The Third Wish By Joan Aikens

The theme of this book is that the human capacity to adapt to and find happiness in the most difficult circumstances. Each character in the novel shows this in their way. For instance, their family is randomly taken from their home and forced to

Universal healthcare is known to be a luxury in most counties. However, in North Korea where the economy is continually struggling, universal healthcare is a disaster. The communist country has major commitments to education and healthcare which both failed once the economy crumbled. The health of North Koreans suffered dramatically with a declining economy because it created famine, malnutrition, absence of medication, and ultimately extremely limited healthcare. A recent documentary, called Inside North Korea, allowed a foreign physician to come in the country and perform cataract surgery to countless individuals. This physician was needed to not only to bring modern surgery equipment, but also education North Korean medical professionals

Most children are not very fond of reading books in school. I was one of those children until I read a novel called, “The Other Side of Dark” written by Joan Lowery Nixon in the 4th grade. My school had held a book fair during the week of open house. As a child, all children want the toys and games they had at the book fair, not bothering to even glance at the books. My mother told me to look for a book that was not only easy for me to read but something that I would enjoy. I walked around our petite library, which was where the book fair was being held, and scanned the various novels that were displayed until one caught my eye. I was only 10 years old looking for a book without the knowledge of what types of literature that interested me. As I turned the corner at the end of the library I caught a glimpse of a hardcover novel called “The Other Side of Dark”. On the back of novel I read the synopsis which was about a 13 year-old girl who was shot and put into coma until she was 17 years old waking up to discovering that her family was also murdered by the same person who shot her 4 years ago. I was quickly captivated by this summary on the back of the novel and persuaded to read further. Open house was coming to an end and my family and I headed back to our house in La Mirada, California. One of our homework assignments was to read at least 20 minutes a night to improve our reading skills. We quickly arrived at our home and I

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan follows multiple Chinese-American women who struggle with their self-identity and creating a balance between American and Chinese culture. Because of their immigration and many hardships in life, many of the women feel like they cannot truly tell who they are anymore, and throughout the novel these women are portrayed as ghosts. Ghosts are used to symbolize these women because they share many parallels including being only a remnant of who they once were, or who they could be. Ying-ying St. Clair is one of the women, who has a daughter named Lena St. Clair, she has had a troubled past in China, which has made her lose her fighting spirit, and her spirit in general. Ying-ying is fully aware of her loss of spirit and is embarrassed because she considers ghosts to be shameful and weak, and wants to save her daughter, Lena, from her fate.

I chose to see this movie not because it was considered one of the greatest film noir at all times but simply because it was starring Orson Welles. Orson was a persona and I thought it would be great to see him again. Certainly the role he played as ‘dirty’ Harry with brilliant monologues and sharp humor was simply fabulous.

In the story we learn the toughts and voice of a husband who finds out that his wife previous love of her life still remains a huge part of her life,even tough this man no longer physically esxist he is still in his wifes toughts,how she has not been able to overcome that lost,and how this affects this character,his ego and how he learns to deal with the issue.

In the “Invisible Child” written by Andrea Elliot, a lifestyle of a homeless girl named Dasani and her family is shown. Elliot displays Dasani’s culture, and some of the struggles that she and her family face daily because they are homeless. Dasani is very dedicated to her school work. She wants to be better than anyone in her family ever was so she doesn’t have to worry about being homeless for the rest of her life. In some ways I can relate to Dasani, I am very passionate about my school work as well. I want to excel so I can be my very best in the future. However, our reasoning’s for wanting to be the best we can be are a little different. She wants to excel so she no longer has to worry about being homeless whereas I’ve never been homeless so I cannot say the exact same. I grew up being a very privileged kid. Both of my parents worked full time good paying jobs. I’ve never had to want for much of anything. My parents have always spoiled me with nice things, they have always made sure my siblings and I had nice clothes and a decent meal to eat. They are even paying for me to attain a college education. Dasani and her family however are a lot different from mine. In the “Invisible Child” Elliot tells us how Dasani’s parents do not have legit jobs, instead they have side “hustles” that only bring in a few dollars. Elliot states (2013) that a lot of mornings Dasani was starving at school because she had no breakfast. Dasani and her siblings also had to wear clothes that were

The current generation is quizzical of the importance that religious teachings hold in our evolving pro-choice society. In past generations, spiritualism was a method of uniting the community and nurturing the young. However, we find that faith has the adverse effect. While separate from other religions, a rise in hate fueled discrimination and separatism is observable between different communities in all corners of the globe. In this generation, it is only logical that as religion is taught, after learning from present and past events, the very essence of the teachings is skewed and put into question.

These characters grow as they suffer through marriage problems. When the woman leaves the man, which lets him learn his mistakes and to be grateful for the things they had. He writes, “Things to tell her. That I’m sorry. That I miss her. That all I want-all I ever wanted-is for her to be happy” (Dooley and Holzman 3). The man has learned and developed into a greater human being.

Death and dying is an inescapable process that all humans will face at some time in life, whether it is the death of a friend or family member. After experiencing the death of a loved one comes the process of grieving, which is part of coping with the loss of a loved one. The Optimist’s Daughter is a novel written by Eudora Welty, and it is based on a girl named Laurel McKelva Hand and her struggles with grief. Laurel utilizes memory to overcome the grief she experiences, resulting from the loss of her family.

Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick provides insight into the lives of North Korean defectors while in North Korea. Their accounts give inside information about the North Korean regime which makes it possible to analyze to what extent society was an egalitarian utopia. The interview reveals that people were discriminated by social class as evident by those who were richer, and thus in a higher social strata, having more opportunities for success. There was also economic inequity which was apparent by people having different degrees of struggle. However, the problems North Koreans faced was similar, which showed there was some equality from their struggles. Overall, the interviewees give accounts which contradict the idea that the North Korean regime was promoting egalitarianism through their accounts which give counterexamples regarding social class and economic status, so their claim of egalitarianism is mostly false.

“Wish for a Young Wife”, by Theodore Roethke, may seem to be more than just a simple epithalamium, for the way the poet presents his writing compels the reader to question his true intentions. Nevertheless, although it is easy for the reader to trip down this path, a closer reading, in which one pays particular attention to aspects such the poem's imagery, rhyme scheme, meter, and parallelism, allows them to acknowledge that as the poet appreciates his wife and elaborates on what he wants for her, it is in fact the ambiguity of the poem that doubles the effect of his sincerity and love for his young wife.

Throughout Elizabeth Jenning’s poem ‘Reminiscence’, she explores the changing nature of love and its transformation between childhood and adulthood. She indulges in the purity of love that exists within the simplistic aspects of children's lives as she discusses the loss of naivety during the ascendence into the complexities of adulthood. Demonstrating the innocence of childhood, Jenning’s displays a sense of freedom associated with their lack of anxiety and nuances. In opposition to such, adulthood is presented to confine Jennings as she deals with the concept of feeling trapped which results in her conflicting emotions that lead to a celebratory recollection of childhood ease.

The characterization of the heroine of the story and the relationship that exists between her and her husband tie together to make

As the head of the household it is a father’s duty to keep the family together whatever the situation lies ahead of them. However, this is the stereotypical view of what a father should be without taking into the fact that certain circumstances can impact each and every family. For example, both these short stories face the same tragedy in which both families lose their sons to something that is unavoidable such as a disease or simply just death at a young age. Jhumpa Lahari explores the thought that a father needs to provide for the family financially in order to give the family a good life, while Bobbie Ann Mason encourages the idea that simply presence and materialistic things will help one’s family and at the same time happiness. However, this is not always the case as both the families in this story struggle with the aftermath of the loss of their sons. One chooses to continue working to give his family a good life even without his wife’s support while the other decides to find ways such as simply spending time with his wife to make her happy. These decisions will not only contribute to how each head of the family will change throughout, but also why each of their own characteristics will affect how their wives will view them.