Characterization in Pam Houston’s “A Blizzard Under Blue Sky”

David Ives’ “The Blizzard” does a good job of making people analyze their selves and their everyday life. His drama has the capabilities of making people ask many questions about themselves. Why do I follow a routine? Why do I settle for the same things over and over again? How do I break this cycle? What could I be doing differently with my life? It makes many people realize just how routine oriented they are. It also brings to light the fear and unwillingness to change that some people have.

In Tomson Highway’s novel Kiss of the Fur Queen the opening passage transports the reader to the harsh, cold, and intense struggle of the caribou hunter, Abraham Okimasis during a championship husky sled race. Any race often proves to be physically and mentally exhausting for a person. Highway utilizes a fantastic variety of literary devices to dramatize Okimasis’ physical and emotional experience through his last leg of the race by creating a powerfully intense atmosphere through the effective use of descriptive imagery, passionate diction, repetition of words, and a tone of desperation.

We can see Bryant’s view in “Thanatopsis” as he believed that nature could comfort an individual at the face of death. Similarly, we see Lowell’s view in “The First Snowfall” is that nature can comfort those in despair after a lost of a loved one. While in “The Tide Rises and The Tide Falls” Longfellow expresses his view on nature as he believed it could also comfort those who have fallen. In the period of Romanticism, many author explored the value of nature keying in its comforting effects on any individual. They express nature’s selflessness in its ability to comfort at any given moment. Nature time and time again has proven its self to comfort those in time of despair in various situations even at the face of

One of the more beautiful things about nature is that it is constantly changing and hold so many mysteries that we don’t understand. Each day brings new beauties and scenes that weren’t there yesterday. Having grown up on the east coast might have caused me to have a greater appreciation for all of the seasons, but one of my favorite things about season is being able to witness the changing over form one to the next. How each plant knows that the change is coming and they all magically start to prepare themselves for the new setting they’re going to create. The romantics capture the mysteries of nature in some of the most beautiful poetry. They delve deep into the possible meanings of what nature could be attempting to tell us or simple what they find beautiful about what they see in nature. One piece that stuck with me this quarter was The Snow Storm by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Winter has always been one of my favorite season since I was a little girl and have always anxiously awaited that first snow fall, dreaming of a white Christmas that year. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s The Snow Storm brought back nostalgic memories of snow filled days in my childhood and made me appreciate having actually experienced snow in real life and the beauty

Self-discovery is often accompanied by internal metacognitive dialogue due to its ability to allow individuals to re-evaluate their outlook on life and develop a better understanding of the world. Frost’s ‘Stopping by Woods’, his 1922 lyric poem provides a pre-eminent example of an internal monologue. Use of first person present tense language allows for the reader to relish the quiet splendour of the dark woods and ponder, if only for a moment, the allure of escaping indefinitely from the exhausting world of people and promises. The confronting and emotionally significant discovery of the persona’s morbid attraction to oblivion is conveyed through the furtive tone in the first stanza “He will not see me stopping here/ to watch this wood fill up with snow” suggesting a feeling of delight that may be associated with the deep, dark woods. Potent connotations of the words ‘dark’,

Attending college, beginning a career, starting a family, and ultimately getting trapped in a daily routine are components in life that many see no means of escape. The lure of living off the grid with no responsibilities or connections to adult life are attractive but unattainable to most people. The experiences of Chris McCandless chronicled in Jon Krakauer’s book, Into the Wild, mystify the nation, along with many of the people he meets during his journey. From stories of those who meet McCandless along the way, people were able to put the pieces together and make a few assumptions for the reason he chooses to go into the wild. Individualism, living a minimalistic life, nonconformity, going into nature, and trusting oneself are fundamental Transcendentalist principles that McCandless also exemplifies. Two well-known proponents of the Transcendental movement, writers Henry Thoreau and Ralph Emerson, also have a strong connection to nature, that are also shown in Chris McCandless’s journey. This connection with nature requires someone to go into nature to clear the mind of meaningless things, and to open up their consciousness to what nature has to offer them. In doing so, a bond with their surroundings that has a direct impact on their well being and mental wellness. Chris McCandless, as described by Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, demonstrates becoming one with nature through nature’s impact on his well being and mental health.

Many find nature to be beautiful and captivating, but others take it to the extreme and inhibit themselves to live on its contents. Living off the land can be temperamental while also being critical to one’s survival. Chris McCandless, according to researchers, can easily be comparable to the similar situations of John Waterman, Carl McCunn, and Everett Ruess. All of these men had one goal: To seek out a greater purpose in nature. However, complications and puzzling disappearances brought them to their fate. Jon Krakauer provides examples of men analogous to McCandless’ experience to distinguish how crucial it is when someone decides to make a delirious decision to abandon their former life for a new one.

The outdoors is hidden to many people around the world. All many see is the huge skyscrapers and whitewash walls of the cities. These people don’t tend to be as happy because there isn’t a stress reliever, or a place to get away to. They need this place so that they can have some time to just relax, learn, and develop true happiness. The outdoors is an escape for those who know it and are available to experience it on a regular basis. These places can be the Great Redwood Forests and Lake Almanor in California, to Canada’s vast river and lake systems, to the fields of Kansas, and the mountains of New Zealand. All of these places have one thing in common, the freedom to live. So many city dwellers don’t get to experience these things, which rural people hold to so dearly. The constant hustle and bustle of the city tends to keep people from their happiness. The stress of city life has a way to go “out the window” when you spend time outside with yourself and nature. The ones who can experience the life in the

In the Tomson Highway’s novel, Kiss of the Fur Queen, the opening passage transports the reader to the harsh, cold, and intense struggle of the caribou hunter, Abraham Okimasis during a championship huskie sled race. Any race often proves to be physically and mentally exhausting for a person, especially like Okimasis who feels he has so much to lose if he doesn’t win. Tomson Highway utilizes a variety of literary devices to dramatize Okimasis’ physical and emotional experience through his last leg of the race by creating a powerful, aggressive atmosphere through the effective use of descriptive imagery, passionate diction, repetition of words, and a tone of desperation. To begin with, the author utilizes descriptive vivid imagery to

The riveting journey of Enzo and Denny takes place in Seattle, Washington. The two main characters of Garth Stein’s The Art of Racing in the Rain are a unique dynamic duo made up of a smart yellow Labrador named Enzo, and a racecar driver named Denny. The story of their experiences is told through the analytical eyes and nose of Enzo. I found this approach intriguing and captivating because it differs from the traditional way of story telling. Enzo is different from other dogs because he believes he is a dog with a human soul. “I’ve always felt almost human. I’ve always known that there’s something about me that’s different than other dogs. Sure, I’m … the shell. It’s what’s inside that’s important. The soul. And my soul is very

The introduction to the novel is presented in the form of letters from Robert Walton to his sister on his expedition to the North Pole, and these letters present an idea of the loneliness and heartache that he feels since he believes that he is all by himself without anyone to really talk to. These letters reveal a sad opening tone that will continue to manifest itself throughout the novel.

In the Olympic Peninsula of northwest Washington State, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds. It rains on this inconsequential town more than any other place in the United States of America. It was from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that my mother escaped with me when I was only a few months old. It was in this town that I'd been compelled to spend a month every summer until I was fourteen. That was the year I finally put my foot down; these past three summers, my dad, Charlie, vacationed with me in California for two weeks instead.

Robert Frost’s poem “Desert Places” diminishes an overall sense of emptiness to being nothing compared to what he holds within himself through the use of connotative diction. Throughout the poem, the description of a cold, dark night is meant to represent the intensity of the depression that Frost was feeling. In the final stanza, Frost reveals that “I have it in me so much nearer home, To scare myself with my own desert places”, “it” being the darkness previously mentioned in the poem. The “desert places” introduced in the final line are a representation of the dark emotions Frost was experiencing, and

Frost’s use of alliteration, personification, and imagery definitely conveyed the speaker’s attitude towards the woods. The reader believes Frost wrote about the woods to show how peaceful and calming it is in an isolated place such as the woods. Most people live in crowded neighborhoods or over-populated places, but living in a secluded area decreases the stress of others outside their household. Because of how isolated the woods are, they can worry about themselves compared to worrying and stressing on the outside

As time goes on, society becomes more and more disconnected from nature. With each year that passes new gadgets are put onto the market. Technology has recently released a device known as a virtual reality headset. This is for those who want to see the world without actually taking a step outside. Technology has become the forefront of people’s lives. In his eye opening poem, “Stopping By Woods on a Snowing Evening”, Robert Frost addresses the idea that nature is a blessing that should be appreciated, not ignored, and seen for its true beauty. In order to convey the meaning of his poem, Frost includes elements such as relaxing language, vivid imagery, and an appreciative tone.