Short Story Classics Essay Example for Free

Short Story Classics Essay It started as an adventure for him – however, as the journey continues, there are unmistakable signs of another space and time overlapping the usual progress of the day and quest. Gradually the author brings in touches of aberration in the texture of the quest. Enid Bunkers’ scream at Neddy’s surprise presence denotes the first signs of something amiss in the placid scene of comfort. Lucinda had refused the Bunkers’ invitation. Why? Again, the noise and glow of the social milieu is an element Neddy as if misses, â€Å"Ned felt a passing affection for the scene, a tenderness for the gathering, as if it was something he might touch. †(Cheever) Halfway through the journey, with the onset of the storm, Neddy tries to remember the exact time, but fails –â€Å"A train whistle blew and he wondered what time it had gotten to be. Four? Five? †(Cheever) Not once, but again –â€Å" Then there was an explosion, a smell of cordite, and rain lashed the Japanese lanterns that Mrs. Levy had bought in Kyoto the year before last, or was it the year before that? â€Å"(Cheever) The quest beginning at the height of the summer morning slowly cloys into the barren melancholy of autumn, at the sight of the blighted maple tree. The dearth of activity at the lonely Lindleys’ abode, Ned attributes to his forgetfulness. It is increasingly apparent to the discerning reader that Neddy Merrill is desperately clutching at wisps of self-denial, refuses to acknowledge his misfortunes, and deletes the very notion of his sold-out house and empty existence. Even Shirley, his former mistress rebuffs him rudely, deriding his penniless state. He comes to the end of his tether; he begins to cry as the world of his own make-believe shatter all around him. It was probably the first time in his adult life that he had ever cried, certainly the first time in his life that he had ever felt so miserable, cold, tired, and bewildered. He could not understand the rudeness of the caterers barkeep or the rudeness of a mistress who had come to him on her knees and showered his trousers with tears. He had swum too long, he had been immersed too long, and his nose and his throat were sore from the water. (Cheever) The classic motif of quest is given a new dimension as the time, space and milieu of the protagonist undergoes a slow transformation etched vividly in Cheever’s lyrical details. Cheever postulates his philosophy of relativism in the continued perception of the truth by Neddy Merrill. As Michael Chabon writes about The Swimmer: The story has mythic echoes the passage of a divine swimmer across the calendar toward his doom and yet is always only the story of one bewildered man, approaching the end of his life, journeying homeward, in a pair of bathing trunks, across the countryside where he lost everything that ever meant something to him. (qtd. in Chabon, â€Å"Personal Best†, The Stories of John Cheever) Works Cited Chabon, Michael. â€Å"Personal Best†. The Stories of John Cheever. http://www. salon. com/weekly/cheever960930. html Cheever, John. â€Å"The Swimmer† Online posting. 5 Dec. 2003. Short Story Classics: The Best from the Masters of the Genrehttp://shortstoryclassics. 50megs. com/cheeverswimmer. html Young, Elizabeth and Graham Caveney. Shopping in Space. Great Britain: Serpents Tail, 1992. xi. Mookerjee,Neela. â€Å"The Long Winding Road†. GKE 2003. Essays. 18 Sept. 2008. http://www. gke. com/cafe/ic/vol2/essays/quest. htm

Summary of the Film Seabiscuit Essay -- essays research papers

The movie Seabiscuit is based on the true story of Red Pollard and his achievement of self-fulfillment through his success as a jockey. At the start of the movie, Red is an unimportant, self-doubting boxer and jockey who has never experienced success in his life. As the movie continues, Red meets two other men, Charles Howard and Jim Smith, who feel as though they have no purpose in life. Throughout the course of the movie, these three men are able to use their passions and motivation to become a successful horse racing team. By the conclusion of Seabiscuit, Red, Charles, and Jim have changed from depressed, unhappy men to an inspiration for all of America. Seabiscuit is a uniquely American film because it tells of the fulfillment of the American dream through Red Pollard and his coworkers, who rise from a life of depression and failure to an inspiring life of success. As a child, Red grows up in a wealthy household where he is taught how to ride. When the Great Depression struck America, Red’s family lost their money, forcing him to leave his home and work poorly pai...

Inner Beauty Is the Real Beauty

When I was young, I read many kinds of books, including fairy tales. Most of the books described heroes who were handsome and heroines who were beautiful. So, I believed I had to be beautiful if I wanted to become a great person. It was a hard time for me. Whenever I looked at someone who was more beautiful than me, I was stressed. As I grew up, I began to realize outer beauty was not so important to make someone good. I remember a friend of mine who was so beautiful that every classmate wanted to talk with her, but she was very arrogant. She believed that she could do everything she wanted because she was so beautiful, but she lost friends one by one. My poor friend! But she learned a good lesson: inner beauty is more important than outer beauty. After she learned that, she changed her attitude and made friends again. In the Korean version of the story Cinderella, there are two stepsisters. One was very beautiful and very kind. Another was very stingy and bad. Because the prince wanted to find the girl with a missing shoe, the prince and the beautiful sister of the two stepsisters got married and lived happily ever after. In many novels and fairy tales, as in Cinderella, the main characters are usually beautiful or handsome. Beauty is representative of good deeds and kindness. In our society, beauty also gives us many advantages such as having a good social life, making friends, getting a job, and getting a promotion. Whenever, we look at good-looking guys and girls, we usually form stereotypes. We think he or she is a good and kind person. This is why cosmetic surgery is so popular in our society Whenever I see TV advertisements, I feel that these things make us believe beauty is very important–especially physical attractiveness. Although we say that inner beauty is more valuable, we often look to plastic surgery to make us more beautiful. There seems to be a boom in plastic surgery. It is surprising to realize the number of people who try it is increasing day by day. It is true that attractive people get a job easily. For example, we know good-looking guys usually get higher scores on job interviews. So, what is real beauty? I want to say that inner beauty is the real one because if someone has beauty in his soul, he looks like a really beautiful person. The beauty looked at with eyes doesn't last forever. Instead of concentrating on outer beauty, we should concentrate on inner beauty. The point is that inner beauty is more important than outside beauty. So, if we make the effort to make our minds beautiful, we'll be happier.

Analysis Of Salinger s The Catcher s The Rye

The Catcher in the Rye (1951) by J.D Salinger is a book with a truly controversial history by being banned from bookstores, libraries, etc. during the time of its release and even now is very scarcely being brought back into the high school setting to be taught as part of the high school curriculum. While being confronted about reasons for being banned, protesters of this book give very vague arguments on why it should be banned such as â€Å"its a very filthy book,† or â€Å"its explicitly pornographic.† Even with all this however, the most curious of the arguments against the book would be the one which calls it â€Å"immoral,† granted the book does indeed explore some particularly darker themes of sex and alcohol use, it s the main character motivations and moral values that is the true theme of the story which should be praised. Catcher in the rye features many important moral values that should be credited-Holden Caulfield the rebellious teen who receives al l the criticism for being another hormone driven, good-for-nothing punk is in fact a misunderstood boy who has shown time and time again to exhibit significant moral attributes which are deemed very noble in today’s societies and should not be banned but instead taught in school for its lessons on morality and life. However, before one can argue whether or not Holden Caulfield’s action can be deemed moral or not one must understand what it means to be moral, where it comes from, and why they are important. First let’s try toShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Salinger s The Catcher Rye 972 Words   |  4 PagesWritten in 1951, J.D. Salinger’s, The Catcher in the Rye continues to be a popular book amongst Americans. Although The Catcher in the Rye has been banned in many public school settings in the United States it continues to stay atop some of the greatest books of all time lists. Whether people are in their teens or in their fifties they find themselves drawn to Holden Caulfield. At some point in their life they could relate to a sense of alienation, caused by money and wealth. Humans are wired toRead MoreAnalysis Of Salinger s The Catcher s The Rye 1052 Words   |  5 Pagessociety. In J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger reveals his abomination for phonin ess through Holden’s experience with the adult world. Phoniness creates a structured society where the connotations of success are deceptive. In addition, it sets standards and expectations for how individuals should act based on their social status. Furthermore, it interferes with one’s honesty by abolishing their authenticity and sincerity. In The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger suggests how the lack of authenticityRead MoreAnalysis Of Salinger s The Catcher Rye 3756 Words   |  16 PagesSummer Reading-TASIS 2014 Rising 9th Grade Mainstream English The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and Fahrenheit 541 by Ray Bradbury Please write a typed or handwritten response (200 words each in the language relevant to your course) to each of the following prompts on each of the works assigned for the course(s) you will be taking in 2014-2015: The Catcher in the Rye Initial Understanding: What are your thoughts and questions about the story? You might reflect upon characters, theirRead MoreAn Analysis Of Salinger s The Catcher Rye 1106 Words   |  5 PagesAdrianna Leal Ms. Allie English 6 October 2017 Learn from life and move forward In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger uses many symbols and themes as a way to protect Holden from adulthood, his individuality, and childhood. While in high school, Holden seems to struggle with his school work and with his outlook on life. As many obstacles come his way, his main self battle would be having to grow up, become mature, and enter adulthood with excitement and confidence. Holden often usesRead MoreAnalysis Of Salinger s The Catcher Rye 1074 Words   |  5 PagesJournal Responses Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye has been pronounced a literary classic for its atypical portrayal of adolescence, to effectively convey the protagonist’s alienation and confusion. The introduction of The Catcher in the Rye is underpinned by disorder and confusion through a stream-of-consciousness narration, which digresses from one subject to another. Consequently, Holden’s multitudinous thoughts and feelings appear to lack a cohesive pattern. Additionally, Holden’s prevalentRead MoreMental Analysis on Holden Caulfield in J.D. Salinger ´s The Catcher in the Rye824 Words   |  4 Pagestraumatic stress disorders (Health Care Service Corporation) (The Numbers Count: Mental Disorders in America). J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, provides the narrative of a young adult, Holden Caulfield, who I believe shows many symptoms of several different mental disorders. In this essay, I will be providing examples straight from The Catcher in th e Rye that support my theory of Holden Caulfield’s lack of mental stability. Holden Caulfield demonstrates extreme and inconsistent behaviorsRead MoreTheme Of The Catcher In The Rye976 Words   |  4 PagesThroughout the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger there are several different themes portrayed that widely relate to current issues of teenagers and adults alike. While reading the novel several different themes were revealed creating a deep and meaningful story line. Three themes viewed within the novel are; the phoniness of the adult world, alienation as a form of self-protection, and the painfulness of growing up. Each of these themes have large significance in character and plot developmentRead MoreAnalysis Of Characters And Themes Of The Catcher Rye 1537 Words   |  7 Pages Analysis of Characters and Themes in The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger was born in 1919 to a wealthy Manhattan family. He grew up in the same social conditions as Holden Caulfield does in The Catcher in the Rye. The last thing Salinger cared about was being a successful student because he was very lazy, without care for his responsibilities and tasks. Salinger flunked out of many prep schools, and his parents sent him to a military academy named Valley Forge in Pennsylvania, where he graduatedRead MoreJ.b. Salinger s The Catcher s The Rye 1319 Words   |  6 PagesJ.D. Salinger’s Use of Symbolism in The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger is well known for his works. His most famous being The Catcher in the Rye. Two other of his famous works include Nine stories and Franny and Zooey. J.D Salinger is also well known for his sense of humor that he includes inside of his books. The Catcher in the Rye has become an essential work to be studied in academic literature and its course of study. This book entails many uses of symbolism throughout theRead MoreCatcher in the Rye Word Choice795 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿Word Choice in The Catcher in the Rye By Tom Condon Word choice is a crucial element in a well-crafted story. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is about a 16-year-old in New York in the 1950s named Holden Caulfield. The book is about his exploration in the world as he suffers from severe mental trauma from his point of view. J.D. Salinger uses word choice for realism, theme, and depth of character to make the story relate to the reader and add dimension. The Catcher in Rye contains many distinct