Kite Runner 3

“War doesn’t negate decency. It demands it, even more than in times of peace.”

This quote is an aphorism. Baba is the character in the book who seems to offer wisdom to not only the other characters, but also the reader. This quote embodies the truth about war, a thing that has been all too common for many years. When times are hard, it seems easier to lash out and behave like there are no consequences. But just because it is a time of struggle for you does not mean that the victim of your indecency is not also struggling. By treating each other with kindness, people will feel better about themselves and the situation they are in. It is not a cure, but a remedy. And until there is a cure for war, a remedy to subdue the aches and pains will have to do.

Kite Runner 2

“Standing in the kitchen with the receiver to my ear, I knew it wasn’t just Rahim Khan on the other line. It was my past of unatoned sins.”

It could be said the Amir is an antihero, although he is the narrator of the book. He lacks many of the qualities which a hero should have, such as courage and strong morals. When he sees Hassan being assaulted in the alley by Assef, he does not have the courage to stop it. Even his presence could have stopped the boys because he knew Assef’s family. Instead, he decides to act like he never saw it and runs away. He also lacks morals. Although it is eventually figured that Hassan knows that Amir saw, he never apologizes to him. He also has not yet confessed to anyone what he saw, which would be the proper thing to do. He is not an unlikeable character, just one that does not fit into the mold of hero. This actually makes him more relatable to the reader, because a lot of people have had moments where they lacked the courage to do the right thing.

Kite Runner 1

“I wasn’t worthy of this sacrifice; I was a liar, a cheat, and a thief.”

Amir deals with internal conflict through the majority of the book. After he failed to help his friend Hassan fight off Assef, he feels like he is a very unworthy person. This thinking effects every future decision he makes, and Hassan comes to mind every time he has a happy moment. He thinks of how he does not deserve it, and where Hassan might be. This internal conflict is important to the plot of the book because did he not feel such guilt and hold such a dark secret, he might not have married Soraya, and he might have had children. His internal conflict matches up with the external conflict in his homeland of Afghanistan. As he moves to America, he begins to view both as something of his past, but it still unable to move on from them. The events that happen in the past are the biggest influence on the future, and Amir knows this, but doesn’t recognize when it occurs in his own life.

The Glass Menagerie 3

Personal-

This play showed a feeling that many people have experienced, even if they don't know it. Tom feels obligated to care for his sister and mother, even though he has dreams of traveling the world. Most people have a family member or friend who they feel they can not let down, and so they put their needs before their own. In real life, the results of this are usually very different from what happened in the play. Tom does eventually leave his family behind in search of himself. Most people spend their time taking care of this other person until they fade from their lives, at which point they have put their own wants off for so long, they no longer see a point in pursuing them. I also feel that if more people did as Tom, the world would be chaos. We all depend on people and we all have people who depend on us. It is a fact of life.

The Glass Menagerie 2

Question #3-

I believe the protagonist in this story to be Tom, and the antagonist to be Amanda. Laura is simply there to serve as something they can disagree and fret over. Jim, a minor character, plays the most important part, as Tom mentions in the beginning of the play. He helps to move not only the play along, but the characters as well. He is the one who breaks the glass shell that Laura has kept herself holed up in, and he is the one who eventually causes Tom's departure through a chain of events. Had he turned down the dinner invitation, perhaps Laura would have not found herself able to move on from her glass animals and victrola. Tom may have never grown the guts to tell his mother what he really thought, and would have spent an unknown amount of time working in the warehouse, pushing his dreams aside. Although he is only there for one night, he drastically changes the rest of the characters' lives.

The Glass Menagerie 1

Question #1-

This play uses nonrealistic conventions. The fact that Tom is the narrator and an actor in the play makes it very interesting, but at the same time very out of touch with reality. At the beginning of the play, it mentions that Laura and Amanda are eating without the use of utensils or food, only mimicking the action. However, Tom also mentions that the entire play is a memory and when people recollect in real life, the food in the background was not as important as the fact that the people were eating. While the props and narrator may not be realistic, the ideas behind the story are. It shows the struggle between families- certain family members feeling depended on by the others, bitter hate for being trapped in a house and unable to go out. Tom's narration gives the story a realistic sense of his inner thoughts. When people remember in real life, often times our own selves narrate the story. That is what Tom is doing, and the audience can connect.

Othello Acts 4 5

Personal- One of the themes of Othello is jealousy. I think that this play was written to show how jealousy plays out when acted upon. It is classified as a tragedy because of the many deaths which occur at the end. While in real life, jealousy can end your life, most of the time it just ends friendships and relationships. When we allow jealousy to consume us, like it did Iago, we suffer the consequences as well as those people we seek revenge against. He is alienated from his wife, he takes advantage of his friend, and lies to his boss. But, finally his plan backfires on him. He incurs a punishment, although it is too light for how many deaths he caused.