Summary Of The Novel 'She's Come Undone'

Chapters 1–5 introduce an average boy who would become a remarkable man. Born in 1917, Louie Zamperini was the child of Italian immigrants. Growing up in Torrance amidst poverty and anti-Italian bias, Louie got in the habit of running outside the law. He started smoking when he was 5 years old and drinking when he was 8. He stole anything he wanted—mostly food, money, and whatever else he could find. He ran small scams and vandalized property. Pete, Louie’s older brother, became concerned.

of a girl who was misunderstood. Throughout her childhood and young adulthood, Daphne struggled with identifying with her feelings. Daphne was constantly searching for an answer to why she felt different. Daphne wanted to “fit in” but she knew she was unconventional. The different labels she was given through out her psychiatric stay stuck with her and left a scar of how she was once perceived.

Entering the world of Dolores Price, who is the focal center in She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb, is no peaceful journey. We go through the events that shaped her into an emotional disturbed lady. After suffering multiple travesties – one after the other – she demonstrates signs of personality disorder. We are engaged in a story of strength, and manic all at the same time.

I recently read a novel called Parrot in the Oven by Victor Martinez. The main character, Manny Hernandez, goes through a lot of changes and gets himself in some risky situations all to find out just who he really is. For me Manny’s narrative in Parrot in the Oven is extremely relatable because we have the same positive influence from our mothers, we’ve both had someone pass away recently, and we both have a strong sense of who we are and who we want to become.

In the book She’s Come Undone by author Wally Lamb, we travel on a journey with a young girl Dolores Prices, as she matures from early childhood to adulthood and all the terrible things that accompany her along her voyage. It was rather intriguing the Wally Lamb did such an excellent job of writing in a first person perceptive as a woman. He accredits his ability to his older sisters. Wally Lamb wrote this book to help emphasize one’s journey to self-discovery. This book’s theme heavily shows the loss of innocence and a coming of age story. Lamb was able to write in a way that many of us could relate to or may have found ourselves in similar situations. Regardless of Lamb’s purpose for writing this book, he was able to create a relatable

The transformations in people are caused by a variety of circumstances. Within the variety of these circumstances, stress is the most influential one. In Eugenia Collier’s short story Marigolds, it tells the narrative of a young African-American girl living in rural Maryland. Due to her frustration with life, she destroys Miss Lottie’s marigolds. In the story Marigolds, the author uses the narrator’s transformation and characterization to convey that identity is only found in times of crisis.

Mary Oliver’s theme addresses the obstacles that prevents people from living freely. Although the beneficial path appears evident, “you felt the old tug / at your ankles” (8-9). Oliver uses these lines to display the difficulty of overcoming past struggles. Everyone strives to please somebody else, but establishing a unique identity often requires suppressing the desire to satisfy others. Withdrawal from these influences proves to be difficult as each cries out, “Mend my life!” (10). When attempting to free oneself from the negative influences, people use methods of guilt and high expectations to pull the blooming individual back into society’s conformity. The phrase “Mend my life” displays the pressure placed on a single person to commit her soul to helping and listening to others. Oliver develops the first part of her theme: the burdens of an overexerted person eliminating any chance to live her life the way she desires. The second part of the theme reveals that a person has the potential to break free from past burdens and create an identity. Upon emerging from the challenge of escaping, “there was a new voice / which you slowly / recognized as your own” (27-29). With enough determination and patience, one can escape the clutches of the past’s influences and find a own voice, therefore saving “the only life you could save” (36). Oliver believes the transition to establishing a

When facing adversaries, there will always be a factor in the story the protagonist personality flaws are either illustrated or torn apart by their own complications. The worse part it that their identity can be easily influenced by the manipulation of people who are looking to take advantage of the individual's guilt and emotions. In Sinclair Ross’s story, “The painted door”, Anna the main character is manipulated to believe that her husband is not going to arrive home when a blizzard is undergoing; which ultimately leads her to her ultimate downfall. But in the end, this all came down to her failure to remain faithful to her husband, wanting more in her life and the failure to keep her habits in line with her marriage. Ann’s failure endure the temptation resulted in her losing her happiness moreover losing her biggest love.

Discovering our own identity does not come from being in isolation, but when we experience new things and meet new people. Our identity is bound up with our surroundings. Bethia, in Caleb’s Crossing, longed to discover her identity and make sense of the life she lived. She engages in new experiences and is brought out of her comfort zone by a local Indian boy, Caleb. She steps out of the isolation of her small village and ventures into what she hopes will help her to understand herself. Saidiya Hartman, in Lose Your Mother, though similar to Bethia in the way that she is trying to figure out who she is, but different in the way that she wants to discover that through slavery and her ties to slavery. Hartman travels great distances trying to

One’s identity is the most important lesson to be learned. It is vital part of life knowing who you are in order to live a fulfilled life. Without knowing your identity, and the way you perceive life, it is difficult for others to understand you, along with a struggle to live a happy life. In Sylvia Plath’s “The Bell Jar,” Esther Greenwood struggles to find her own identity, and in the process, she develops a mental illness which helps her discover the person she is on the inside.

But when the person themselves becomes an issue it creates a tango between the two, except medieval torture style and both are wearing heated iron shoes. Because of this it is important to tackle any issues that originate from oneself, a great example being Eleanor Longden. In her college years she was diagnosed with Schizophrenia and began hearing voices in her head. This had troubled her a great deal and even led her to take a break from school; however, she decided to take what she was given and make something of it, using it as a tool in her studies and profession. Whether one feels self doubt because mom doesn’t accept the neon leopard-print fringe as “the real me” or genuinely faces issues with self deprecation, many can take something away from this. In the beginning of Longden’s journey with Schizophrenia her life was riddled with fear and feelings of defeat. How is one supposed to progress if they themselves are prohibiting it? It is true that not everybody is as fortunate as her, but the day she overcame herself and her

Growing in a safe environment and thinking the world is under your control when you are young can make you confident and express yourself. This comfort zone is not forever, and when something that was not expected occurs, it brings the ideal world down and can change your daily life. Going from the happiest stage of life to a drastic and dramatic tragedy can change someone’s views about how confident he or she is. Not being able to accept how different you are now because something that changed in the outside can intimidate the talented, smart person on the inside. Realizing and analyzing other people’s imperfections makes you see how you are not the only one who has something that you do not want other people to see or criticize. Analyzing the story in “Beauty: When the Other Dancer is the Self” by Alice Walker, her character explores how the theme of the story develops from the beginning, middle, and the end of the story.

There are many layers that make up a person’s unique identity. While looking at external appearances one can have an idea of a person based on their background, social status, occupation, and relationships. Moreover, how a person perceives themself, either highly or poorly, can be challenged throughout their lifetime. In the novel Mrs.Dalloway, the main protagonist Clarissa undergoes a midlife identity crisis. She questions the major decisions that were made throughout her life and wonders if everything was worth losing her old self to fit people’s expectations.

Growing in a safe environment and thinking the world is under your control when you are young can make you confident and express yourself. This comfort zone is not forever, and when something that was not expected occurs, it brings the ideal world down and can change your daily life. Going from the happiest stage of life to a drastic and dramatic tragedy can change someone’s views about how confident he or she is. Not being able to accept how different you are now because something that changed in the outside can intimidate the talented, smart person on the inside. Realizing and analyzing other people’s imperfections makes you see how you are not the only one who has something that you do not want other people to see or criticize. Analyzing the story in “Beauty: When the Other Dancer is the Self” by Alice Walker, her character explores how the theme of the story develops from the beginning, middle, and the end of the story.

In Grier English classes, we have discussed about the change of identity in many different books, for example, Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. Sometimes, the mental activities experienced by the characters that are facing great transformations resonate with our life. Within all of these books we read and suffered through with countless tests and projects, I find a very important lesson in Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.