Forced to Grow Up
Even after having a kid, some people still have the feel of childhood and do not get the concept of being adult, in some cases people are forced to grow up, but do they really ever grow up? In the story, the first part last by Angela Johnson puts Bobby and Nia into an adult situation when they are just in high school, still living childhood lives. Throughout their experience, there is the same concept, coming of age. Bobby does come of age by considering himself a man or an adult, by taking the responsibility of a child on his own and by stopping the activities or actions he did as a child.
From the beginning of the story, Bobby has wondered whether or not he was a man. Bobby mentions a character named 'Just Frank'.
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Too late, you're out of time. Be a grown-up" (Johnson 14). He had temptations to do childish activities or actions while he was raising Feather or helping Nia during her pregnancy, but he stopped. When he had Feather he was going to play basketball, but in his mind, Feather stopped him, "I lay my basketball down and it rolled out the door into the hall toward Mary's room" (Johnson 23). Bobby picked Feather over his childhood and he keeps taking care of her when he does not want to or he is exhausted, "Then I want to beg her for a note like I used to when I didn't want to do something and a sore knee or fever could get me out of it" (Johnson 25). When Nia was still pregnant and she had a doctor appointment for the baby while Bobby was in school he left even though he wanted to see the result of his practical joke with J.L. and K-Boy, "J.L. runs to the door to make sure what we hear out in the hall isn't going to get us kicked out of school for three days" (Johnson 55). He wanted to see the reaction of his teacher when he saw what him and his friends had done, but he went to Nia's doctor appointment
Bobby waits for his wife, Chevy to come home, but once she does she would be busy working on the textbooks which she would bring in to study for her classes the next day. His daughter, Lynn would also be busy studying; so the narrator would have to sleep alone. His job is to pour concrete at a construction but since he is aging, the bosses would soon have to get rid of him so a younger person can do the work even though he does a good job. Chevy wanted to go back to school so that she can better herself so that she can make something of herself. They were in a relationship for as long a high school but times have changed from them. Even with his daughter, getting older, Bobby still wants to go back to those days where they would walk together
“But I figure if the world were really right, humans would live life backward and do the first part last. They’d be all knowing in the beginning and innocent in the end” (Johnson 4). Angela Johnson is the author of The First Part Last. Throughout the novel, Johnson shows us how Bobby goes through struggles in life and how he changes. Bobby just turned 16, he lives in New York City, and he get his girlfriend, Nia, pregnant. His parents are Mary and Frank. Feather is Bobby and Nia’s daughter who looks just like Nia. Bobby takes on the responsibility of caring for and nurturing Feather on his own. He wants to come of age and become a man based on evidence from the novel and symbols that are mentioned in it. The symbols to support this are, the basketball, balloon, arcade, and Just Frank. These symbols not only support that Bobby wanted to come of age and become a man, but he did.
Bobby, a young troubled man, Was raised by his father, a professional con artist after the death of his mother. From a very young age Bobby was exposed to the criminal acts of his father and was taught to lead the same path. When he turns seventeen years old, Bobby meets and falls in love with a girl called Gwen. She gives him a sense of identity and belonging he missed his entire life. During the same time he learns
If society was asked what defines “coming of age,” what would it say? Some would say people come of age when they act more mature, think grown up thoughts, or do certain actions. This quote by someone unknown helps form an explanation of what coming of age is: “Maturity doesn’t mean age; it means sensitivity, manners, and how you react.” In the literature piece “The First Part Last,” the author Angela Johnson writes about two teenagers, Bobby and Nia, who struggle with the difficulties of teen pregnancy. Throughout the book, they both face many hardships that put their relationship, patience, and responsibility to the test. With the help of a red balloon, a basketball, and family pictures in a doctor’s office, Bobby comes of age after paying attention to these symbols and signs throughout the novel.
In this novel will bobby become a man and or come of age? Bobby will become a man due to how he starts to act with feather like how instead of sending her into adoption he kept her as his baby . Also in the novel we see how bobby comes of adve as in the quote " you wanna go on a walk bobby,sure i grab feather get her ready and mary takes her from me" and she sees that he is now mature and she takes feather so paul and bobby can go on a walk. Finally another example of bobby growing up and or being a man is that he moved to heaven and or ohio to raise his baby in a better place. So these are some examples to show how bobby has become of age and this clearly shows that he is a man.
"The First Part Last" by Angela Johnson did. He had a baby daughter at age 16 and had to learnhow to grow up to take care of his daughter by coming of age. In this essay i'm going to tell youthree reasons how Bobby has come of age by using quotes and symbols from the book "TheFirst Part Last"""The first reason to how Bobby has come of age is he learning to grow up by not going tothe arcade and partying when ever he wants. Johnson said on page 23, "I lay my basketballdown and it rolled out the door into the hall and towards Mary's room". This quote shows he islearning to let go of things he used to do as a kid and learning now to grow up and be maturebecause he has his own kid to take care of. The basketball rolling away symbolizes his childhoodleaving
Also symbolising manhood was "Just Frank," who always asked Bobby if he was being a man. Bobby never actually saw "Just Frank" as a man until he died trying to save the girl. Not only this, but Bobby actually saw "Just Frank" at the end of the book when Nia went comatose and Bobby ripped up the adoption papers, showing that he was greatly influenced by "Just Frank."
" what you thinking about Bobby?"Bobby has always been wondering what Heaven, Ohio would be like.He feels like it would be a better lifestyle not just for him but also Feather. Bobby is the main character in the First Part Last, this novel is a more of a growing up novel and to help kids learn what not to do.The author Angela Johnson used symbols to describe how Bobby is becoming mature.
The evidence showing that Bobby didn’t come of age by the end of the novel are the tears, the food, and the basketball. The tears show that he isn’t ready to be an adult, the food comforts him and helps him forget about the situation he is dealing with, and the basketball shows that he is becoming an adult. Maybe he has yet to fret about the future. “When we are children, we seldom think of the future. The innocence leaves us free to enjoy ourselves as few adults can. The day we fret about the future is the day we leave our childhood behind” - Patrick
Secondly, the characters in the novel, Bobby and Dr. Barney, teach that it is vital to hold on to hope because everyone has a future, regardless of the present and their past. Bobby shows things can change for the better with his discovery of his true home. Bobby announces at Six North that “This kid literally gave me the shirt off his back, the blue one right here and he didn’t know me from the Adam, and there ain’t no questions, without him, I wouldn’t have gotten this home. This new home” (Vizzini 317). Bobby lived in his car last year until a tow truck took away everything he had. Consequently, he loses hope and wants to kill himself. At Six North, Craig helps Bobby with a job interview. Through Craig’s act of kindness, Bobby learns that his true home is Six North where he is and welcomed and appreciated for who he is. Furthermore, Dr. Barney tells Craig about his personal experience with depression. He eventually reveals to Craig the secret to depression:
Bobby came of age. Throughout the book we start to learn more about him as an individual and his back story. Bobby started out immature, and a little angered. Him and Nia conceded which gave them the struggle of to adopt or not to adopt. Over time we learn Nia in present day is not in the picture, and in the past is with check ups, and birth. Bobby had to mature for Feather, which is why he came of age. He started to choose Feather over his childhood, causing him to grow up.
What does it mean to grow up? Does it mean washing your car, paying your bills, getting a job? Does it mean getting married, having kids, and sprouting gray hair? Is it necessary? Is everyone capable of it? Is it going to be hard and will it be worth the effort? All of these questions are probably what made Peter Pan decide to never leave Neverland. Growing up means a lot of different things to many different people. If we look at the words “growing up”, we simply think of the physical aspect of ageing, growing tall and wide. But for most people, growing up means something deeper involving a change in the approach that an individual has to life and the actions that are taken with it. In this essay, we will look at why people have
Feather's birth really had an impact on Bobby. It made him have to grow-up. Taking care of a baby involves a lot of responsibility. In the book, Angela Johnson even included having a list of items Bobby needed for Feather: (I need to find the quote). Bobby always paid the most attention to Feather. Feather made Bobby have to be forced to grow-up. Also, he took very great care of her.
The child does not just grow up but they also understand that at a given period they are expected to abandon their childish
When asked the question “When do you become an adult?” many people would give an age but in reality the answer isn’t that easy. To me adulthood is when you are able and willing to accept responsibility. If you cannot or will not be responsible, you have no right calling yourself an adult. What does make you a grown-up? Is it moving out of the house? Hitting a certain age? Having a relationship? Getting a job?” How is it that we can do. those things, that we consider to be “adult”, but we still feel like kids? Or that we feel like grown-ups, we're certainly old enough, but we haven't. seemed to have accomplished any of those things “grown-ups” have done? People never seem to quite understand the meaning of being an adult.” It has always seemed to me that age is irrelevant. You can be 12 and understand things better than a 30-year-old or you can be 40, have two PhD’s and still wonder if pigeons are migratory birds”.” Many people my age think that getting out of