On a mild winter afternoon in December 1941, Arthur rode his bicycle through the twisting streets of downtown Everett. He didn't see many people outside. That Sunday, most everyone was huddled around the radio listening to the football game between the New York Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
He took advantage of the mild day and figured he'd catch the end of the game once home. He was fifteen and more important things than football were on his mind. His thoughts turned to all the pretty girls at school. The transition from parochial school to Everett high school had stunned him at first. He suddenly found himself surrounded by girls that had been denied him in Catholic school.
He dreamed of dating and marrying down the road. Just
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With each new flash, his voice rose in a crescendo of breathless horror. Arthur saw his mother staring at him with a sad anxious look in her eyes.
Katherine dreaded this day but knew it would come. Men always find a way to go to war. Her youngest son stood there panting with excitement. She tried to picture a military uniform hanging off his rail thin body but couldn't. Katherine knew the war machine would take away all her boys. She shook her head. How many wars must she endure?
As the afternoon wore on the house filled up. Charles Jr. arrived with his wife Mary. Joseph and James wandered in with their sons and then Maggie with hers. Rich came home and was spitting mad with anger. Katherine saw his clenched fists and knew that he'd be the first to go. She expected that Charles Jr. would go next. At least, Arthur was too young so she could protect him for a while.
The boys were shocked to see their father walk in and sit down. He nodded at the boys but didn't say much. He and Katherine looked at each other and a thousand thoughts passed silently between them.
The world changed that afternoon. A man on the radio said the Navy lost the entire Pacific fleet. The air in the room turned electric. The boys wanted revenge. They spoke in excited voices about taking the fight to the enemy. Their parents, aunts and uncles sat in grim silence. That day their world shifted and the future filled them with uncertainty.
But Katherine knew
For my at home movie I watched Hang em’ High directed by Ted Post. It is considered a spaghetti western that was made in America. In comparison to the film we watched in class, High Noon directed by Fred Zinnemann. These two westerns had many similarities and differences. From differences in how the movie was actually shot, to the similarity of how both of the main characters are loners, these two movies connect all over on many different levels.
Although Bob Layher was only five years old when the war began he noticed the considerable impact the battle had already inflicted. Bob recalled, “Brothers and sisters to friends I knew either came back or never made it back.” Ronnie WIlliams, a helicopter door gunner, never returned to spend time with the people, including Bob, he once shared a classroom with as an innocent boy. Reminiscing on the tragic past
“Is there a problem, Miss?” One of the officers asked again. Wanting so badly to say that everything was all right, and send them away. Carol, for a few seconds, stares at William searching his eyes for an apology, but all she could see was hatred and the frightened looks on her children’s faces. And they could not be described in words.
Almost every person knows someone who has served in a war, whether it may be a sibling, a parent, or a friend. After an individual comes back from their service in a war, he or she usually has changed as a person, either positively, or most of the time negatively. In All The Light We Cannot See, Anthony Doerr shows through characters seeing death, characters that are not in combat, and characters that are soldiers in war, that war impacts individuals negatively, despite their backgrounds and differences.
Tomorrow, When the War Began displays to us the kinds of changes people go through when they are confronted with an improbable situation, and why those changes arise. It shows us how one situation can affect each person differently.
The Russian Revolution and the purges of Leninist and Stalinist Russia have spawned a literary output that is as diverse as it is voluminous. Darkness at Noon, a novel detailing the infamous Moscow Show Trials, conducted during the reign of Joseph Stalin is Arthur Koestler’s commentary upon the event that was yet another attempt by Stalin to silence his critics. In the novel, Koestler expounds upon Marxism, and the reason why a movement that had as its aim the “regeneration of mankind, should issue in its enslavement” and how, in spite of its drawbacks, it still held an appeal for intellectuals. It is for this reason that Koestler may have attempted “not to solve but to expose” the shortcomings of this political system and by doing so
“We've left the post. It got too hot. The PX is in flames, also the barracks. We made a dash during a lull. Left everything we own there. Found out the attackers are Japs. Rats!!! A couple of non-com's houses demolished. Hope Kay is O.K. We're at M's. It's all so sudden and surprising I can't believe it's really happening. It's awful. School is discontinued until further notice...there goes my graduation, I was awakened at eight o'clock on the morning of December 7th by an explosion from Pearl Harbor. I got up thinking something exciting was probably going on over there. Little did I know! When I reached the kitchen the whole family, excluding Pop, was looking over at the Navy Yard. It was being consumed by black smoke and more terrific explosions. We didn't know what was going on, but I didn't like it because the first explosion looked as if it was right on top of Marie's
Many people influenced and events my reading and writing development throughout my childhood from my mother, my elementary librarian, and Sesame Street, to getting my first pair of glasses. We all have defining moments in our lives where we can look back and say, “That moment changed my life.” This is the story of the defining moment that changed the way I read and write, and I learned it from a whale!
James, Catherine and Elizabeth walked to their bedrooms. William tucked-in the children, and walked back downstairs. He found Mary in the kitchen reorganizing the cabinets.
Why is disruption of life different in America in World war II different from the disruption of life in World war II in Japan?
We, as Americans, could do so much more, not only as individuals, but as a nation, to make sure that we have better health, but specifically, psychological health. We must start in the mind before we can do anything for our physical health, because the brain controls our bodies, and without strong mental health, you are in danger of becoming sick. There are also many political things that we can do as well to make sure we don't go crazy when it comes to debating and spewing thoughts out at other people.
In reality Jim is safe in his home but, he still feels a looming sense of anxiety and fear. After a few minutes the fear begins to dissipate and Jim is able to relax again. When asked about his previous experiences in the army by his friends Jim begins to tell them that there was always a lurking sense of anxiety and anguish whenever he would hear a bomb being fired off in battle. Just the thought of going into his firing position and remembering the faces of others in his unit begins to make him tremble. Jim exclaims, “A battle never went according to the actual plan, war is unpredictable at all times with the concussive sounds of war which makes even more frightening”.
In his book A Chance in the World Steve Pemberton tells us about growing up in the Massachusetts foster care system. Steve was removed from his mother 's care as a toddler and went from the life of an abused and neglected foster child with no self identity, to a successful, professional man with a family of his own. Steve breaks his story into three parts.
Throughout the countless pages of history, there exists many occurrences of change. Some of these changes are positive while others are negative. Nevertheless, as each change occurs, it must undergo struggles to become accepted. One example of the struggles of change that is seen in today’s society is the ongoing fight for religious freedom. Another change that is currently facing obstacles is the fight to change policies that raise the question of equality. Lastly, another struggle for change is the conflict that is occurring in order to make same-sex marriage legal. Through the examples of all these changes, there exists the common factor of changing values. As values change, new changes are undertaken. Therefore, changing values entail
There have been very few events throughout my lifetime that I feel have impacted or inspired me with such noteworthiness and that I know will change my outlook on the world and affect me forever. One of those events occurred when I traveled to Portugal, my parent’s homeland. From this excursion in 2007, I learned the importance of family, most importantly the distant kind. It provided me with a totally different perspective on the world and how large and extended one’s family can really be; even across cultures and continents. I felt so fortunate learning this lesson at a young age and growing to appreciate the ideals I was brought up with as a child. The family I have in Portugal has always been there; however, their faces have aged and