...Richard Sherman: The Rejected Embodiment of the American Dream If I work hard enough, I can do anything. If I put my mind to it, I can make all the money in the world. If I give it my all, I can get everything that I want and more. This rhetoric is what our great country is built upon: The American Dream. No matter who you are and where you come from, with determination and persistence, you can fulfill your wildest dreams. This concept represents several key American values: racial equality, capitalism, and an emphasis on merit over social status. Although the American community preaches equality for all, its racially-fueled disapproval of Richard Sherman’s “outburst” is a microcosm of Americans’ selective application of the American Dream, the tendency to view those who come from underprivileged neighborhoods as inherently and genetically unequipped with the cognitive tools required for academic and professional success. On January 19th, 2014, the day of the NFL NFC Championshp, the stakes could not have been greater; Richard Sherman was just thirty seconds away from his first Super Bowl. Sherman’s Seattle Seahawks led the San Francisco 49ers 23-17, leaving the 49ers with a final opportunity to win the game. The 49ers ran a play for Michael Crabtree, whom Sherman was guarding, who was making his way into the end zone. Sherman, the NFL’s best cornerback, leaped with Crabtree and tipped the pass towards a teammate in a historic play that ended the 49ers season and, in turn...
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...In Juan Escalante’s article DACA 101: What it Feels Like To Be A Dreamer is a narrative essay on his personal experience as someone who was fortunate enough to obtain the DACA permit. In his article he opens up with letting his audience know the current status of the DACA permit. As of recently, the president of the United States has started the process of demantling the program that was offered to young undocumented children that were brought to the United States as children. Juan goes on to describe the fear and anxiety that has overcome all of the young undocumented children that have been contributing to society. He also speaks about the fear and horror that he felt when he and his family heard knocks at his door. In this article he is...
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...Graduate School 5-2010 Bharati Mukherjee and the American Immigrant: Reimaging the Nation in a Global Context Leah Rang University of Tennessee - Knoxville, lrang@utk.edu Recommended Citation Rang, Leah, "Bharati Mukherjee and the American Immigrant: Reimaging the Nation in a Global Context. " Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2010. http://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/655 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at Trace: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of Trace: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact trace@utk.edu. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Leah Rang entitled "Bharati Mukherjee and the American Immigrant: Reimaging the Nation in a Global Context." I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in English. Urmila Seshagiri, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Lisi Schoenbach, Bill Hardwig Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official student records.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Leah Rang entitled ―Bharati Mukherjee and the American Immigrant:...
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...F. Scott Fitzgerald is in many ways one of the most notable writers of the twentieth century. His prodigious literary voice and style provides remarkable insight into the lifestyles of the rich and famous, as well as himself. Exploring themes such as disillusionment, coming of age, and the corruption of the American Dream, Fitzgerald based most of his subject matter on his own despicable, tragic life experiences. Although he was thought to be the trumpeter of the Jazz Age, he never directly identified himself with it and was adverse to many of its manifestations. The life of F. Scott Fitzgerald was deeply divided, in that his early successes in the 1910’s and 1920’s contrast noticeably with the years full of personal happenings and self doubt. It was divided, among all, between the pursuit of the artistic ideal and the continual lure of easy success. He became a victim of the myth of success and money instead of the perpetrator. Nevertheless, Fitzgerald’s incredible prose style and beautiful talent shined through his tragic, disillusioned life and he was able to successful create a beautiful world for his readers to escape to. In the early 1920’s, Fitzgerald was accepted as a symbol of youthful sophistication. He became intensely aware of the strangeness and mystery behind the rich at a young age, and tried so hard to echo their actions through sheen curiosity and characterization. It was then that he established a rich and enduring symbolic value throughout his...
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...Discovering African American Literature Rebekah Valcarcel Eng/301 November 30th, 2015 Dr. Julie Kares The art of storytelling invites readers into another world. Examining the literary conventions African American authors use allows readers to compare and contrast literary works. Harriet A. Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Terry McMillan’s The End and Maya Angelou’s Willie are significant literary pieces to discuss. It is important to consider factors such as historical, socio-political and cultural climate because these factors contribute and influence an author’s point of view as well as each author’s unique voice and message depending on the time period. Harriet A. Jacobs’s Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, is a slave narrative. The literary conventions of the slave narrative define the work. Slave narratives echo biblical stories that often reflect persecuted groups attempting to escape to freedom. Jacobs’s piece details her struggle to escape her master from sexual abuse. Vivanco (2003), “The process from sin to rebirth in spiritual autobiographies is paralleled by the process from slavery to freedom in slave narratives. Slaves experience a change from chattel, enduring suffering, to man or woman living in the Promised Land, the North,” (para. 5). Further distinction of the slave narrative is how authors shape the story, often chronologically. Slave narratives illustrate an author’s personal experience though many share common themes of extreme...
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...Overcoming through Personal Responsibility: Sojourner Truth Sojourner Truth stated “If women want any rights more than they got, why don't they just take them, and not be talking about it (Sojourner Truth Quotes).” Sojourner Truth was an African American abolitionist and woman’s right activist from Ulster County, New York. Ms. Truth is famously known for her speech Aren’t I a Woman and The Narrative of Sojourner Truth. Woman should be treated equally regardless of their race, education level, and appearance which do not happen in today’s society. First, women should be treated equal regardless of their race. Race is a big issue in today’s society. Racism is discrimination based on the color of the person’s skin color. A person should be judge based on their character not the color of their skin. Sojourner Truth grew up in the century when slavery was popular where was born into...
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...reinstate in the child the requirements of society from his gender in the future. A girl has to prepare herself to be a housewife whose place is the private sphere, or who will be the angel in the home, while a boy must prepare himself to the public sphere, to be the bread winner of the family. This leads us to the claim that children's stories are not ideologically...
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...NORTH AMERICAN FICTION BRIEF INTRODUCTION: Before starting our study of American Fiction we must understand what American Literature is in itself and which pieces of writing we can include within this label. It is believed that when a piece is written in North America, more precisely in the USA, it would automatically be given this epithet. But it should be taken into account that this idea is quite broad and doesn’t reflect the real essence of the term. However, there is also another definition that gathers this essence: American Literature is the one that represents the Americanism, the singularity of the USA philosophy and culture. This way, instead of focusing on who the author is, it is focused on the content of the writing. In that which concerns Fiction, the following documents are the ones considered as narrative: Speeches Letters Short Stories Essays Political Documents Sermons Novels Diaries 1 FIRST LITERARY EXPRESSIONS The first documents in which the idea of Americanism is very present are the Sermons. They respond to the strict Protestantism settled in the New Continent after the arrival of the Pilgrim Fathers and Puritans in the Mayflower (1620) and the Arabella (1630). They established a theocratic community whose main and only point of reference was the Bible. That is why the idea of the ‘city upon a hill’ is still very present in American mentality. As we all know...
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...Roen−Glau−Maid: The McGraw−Hill Guide: Writing for College, Writing for Life, 2/e II. Using What You’ve Learned to Share Information The McGraw-Hill Guide: Writing for College, Writing for Life, Second Edition 4. Writing to Share Experience © The McGraw−Hill Companies, 2011 13 Reading, Inquiry, and Research ■ PART 2 | Using What You Have Learned to Share Information 57 TANYA BARRIENTOS Se Habla Español MEMOIR he man on the other end of the phone line is 1 Tanya Maria telling me the classes I’ve called about are firstBarrientos has rate: native speakers in charge, no more than six stuwritten for the dents per group. Philadelphia “Conbersaychunal,” he says, allowing the fat vow- 2 Inquirer for more than els of his accented English to collide with the sawedtwenty years. off consonants. I tell him that will be fi ne, that I’m familiar with 3 Barrientos was born in Guatethe conversational setup, and yes, I’ve studied a bit mala and raised of Spanish in the past. He asks for my name and I in El Paso, Texas. Her first novel, Frontera Street, was supply it, rolling the double r in Barrientos like a pro. published in 2002, and her second, That’s when I hear the silent snag, the momentary Family Resemblance, was pubhesitation I’ve come to expect at this part of the exlished in 2003. Her column “Unchange. Should I go into it again? Should I explain, conventional Wisdom” runs every the way I have to half a dozen others, that I am Guaweek in the Inquirer...
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...can be universally appreciated. That these works of literature have universal appeal is a testament to the writing skills of both authors, as well as to the way in which each of them has blended historical fact and fiction, to paraphrase Mr. Lester in his Author’s Note in Day of Tears (175). Although both novels furnish us with multiple examples of how African-Americans and Native Americans were, and in the case of Diary, still are being mistreated at the hands of the white majority, they nevertheless serve to affirm the fact that the resilience of the children exposed to these horrors transcends a mere discussion of race because resilience is part of the human spirit. Both books are replete with examples proving this thesis. These novels are of recent vintage. Day of Tears was first published in 2005, while Diary was copyrighted in 2007. Both authors are “insiders,” that is to say, they are members of the minority groups that are the subjects of their writing. The book jacket of the paperback edition of Diary proclaims that the work is “inspired by his [Alexie’s] own experiences growing up.” We learn from Lester’s Author’s Note that Day of Tears was inspired by an event mentioned to him by his editor, namely, “The Weeping Time,” which was the nickname for the largest slave auction in the history of the antebellum south (174). The auction earned this nickname, a double entendre, because of the constant rain during the weeklong auction, as well as for the plethora...
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...can be universally appreciated. That these works of literature have universal appeal is a testament to the writing skills of both authors, as well as to the way in which each of them has blended historical fact and fiction, to paraphrase Mr. Lester in his Author’s Note in Day of Tears (175). Although both novels furnish us with multiple examples of how African-Americans and Native Americans were, and in the case of Diary, still are being mistreated at the hands of the white majority, they nevertheless serve to affirm the fact that the resilience of the children exposed to these horrors transcends a mere discussion of race because resilience is part of the human spirit. Both books are replete with examples proving this thesis. These novels are of recent vintage. Day of Tears was first published in 2005, while Diary was copyrighted in 2007. Both authors are “insiders,” that is to say, they are members of the minority groups that are the subjects of their writing. The book jacket of the paperback edition of Diary proclaims that the work is “inspired by his [Alexie’s] own experiences growing up.” We learn from Lester’s Author’s Note that Day of Tears was inspired by an event mentioned to him by his editor, namely, “The Weeping Time,” which was the nickname for the largest slave auction in the history of the antebellum south (174). The auction earned this nickname, a double entendre, because of the constant rain during the weeklong auction, as...
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...Barriers Influencing American Dreams Do obstacles in one’s life change one’s aspirations? If something hard or even Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:49 PM Comment: TITLE SHOULD REFLECT OVERALL THEME OF ESSAYß Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Attention Getter unexpected occurs, does one turn his or her back on all that has been worked for? In an American society, there is an idea of a dream. Most people have dreams that differ from one another. Dreams are not limited only to society. Countless numbers of times in American literature, there are moments when an obstacle slows or possibly halts progression. Dreams can also be found in American literature; however, like the reality of society, barriers can be a component of having aspirations. Barriers create obstacles, whether emotional or physical, that make achieving a dream difficult or even appear to be impossible. In American literature dreams seem to be unattainable because of barriers. In all the years of literature, dreams, goals, and aspirations come in contact Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Broad Topic Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Narrow Topic Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:36 PM Comment: Thesis Statement Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:36 PM Comment: Clincher Sentence with a conflict. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby has a dream to be with Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby has a passion for his dream so fierce that he pursues ...
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...the issue of what these women might think about women today. Harriet Beecher Stowe Harriet Beecher Stowe was the seventh child born to Lyman Beecher and Roxana on June 14, 1811. She was educated at Ma’am Kilbourn School, The Litchfield Academy and The Hartford Female Seminary. She married Calvin Ellis Stowe in January, 1836 who was a biblical scholar. She gave birth to seven children (Johnson-Lewis). Harriet Beecher Stowe was an abolitionist and an author. In 1852, she released the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The work depicted the life of African American slaves. She based her writing on her won readings and personal observations. This novel led to energizing anti-slavery forces in the United States. Harriet Beecher Stow met President Abraham Lincoln in 1862 where he said, “So you are the little woman who wrote the book that started this Great War!” Harriet Beecher Stowe departed this life on July 1, 1896 (Bio True Story). Sojourner Truth Sojourner Truth, born Isabella Baumfree was born in 1797. She was sold several times, and while owned by the Dumont family in Ulster County, married Thomas, another Durmont slave. She bore five children with Thomas. In 1927, New York law emancipated all slave but Isabella had already left her husband and ran away with her youngest child. She went to work for the Van Wagenen family. While working for that family she discovered that...
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...Daniela Escudero Eng-101 Prof. David Schleicher Narrative Essay 5/27/2014 Moving to America Transformed My Life In the past I came across many changes but leaving my country was the toughest change in my life. I had to learn how to live away from people I love and how to start a new life in a new country. Immigration is a life changing experience; learning a new language, adapting to the culture and lifestyle changes are all strenuous things that were thrown at me once I became a part of this country. Even though moving away from my family and friends was a difficult decision, it changed my live for a better. It taught me how to deal with change, how to become an independent and responsible person, and how to feel this country my home. I never imagined living in another country. I remember as it was yesterday when my mom said, “Daniela, I know you do not want to leave Colombia but I have to take you with me, you are my youngest child and I will not let you here” I started arguing with her, saying that how she could do that to me when I already had plans to start college and that I was happy in my country but at the end I gave up and decided to come to America. It was February 10th, 2010, when I left Colombia and was forced to leave my friends, my grandmother, my school, my language and culture to move to this big new country to start a new life. As I took my last look at my home, I remembered all the fun times I had with my mom and sister and friends...
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...A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO THE SIGNET CLASSIC EDITION OF BOOKER T. WASHINGTON’S UP FROM SLAVERY By VIRGINIA L. SHEPHARD, Ph.D., Florida State University S E R I E S E D I T O R S : W. GEIGER ELLIS, ED.D., ARTHEA J. S. REED, PH.D., UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, EMERITUS and UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, RETIRED A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of Booker T. Washington’s Up from Slavery 2 INTRODUCTION Booker T. Washington’s commanding presence and oratory deeply moved his contemporaries. His writings continue to influence readers today. Although Washington claimed his autobiography was “a simple, straightforward story, with no attempt at embellishment,” readers for nearly a century have found it richly rewarding. Today, Up From Slavery appeals to a wide audience from early adolescence through adulthood. More important, however, is the inspiration his story of hard work and positive goals gives to all readers. His life is an example providing hope to all. The complexity and contradictions of his life make his autobiography intellectually intriguing for advanced readers. To some he was known as the Sage of Tuskegee or the Black Moses. One of his prominent biographers, Louis R. Harlan, called him the “Wizard of the Tuskegee Machine.” Others acknowledged him to be a complicated person and public figure. Students of American social and political history have come to see that Washington lived a double life. Publicly he appeased the white establishment...
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