Brown Girl In The Ring By Nalo Hopkinson

In the book, Black Storm Comin’ by Diane Lee Wilson, twelve years old, Colton Wescott trek west with his family through dangerous trails that can lead to death. They were on a wagon train heading to California when Colton’s father accidentally shot him and galloped away, leaving Colton wounded and hurt. Colton has to provide for his family while moving west towards California when his father abandons them. In order for him to be able to provide for them, he must join the Pony Express, which delivers mail through rough and dangerous trails through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. There are several symbols in this book that symbolize freedom. One example is the flying hawk in the sky. Another exemplar is the drawer that contains the clothing and memories of the Pony Express rider that is missing. The golden coins also personify the freedom they covet they had.

The book is called Secrets in the Shadows by the author Anne Schraff. Anne grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. She got a bachelor's and master’s degree from California State University. Since college she has been writing many books including one of the most famous written series called the Bluford Series. Her stories are written basically on her background and how she grew up as a child. A middle class neighborhood including African Americans, Mexicans, Arab, and Filipino’s. From reading some of her books her stories are from a real person’s point of view and the struggles they really go through. Some of her lessons in many of her books are topics such as finding love, value education, respect towards others, and the importance of family.

When Tricia Rose speaks to the concept of “hip hop wars” in her writing, she is referring to a broad range of different conflicts that are taking place in all areas of hip hop. In the introduction to her book, she begins to explain her multitude of concerns surrounding certain topics in hip hop. She begins by saying that the most financially successful hip hop has become a way of caricaturing “black gangstas, pimps and hoes” (p. 1). She goes on to explain that homophobia, hypersexism, antisocial behavior, and violent tendancies seem to have become defining characteristics of hip hop as a whole. Essentially, Tricia Rose’s definition of hip hop wars can be summarized as: the pushing and pulling between the forces of good and evil within a movement that has begun to develop undesirable qualities. She offers an array of critical analyzations in support and in opposition of hip hop.

Society shapes our identities and who we are as a person which contributes to how our future turns out but sometimes the paths we are led down are not always the direction we would choose, through the novel's ‘Room’ by Emma Donoghue, ‘The Book Thief’ by Markus Zusak and the films ‘Girl Interrupted’ directed by James Mangold, ‘Sucker Punch’ directed by Zack Snyder, the character’s hardships are shown through the protagonist's lives. The novels both similarly follow children who are exposed to a less than normal world and a harsh version of reality. The Book Thief follows a young girl whose whole life is turned upside down after she loses her mother and brother due to events surrounding WW11 and is then placed in

In a life of poverty, illnesses surround its inhabitant. From poor nutrition to unfit living conditions come afflictions that range from a cough to polio. And as a society we preoccupy ourselves with the short comings of poverty. Creating a revolving door at hospitals treating the poor for their present illnesses, but paying no mind in preventing them for the future. In SAT," Ofri describes her experience as a doctor treating an impoverished unambitious young man, Nemesio Rios. Instead of just following up on Rios' routine check up, Ofri decides to prepare Rios for the SAT so that he could have a chance to go to college. For educational preparation is the preventative medicine for ones future well being because improving ones economical

In the book Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen, Susanna Kaysen was only 18 years old when she agreed to enter a medium security psychiatric facility in Boston, McLean hospital in April 1967, after a failed suicide attempt. She insisted that her over dose on aspirin was not a suicide attempt, but after a 20 minute interview the doctor decided she needed to be admitted to a hospital. During her prolonged two-year stay at the hospital Kaysen describes the issues that most of the patients in her ward have to deal with and how they all differently deal with the amount of time they must stay in the hospital for. While in the hospital Kaysen experienced a case of depersonalization where she tried to pull the skin of her hands to see if there were bones underneath, after a failed escape attempt. Soon, after going to therapy and analysis she was labeled as having recovered from borderline personality disorder. After her release she realizes that McLean Hospital provided patients with more freedom than the outside world, by being free responsibility of parental pressure, free from school and job responsibilities, and being free from the “social norms” that society comes up with. Ultimately, being in captivity gave the patients more freedom then in society and created a safe environment in which patients wanted to stay in.

Throughout the course of the book, A Long Way Home, Saroo Brierley, the author, encounters a series of traumatic experiences that lead to bittersweet moments. Unlike a normal child’s infancy, Saroo was physically and mentally consuming. Through his experience, we are able to get a glimpse of the many struggles and hardships young children live in India daily. His petrifying experiences of living on the streets, Liluah, and Nava Jeevan finally lead to his safe haven of being taken by the Brierley’s.

“What is racism? Racism is a projection of our own fears onto another person. What is sexism? It’s our own vulnerability of our potency and masculinity projected as our need to subjugate from another person…” Gary Ross’s breakdown of the age-defying constructions of race and sexism exemplify how fabricated standards can take a toll on the well-being of individuals. American novelist Toni Morrison is renowned for her publications illustrating how racial stigma can dent a character physically, mentally and emotionally. “Sweetness”, an excerpt from God Help the Child, one of Morrison’s more recent works, follows the narrative of a guilt-stricken mother who allowed society’s predetermined notions of race interfere with her parenting, as her daughter was undeniably black while she and her husband have negro roots but are lighter skinned or ‘high-yellow’. As the story develops, it is obvious that the narrator, Lula Ann’s mother feels some sort of resentment for mistreating her child and holding her back from experiencing a blissful childhood like other youngsters, but is too shameful to admit it. With time, tables turn and Lula Ann, Lula Mae’s daughter is able to regain her self-esteem, moves away, builds a career, and is preparing to settle down with a family of her own and change her miserable fate given to her by her parents. Morrison successfully translates the destructive effects of prioritizing racial constructs through varied elements including: characterization, point of

Girl Interrupted is Susanna Kaysen 's memoir a series of recollections and reflections of her nearly two year stay at a residential psychiatric program at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts. She looks back on it with a sense of surprise. In her memoir she considers how she ended up at McLean, and whether or not she truly belonged there. Each chapter focuses on one aspect of her experience. Founded in the late 19th century, McLean Hospital had been a facility for troubled members of wealthy and aristocratic families. By the late 1960s, however, McLean had fallen into a period neglect. This was a time of great change in the mental health care field. Kaysen grew up in a wealthy and prestigious family. Like most teenagers, she was rebellious at times, confused and unsure about her future. She didn’t want to go to college and slept with her high school English teacher. She witnessed firsthand the widening generation gap that was developing in the late 1960s. Older generations looked at Kaysen’s generation 's world with alarm.

Reading is a crucial part of my academic life, it is a subject that is used multiple times throughout my life. Among the many genres that I have explored, suspense, adventures, and mysteries are my favored because they catch my attention and make me wonder what happens next. Two books that fit these qualities are Alan Gratz’s young adult novel “Code of Honor” and Mildred Taylor’s historical novel “Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry”. In the novel Code of Honor, Kamran Smith has it all; a beautiful girlfriend, he is his school’s football star and his best friend got them free tickets to the Super Bowl but his life takes a sharp turn for the worse. Kamran’s older brother, Darius, who fought in the US Army in Afghanistan, is accused a terrorist. He is seen on video bombing the US Embassy in Turkey. Important themes the novel conveys are brotherhood and loyalty. Kamran displays these themes by believing that Darius is innocent. This book has personally affected my life by strengthening my brotherhood and loyalty. I now have a stronger relationship with my brother and we are more loyal to one another. In the novel, Roll of Thunder, one African American family, the Logans, fight to stay strong in the face of brutal racist attacks, illness, poverty, and betrayal in the deep South of the 1930s. The main character and narrator, Cassie Logan, speculates many events during her childhood which takes place in the time of the Jim Crow era. This book has affected me on a personal level because I

Discrimination based on religion or race has been a worldwide problem throughout history. Through bullying, we readily see discrimination everyday throughout the hallways of Belleville West. Bullying has been a recent problem that many schools are still trying to prevent. The victims are in a tough place, similar to Lakshmi from the book Sold written by Patricia McCormick. Lakshmi bullying was much harder, being forced to work in a whore house, but took the same emotional toll that many victims face. Living life as a sex slave completely changed Lakshmi, and she easily could have given up her will to live; instead she persevered, overcoming her physical and emotional obstacles. With those obstacles, McCormick’s

Activism, culture and value have always had a tremendous influence in society. When it comes to the Appalachian region of the United States, people tend to see our culture and values differently. The individuals of the Appalachian region have been stereotyped for far too long, people forget that West Virginia has played a huge role in building this country. Our coal miners have put their lives in danger time and time again, some losing them, for worker’s rights. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest labor rebellion in the history of the United States. This was the foundation of the movement for eight hour work days and minimum wages. The novel Storming Heaven by Denise Giardina is a fictionalized tale of the conflict that took place in these coal fields of West Virginia. The novel brings to light the stereotypes, race and religion of the Appalachian people.

Ghost Singer by Anna Lee Walters is a tale of the historical injustices suffered by Indigenous peoples and the modern consequences of those injustices. Although it is clear that the spirit people in the novel serve as the most outwardly fearsome people in the novel, it is important to take into account the overall systemic injustices that the characters of Native American heritage suffer under throughout the histories presented in the novel. Walters addresses fearsomeness and sympathetic characters through the use of dangerous characters and situations presented directly and indirectly to the characters. The fearsomeness of the characters and the sympathy felt for the characters is dependent upon the perspectives of the readers since these fearsome figures are “a cultural construct and a projection” of that cultures fears (Cohen 1). The fearsome figures in the novels are presented to initially be the spirits haunting the artifacts, but upon closer examination the larger more entrenched issue of outdated models of thought in relation to Indigenous peoples appear to be the most important fearsome figure. The protagonist of the novel is dependent upon the views taken, and the fearsome figures that the historians, such as David Evans, and characters are attempting aid the spirits, such as George Daylight. Walters addresses the fearsome nature of a system dependent on examining and judging indigenous societies based on white values, which is problematic since both cultures do not

1. One of the main characters in the book Black and Blue is a woman named Frannie Benedetto. Some of the roles that Frannie had were being a wife, a mother, a Catholic, and a nurse. Her role as a wife was very challenging, due to the fact that she was in an abusive relationship and was married to a New York City Police Officer. Frannie had been married to her husband Bobby Benedetto for almost twenty years. Her entire relationship with her husband has been traumatizing. Numerous times Frannie had been physically assault, raped, and belittled. Bobby physically assaulted Frannie when she was nineteen years old for the first time in their relationship. Frannie recalls many times that Bobby came home drunk and would rape her. Bobby belittled his wife by accusing her of sleeping with the doctors she worked with and by making her feel like she had deserved to get beaten up by him. One of the major reasons that Frannie stayed in the relationship with Bobby was because of their son.

Audre Lorde once said, “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different than my own.” These “shackles” Lorde referred to are the almost inescapable gender constructs seen across society. The injustice women face affects all layers of their lives and freedom. In her novel, Sandra Cisneros, poignantly depicts the oppression women face by demonstrating their limited future opportunities, forced dependency on men, and aggressive sexualization from a young age.