Going Amy Hempel Analysis

John Jeremiah Sullivan's essay "Feet in Smoke" tells a personal story about an accident that caused his brother to be electrocuted during the band's rehearsal, his brother Worth was singing when an electric shock hit him making his heart stopped. Sullivan recounts his brother's recovery at the hospital and tells specific events that occurred after he regained consciousness. Worth spent a coma more than three days. The author describes the family's concern while his brother was in the intensive care unit with only 1 percent of brain activity. After less than a week in a coma his brother woke up and Sullivan witnesses his brother's strange words, recovery, and reactions.

In the passage Nancy Mairs presents herself in a way which demonstrates that she has many characteristics of a strong woman. She includes tone and a high quality choice in words to describe herself and why she used the word “cripple” as a name for herself.

“At night I’d go home smelling of pig. It wouldn’t go away. Even after a hot bath, scrubbing hard, the stink was always there – like old bacon, or sausage, a greasy pig-stink that soaked deep into my skin and hair. Among other things, I remember, it was tough getting dates that summer. I felt isolated; I spent a lot of time alone.” (O’Brien, 41).

The mouldy, rotting, brown house stood in front of Emily, only fear keeping her feet planted to the ground. Moaning and creaking noises being projected from the house. The grass was damp from the evening fog and every time she took a step the mud squelched. The bottom step squeaked as she applied pressure with her foot, she let out a sigh of relief as the old structure hadn’t swallowed her up. The door, slightly off colour from the rest of the house, loomed over her like a giant as he reached for the brass door handle. A shiver ran through her body like an electric current, the musty smell of a house that had been long abandoned filled Emily’s nose. It was dim and uninviting. The furniture dusty and old, looking as if it would crumble to dust if she was to touch it. Mould ate away at

Among many abolitionists of slavery in early America were former slaves, Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs who lived to tell the stories of their quests for freedom during their time as slaves. Harriet Jacobs, known for her narrative Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, was born into slavery like many African Americans at the time. Frederick Douglass who was also born into slavery was best known for his “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” Through these narratives both Jacobs and Douglass each portray their own experiences of slavery in contrasting ways.

Deborah Lacks is introduced by Skloot using an illustrating a description of Deborah's adolescence. Deborah is faced with many challenges in her life like not knowing who her mother really was. On page 206, chapter 25 the text says “And Deborah started handing out newsletters about her mother and the cells, saying, “I just want y'all read what's on this paper! And tell everybody! Bring it around . We want everybody in the world to know about my mother.” This shows how much Deborah cared to know about her mother and her cells. Even though her family didn't have much interest in them, Deborah took matters into her own hands and collected information to find out more about her mother.

“This one was hardly bigger than a garage. The table was cluttered with limp- looking magazines and at one end of it there was a big green glass ashtray full of cigarette butts and cotton wads with little blood spots on them. If she had had anything to do with the running of the place, that would have been emptied every so often. There were no chairs against the wall at the head of the room. It had a rectangular-shaped panel in it that permitted a view of the office where the nurse came and went and the secretary listened to the radio. A plastic fern, in a gold pot sat in the opening and trailed its fronds down almost to the floor. The radio was softly playing gospel music” (O’Connor 3). As the Turpins waited Mrs. Turpin began to describe the other waiting room occupants to pass the time. Mrs. Turpin can be seen as a larger woman who is proud of her means and then there is her husband Claud who can be described as a “florid, bald, sturdy and shorter than Mrs. Turpin (O’Connor 1). Next was an unnamed blonde child whose attire consisted of a dirty blue romper, the boy’s mother was seen “wearing on a yellow sweatshirt and wine- colored slacks, both gritty-looking, and the rims of her lips were stained with snuff. Her dirty yellow hair was tied behind with a little piece of red paper ribbon” (O’Connor 5). The next woman is called the “stylish woman” by

Jeannette was lit on fire. Her body was burned and she had to go to the hospital. She was making hotdogs in the kitchen as a three year old. Her mother was in the other room singing and painting. Jeannette bent over to give her dog a taste of the hot dog and her dress caught fire. She screamed and her mother ran in to help. Rose Mary tarnished the flames but Jeannette received hospital worthy injuries. They put her on a bed of ice while assessing her burns. “One of them squeezed my hand and told me I was going to be okay. “I know,” I said, “but if I’m not, that’s okay too.” The nurse squeezed my hand again and bit her lower lip.” (pg. 10) Even with the chaos of being rushed to the hospital Jeannette still remained calm.

Overachievers, by Alexandra Robbins, is an exposé about the lives of driven high school students at Walt Whitman High School in Maryland. Throughout the book Robbins argues the point that college admission expectations have made high school a very cut-throat environment, leading students who try to meet these expectations to have deteriorating mental and physical health.

In Adele Lowitz’s memoir, Adele Lowitz: the Lawyer with a Choice she perfectly outlines the consternation of someone in the high position that she once held just a few years ago. Adele served at the head lawyer on one of the most publicised, overt and important and funny law cases in American history. This case which was entitled “SNL vs. the President” was fought between the executive producer of the popular TV show Saturday Night Live and the President of the United States over a joke made on air that was particularly offensive to the leader of the free world. Although it may seem like a non important case in American history, it was actually a turning point in the ability of the media and the power that the government holds. Adele was a powerful lawyer before the case. She graduated at the top of her law school class and was immediately hired by one of the biggest law firms in America. Her younger brother of three years on the other hand was a comedian. He had become an incredibly famous comedian, taking over the Late Night Show For Jimmy Kimmel. Luckily for Adele, her brother had never been on Saturday night

When reading the first chapter of Ten Things Every Child with Autism wishes you Knew by Ellen Notbohm, multiple thoughts ran through my head. I honestly feel that she did an excellent job expressing the thoughts about autism. In my point of view autism is so much more than a diagnosis. Two important people in my life have autism and honestly, they are the most amazing individuals I have ever met. The authors words that brought tears to my eyes was, “My autism is part of who I am, not all of who I am” (Notbohm 17). This statement moved me, because individuals with autism are so much more than a label. Individuals that have autism are talented, intelligent, caring, kind, and funny. We should not judge or treat an individual different by the way they express themselves. Each individual is unique and should be able to express themselves in their personal way instead of being labeled in a negative way. I have personally encounter individuals use words such as, “that autistic boy” or “just leave him other there, he doesn’t understand the material because he is autistic”. When I hear people says these negative things, it makes me angry and sad, because I believe that they have not fully comprehended the diagnosis as well as not allow themselves to get to know

Do you know what it's like to be starving without no food? There's a big problem with kids and not eating in America, and i'm sure in other places too. School for children is a very important place for them. Some kids don't get to go home and have a meal or even eat at all. Many school give free food to kids while they're at school, these programs such as schools or free camps save starving children that never get to eat. In the story Anna Quindlen points out that getting food stamps for people that actually need it takes more time then selling weapons. “Stamp application is twelve often impenetrable pages; a permit to sell weapons is just two.” This shows we have a big problem in America.

Angela Findlay, an expert on the imprisoned and their rehabilitation, had the Lower Sixth form fully enthralled during their once a week Sixth Form assembly. She explained how participating in art whilst imprisoned can have a successful impact on the way the incarcerated are rehabilitated and how they may possibly learn to understand the impact their actions may have had on their victims or society as a whole.

Tell It Slant second edition “Creating, Refining, and publishing Creative Nonfiction,”by Brenda Miller and Suzanne Paola is a great guide that has many helpful tips to help students to enhance their writing. Each chapter introduces students to new writing stargazes and techniques along with corresponding examples of literature. By giving examples the students are able to have a better understanding of the different styles used. Furthermore, after carefully reviewing the chapters I strongly believe that it would be highly beneficial to the students if the following pieces of literature would be included.

As I approach the turn to my Grandmother's house, my stomach turns in the anticipation of the perfectly sweet peanut butter cookie smell that awaits. As my mother turn up the long narrow gravel road and parked the car in front of her house. I stepped outside and a chilly little breeze bites at my cheeks. I take a deep breath and the sweet smell of burning cedar enters my nose. I