Magnificence by Estrella Alfon

In The Awakening, Kate Chopin ends the novel in a vastly different way than most authors would have at that time with her main character, Edna Pontellier, committing suicide by drowning herself. If one were to isolate this ending without any context whatsoever, it would feel tragic and depressing; however, the events leading up to her death actually explains to the readers her spiritual reassessment and moral reconciliation, both of which being themes significant to the book as a whole.

Puritans and reformers of seventeenth century England have been given a bad name for their part in history. This is primarily because they were working against the grain and trying to create change in world that saw change as a threat. The time period was turbulent and there was bound to be resistance in a world that was dominated by Catholics and those that had reformed to abide by their King’s law. The puritans of the time were considered extreme and rubbed people the wrong way because they wanted a world that abided by their morals and ethical codes. For this, they took the blame for the misery that many suffered during this age, but as we see in Fire from Heaven, this is not a fair assessment. The Puritans of this time wanted to improve the lives of the people and society as a whole through morality and purity.

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.

Billie Jo Kelby is not a boy. She’s a girl; a wiry, thin, redheaded girl that looks more like her father than her mother. She lives on the Great Plains in 1935, during the great drought known as the Dust Bowl. She lives with her pregnant mother and her father, and life seems good, or as good as it will get in her dusty world.

Under the lights by Abbie Glines. There are three teens that grew up together in a southern small town. Willa’s mom had her when she was a teenager. Willa had gotten into some trouble at a young age and had to stay with her Nonna. Willa’s two best friends were Gunner and Brady. Willa has made some bad choices in her past life which made her go down the wrong path in life. Brady’s a high school quarter back now and with the choices Willa has made Brady sees Willa as a different person. Gunner is also a football star in high school. Gunner is living a good rich life the only matter though he cares about himself only, except for Willa. He understands the person she has grown into over her time. As they were known to be child hood friends secrets start to come out and the truth may be the reason of them losing each other.

Literature can be a powerful tool for social change. Red Rooms by Cherie Dimaline is about the weaving of indigenous stories through the common element that they were patrons of an urban hotel. The narrator, Naomi, works as a housekeeper at the hotel and imagines the past, present and future existence of the patrons by what they left behind. Dimaline shows how indigenous histories and knowledge operate, in that they are not linear, and they do not have a definite beginning or an end. The novel subtly shows the need for an Indigenous resurgence, but the book itself is an act of resurgence because it shows the importance of indigenous literature. This paper will argue that Red Rooms itself acts as an act of indigenous resurgence

Over the course of time the male species has always been the gender to attain the more favorable conditions. Numerous cultures heed to the belief that the man is the provider and head of his family. This machismo nature can condition the mind to believe that a man should feel superior to a woman. The continuous cycle of male superiority flows down from father to son subconsciously. Do to this unceasing sequence of behavior women fall subject to repression and control at the hands of mentally undeveloped men. Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, illustrated this particular topic in a way that not only appealed to the readers’ sense of pathos but, the readers’ likeliness to be able to relate to the aforementioned as well. Chopin stylistically renders the struggle of the protagonist Edna Pontellier, a strong willed woman who finds herself imprisoned to the concept of trans-temporal existence, as she seeks refuge to her true being, Edna experiments relationships with multiple men that unintentionally repress her existence. Between Leonce Pontellier, Robert Lebrun, Alcee Arobin and The Colonel effect of Edna’s life they catalyze her awakening and ultimately lead her suicide.

The most interesting book I have read in the past year was “Still Alice,” written by Lisa Genova. This book narrated the life of Alice Howland, a successful Harvard psychology professor who loses herself to Alzheimer’s disease. Alice is an intelligent, ambitious woman with a loving husband, John, and their three children. Initially, Alice starts off forgetting minor details, such as words during her presentations or where she might place some of her belongings. Dismissing it, Alice goes for a run in her town square where she’s run for several years. She suddenly finds herself lost and panics because she could not figure out how to get home. Eventually, she finds out she’s diagnosed with early on-set Alzheimer’s and she is left to deal with her family and work life as well as do as much as she can each day before she loses herself completely.

At first glance and after reading through Amazing Grace, it seems that Jonathan Kozol is going to take us on a journey through the lives of the underprivileged, but similar to the ones you read about, or hear in the news. However, this is not the case; the real underlying theme seems to be how the life and society they live in is very alike to a life in a prison, not because it talks explicitly about prison conditions in this area, but also because their lives are portrayed as being a prison. Kozol uses the views of children and adults throughout this book to emphasize this theme through their living conditions and personal lives, background and struggles.

Memories of the night before became a vivid memory in the recesses of his dimly lit mind, underneath the sunlight's intruding yet blissful gaze and the sensation of silk against his bare skin felt like a euphoria, a river of midnight encased his slender figure and with the scrunch of his refined nose and furrowed knit of his thin eyebrows, he rose from his slumber. Delicate fingertips leisurely danced across the silken sheets which lost its assuaging warmth only to discern that he was gone, Padding through the spacious house far too big for two alone to fill, and too much of a burden for one to find comfort in. To see his lover, clad in a suit that managed to take his breath away immediately

“It’s not everyday we get company around here,” I reminded myself, “we haven’t shown our chateau in ages.” As we walked down the elegant staircase, each step creaked one by one. My hand-held lamp with the bright, burning fire was in clutch as we walked around the dusty furniture until we saw some of my men. They were silent, but you could see the fear in their eyes - almost like the fear in Rainsford’s. One had the guts to come up, and offer another light looking for a way to impress me with his concern, but I quickly declined.

Sweetness in the Belly by Camilla Gibb is a moving, heart-warming tale about a young woman, who suffers from insecurity and self-identity through a world where she is considered an outsider. The novel’s protagonist is Lilly Abdal, born to British vagabonds as she is left in the hands of the Great Sufi Abdal, who raises her to become a white, devout Muslim woman in East Morocco. The author seamlessly weaves in Dr. Aziz, an Ethiopian man who creates sparks in Lilly’s heart, only to be separated once Lilly’s embarks to London, England. Camilla Gibb takes the tale of an outcast, spun with religious beliefs and morals, to create a powerful story that challenges and uplights the reader’s mentality on religion and what it means to follow religious and cultural traditions.

            Every morning before school the boy lies on the floor in thefront parlor peeking out through a crack in the blind of the door,watching and waiting for the girl next door to emerge from her houseand walk to school. He is shy and still boyish. He follows her, walkssilently past, not daring to speak, overcome with a confused sense ofsensual desire and religious adoration. In his mind she is both a saintto be worshipped and a woman to be desired. His eyes are "often fullof tears," and one evening he goes to the back room where the priesthad died. Clasping the palms of his hands together, he murmurs, "0love! 0 love!" in a prayer not to God, but to the concept of love andperhaps even to the girl, his love. Walking with his aunt to shop onSaturday evenings he imagines that the girl's image accompanies him,and that he protects her in "places the most hostile to romance." Inthe mixed symbolism of the Christian and the Romantic or Orientalmyths Joyce reveals the epiphany in the story: "These noises con-verged in a single sensation of life for me: I imagined that I bore mychalice safely through a throng of foes." He is

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.

Holding Onto the Air an autobiography by Suzanne Farrell takes the reader backstage in the dramatic life of the world-renowned Balanchine ballerina. From her childhood in Cincinnati to her retirement from ballet in 1989, Farrell's story is truly a remarkable one. The book describes at length her time with the New York City Ballet as well as her complex relationship with the legendary Balanchine. Although Mrs. Farrell goes a bit too far into the ballet descriptions, her beautiful imagery allows reader to experience the joy of performing on stage.