Forever by Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero

In the short story, “It’s That It Hurts” by Tomas Rivera, a boy is expelled from his new school and goes to the cemetery on his way home. The “it” that hurts is the boy’s pride. To begin with, the boy thinks he lost his chance to be educated. He takes pride in his education because his parents are proud that their boy is going to school. The father especially always nudges his son (the boy) to tell his godfather what he wants to be. He lost his education by fighting and being kick out of school, which leads to another key point. The boy is practically being embarrassed at his new school. First the nurses tells him to stripped down and put this valsaline oil on his head. Then they send him to his classroom; where they seated him we everyone

Not everyone is a criminal just because they have a criminal past. People can change through time and experience. Individuals are capable to recognize this through pieces of writing which shows the characters from the beginning through the end. In We Were Here written by Matt de La Pena in 2009, there were three main characters which are Miguel, Mong, and Rondell. Miguel committed a horrible crime and got sent to a group home for a year and was obligated to write in his journal, so the judge can understand his way of his thinking. Miguel meets Rondell and Mong at the group home. Then Mong decides to come up with a plan to escape the group home, run off to Mexico to be free with Miguel and Rondell. The three boys did not know each other that well, they were basically strangers who eventually became best friends threw their journey of escaping to Mexico. In We Were Here shows a major theme which a theme is the moral of the story. Within that journey ,Matt de La Pena, the author of We Were Here shows symbolism which created the theme even though you might have a bad past everyone has the chance to change.

Broken shards in Nemecia’s soul glued together with hope that she may be the light in the world her family dreams for her to be. Throughout Nemecia life her family desperately tries to heal her by helping her forget her broken past. In the story, Nemecia by Kirstin Valdez Quade the theme broken piece may never be truly fixed but hope always glimmers through is revealed by using metaphors throughout the story.

Prior to being assigned the reading of the memoir “Always Running”, by Luis Rodriguez, I had never given much thought on juveniles involved in gang life. Rodriguez achieved success as an award-winning poet; sure the streets would no longer haunt him - until his own son joined a gang. Rodriguez fought for his child by telling his own story in the vivid memoir, “Always Running.” “Always Running” is the compilation of events Luis experienced during his youth in San Gabriel. The theme of the book is to always strive for the best things in life and to always take a stand for what you believe. Lured by the seemingly invincible gang culture of East L.A., he witnessed countless shootings and beatings, as well as senseless acts of street crime against his friends and family members. As a Latino in a poor neighborhood, Luis struggled through criticism, stereotypes, and mistreatment. With the help of his mentor, Chente, Luis saw a way out through education and the power of word to successfully break free from years of violence and desperation.

Mrs. Higgins’s drawing room. She is at her writing-table as before. The parlor-maid comes in.

Clownpants Molina is a story presented in third person narrative. The third person is actually the flashback of the narrator in which “he” refers to himself as “you”. On the surface it appears to be a sad story of a young boy trying to fit in and losing his way. Digging deeper, we are challenged with struggles of culture, personal identity and the consequences of choices.

Jimmy Cross, a college student, is carrying a great burden being the lieutenant of his group of soldiers. A chapter from The Things They Carried titled “In the Field” states, “Jimmy Cross did not want the responsibility of leading these men. He had never wanted it … he had signed up for the Reserve Officer Training Corps … because it seemed preferable to letting the draft take him” (160). The use of the word “never” to describe Cross’s want for being a lieutenant displays that at no point in his life had he ever desired to lead a band of men in the war. Even though Cross in no way wanted to direct this group of men, it seemed like a better option than being drafted in the war. To him, being drafted in the war sounded even less desirable than

(Coelho, 119) In this quote, a metaphor is shown because it is comparing Fatima to precious treasure without using the words “like” or “as”. This quote is saying that Santiago loves Fatima more than anything else he

Interior of living room where foreground is pretty vacant but background has a study and a desk with a vase with flowers in it. There are three ladies standing: Two nurses on either side of the wife. wife asks maid on left something (1 second) then turns back

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.

. . one can’t help but wonder what form the author/protagonist’s life will take in the aftermath of his exorcism” (261). In this quote, Gonzales-Berry asserts that Miguel Chico’s has been exonerated of his repression through the art of writing. As stated by Marquez, serving as an inner historian has provided Miguel Chico a different perspective on life. Moreover, Gonzales-Berry’s curiosity is insightful because now that Miguel Chico has released his repression, he can now enjoy what he was encouraged to repress—his body. Lastly, in the article, “Sinners Among Angels, or Family History and the Ethnic Narrator in Arturo Islas’s The Rain God” written by David Rice, adheres to the idea of repression as he writes, “Through his vision of Felix’s return, Miguel Chico realizes that the family can only be saved if it is reconnected to the past which it represses and denies” (184). In this quote, Rice claims that the Angel family suffers from repression. His viewpoint is coming from the inner historian—Miguel Chico—as Marquez refers in his article. He refers to the salvation of the Angel family because the burden of their past is preventing the family from living their lives, hence not function as a family. In order to proceed, Rice suggests that the Angel family must acknowledge the past and learn to accept it.

In his book “Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free,” Hector Tobar recounts the story of 33 miners who spent 69 days trapped more than 2000 feet underground in the Chile’s San Jose mines following the collapse of the mine in 2010. According to Tobar (2015), the disaster began on a day shift around noon when miners working deep inside the mountain excavating minerals started feeling vibrations. A sudden massive explosion then followed and the passageways of the mines filled with dust clouds. Upon settling of the dust, the men discovered that the source of the explosion was a single stone that had broken off from the rest of the mountain and caused a chain reaction leading to

The novel Never Let Me Go, written by Kazuo Ishiguro, is set in a capitalistic, dystopian society in which scientific advancements have greatly relieved society of their medical concerns, all the while, severely damaged their integrity. The exploitation of human clones for the sole purpose of implementing a sufficient number of organs for society has resulted in a change in their ethics, as well as their ego. In Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel Never Let Me Go, Ishiguro uses characters to illuminate corruption in society, illustrating that greed in the pursuit of progress can negatively alter the mindset of society. By living in a capitalistic environment, one will develop a fatalist mentality in an attempt to come to terms with society and their

Sunlight beams through arched windows encased in stained glass; reflecting rays of red, blue, green, and yellow throughout the entryway. Below our feet, a wood floor echoes as we walk, and silences with a step onto the red carpet. Dark mahogany pews stand at attention to our left and right. Directly above on the back wall, a stained glass image of a woman standing over an infant in a cradle, sunlight illuminating her delicate features, she gazes down at the child. Her thin angelic lips slightly open, her hands clasped together in a prayer-like stance. A blue veil cascades down her shoulders interlocking with her robe below. To the right of the infant, a table displays a large white book with gold-tipped pages. On the cover, prominent gold

The main character that the book is based on is Drew Robinson. Drew, also known as True, is a sophomore in high school in Queens, NY and loves the game of basketball. He is arguably the best high school basketball player in the area. True’s best friend, Lee Atkins, is a senior at the school. Since he is in his last year of high school basketball, all Lee wants is to make a run in the playoffs and win the championship game. True’s mother is Darlene Robinson. Darlene got a job in California, thanks to a man named Mr. Seth Gilbert, who saw True playing an AAU basketball tournament. Mr. Gilbert wanted him to attend Oakley High School in CA to play for Coach DiGregorio. Mr. Gilbert believes True is the best player and that he will make it into the NBA. So, Mr. Gilbert helps True meet some people who can help him become sponsored. When True goes to play basketball by himself at Morrison Court, he keeps seeing a ghost man. He finds out that the ghost man is Urban Sellers, a basketball player who ruined his career before he was even out of high school. Seeing him made True not want to make the same mistakes. Callie Mason is on the girls’ basketball team and True has a crush on her. He even sneaks into the gym to watch the girl’s team practice from time to time.