...A Thousand Splendid Suns transports the reader to an unimaginable, unforgiving world. Khaled Hosseini wants the reader to understand, to experience, and to feel the depths of this place. A world unimaginable by many is brought to life through the experiences of the two women. Through the use of characterization, structure, and setting, Hosseini is able to express the despondent tone, while at the same time convey the idea that hope and endless courage are the only ways to survive in a world tarnished by violence and consumed by hatred. Hosseini’s choice to illustrate women from two generations emphasises the injustice felt throughout the ages. Mariam and Laila both come from noticeably different backgrounds, but end up walking the same path in life for many years. While Mariam is considered a bastard child and lives in isolation with her mother, Laila grows up well-educated with two caring parents. The women are first mentioned together when Lalia, still a young girl, “and Tariq were...
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...wearing them. She confiscated them and destroyed them. Which sparked his love for shoes. As he got older, his strange interest for shoes developed stronger and eventually he started to break into neighbor’s homes to steal shoes and women's underwear. Once, when Jerry was 17 years old, he threatened a teenage girl with a knife and forced her to take off her clothes. Brudos then took photos of her naked body. As a result, he spent some time in Oregon State Hospital’s psychiatric ward. However, he was still able to attend school during the day. Although Jerry was released from the hospital after nine months, he developed a need to act out his dark violent fantasies toward women. Many believe his violence toward women was developed by his deep hatred for his mother. In 1957, Jerry graduated from high school. Shortly thereafter, he decided to become an electronics technician. Later he got married to a woman named Darcie, and he even had two children. He also spent some time in the military, but he was later discharged for his bizarre obsessions. His first was murdered on January 26th, 1968, her name was Linda Slawson. She was a young encyclopedia saleswoman, she went to visit to Brudos home. He invited her in and acted like he was interested in buying a set for his children. However, he had more evil intentions in mind. Jerry invited her in, and invited her down to the basement. She went in and sat down on a stool, then he struck her in the head with a two-by-four. Jerry got on top...
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...Martin Luther King Jr. once said “Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him. To have hatred embedded in the heart and to act with violence was something that Martin Luther King didn’t believe in. He believed in love and peaceful protest was the way to go for change to happen.While on the other side, Malcolm X violence and non peaceful protests were the way to go to get your point across more efficiently. During the 1950s and 1960s, Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X took two different approaches in an attempt to change the way society acted towards African Americans. Malcolm X chose a more aggressive yet passionate route for change. He believed that we shouldn’t just let Caucasian people treat African American the way they do. We should stand up for what and protect each other. King thought the exact opposite, he believed that violence solves problems temporarily and non violence has lasting results. Using violence to fight oppression isn’t ideal because it portrays the cause in a negative light, creates fear and anxiety within a community, and it doesn’t have lasting results....
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...daughter.” Sitting in my Aunt Juana’s living room, we were talking about my grandparents’ upcoming 50th anniversary party, and how my dad was stressed trying to organize the party. As Aunt Juana ate a roasted corn she patiently peeled each kernel with her hand, she reminisced about when she was a child and what it was to grow up on the farm. Aunt Juana had to be up by dawn every morning. One of her duties was to feed all the animals they had around the house which included pigs, chickens, sheep and the cows that were kept close by to milk. After all the animals were fed, she then would help her mom milk the cows. Her duty was to hold the baby calf by the rope while my grandma milked the cow and no matter how blistered her hands would get from the thick rope, she knew better than to complain, or worse yet to let go of the rope. Fresh milk for breakfast was a must have, no matter what day it was. My grandpa, a strict perfectionist expected the best in everything; meaning his food had to be fresh at all times. Breakfast practically had to be inhaled so they could get back to work. If my aunt and her siblings didn’t eat fast enough, then they would go without food...
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...Flying the kite with Hassan, young Amir strives for “salvation, redemption” and ultimately, “victory” (65). For the twelve year old, the tournament was a chance for accolades and his father’s attention—all of his efforts for egotistical self-validation. Years later, Amir once again flies the kite—this time running for Sohrab. Bloodied rope whizzing through his hangs, Amir realizes he isn’t running the kite for personal gain as he once did, but for a “tiny...lopsided smile” from Sohrab (370). By taking Hassan's place as the runner, Amir proves that he had become a giving, loyal, and caring person. Amir only continues this by mirroring Hassan's words—“for you, a thousand times over” (67). Originally spoken as a sign of subservience and loyalty from servant to master, by speaking those words to Sohrab—a Hazara boy—Amir truly lets go of the remaining hatred in his heart. Growth of the heart, growth of the spirit, his growth from selfish, scared child to a loving, faithful old man. In William Faulkner’s speech, he says that man will prevail “because he has a soul, a spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance” (Faulkner). He continues on to say that it is “the writer's, duty is to write about these things” and “ his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart.” By writing about these such...
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...story represents the period of time that came shortly before. The dog, the boy, and the father all act as important symbols in this classic retelling of the reconstruction period know as Jim Crow. Jim Crow was the period of time in the United States after the Civil War. Slaves had been emancipated, and equality was supposedly underway. Unfortunately that was not the truth of what really went on in the United States. Many blacks were either still kept as slaves, or subjugated into a serf like state. The dark brown dog, which the story derives its title from, enters the story and takes on the role of a former slave. He is seen in the beginning as walking down the road, tripping over the long piece of rope tied around his neck. This piece of rope is symbolic of the former slavery which he just became free of. However, it is impossible to do anything with that freedom because now the dog has nowhere to live; the dog is forced to walk along the road dejected with no means of protecting or caring for itself. The fact that the dog is stumbling shows that it does not know what to make of its newfound freedom, and is awkward in this new state of being. On the opposite end of the street sat a little boy. The boy represents the new generation of people in the Southern United States. The dog and the...
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...(Poe, “The Black Cat”) His pets suffer the same fate: “I not only neglected, but ill-used them.” (Poe, “The Black Cat”) Pluto is the only one to escape the abuse, although eventually he too suffers at the hands of the narrator. His “disease” only gets worse, until one night, he returns home “much intoxicated” and cuts out one of Pluto's eyes. (Poe, “The Black Cat”) The next day he experiences a “sentiment half of horror, half of remorse...but it was, at best, a feeble and equivocal feeling, an the soul remained untouched.” (Poe, “The Black Cat”) Later, enraged by Pluto's avoidance of him, he wraps a rope around his neck and hangs him from a tree. One night, the narrator wakes up to find that the entire house is ablaze. He, his wife, and their servant barely escape with their lives, however, all of their wealth and possessions are destroyed. The next day, when he visits...
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...Early on in the novel, Mond states with pity, “There was a thing called Heaven; but all the same [savages] used to drink enormous quantities of alcohol” (Huxley, 53). This later relates to when John, a former savage, overwhelmed with emotions of self hatred as a result of being unable to fit in and be accepted anywhere, commits suicide in hopes that Heaven is where he belongs. John believed that he could make the World State moral, but in a moment of despair he consumes soma for the first time. The effects of the drug negatively impacts John, he participates in a violent “orgy-porgy,” a considered ‘religious’ act among citizens where everyone shares everyone, and becomes aggressive. The following day, he realizes that a rope around his neck is his only chance of happiness, along with the delusion that Heaven is where he belongs. The following passage is rich is figurative language, comparing John’s rotating feet to a broken compass constantly changing directions. The reader can infer that John has not yet found his happy place. John, the most human character in the novel, was unable to survive in a society that suppressed all humanity. Today in the 21st century, some may argue that drugs are what makes us...
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...especially when the film includes such a critique of Russian leaders shown by the target scene and the strong hatred evoked toward the town mayor, Zvyagintsev stated, “I still don't understand why the government has supported the movie, to be honest with you. This must be a paradox of Russian reality.” And this paradox seems successful; Leviathan was Russia's official entry to the Oscars and went on to win a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language film. Throughout the film, there are references to biblical parallels shown through the characters, and of course the title in itself, as well as metaphoric settings and situations relating to the Russian people as a whole. “Leviathan” was first mentioned in the book of Job in the Old Testament as a creature, which only God can tame just to prove to Job that He is the only one that is able to do it. That is to say that God is above all human beings, because human beings should never be allowed perfect freedom; for they will not know how to use it and end up hurting each other. In a review from the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan says, “Part of Leviathan's plot involves the working out of this public dispute, a battle in which Kolya is more overmatched than he imagines. Not for nothing does a local priest say to him, quoting pointedly from the Book of Job, ‘Can you pull in leviathan with a fishhook, or tie down his tongue with a rope? Any hope of subduing him is false.’" The metaphor proposed here is one relating to the power-hungry and...
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...I killed the 48 women listed in the states second amended information. In most cases when I killed these women I did not know their names. Most of the time I killed them the first time I met them and I do not have a good memory of their faces. (Seattle - From statement of Green River killer Gary Ridgway, read in court in November 2003 by prosecutor Jeff Baird) Gary Leon Ridgway, known as the Green River Killer, dumping the first five bodies of his victims along the Green River in King County, Washington, pleaded guilty on the 5th November 2003, to the murders of 48 women from 1982 to 1998. He is considered one of the most profilic psycho-serial killer in U.S. history, having one of the longest cases ever to be solved, including other isolated murders. In 1982, many young people had gone missing and this tolled up, over the years. A number of femail victims found dead in isolated parts of King County, Washington. In most cases, skeletal remains were found as the bodies took long to be discovered. Moreoever, most bodies were found nude and with no possessions thus making identification difficult. The "Green River Task Force" was set up in consequence to investigate the killings and track the suspect. At first, due to the large amount of data recieved at the police station in a short period of time, the investigation was delayed and there was not enough resources for the data to be processed and thus some data was lost. A common trait was identified from all the victims...
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...After Elie Wiesel and his father are resettled to Buna, he experiences two hangings. The first of which is as a result of thievery during the recent air raid, and the Germans are not appeased. During an atypical roll call, the Germans bring to the attention of the prisoners that the defiant’s consequential death should serve as a reminder. Elie writes, “The Kapo wanted to blindfold the youth, but he refused. After what seemed like a long moment, . . . when the latter shouted, in a strong and calm voice: ‘Long live liberty! My curse on Germany! My curse! My—’” (Wiesel 62). The young man that is hung on the gallows, indubitably, meets his end with denial and hatred—both of which are obvious through audible action. However, why does Elie seemingly rejoice as he is later consuming his ration? Clearly, it is due to a lack of relevance and, in Elie’s perception, is also what the man deserves. Indubitably, Wiesel’s incorporation of the lack of silence only substantiates the...
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...Agents, Ward and Anderson, arrived the crowd dispersed. The only two that remained was a boy and his dad. His dad was apprehensive about talking to the agents because he did not want anything to happen to him or his family. However, his son was not as afraid to speak to them. He told them to question the police department if they wanted answers for the missing boys. Then one night a group of white men snuck on to the property of this black family and burned all of their farm animals alive. The father told his son to gather the rest of the family and run while is father stood up to the trespassers. They attacked the dad and proceeded to hang him in front of his burning property. He was almost dead until his son came back and unfastened the rope from the tree; where he proceeded to pray over his dad and tell him that he would be okay. The next morning, Agent Ward told the family they had no choice but to leave for Detroit if they wanted to live. I have never understood how lynching a person came to be the trademark symbol of death during this era. I have seen plenty of pictures where lifeless bodies are hanging from trees and the men that did it stand proudly by the tree. What made people believe they had the right to burn the homes of others? Maybe there was ton of peer pressure involved. Or maybe people were afraid if they did not participate then the same things would happen to them. When it takes a child to be the brave soul to stand up to mobs of men, then that sends a powerful...
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...chains of slavery. The author, Shane Crane, uses his own experiences of owning a dog as a young boy and how the dog reacted to that. This makes symbolism the main literary element used throughout this story. Being written in 1890 the story is a response to the reconstruction era in the Untied States shortly after the time period of slavery was abolished known as Jim Crow. This was a time here in the United States after the civil war when slaves had been emancipated, and equality was supposedly underway. Unfortunately as we all know that was not the case, many blacks were still subjected to slavery in different ways across the country. In the story the dark brown dog takes on the role of a former slave, the symbolism then begins with a rope tied around the poor dog. It shows how yes the slave may now be “free”, but what can he do with that freedom when he has nowhere to live so the dog is forced to walk the long lonely path hoping someone will come and save him. When the dog is explained to be stumbling and awkwardly moving it resembles that of a being not knowing what to make of its newfound freedom without guidance. Then a little boy is introduced showing the new generation of southerners in the United States. When the two meet they regard each other with curiosity as two strangers from different worlds do, then the dog makes a move towards the boy and they start to play. But since the dog had never really experienced this feeling he gets too excited and the boy has to...
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...Collective Soul, a rock band with the base 90, and the famous poet Maya Angelou is known that they have to make a statement about their thoughts and feelings. They are expressed in two different forms of poetry. Maya Angelou to speak in modern poetry, while the rock band Collective Soul adds an impressive pace and rhythm of his words. These two forms of poetry are too strong to say that he really likes his point of his public activities. Both Maya Angelou and Collective Soul share the hardships and oppression, which had been given to life and other people. Poem Maya Angelou Still I Rise and song Collective Soul December showing the effects of the individual through positive and negative expression. Poetry Maya Angelou and Collective Soul are similar in some respects, when broken down correctly. Collective Soul wrote "Why drink the water from my hand contagious as you think I am?"; reflects the same idea that the actions of Maya Angelou when she said, "Are you annoyed by my boldness Why did you suffer from sadness"; These two parts of his writings to make a similar question. Why do I push one world I that you can not wait for someone else? "Do not cry, do not just think aloud Turn your head now baby just spit me not to worry, not to speak of doubt Turn your head now baby just spit on me";. This is a complicated way of saying why I respect what you missed, because you can not stand the way I am. Just go with me, I try another law that if I shit. What good do it for you, let...
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...I went to cut my daily quota of cedars, when I found the body in a grove in a hollow in the mountains. The exact location? About 150 meters off the Yamashina stage road. It's an out-of-the-way grove of bamboo and cedars. 2 The body was lying flat on its back dressed in a bluish silk kimono and a wrinkled headdress of the Kyoto style. A single sword-stroke had pierced the breast. The fallen bamboo-blades around it were stained with bloody blossoms. No, the blood was no longer running. The wound had dried up, I believe. And also, a gad-fly was stuck fast there, hardly noticing my footsteps. 3 You ask me if I saw a sword or any such thing? 4 No, nothing, sir. I found only a rope at the root of a cedar near by. And . . . well, in addition to a rope, I found a comb. That was all. Apparently he must have made a battle of it before he was murdered, because the grass and fallen bamboo-blades had been trampled down all around. 5 "A horse was near by?" 6 No, sir. It's hard enough for a man to enter, let alone a horse. The Testimony of a Traveling Buddhist Priest, Questioned by a High Police Commissioner 7 The time? Certainly, it was about noon yesterday, sir. The unfortunate man was on the road from Sekiyama to Yamashina. He was walking toward Sekiyama with a woman accompanying him on horseback, who I have since learned was his wife. A scarf hanging from her head hid her face from view. All I saw was the color of her clothes...
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