Premium Essay

Personal Narrative: You Cut My Ear

Submitted By
Words 419
Pages 2
You Cut My Ear My mom has always been a little OCD but, this one time it went a little too far. I was in kindergarten, so I would be 5 years old, and my mom usually cuts my hair herself because she speculated that she did a more superior job than the barbers did for some reason. There was one exception, however when she did take me to get my haircut at the barber one instance. The time she did do it she was very hesitant to do so, but she let it advance. Later that day she was making dinner and my dad asked her if she cut my hair again. She immediately paused and looked over at me and she spotted that I had one longer hair than the others in several places on my head. She was flipping out and cursing about how the barbers didn't do a

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Heritage Language

...call his name. In this poem, identity is not seen as something that is solid and concrete but as something that is situated and constructed by others, a glimpse of poststructuralist view on identity. Recently, language learning has been seen as participation and negotiation of self (see Higgins, forthcoming; Kinginger, 2004; Lam, 2000; Morita, 2004; Ohara, 2001; Pavlenko & Lantolf, 2000; and Solé, 2007 among others). The trend is resonated in the growing interest in language learner identity and the studies in narratives. In this paper, a case of heritage language learner will be investigated upon the theoretical frame of poststructuralism. Narrative inquiry will be used to analyze how she negotiates her learner identity. The purpose of this paper is two-fold: First, by looking at the struggle a language learner makes to acquire her heritage language, I reclaim the centrality of identity in defining heritage language learners. Second, to widen the horizons of narrative studies to the cyber space as it provides an ample source of easily accessible data and it has become one of the commonplace media of daily communication. Heritage Language Learners and Identity To refer to the Heritage Language Learners (HLLs), various terms have been implemented such as ‘native speakers,’ ‘quasi native speakers,’ ‘bilingual speakers,’ or, from the dissatisfaction with the prior terms, ‘home background speakers,’ and ‘heritage language speakers’ (Valés, 2005: p. 412). There has not yet been...

Words: 4079 - Pages: 17

Free Essay

Classifications

...people to encounter at a travel center. A truck stop is kind of like an airport; there is so much diversity in the people everywhere you turn. There’s this girl Alexis who has been working at Pilot Travel Center for about two and half years. When she first started, she too thought the same – all truckers are fat and nasty. To her surprise, there are so many different kinds of personalities that walk in the door; you’ll be astonished that they are in the truck driving industry. After quick examination Alexis was able to narrow “these people” down to four specific categories; the creepy flirts, the professional clean cuts, the grumpy jerks, and of course, the stinky fats-o’s. Now, with that being said, sit back and try to visualize these unique individuals. First up, the creepy flirts; these are the men who will turn any type of conversation into an episode of Date Night. One of the procedures that have to be met while working at Pilot Flying J is asking for the "my rewards card," if for some reason the customer doesn’t have the card physically with them it can be looked up by the number associated with the account. It doesn’t matter how good looking or just plain old decent the cashier looks, any time a trucker is asked for their number they’ll try to flip the scrip. The most popular line that these drivers use are “well you called me last night, you forgot that quickly?” Or they’ll try this line “1800-BIG-DADDY.” Curtis is one of those customers that comes to PFJ faithfully every...

Words: 2067 - Pages: 9

Free Essay

Shards of Memories, Fragments of Sorrows: Mothertongue Transforming Spaces Occupied by Women in South Africa Through Theatre

...Africa through Theatre This paper sets out to explore how processes of theatre making employed by The Mothertongue project, provide spaces for women to remap their personal narratives. Mothertongue works from the premise that the development and subsequent performance of stories in theatrical processes affords women the opportunity to re-write and remap their personal narratives and in so doing insert their voices into the landscape of South African Theatre. In an attempt to redress the gender imbalances and androcentricism prevalent in post-apartheid theatre, this paper speaks to the relationship between theatre, liminality and communitas. I am interested in unpacking how collaborative processes of theatre-making provide spaces for women to remap their personal narratives. Remapping in this instance refers to processes of transforming lived experience through story. I address how, through engaging in ritual activities that are central to the stories performed, actors, audiences and the owners of the source stories are invited to physically participate in remapping and transforming lived experience. Linked to this is the choice of form(s) and how this affects or impacts on the performed stories as well as on the construction of performed rituals and ultimately on the processes of remapping personal narratives. I focus specifically on Mothertongue’s 2004 production, Uhambo: pieces of a dream. The production was an integration of theatre and visual art in the form of performances...

Words: 7672 - Pages: 31

Free Essay

Minimalist Connotations in 'Fight Club'

...arguments usually question or celebrate the transgressive potentials of the book (Giroux; Mendieta), or address issues of masculinity brought into the fore by their literary and cinematic representations emergent in the same decade (Tuss; Friday). However, few, if any, have addressed the literary aspirations of the text and its author. Although none of the approaches to the thematic concerns of Fight Club are unjustified, in the argument that follows I will suggest that conclusions drawn and critical judgments passed have been hasty, and not only failed to take into account the formal aspects of story-telling, but that the narrative features of Palahniuk’s text have largely went unexplored, and constitute a blind spot of the reception. Critics condemning or acclaiming the novel, and, indeed, many a cultic reader of Palahniuk ignored Fight Club as a literary narrative, and have inadvertently been repeating the catchphrases of the text, either reinforcing or trying to undermine what they have understood as their meaning. I see the significance of Palahniuk’s fiction and the literary event of Fight Club’s publication in somewhat different terms. Palahniuk’s emphasis and continued insistence on minimalism suggest that his fiction is properly understood as belonging to a literary tradition whose evaluation remains troubled and, for a large part, unsettled. Nevertheless,...

Words: 7514 - Pages: 31

Premium Essay

Why Was the Bible Written

...Eric D. King REL. 221 Dr. John Brannon “Why Was the Bible Written?” Writers have a purpose for writing. One may write to inform, entertain, oppose, expose, persuade or to preserve facts. Why was the Bible written? In this study, we shall seek to answer that question. Our opinion as to the Bible's purpose is not valid or sufficient (Isa. 55:8, 9). Accordingly, we shall let God, the Holy Spirit; tell us why it was given unto man (1 Cor. 2:6-16). If we know why the Bible was written, we shall know how to use it more effectively (2 Tim. 2:15). Dr. Seuss and Mother Goose are literary works, but their purpose differs from that of Sandburg's "Lincoln" or Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich. If you doubt that, read them to a three year old at bedtime. If we are to understand the reasons why the word of God was written will assist us in receiving its intended benefits and blessings. To better understand the Bible's purpose and reason for existence, it may help us to see goals that it was not given to accomplish. First, it was not written for profit. Men may make money for publishing it, but the Bible was not written for that purpose. God said, "If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine and the fullness thereof" (Psa. 50:12). Many of the apostles suffered "the loss of all things" (Phil. 3:8; 1 Cor. 4:9-13). Money was not their motivation. Second, the Bible was not written to satisfy idle curiosity. God gave man a curious, inquisitive nature. This wondering...

Words: 4031 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Gay and Lesbian Theme

...University of Tennessee, Knoxville Trace: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 12-2009 Peeking Out: A Textual Analysis of Heteronormative Images in Prime-Time Television D. Renee Smith University of Tennessee - Knoxville, drsmith@utk.edu Recommended Citation Smith, D. Renee, "Peeking Out: A Textual Analysis of Heteronormative Images in Prime-Time Television. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2009. http://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/10 This Dissertation 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 Doctoral Dissertations 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 dissertation written by D. Renee Smith entitled "Peeking Out: A Textual Analysis of Heteronormative Images in Prime-Time Television." I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Communication and Information. Catherine A. Luther, Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: Michelle T. Violanti, Suzanne Kurth, Benjamin J. Bates Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice...

Words: 33344 - Pages: 134

Free Essay

Creative Writing

...Contents TQA Student ID: 13X35189 1. Title: Reflective Statement Word Count: 1095 2. Title: Teenage Dream Genre/form: Narrative Word Count: 3534 3. Title: Tradition? Genre/form: Narrative Word Count: 1141 4. Title: Family Genre/form: Narrative Word Count: 900 Total Word Count: 6670 Please Note: • • The Writing Project must be clearly identified. The ‘List of Contents’ must be the first page of the electronic folio. Tasmanian Qualifications Authority English – Writing ENW315109 TQA Student ID: 13X35189 Reflective Statement Expressing my own thoughts into writing has never been a real enjoyment; it probably has to do with my school education where we were asked to refer to the context of the books as learning materials as opposed to pure enjoyment. Education in Australia is very different to where I come from; it requires selflearning and self-reflection for overall development and self-improvement. Obviously the word “self” is important in education in Australia and from this perspective learning has become so much more real and enjoyable. One of the main reasons to choose English Writing is to express my thoughts, opinions and arguments in writing which I have never been encouraged to do before. Over the course of study I have developed various skills learnt different literary techniques and increased my vocabulary. This course is a very good platform for me to prepare myself for university, but I have been allowed to have an opinion...

Words: 6981 - Pages: 28

Free Essay

Bring Back the Sun

...eclipse witnessed, eighteenth-century style, by members of the court of Philip V of Spain around 1740. Restless spectators squint through pieces of tinted glass prepared in the smoke of a small fire. It is a precious visual detail, a jolt of history in this sumptuously though often inaccurately detailed film that offsets the melodrama to follow. Without warning, a wind, helped along by corny, time-lapse photography, ushers in a sea of Goya-like clouds. A murmur passes through the entourage; eerie blackness falls on the court. The King is shrouded in another kind of darkness: his famous, chronic melancholy (we would call it 'clinical depression'). He pronounces the whole earth a tomb, makes the sign of the cross, then calls for a dose of his personal pain reliever - the voice of Carlo Broschi, known as Farinelli: 'Bring back the sun', he demands. Without hesitation the singer intones in a thin soprano the mournfully exposed opening phrase of 'Alto Giove', an aria from Nicola Porpora's Polifemo. Farinelli is known to have performed the work at the...

Words: 8560 - Pages: 35

Free Essay

Humanities

...pictorial, plastic, and building)– and to the so-called “minor arts” (everyday, useful, applied, and decorative arts) • The word “art” is derived from arti, which denotes craftsmanship, skill, mastery of form, inventiveness. • Art serves as a technical and creative record of human needs and achievements. The word 'art' is often used in our daily lives. However, when we scrutinize the word in depth, defining what is art may not be as straight forward as it appears to be. SOURCE: Atkins, R. (2010). Art Speak; A Guide to Contemporary Ideas, Movements and Buzzwords. In this module, we are dealing with the subject of aesthetic visual arts, which includes painting, sculpture, photography, and so on. Aesthetic art, in my opinion, is something...

Words: 11870 - Pages: 48

Premium Essay

Film Essay

...returned some minutes later asking, “Where is that?” I replied that I thought it was in the Hollywood Hills, and he returned to his search engine. Yes, we agreed, there are too many films, too much history, for today’s student to master. “Someone should write a film version of Harold Bloom’s The Western Canon,” a writer from The Independent suggested, and “the person who should write it,” he said, looking at me, “is you.” I looked to Walter, who replied, “If you write it, I’ll publish it.” And the die was cast. Faber offered a contract, and I set to work. Following the Bloom model I decided it should be an elitist canon, not populist, raising the bar so high that only a handful of films would pass over. I proceeded to compile a list of essential films, attempting, as best I could, to separate personal favorites from those movies that artistically defined film history. Compiling was the easy part—then came the first dilemma: why was I selecting these films? What were my criteria? What is a canon? It is, by definition, based on criteria that transcend taste, personal and popular. The more I pondered this, the more I realized how ignorant I was. How could I formulate a film...

Words: 11026 - Pages: 45

Premium Essay

Worldwide Non Western Cultures Faced Fundamental Challenges to Their Cultural Identities Not so Much a Recentering of Culture but a Decentering of Culture

...described [and] which occurs after severe mechanical concussions, railway disasters and other accidents involving a risk to life; it has been given the name of traumatic neurosis’ (12). Freud’s remark brings to the fore the traumas of the industrial age as both individually and publicly experienced and negotiated. This condition of trauma as private and public, individual yet also societal is held in tension throughout Cunningham’s novel. Reflecting on the otherness of trauma and its vexed relationship to representation, this article will consider some aspects of the writing of trauma in Michael Cunningham’s 2005 novel Specimen Days; a text that offers a particularly powerful literary imaging of culture’s disavowals that return to haunt. In my discussion of Cunningham’s engagement with trauma, and in particular social and ‘insidious’ forms of trauma, the main concerns will be firstly how the text...

Words: 7114 - Pages: 29

Premium Essay

Do the Right Thing Film Analysis

...Spike Lee's movie Do the Right Thing, my sister and I had a fight over lunch. It was one of those things you do with a lover, or sometimes with a close friend about politics, where the terms you disagree on are too buried to perceive or even to guess, at the time, that they're there. You can be agreeing about all the superficial details and about the largest of generalizations all along--my sister and I both found the film powerfully moving--and still wind up fighting about ... something--one of those disagreements that leave you dissatisfied and unexplainably angry. Her arguments weren't unfamiliar. I had run into very similar concerns, interpretations, and vocabulary in some of the mainstream criticism on the film. But it was only after stewing about our lunch for a couple of days that I began to figure out how completely at odds with the movie I saw was the one she--and those critics--had seen. The more I thought about it, the more I could see that these were no idiosyncratic subjective responses. Rather, our differences were bound up with Spike Lee's mix of styles of representation, which my sister and I responded to selectively and from very different perspectives. While Lee's representation of the Italians was moving and meaningful to her, she could find nothing in his portrayal of the black community that would provide for the same feelings. For, I came to see, while Lee uses to elaborate his white characters methods and narrative and cinematic techniques that have been...

Words: 7201 - Pages: 29

Premium Essay

Warehouse Worker

...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. This essay originally appeared in the collectemalan by birth but pura gringa by circumstance? tion Border-Line Personalities: A Do I add the humble little laugh I usually attach New Generation of Latinas Dish to the end of my sentence to let him know that of on Sex, Sass & Cultural Shifting...

Words: 9852 - Pages: 40

Free Essay

Art and Story Proceedings 2004

...Arts and the Education of Artists: Art and Story CONTENTS SECTION ONE: Marcel’s Studio Visit with Elstir……………………………………………………….. David Carrier SECTION TWO: Film and Video Narrative Brief Narrative on Film-The Case of John Updike……………………………………. Thomas P. Adler With a Pen of Light …………………………………………………………………… Michael Fink Media and the Message: Does Media Shape or Serve the Story: Visual Storytelling and New Media ……………………………………………………. June Bisantz Evans Visual Literacy: The Language of Cultural Signifiers…………………………………. Tammy Knipp SECTION THREE: Narrative and Fine Art Beyond Illustration: Visual Narrative Strategies in Picasso’s Celestina Prints………… Susan J. Baker and William Novak Narrative, Allegory, and Commentary in Emil Nolde’s Legend: St. Mary of Egypt…… William B. Sieger A Narrative of Belonging: The Art of Beauford Delaney and Glenn Ligon…………… Catherine St. John Art and Narrative Under the Third Reich ……………………………………………… Ashley Labrie 28 15 1 22 25 27 36 43 51 Hopper Stories in an Imaginary Museum……………………………………………. Joseph Stanton SECTION FOUR: Photography and Narrative Black & White: Two Worlds/Two Distinct Stories……………………………………….. Elaine A. King Relinquishing His Own Story: Abandonment and Appropriation in the Edward Weston Narrative………………………………………………………………………….. David Peeler Narrative Stretegies in the Worlds of Jean Le Gac and Sophe Calle…………………….. Stefanie Rentsch SECTION FIVE: Memory Does The History of Western Art Tell a Grand Story?……………………………………...

Words: 117240 - Pages: 469

Premium Essay

Sherlock Holmes

...short-story series and two novels (published in serial form) appeared from then to 1927. The events in the stories take place from about 1880 to 1914. All but four stories are narrated by Holmes's friend and biographer, Dr. John H. Watson. Two are narrated by Holmes himself ("The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier" and "The Adventure of the Lion's Mane"), and two others are written in the third person ("The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone" and "His Last Bow"). In two stories ("The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual" and "The Adventure of the Gloria Scott"), Holmes tells Watson the story from memory, with Watson narrating the frame story. The first and fourth novels, A Study in Scarlet and The Valley of Fear, include long passages of omniscient narrative of events unknown to either Holmes or Watson. Contents [hide] 1 Inspiration for the character 2 Fictional character biography 2.1 Early life 2.2 Life with Watson 2.3 The Great Hiatus 2.4 Retirement 3 Personality and habits 3.1 Drug use 3.2 Finances 3.3 Attitudes towards women 3.3.1 Irene Adler...

Words: 4961 - Pages: 20