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anh hùng

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It was raining. Big, fat, dark droplets of rain poured down relentlessly, painting the world in a blurry shade of gray. The sky was unforgivingly black and murky without even a slight trace of a cloud. I’ve only seen two kinds of rain so far in Vietnam. Rain that forebodes catastrophe and rain of hopelessness and surrender. This was the latter. Droplets were pounding down from the dark sky, steadily pooling up into trenches, soaking into camouflage patterned trousers. They mixed with red on the ground to form puddles of a pretty shade of rose. I stood there for a moment, a plastic box gripped tightly in my trembling hands. Slowly the world turned quiet and I shut my eyes tightly, forcing my feet to move forward step by step. Suddenly, a harsh nudge to my shoulder woke me from my state and I swiveled around in surprise. I almost cried in relief to see a familiar face in all the mess of terror and chaos. Marsha Four was my mentor, my companion, and safe haven. I stared up at her ...
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is rufus a good person, inherently good but mean, or just human trash?

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Kindred was such an interesting book to read because it contained elements of science fiction like time traveling, yet it felt so realistic at times as if I was right next to Dana, experiencing everything with her. It was especially interesting to see the relationship between Dana and everyone in the past. However, the one topic I couldn't seem to figure out was whether Rufus was a good person, inherently good but acted bad, or was just horrible. Dana's first interaction with Rufus was out of the ordinary, she had no idea where she was and Rufus was drowning. I was definitely glad that Dana reacted fast and saved Rufus from drowning, however as the story progressed on, I started becoming less and less happy when Dana decided to help Rufus. I so understand why Dana wanted to help Rufus so much, she felt some sort of affection for this little boy who trusted Dana and grew to like her. I guess she couldn't help but feel like she became responsible for him because I mean, s...
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war plays no favorites

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To me, it seems that only the "fittest and smartest" can survive through the toughest times, in this case, war. That's why I thought this book was so interesting because Billy is in no way shape or form one of the fittest or aggressive. He's the polar opposite and someone I would not expect to make it through the first week of battles. I guess this is the irony that Vonnegut portrays mixed with dark humor here and there. You would expect Weary and the two scouts to survive the war more than Billy. They have the right mindset about war and are eager to show the Germans "their power" if they have any. It's pure dark humor how Vonnegut decides to kill both the scouts right in front of Weary and Billy. The two scouts decided to leave Weary and Billy because the latter couldn't keep up and were better off dying. The next thing you know, the scouts die while in hiding, not even while heroically fighting the Germans. War doesn't play favorites, it k...
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Early representation of black pride and culture?

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Page 152 in Mumbo Jumbo by Ishmael Reed caught my immediate attention as the contents of this conversation seemed to be parallel with current modern views on race and cultural significance to black individuals. Nathan asks Benoit if Benoit could help him get Jes Grews as if it was a step by step process to obtaining this illness. Nathan's innocence regarding the deep meaning and cultural significance of Jes Grew spurs Benoit on a long, inspirational speech about how Jes Grews should be learned and obtained from those who have the history and capacity to hold such deep meaning in their selves. Benoit advised, "Ask Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith, your poets, your painters, your musicians, ask them how to catch it." Benoit implies that these inspirational and empowering black singers in history would be able to teach Nathan in much greater detail than Benoit ever could because they have had firsthand experience of racism towards their music, "Ask those people who be ...
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Black culture (Jes Grews and Voodoo) viewed by White judgement

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I wanted to analyze the "trends" found in each book and specifically look at the cultural significance and origin of voodoo. In Ragtime, we see that many men joined "the coalhouse" because they felt a sense of connection with the struggles Coalhouse faced. The majority of the men in this organization are black because they can understand the racial separation and hatred directed towards them in society, as seen with the way the police and government deal with Coalhouse. Mother's Younger Brother finds this community excepting and seems to almost idolize them. He wants to fit in so bad that he does blackface and shaves his head. This community or group is also seen in mumbo jumbo but in a larger sense. Jes Grew, a term coined to represent the lust and happiness people felt in this society, presents itself it the best of ways. An onlooker could stare in disgust and confusion but then join the crowd moments later. Jes Grew was not officially written down in hist...
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When Father's gone...Dynamic shift

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Mother, Father, Mother's Younger Brother, the Grandfather, and the Boy who is also the Son. It's interesting to see how this family's dynamic shifts over time. At the beginning of Ragtime, written by El Doctorow, we see that the people in the house believe Father is the most powerful, it almost seems like they fear a side of Father that we haven't seen before. It was already established that he was the head of the household and that everyone was inclined to listen to him. The book starts out with Father and continues to talk about Father for a whole page before introducing other family members. Doctorow depicts Father as someone who is dependable and stable because he built the house himself so that everyone could happily live in it. Father was also the only character mentioned to have an income. In comparison to father, Mother seems quiet and demure. Page 10, it reads, "He was not without charm. He smiled and Mother, a large blonde woman, lowered her eyes."...
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