final installment payment for some land she sold several years earlier. Dan knew that Pat was very interested in purchasing a home and approached Pat with a proposal to assist Pat in buying a home. Dan told Pat that he would help Pat with the financing. After finding the home she wanted to buy for $250,000, Dan and Pat orally agreed that Dan would purchase the home and "when you come up with the money, I (Dan) will sell it to you (Pat) for $250,000 plus a fair commission to be determined."

Another characteristic the author exhibits is forgiveness. The struggles her parents cause her display this trait. For instance, Ma constantly neglects Murray as a child. Drugs and alcohol consume the parent’s lives, so Murray and her older sister do not receive the proper care they need. Also, Ma frequently spent her daughter’s money or sold their items without their consent. The readers are astonished when the author says many times that she forgives Ma and just moves on. An important scene in the story occurs when Murray looks back on her childhood and forgives her mom for all of her wrongs, and concludes her mom did the best that she could do. Many people would resent their parents after all the hardships they caused, and so does the author at first. But she finds it in her heart to forgive which shows her kindness and really displays how mature of a person she is.

Ashleigh is unsure of how smoothly her dad’s plan will run. After he introduces the idea to her, she asks many questions to reassure herself that everything will be fine and there will be no mistakes. “‘The money’s still in the teapot,’ I said, ‘What do you want to do, Dad?’ I asked, ‘Come into the apartment with me and take the money?’... ‘You’ll be able to pay her back by Friday?’... ‘What if mom finds out?’” (Pfeffer pg 4) Ashleigh is questioning how well this plan is going to turn out and is trying tell herself that all of the ‘what-ifs’ are handled. She is living in a one income household with the supplier being her mother. Ashleigh knows that the money in the teapot is what her mom has saved to help them incase there is ever an emergency. She

The differences in the parents are also demonstrated in this passage from something that is not directly said. As the mother yells at the father, it is obvious that they do not always get along, but this argument is only shown as being one-sided. The narrator does not explain how the father reacts to his wife’s harsh words and whether he yells back or not. By not explaining this information, the reader must infer what the father would do based on his previous actions. In years past, the father has given up his own opinions and hopes to support his family, which is likely what happened in this case. This gives a stark contrast between the mother and the father since in an argument, the mother yells and yells while the father does nothing at all. MacLeod chose to make the author infer the plot at a number of times throughout the story; the most significant of these being the father’s death. The use of leaving information out creates a very powerful message, adding to the father’s character. Just as the father often doesn’t communicate his opinions and feelings, the story doesn’t always include his point of view. This creates a character who keeps to themselves and is very different in contrast to the mother who likes things a certain

Yet, she is filled with the sense of being a part of something important.  "It seemed to me that work . . . done out of doors, and in my father's service, was ritualistically important" (113).  She is contributing to the family income in her own way when each year she rakes the grass, carries water for the foxes, or cleans the watering dishes.  Her father may be stern, but he is proud of his tom-boy.  He remarks to a passing salesman, "Like to have you meet my new hired man." This praise from her father fills her with delight, "I turned away and raked furiously, red in the face with pleasure" (112).  Children need praise from their parents like they need food.

Eveline's father is the second most important character in the story, yet Joyce chooses not to reveal his name. That is because he is only a father in a biological sense, falling short at every other fatherly duty. Mr.Hill is a failed provider who takes his offspring’s earnings only to hand it back, allowing him to feel like a “man of the house”. He is abusive and flaunts his dominance by “threaten[ing]” (Joyce 73) Eveline well into her adulthood. The threats seem unprovoked and random, indicating father's attempts to instill fear rather than curb or abolish an offending behavior. Compensating for his failures, the father uses aggression and control to get what he wants. “Her father was becoming old lately, she noticed; he would miss her” (Joyce 75), the narrator draws our attention to the aging of the father and impending helplessness following it. Though Joyce does not clarify how the father will miss Eveline, judging by his past conducts, it is safe to assume that he would miss Eveline’s help around the house and money the most. Still, as she contemplates leaving, Eveline sees good in him and “tries to balance her father's increasing capacity for violence by remembering three random acts of kindness”(Trudell) that seemingly undue all the wrong he has done in the past. No matter