Essay about Blackberries in June

“Blackberries in June” by Ron Rash, is about a couple, Matt and Jamie, who have a very pessimistic family, especially when it comes to the young couples accomplishments in life. What makes Jamie and Matt different from the other family members? They have a lot of determination, motivation, discipline, and are willing to make sacrifices necessary to get where they want to be in life. Throughout the story, the author gives a variety of examples of just how different these two characters are in particular. The three qualities that are the most different from the rest of the family are unlike them they are goal oriented, hard working, and make the necessary sacrifices.

The story talks about how scared Matt was when his children were younger and how caring he was of them when there was a possibility of them being in a dangerous situation. His inability to protect Frank from Richard when Frank was now an adult is what pushes Matt into killing Richard. When Richard kills Frank, Matt “felt that all the fears he had borne while [his children] were growing up…had backed up like a huge wave and struck him on the beach and swept him out to sea” (pg. 98, Dubus).

Unfair stereotypes are placed on the Matt family, as Carl Matt is a gentle and loving person. However he is unfairly expected to have criminal tendencies like other members of his family. To overcome this pattern, he has to accept his past and prove to himself that he can change everyone’s misconceptions. The hostile attitude within Wattle Beach is obvious in the quote, “Nugent’s been here since Noah built the ark. Says he knows all the Matts from years ago and your brother looks the same as the lot of them. Acts the same as well.” This quote demonstrates the biased mindset of the community, reflected in Mr. Nugent’s dialogue. It draws attention to the fact that reputations are easily established and hard to reverse. Carl and his brother Harley are unfortunate to have this ugly background, particularly because it influences Harley’s behaviour and makes it hard for Carl to prove that he is different. It is wrong that the family’s reputation should close opportunities for them, especially when they have so much to give. Another problem for Carl is that he has to understand for himself that he is not responsible for the actions of his other family members. “Carl, you don’t owe them anything.” Carl is trying to stand up for Aunt Beryl, even though he knows she doesn’t deserve it. She has abused and neglected the two boys, but Carl is so used to being pushed around and used by people that he feels like it’s his job to carry other people’s burdens for them. To reverse this automatic response, Carl has to remember that he is an individual with his own life, past and actions. Even so, for Carl to overcome his family reputation, he has to work hard and endure criticism to prove that he is a good person. Through his hard labour on the barge and good nature, Skip Duncan realises that he was wrong to judge Carl since he is not at all like the rest of his family, but a hardworking,

While Celia, his care taker, went to work, Matt would sit in his room and read his book to his toys. He would quickly realize how lonely his home was and when the kids of the Alacran House appeared at his window, he was very excited. He broke the window and climbed out, injuring himself. He was willing to be friends with anyone that he trusted all of them until they began treating like an animal when they realized he was a clone. He searched for true friends, but many saw Matt as a lab project. People wanted to get rid of him except Maria, Celia, Tam Lin, and El Patron, so Matt was determined to show others he was more than just a clone. He wanted to be respected and treated like a human being, but to reach his goals he runs into many obstacles that lead to unexpected

Anderson teaches many lessons in her novel but among the most important is taught by showing the many steps Mattie took to reach full independence. She began as a bratty teenager with her head in the clouds, and ended as an independent woman with dreams and aspirations. She discovers her identity and while her situation is out of the ordinary, she proves that aging and revealing your true personality can make the difference between life and death. In the beginning of the novel, Mattie feels that she should be praised whenever she does something for someone else. For example, in the beginning of the book on page 3 it says, “I made a face at the doorway. I had just saved her precious quilt from disaster, but would she appreciate it? Of course not.” This demonstrates that Mattie wants perpetual praise from others, an expectation that children often possess. Mattie is also too young to understand the responsibilities that come with adulthood. This is evident in the novel when Mattie is dreaming of a future with no responsibility. Mattie

fair”, you can tell this is the voice of a child. There is also a

Before dying, Mattie’s mom made Mattie promise to stay with her family and the farm, making her do endless work, leaving no time for writing. Her older brother leaves soon after getting into an intense argument with Pa. She wants to go to New York for college, and write a lot more after receiving news that she has a scholarship at Bernard College. But she can’t afford the train ticket and she can’t leave her younger sisters alone at the farm. So she stays and helps, still looking for money to get there, asking her wealthy Aunt Josie to give her money to get to New York, which Aunt Josie flatly denies.

Matt has always been the protector of the family and he feels that this is a way to protect Ruth from the pain of seeing Strout everyday. He is angry and upset his son’s killer is walking the streets and he expresses this anger as he talks to his friend Willis. Matt says, “I don’t see him. I’m in the store all the time. Ruth sees him. She sees him too much. She was at Sunnyhurst today getting cigarettes and aspirin, and there he was. She can’t even go out for cigarettes and aspirin. It’s killing her”(24). Matt is very devoted to his wife and it is tearing him apart that when she runs errands she keeps seeing Strout in town. Ruth affected the actions of her husband. He is so obsessed with getting justice that it affected is sense of

In conclusion, parents that don’t have a lot of money have to make sacrifices. Parents make difficult decisions because they can’t to keep they can’t afford any other way out, to make their kids happy, and sacrifice their wants for their family’s needs. Although some say that poor families don’t make difficult decisions because people supply them money, but they are wrong because no one is helping the Lacey family. So the next time you find yourself wanting something that you can’t get, then think about the kids whose parents struggle to supply

Janie’s second home helped her learn that love cannot be bought with gifts. Jody was a successful man; he had become Mayor of Eatonville. Even thought Jody bought many gifts for Janie he was no better than Logan at affection and love. Jody was a sexist and disrespected women. He restricted Janie’s freedom out of jealousy, she would only go out for work or chores. The only reason she stayed with him was that she didn’t have many options. “but he is something in my mouth He’s got tuh be else Ah aint got nothing ‘tun live for. Ah’ll lie and say he is. If ah font, life wont be nothing but uh store and uh house”. She had to lie and fake her love for Jody except when Jody had died, she mourned the loss of him and had mix feelings but she cherished her freedom as a widower. After several months she wanted to go back to her birth home but remembering she had no more family to go to, she didn’t know what to do and that transitions to her final

During "Blackberries" we see the boy grow into a young man, going from his first haircut, to being alone, because of his parents' fight. At the beginning we see the boy get his first haircut."'Just an ordinary cut please Mr. Fresnham,' said the child's mother, 'and not too much off. I, my husband, and I, we thought it was time for him to like like a little boy.(47)" The author intentionally decided to make the mother stumble when she talked about her husband. This was to foreshadow what will happen in the future. We know that later in the story the boy's mother and father get into a huge fight, and she stumbles when talking about a decision that she most likely made by herself or her husband disagreed with. Later the boy's mother and father

When Addie has Cash, she realizes that “living [is] terrible and that this [is] the answer to it” (171). Addie has been tricked by words into the role of wife and mother, though she asked for neither (174).

Her father tried persuading her into taking the money by explaining to her that her and her mother would be fine for a few days without the money. “‘Your mother would never know the difference. Unless there’s an earthquake or the Martians invade. I think we can gamble neither of those things will happen before Friday.’” (Page 4) No one knows when an emergency is going to happen, that is why it is an emergency, because otherwise, people could prepare for what was coming and possibly even stop it from ever happening. The most someone can prepare for everything is to have a way to provide for themselves when it

Obsessed with her “unluckiness,” she neglects her children who are constantly exposed to the cold, emptiness of their mother’s heart. She is unable to love anything but the money she cannot attain. Her oldest child, Paul, forced to deal with this bitter treatment the longest, becomes obsessed with money as well, but as an attempt to win the interest of his mother. “Absorbed, taking no heed of other people, he went about with a sort of stealth, seeking inwardly for luck” (Lawrence 483). He rides into a trance on his rocking horse until he is killed by this urgency to find a winner. He wants to be “lucky” so badly. He wants to be the best, something his mother and father believed they could never be. He needs the money so that his house will stop screaming and his mother will love him.

After putting a down payment on the new house, Mama gives the rest of the money to Walter and ultimately gives him the role of the man of the house and to step up to take care of the family. However, Walter goes against Mama and decides to follow through with his dream and invest the money in his potential liquor store business. Although, his plans fall through when Willy, one of the “investors” runs off with the money. Not only Walter, but his whole family lose the chance of a better life and are forced to start back up again. They no longer have the money to put Beneatha through medical school or the money to support themselves. Despite the backfall, the younger family keeps trying. Even though the road ahead may be difficult, the Younger family has each other to support one another and that’s all they need. By picking themselves back up after they have lost everything, it shows that they aren’t ones known to give up at the sight of defeat. They kept trying after they had lost everything because having nothing left to lose means that things can only get better from here on out.