Character Analysis: Les Stroud

Randy Pausch. Who is he? What does he stand for? The day he gave the last lecture... His last lecture he only had months to live. He packed a lot of lessons into his lecture. The claims he gave that stood out were to be optimistic, to be determined, and to take risks.

Jimmy knows too well the agonies of abandonment. First, when his mother, Cecilia, ran away with Richard to pursue a better lifestyle. Then, due to his father’s, Damacio Baca, alcoholisms and violent behavior; he also had to leave Jimmy behind. In spite of the drawbacks from abandonment to being a maximum security prisoner in Arizona State Prison, Jimmy preserver’s the darkness of prison by overcoming his illiteracy. However Cecilia and Damacio is not as fortunate as their child; Cecilia is shot by Richard after confronting him for a divorce and Damacio chokes to death after he is released from the detox center(Baca 263). Therefore the most significant event in this section of the memoir, A Place to Stand by Jimmy Santiago Baca is the death of Jimmy’s parents.

If had to choose a Character from the book Schooled By Gordon Korman to be my best friend it would have to Capricorn Anderson.I would pick Capricorn Anderson (known as Cap) because he is very nice and he is not like the usual boys at the school mean,jockey,and reckless.Capricorn is nice,friendly,and generous.Just like when Capricorn found a dead bird in his locker and in the middle of school he host a ceremony for the dead bird that some kids at his school put in his locker.Also Cap really loves his family and the foster home he had to go live in.Sophie is the daughter of the foster mom and her dad left her when she was a little girl.Every year she waits for him to show up at her door on her birthday.Well this year Cap was living there when

Ottawa- Dan Stoddard was doing what he does every day when he came across a woman who seemed to be in danger. He asked her what was wrong and she confided in him that she was being abused physically and emotionally and that she needed a phone. Stoddard could have very well ignored this women but he the just thing and called transit security. In the end, the police came and were able to take the woman to a safer place.

A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines takes place in 1940’s, a time period of segregation. This was a time when blacks were often at fault for a crime they did not commit, such as what transpired in this book. A man named Jefferson was convicted of a crime he did not commit and was insulted during court. Now his family, friends, and even Jefferson himself were trying to prove the white community wrong about their beliefs that a black man is unequal and lacks dignity against Jefferson and the black community. Not only is Jefferson going through a period of suffering on death row, but others, like Grant Wiggins and Miss Emma, are also facing their struggles and they will try to prove others wrong and redeem themselves through knowledge,

“Everyone in society should be a role model, not only for their own self-respect, but for respect from others.” ~ Barry Bonds. In this world bad situations occur frequently and it takes a good strong person to handle them in a mature way. Dealing with them this way not only shows that the person has self-control, but also makes them a good role model for people to look up to. In the book The Chosen, Chaim Potok uses Mr. Galanter to express his opinions of a good role model. Acting as a baseball coach and gym teacher, young boys look to him for guidance and motivation every day. Having this kind of position causes stress at times, and requires him to stay calm and level headed. Throughout this book, Mr. Galanter

"...What impact did your father not being there have on your childhood?"(The "Other" Wes Moore -Part I: Fathers and Angels - pg. 4) This question is what connected me to the novel. The "author" Wes began the story of his and the "other " Wes's memories of their fathers. This explains how and why they grew up fatherless. Wes " the author" recalls only have two memories of his father one was when his father had a talk with him after he punched his sister Nikki and the other one was the day his father passed away. The "author" Wes father didn't choose to leave, unlike the "other Wes's father, which he never met until years later. I related to this chapter a lot, I too was raised by a single mother but my story is just a tad different. My family

Twyla and Roberta are two very different people, but bond in very similar ways. They become friends very suddenly, not because of how old they are, but because both have a mother. Twyla's mom is a dancer, and Roberta's mother is too sick to raise her. They later meet in their twenties in a not so settling way. Twyla had been bussing tables while Roberta had been living large about to meet Jimi Hendrix. Twyla was embarrassed at her long past friend and was ashamed to show herself. Five years later they meet at a grocery store where they both have kids and are settled down. They decided to go vet coffee where it starts off both are different races so they take opposite sides of the debate.  Roberta accuses Twyla of abusing one of the girls at the orphanage. Twyla only remembers sitting and watching the girl get abused by other girls, and Roberta's memories start to come back to her. This holds their relationship together for the next five years when

“The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure” (57). Two men that lived for their passion for adventure was Chris McCandless and Jay Moriarity. Chris McCandless was a young man who hitched hike to Alaska to explore and survive in the wilderness. Jay Moriarity was a young surfer who was determined to ride Mavericks, the largest waves. Chris's story was heard by a man named Jon Krakauer and Chris's story was developed and published into a novel for the world to hear, which got controversial feedback. Although both seem to come from very different lifestyles and had different pursuits for adventure, both share many qualities such as home life, preparation for goals, and the willingness to let people be there for them.

A Lesson Before Dying A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines tells the story of a black man, Jefferson, with unequal rights, being accused of killing a white man. Although, the accusation was far from being right, he is a black man, and blacks were treated unfairly. Throughout the journey of the trial, Jefferson and Grant became very close, and they both learned a lot from each other and the trial. Grant learns the lesson of being a man, because he develops feelings, and becomes humble.

Natalie Sterling, a seventeen year old senior at Ross Academy had just won class president and beat her opponent Mike Domski. Mike was the kind of guy that Natalie and her best friend Autumn tried to stay away from. The girls at Ross Academy were known as demeaning and “boy crazy.” One day, during the pep rally a bunch of freshman dressed in trampy clothing and started to dance inappropriately. The leader’s name was Spencer a girl Natalie used to babysit for. The flirty freshman called themselves “Prostitutes” or Ross Academy prostitutes. Not only was Natalie embarrassed and angry by Spencers action but, she was disappointed. When the principal and Ms. Bee the student council head were talking to the girls punishments Natalie barged in. Natalie explained how she wanted to have a lock-in for all the girls in trouble and any others from school who wanted to come, about feminism and women's rights. Ms. Bee and Natalie agreed that it would be a good idea for

Spending time in jail can really change a man. In the novel A Lesson Before Dying by award-winning author Ernest J Gaines, the story is about a young man with a challenge of a lifetime. Grant one of the main characters is given a task of changing a man. The novel takes place in Bayonne Louisiana, where the Civil Rights Act has not yet taken place. Segregation was still an issue at this time, and many of the characters throughout the novel face segregation head-on.

Dunstan Ramsey comes of age as he moves from childhood into his teen years. At the age of sixteen, the small landscape of Deptford becomes too much for Dunstan to handle so he decides to drop out of high school and join the Army. It is evident that Dunstan needs a change in his life and something to get his mind of the impact that Mrs. Dempster had on Dunstan childhood. Leading up to leaving for the War Dunstan never really saw much of Mrs. Dempster because every time he saw her he could not hold back his guilt and remorse, which continues to trouble him in his teen years. Like many other young men, Dunstan is thrown into the chaos of the war, converted by the front lines and beginner to rifles and survive. Thus, this affects him in many ways,

One of my challenges is sharing a room with my sister and her name is Marcie Fuentest was a challenge because when it was bedtime and I was trying to go to bed and Marcie would talk to me for hours and hours.I fix it by “telling her if she dose’t be quite then” I will tell my mom and dad and then she was

Rivalry can be playful and good natured, but it isn’t always this way. Rivalry and competition can help individuals grow as a person, and help them to develop into mature adults. Competition can be a motivator to do better. It can also lead to vast destruction, and severed friendships. Rivalry in this case is unhealthy, the overall outcome of the story proves this. Finny and Gene didn’t really have a ‘healthy’ rivalry or competition. Their relationship wasn’t healthy, and it eventually leads to the death of Finny. In “A Separate Piece” by John Knowles the rivalry between two friends turns unhealthy very quickly. The competition and rivalry between the two friends is destructive, it destroys their friendship,