Tobias Whale

Big Jeff Purcell: A Character Analysis Jeff Purcell, known as 'Big Jeff Purcell,' is a classmate of the narrator of "Old School," a novel by Tobias Wolff. He has quirks, like everyone, but is unlike everyone else in the school he attends because he trusts in the goodwill of everyone. Although he is too dependent on his cousin, also named Jeff Purcell, he is compassionate, loyal, and enthusiastic. Although Big Jeff is very compassionate towards his family, unintentionally, he is not letting

Critical Analysis- A Struggle with Identity This Boy's Life is the autobiographical account of teenager. Toby and his mother's search for financial stability and a peaceful life. Toby’s family was split down the middle as a child, leaving his father and older brother on the East Coast and, for the most part, uninvolved in Toby’s life. The story begins when Toby and his mother, Rosemary, leave her abusive boyfriend in Florida to take their chances at becoming rich on uranium mines in Utah. They are

When a child experiences trauma, it stays with them for the rest of their life. When a child experiences abuse, one of the highest forms of trauma, they can do little to stop it from affecting everything they do. Tobias Wolff’s memoir, This Boy’s Life, Illustrates this. While it can be said that Rosemary, the mother of Jack, was in many ways responsible for his life, she herself can not solely be blamed. The trauma and abuse she experienced as a child contributed greatly to her choices, and her son’s

The use of symbols in short stories for thematic enhancement Symbolism is a widely used literary technique in short stories. The accounts described in short stories generally promote a certain aspect like religion, love, politics and discrimination among many others. These are the themes that are promoted by the stories. Symbols and imagery are an aesthetic way of bringing out these themes and authors have learnt how to effectively use them for thematic purpose, as they serve a better role as compared

Powder Powder, a short story written by Tobias Wolff, is about a boy and his father on a Christmas Eve outing. As the story unfolds, it appears to run deeper than only a story about a boy and his father on a simple adventure in the snow. It is an account of a boy and his father’s relationship, or maybe the lack of one. Powder is narrated by a grown-up version of the boy. In this tale, the roles of the boy and his father emerge completely opposite than what they are supposed to be but may prove

This Boy’s Life is a 1993 film adapted from the memoir by Tobias Wolff, a popular contemporary writer, which was first published in 1989. The film is directed by Michael Caton-Jones and stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Tobias Wolff, Robert De Niro as his stepfather Dwight Hansen, and Ellen Barkin as Toby’s mother Caroline. The film starts with Caroline and Toby driving away from their past to Utah, where they plan to find uranium and hope to begin a new life. Their family broke 5 years ago, when Toby’s

The important thing in each paragraph the main point, and all sentences in the paragraph should be clearly related to that point. The main idea must be supported with examples, specific information that develops or details. Paragraph writing is the foundation of all essay writing, even if the essay builds by forms like expository, persuasive, narrative, or creative. Also, these paragraphs depend on the four essentials like unity, order, coherence, and completeness.  The first essay "Simplicity"

Male Gender Role Tobias Wolff gives all of the characters in Hunters in the Snow different characteristics and personalities. Yet the characters are still alike in the way that they all fall under common male roles and stereotypes. Common roles like being the tough guy that can handle anything and does not complain about anything or saying rude things to one another. Wolff Shows this whether it be from the way the characters communicate to one another or their actions. Most males will agree that

The Older brothers comparison between “The Rich Brother” and “Sonny’s Blues” In both of the two stories Sonny’s Blues by Tobias Wolff and The Rich Brother by James Baldwin, there is one brother who is successful and one who would not be considered successful by most. Pete in The Rich Brother is the successful brother while Donald is not. Pete is successful financially but Donald is very smart but he does not make smart decisions. In Sonny’s Blues Sonny is the little brother who is always in trouble

Analysis of Conflict In the short story, “ The Bullet in the Brain,” by Tobias Wolff, we meet a book critic who ends up meeting his demise as a result of being sarcastic with a bank robber who is not on the same educational level as Anders.The conflict of the story is that experiences throughout Anders life has hardened him and made him jaded. Which makes Anders pessimistic and dark to people around him. One of the first examples in this short story by Wolff, conveying an example of how life has