Hotel On The Corner Of Bitter And Sweet By Jamie Ford

Marriage is important in human society. Marriage is “the customs, rules, and obligations that establish a special relationship between a sexually cohabitating adult male and female, between them and any children they produce, and between the kin of the bride and groom” (Arenson, and Miller-Thayer 520). Most of the cultures are used to seeing only female and male getting married but looking deeper into the society; we can see there are more to it. There are many different types of marriages. In an ethnography called, Guest of the Sheik, by Elizabeth Warnock Fernea, she talks about her experiences in a small rural village of El Nahra in southern Iraq. Ethnography is “comprised of the writings of the anthropologist, detailing the life ways of a particular culture, investigated by means of direct fieldwork” (1). As she gets accepted by the women of the villages, she gets a more inclusive view of the culture.

People change and grow through their experiences and conflicts. For example, just 2 years ago I was a sixth grader. There was a lot more homework than I ever had in my non-accelerated / magnet elementary school. I had to work harder and for longer hours, but as a result, I was much more mature and knowledgeable. I improved my work habits and increased my concentration. In Judith Ortiz Cofer’s “First Love”, a 14 year old girl is in love with a high school senior. She does everything she can to try to see him more often. At the end, she thinks she learns the true meaning of love. In Richard Wright’s “The Street”, a boy has to go shopping for food, but he is constantly stopped by a gang who beats him up. At the end, he beats up the gang with a stick his mother gave him because he had to to return home. In both “The Street” by Richard Wright and “First Love” by Judith Ortiz Cofer, the characters start out as shy and naive, but end up as aware and wiser as a result of their respective conflicts.

This quote shows that people can be different then they can be, people can ultimately change for the worst.

Henry was born and raised in the United States. When he was twelve years old, he was “scholarshipping” in Rainier Elementary School, a “top white school” (Ford, 183). As the war progressed between Japan and America, his parents were desperate for him to become more “American”. As a result, they insisted for him “to stop speaking their native Chinese” and become fluent in English (Ford, 12). However, this created a problem, because Henry’s parents could not speak English, and they scolded him if he spoke Cantonese to them. Due to this, Henry had a difficult time conversing with his parents, which means that they rarely spoke with each other. Although his parents forced him to only speak English for his own safety, it ended up isolating Henry from his own family. They obviously could not form a close family relationship if they did not communicate with one another. Moreover, Henry befriending Keiko made the situation worse. His father could not accept the fact that his only son became friends with a Japanese girl.

The Changeable nature of life affects us all somehow. Whether it be moving to a new city, having children, or losing people that we love, it can affect people in many different ways. For example, in the novel, the main character

A relationship that has shaped Henry's life is between him and his father. Both of them are stubborn in their beliefs; beliefs that always differ from the other. Although they're Chinese, Henry's father wants Henry to be like an American. For instance, Henry can only speak English to parents that won't ever understand him. Once the war starts, his dad forbids Henry to associate with any Japanese. It just adds the the list of things that they disagree with. Eventually their relationship cracks, "His father was stubborn, and traditional. He hadn't just threatened to disown him-- he'd gone through with it. All because Henry couldn't stop thinking about Keiko" (191). Henry gets fed up with his father and stands for what he believes. Loosing his

One of the first themes that I discovered is that some people never change. Whether you are young, middle-aged, or old, some

Leaving the comforts of the first world, Jessica Alexander abandons her job, fiancé, family, and home to venture into the misleading volunteer work of Humanitarian aid. Chasing Chaos: My Decade In and Out of Humanitarian Aid by Jessica Alexander is a conglomeration of stories that are written from Jessica’s memory. “It is a true account based on [Jessica’s] best recollections of the events and [her] experiences.”.

In some plays the experience of an important character changes him or her. In others the experiences of an important character leaves him or her almost completely unchanged. In Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, Walter Lee Younger goes from being selfish to being the man his family needs. The road to becoming the man they needed was very rocky and difficult at times.

In Anne Fadiman’s book, The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, Lia Lee, a Hmong child refugee with severe epilepsy, and her life are caught in the middle of a substantial cultural misunderstanding. Although Lie and her family live in the United States and go to an American hospital, her family believes in Shamanism, thus her family believes that Lee’s epilepsy is sacred. The miscommunications which ensue, both culturally and linguistically, between Neil Ernst and Peggy Philp, Lia’s doctors, and the Lee family cause Lia Lee, before she even turns five years old, to end up in comatose for the rest of her life. However, Lia Lee’s life could have been saved if the Lee’s had a better understanding of the American doctors’ intentions, and the

People's lives are shaped through their success and failure in their personal relationships with each other. The author Sylvia Plath demonstrates this in the novel, The Bell Jar. This is the direct result of the loss of support from a loved one, the lack of support and encouragement, and lack of self confidence and insecurity in Esther's life in the The Bell Jar. It was shaped through her success and failures in her personal relationships between others and herself.

"Domestic servitude is the seemingly normal practice of live-in help that is used as cover for the exploitation and control of someone, usually from another country" (End Slavery Now). Victims of domestic servitude may appear to be nannies, but their employment turns into a situation where they cannot leave on their own free will, it becomes enslavement. Domestic workplaces are often not shared with other workers. This environment can isolate domestic workers because authorities cannot inspect homes as easily as they can other workplaces. Domestic servitude can also be a form of bonded labor. This form of slavery happens when migrant workers reach a destination country, and they incur a debt for their travel. Though working, if their employer

Sex At Dawn by Chrstopher Ryan and Cacilda Jetha, describes our current society as a sexual hypocrisy where monogamy is the norm and everything else falls under taboo. Based on prehistoric facts, they argue that we derive from a sexually free and promiscuous culture, and were never meant to be in lifelong monogamous unions. In Paleofantasy by Martha Zuk, looks at evolutionary theorists, like Ryan and Jetha, who use the Paleolithic Age for guidance on how our current society should live. Zuk’s argument is that people want to make our nature into one-form, but humans are not designed for one-way/form of life. As for our sexual system it too can not be put into one-form. Zuk shows various points on popular assertions, creating uncertainty to the reader. This therefore shows how difficult it is to determine a precise natural sexual practice from our past, and debunking Ryan and Jetha. For this reason, Zuk provides a better argument regarding how we should use prehistoric history in present day.

In “A Small Place” by Jamaica Kincaid, Kincaid criticizes tourists for being heartless and ignorant to the problems that the people of Antigua had and the sacrifices that had to be made to make Antigua a tremendous tourist/vacation spot. While Kincaid makes a strong argument, her argument suggests that she doesn't realize what tourism is for the tourists. In other words, tourism is an escape for those who are going on vacation and the tourists are well within their rights to be “ignorant”, especially because no one is telling them what is wrong with Antigua.

Change is inevitable when a certain amount of time passes; O. Henry makes this idea especially evident in his story “After Twenty Years.” In the tale, two friends cross paths once again after twenty years, only to discover that their lives are not the only thing that has changed over time. After two decades, the two have led different paths in life and new loyalties have developed; their close friendship is ultimately put to the test.