The Rise and Fall of A Celebrity in Alice Walker’s Nineteen Fifty-Five

After five cutting-edge singles, Elvis’s contract was sold to RCA Records and then his career rapidly took off (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame). His first number one single was “Heartbreak Hotel,” and his first album was Elvis Presley (biography.com). By 1956 Presley was an international sensation. Although many of the teenagers of Elvis’s time was very intrigued by his diverse musical styles, sexy dance moves and good looks, much of the older generations were outraged by his gyrating hips and music (biography.com). One of Elvis’s most controversial instances was on the Ed Sullivan Show where he sang “Hound Dog,” for the first time on television (Comprehensive History of Elvis Presley’s Dynamic Life). He was already considered to be a rebel and no one knew what

Elvis Presley was one of the most influential rock and roll singers in the American history. Presley’s work revolutionized the music and brought about significant changes in the entertainment industry. He grew up in an environment where racial segregation between the whites and African Americans was highly pronounced. In fact, Presley schooled in Memphis where he graduated from a whites-only high school. However, he upheld the Black’s music and made it possible for their music to be accessed by the White American youths. Presley’s tracks broke past the racial barrier as many teenagers loved his amazing voice. Through his music, he confronted racism and challenged both social and moral values. Elvis Presley changed the manner in which the Black minority were treated in the U.S. through his music, and this initiated the fights against racial discrimination leading to the civil rights movement.

Finally, on January 28th at five a.m., the telephone rang at the nurse's station. Dr. Nick said he was leaving Graceland with Elvis and would be arriving in fifteen minutes. Elvis, wearing navy blue pajamas and a few days' beard, showed up with his father, Joe Esposito, Linda Thompson and a few bodyguards.

Alice Walkers "Roselily" is a short story about a woman who is about to be married, but is having second thoughts about the marriage. She is also looking into the past and the future trying to make sense of what is happening. Roselily is being torn between choosing between her current or possible future Economic status, Societies view of her, her religion and her freedom. All these thoughts go through her mind as the wedding ceremony takes place, and she begins to wonder if she has made the right choice is marrying this man.

Elvis Aaron Presley, otherwise known as “The King” was born on January 8th, 1935. He came from simple beginnings; being born into a lower-class family in Tupelo, Mississippi. In 1948, at the age of 13 Elvis Presley and his family moved to Memphis, Tennessee. Soon he launched his incredibly successful music career with Sun Records at the age of 19 in 1954. His music was influenced by both African American and White artists causing his unique blend of country, pop, rhythm and blues, and gospel music. Presley was heavily influenced by artists such as Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, and Buddy Holly. Though Presley was widely known for his “provocative” dances moves and his popularization of Rock n’ Roll Presley impacted American culture in a much larger aspect. His influence on Americans and American culture aided desegregation and civil rights during his period of influence and helped create “youth culture”.

In Alice Walker’s, Nineteen Fifty-Five, a young white singer, Traynor, acquires song rights from an African American rhythm and blues singer, Gracie Mae. The song makes Traynor rich and famous. Obsessed with finding out the song’s meaning, Traynor remains in contact with Gracie Mae through letters, gifts, and visits. The conflict of the story is in Traynor’s inability to ascertain the meaning of the song. Traynor eventually passes away, without ever resolving the conflict.

Walkers essay is great of getting her audience to reminisce on the past by describing some childhood memories of life on the farm with the use of her beautiful language to share an image in Walkers memory.

Two-year-old Alice Walker was as boastful and energetic as they come. She was a product of her environment;

As a kid Elvis Presley attended the Assembly of God Church with his parents, where gospel music became an important influence in his life. On his eleventh birthday he received his first guitar from his mom in 1946, he had his first taste of musical success a few years later when he won a talent show at Humes High School in Memphis. He graduated from High school in 1953, he worked a number of jobs while pursuing his musical dream. “That’s

When Elvis was born, Jessie Garon, Elvis’s twin brother, was stillborn. From then on, Elvis’s mother, Gladys Presley, was so scared to think that she would lose Elvis too, that she didn’t let him out of her sight. When he first started school, it was sad. People judged him by the clothes he wore and that his mom walked him to school everyday. From the very beginning, Elvis’s family didn’t

The Outsiders is about an east coast gang called the “greasers” that moved west into what’s called the ”Socs’” area. Around the beginning of the story it talks about the music, singers, cars and actors they favored. One of the singers they mentioned really caught my eye because i’ve heard some of his music before. To be honest my grandma listens to that music in the car with me a lot. So here are a few things about Elvis Aaron Presley.

His appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show gave the network the highest rating at the time, and yet “Elvis the Pelvis” was shot only from waist up. His hip dusting moves was too risque for 1950s Americans, along with his nature. Yet Elvis was a very religious man; daily he would read the bible, he would never drink, and most of his songs had religious connotations. He was a humble man who remembered where he came from.Elvis Presley was born and raised in Tupelo, Mississippi. He grew up with little money, and his family lived off of welfare. During the year of 1948 Presley moved to Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 13, and there he was introduced to the black community. In Memphis he was a frequent singer at the Reverend H.W. Brewster’s black Memphis church where he learned gospel music.

On the other hand, the narrator adds fictional events revolving around her and Elvis's life. Beginning in 1955, when she sold Traynor, the historic based character of Elvis, one of her songs. One year later she sees Traynor or Elvis singing "her song" on television. A year after that she mentions that Traynor and his manager had "bought up all her records" and on his record he "had put, written by Gracie Mae Still." Then, receives a "gold grill, white Cadillac" from Elvis, as a gift. Furthermore, she says that when Traynor got drafted, he kept

“Pop culture shapes our ideas of what is normal and what our dreams can be and what our roles are […]” quoted by Gloria Steinem. Culture has a great influence on the way people view the world and others as seen in the stories By any other name by Santha Rama Rau, Everyday Use by Alice Walker, and Two Kinds by Amy Tan.

When reading Alice Walker’s “The Color Purple” and “Everyday Use,” it is evident that she writes about her life through her use of allegory. Alice Walker uses the events of her childhood, her observation of the patriarchy in African American culture, and her rebellion against the society she lived in to recount her life through her stories. Alice Walker grew up in a loving household in the years towards the end of the Great Depression. Although her family was poor, they were rich in kindness and perspective and taught Walker a lot about her heritage and life.