Authors Note: This is a creative writing piece based off of "Thank You, Ma'am" by Langston Hughes. This piece is an addition to the story, kind of a "what happens next".
Two years after Roger met Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones, he was already finishing up his senior year of high school, just about to graduate and leave for Mississippi State University. He was in the New York Times newspaper for the valedictorian of his senior year class with a 3.98 GPA.
It was the night of his graduation and he was on the stage waiting for his turn to step up to the podium and present his speech. He looked around in the crowd, skimming every last seat of the auditorium only finding that his parents were nowhere to be found. He looked over again, thinking he may have missed a few spots, until he came to a dramatic stop right in the middle. It was her. Mrs. Luella Bates Washington Jones.
After he presented his speech and was officially graduated from high school, he ran over to her and gave her a hug.
“I can’t believe you’re here Mrs. Jones” Roger said with joy in his eyes.
“Now boy, why wouldn’t I be here? I have something for you.” Mrs. Jones said, pulling out a gift bag from behind her.
As he glanced in the bag and unraveled the tissue paper until the very bottom, there he saw a white envelope.
“What’s in it?” he questioned.
“Well it wouldn’t be a gift if I would tell you now would it?” stated the large woman.
Roger opened up the pure white envelope with his name written across the front. He found a check for 5,000 dollars sitting within the envelope. A tear drop ran down his cheek, and looked up at Mrs. Luella Jones with his eyes filled up with tears of joy.
“I’ve been saving up this money for the past two years, knowing that you’ll be needing it someday” said Mrs. Jones.
“Thank you ma’am. Thank you for everything. If you would’ve called the cops or let me loose who knows where I would be. I never had parents to teach me right from wrong and to help me become a better person, and you achieved that all in one night.” Stated Roger.
She looked at him with such love and compassion and told him “Boy, everything happens for a reason. Now let’s go on and get home and eat something.”
Within a year, Roger was off to Mississippi State, taking with him only the few clothes he had, and the 5,000 dollar check from his dear friend. Every few weeks Mrs. Luella Jones would receive a call from Roger, catching up about school and Mrs. Jones’ beauty shop, remembering the old times they shared.
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Similarities and Differences
Authors Note: In this following piece, I will compare and contrast two characters from two different books.
Most people wouldn’t think that a young girl from the 1700’s, and a gang member from Tulsa, Oklahoma in the 1900’s could ever relate; but those who believe they can’t are wrong. Willy Freeman from War Comes to Willy Freeman is taken place in the time of the Revolutionary War and experiences many adventures and tragedies including the death of both her parent’s. Willy had to face living on her own until she met a group of people who looked after and cared for her as if they were a family. Fast forwarding two hundred years, Ponyboy Curtis from The Outsiders is a gang member in Oklahoma, whose parents also died and has to face living with his two older brothers and a group of friends who he cares deeply about. Both Willy from War Comes to Willy Freeman and Ponyboy from The Outsiders are alike in many ways, but they also have differences too.
First, both main characters had to face survival, living on their own without a mother or father by their side to guide them. Ponyboy has his two brothers Sodapop and Darry who both look after him, but it’s still nothing like having a mom or dad. When you’re going through a tough time, the first place most people think to go is to your parents for advice. They’ve been through the stage you’re going through, so they know what’s best and how to get you through it. Relating to Ponyboy, Willy’s dad died and her mom was taken away with the British, so she also didn’t have anyone to go to.
Furthermore, even though their parents are dead, they both have a group of friends who care for them. Willy meets some older men in New York, who give her shelter, pay her for her hard work, and provide her food. They all end up caring so much for one another that you could consider them a family. Ponyboy has his brothers and his friends in their gang that he depends on. The greasers are known as the mean, poor people who don’t care about a thing; but all of Ponyboy’s friends and brothers care about each other, which they are also considered as family.
However, although these characters are both very much alike, they also have differences. Willy still has an Aunt and Uncle that could look after her. She never knew her Aunt or Uncle before the death of her parents, but knowing that either living on her own, or living with her kindhearted Aunt and Uncle, they would be the better decision. Ponyboy doesn’t have any adults to look after him besides his brother Darry who is 26 years old. It’s better to have an older adult raising you because they know what’s best and how to handle situations from going through that stage of being a teenager.
In conclusion, Ponyboy Curtis from The Outsiders and Willy Freeman from War Comes to Willy Freeman can definitely relate to one another. The death of both of their parent’s makes it the easiest to have similarities. But, just as they relate in many ways, they also have their differences. While the two of them are from different time periods and from different backgrounds, I’m sure they would have been friends. They both went through tragic circumstances, and had to grow up without parents to guide them.
Most people wouldn’t think that a young girl from the 1700’s, and a gang member from Tulsa, Oklahoma in the 1900’s could ever relate; but those who believe they can’t are wrong. Willy Freeman from War Comes to Willy Freeman is taken place in the time of the Revolutionary War and experiences many adventures and tragedies including the death of both her parent’s. Willy had to face living on her own until she met a group of people who looked after and cared for her as if they were a family. Fast forwarding two hundred years, Ponyboy Curtis from The Outsiders is a gang member in Oklahoma, whose parents also died and has to face living with his two older brothers and a group of friends who he cares deeply about. Both Willy from War Comes to Willy Freeman and Ponyboy from The Outsiders are alike in many ways, but they also have differences too.
First, both main characters had to face survival, living on their own without a mother or father by their side to guide them. Ponyboy has his two brothers Sodapop and Darry who both look after him, but it’s still nothing like having a mom or dad. When you’re going through a tough time, the first place most people think to go is to your parents for advice. They’ve been through the stage you’re going through, so they know what’s best and how to get you through it. Relating to Ponyboy, Willy’s dad died and her mom was taken away with the British, so she also didn’t have anyone to go to.
Furthermore, even though their parents are dead, they both have a group of friends who care for them. Willy meets some older men in New York, who give her shelter, pay her for her hard work, and provide her food. They all end up caring so much for one another that you could consider them a family. Ponyboy has his brothers and his friends in their gang that he depends on. The greasers are known as the mean, poor people who don’t care about a thing; but all of Ponyboy’s friends and brothers care about each other, which they are also considered as family.
However, although these characters are both very much alike, they also have differences. Willy still has an Aunt and Uncle that could look after her. She never knew her Aunt or Uncle before the death of her parents, but knowing that either living on her own, or living with her kindhearted Aunt and Uncle, they would be the better decision. Ponyboy doesn’t have any adults to look after him besides his brother Darry who is 26 years old. It’s better to have an older adult raising you because they know what’s best and how to handle situations from going through that stage of being a teenager.
In conclusion, Ponyboy Curtis from The Outsiders and Willy Freeman from War Comes to Willy Freeman can definitely relate to one another. The death of both of their parent’s makes it the easiest to have similarities. But, just as they relate in many ways, they also have their differences. While the two of them are from different time periods and from different backgrounds, I’m sure they would have been friends. They both went through tragic circumstances, and had to grow up without parents to guide them.
Monday, December 12, 2011
The Big Effect
Authors Note: In this piece of writing, I will be telling the climax of the story “War Comes to Willy Freeman”, telling what caused the climax, and explain the consequences that were faced of the climax.
In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy’s father was killed right before her eyes by a British soldier and her mother was captured by the British. When Willy’s Pa asked her to go with him to help him while fighting in the war, she went with him, which was the climax of the story. She left her Ma behind, believing that her daughter was going to die.
Leading up to the climax, Willy and her mother were working at home like any typical day, but suddenly they had a visitor at the door. Willy’s Pa had demanded her to come with him to where the war had been held. Since women could not argue with the father’s orders, Willy had to leave her mother behind at home. The father had caused the climax of the story because otherwise Willy’s Ma would most likely have not been taken.
Since Willy’s Ma had been captured, Willy had the mindset to find her. Her father was dead and she was scared to be anywhere else other than with her mother. A lady in town had told her that the British had taken them to New York, so she started her journey off to New York on her dad’s boat, or what she called it “the jolly boat”. The obstacles she went through were her consequences of the decision she made by leaving her mom. As she was sailing through the deep ocean, a boat filled with American soldiers captured her. They were going to let Willy stay on the boat until they figured out what they decided to do with her. If she had never gone with her Pa, none of what she went through would have happened, most importantly; her Ma wouldn’t have been taken away from her.
In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy’s father was killed right before her eyes by a British soldier and her mother was captured by the British. When Willy’s Pa asked her to go with him to help him while fighting in the war, she went with him, which was the climax of the story. She left her Ma behind, believing that her daughter was going to die.
Leading up to the climax, Willy and her mother were working at home like any typical day, but suddenly they had a visitor at the door. Willy’s Pa had demanded her to come with him to where the war had been held. Since women could not argue with the father’s orders, Willy had to leave her mother behind at home. The father had caused the climax of the story because otherwise Willy’s Ma would most likely have not been taken.
Since Willy’s Ma had been captured, Willy had the mindset to find her. Her father was dead and she was scared to be anywhere else other than with her mother. A lady in town had told her that the British had taken them to New York, so she started her journey off to New York on her dad’s boat, or what she called it “the jolly boat”. The obstacles she went through were her consequences of the decision she made by leaving her mom. As she was sailing through the deep ocean, a boat filled with American soldiers captured her. They were going to let Willy stay on the boat until they figured out what they decided to do with her. If she had never gone with her Pa, none of what she went through would have happened, most importantly; her Ma wouldn’t have been taken away from her.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
One side of the story
Authors Note: This writing piece is about how the narrator’s point of view of a story influences the reader’s thoughts towards the events or characters.
In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy Freeman is a young girl who works at home with her mom while her dad is in the Revolutionary War. Her dad made Willy disguise as a boy so she could help him where the war was taking place. As she helped others with the guns, her father was killed right before her eyes by a British soldier. Moments later she was told that her mother was captured by the British and taken to New York as a slave. This story was written in the perspective of a young girl named Willy. From her perspective, some of the characters such as Captain Ivers and Mrs. Ivers were very malicious and cruel.
One way that Willy’s point of view influenced my thoughts toward the characters is how they treated her. After Mrs. Ivers was told that Willy’s mom was captured by the British and her father had been killed, she still didn’t want her living with them. Captain Ivers was the one to decide that Willy could stay with her aunt and uncle in the cellar, but only until he figured out what he was going to do with her. They would abuse Willy when she did one little mistake.
However, if the book had been in the perspective of Mrs. Ivers, things would have been different. Since Mrs. Ivers is white, she didn’t have to work because she had slaves to do that job. The ones that were not white were treated horribly. To the whites, they were only useful to do work and to work for them. For instance, the reader wouldn’t react to how tragic the war really was if the book wasn’t written in Willy’s perspective.
As you can see, the perspective of a story causes the reader to only see one side of an event. In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy Freeman’s point of view influences the reader to feel the way Willy felt about the events and the characters because of the way she described them. While reading this story, I could understand the feelings that Willy interoperated by the way she described the characters and events within the book.
In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy Freeman is a young girl who works at home with her mom while her dad is in the Revolutionary War. Her dad made Willy disguise as a boy so she could help him where the war was taking place. As she helped others with the guns, her father was killed right before her eyes by a British soldier. Moments later she was told that her mother was captured by the British and taken to New York as a slave. This story was written in the perspective of a young girl named Willy. From her perspective, some of the characters such as Captain Ivers and Mrs. Ivers were very malicious and cruel.
One way that Willy’s point of view influenced my thoughts toward the characters is how they treated her. After Mrs. Ivers was told that Willy’s mom was captured by the British and her father had been killed, she still didn’t want her living with them. Captain Ivers was the one to decide that Willy could stay with her aunt and uncle in the cellar, but only until he figured out what he was going to do with her. They would abuse Willy when she did one little mistake.
However, if the book had been in the perspective of Mrs. Ivers, things would have been different. Since Mrs. Ivers is white, she didn’t have to work because she had slaves to do that job. The ones that were not white were treated horribly. To the whites, they were only useful to do work and to work for them. For instance, the reader wouldn’t react to how tragic the war really was if the book wasn’t written in Willy’s perspective.
As you can see, the perspective of a story causes the reader to only see one side of an event. In “War comes to Willy Freeman”, Willy Freeman’s point of view influences the reader to feel the way Willy felt about the events and the characters because of the way she described them. While reading this story, I could understand the feelings that Willy interoperated by the way she described the characters and events within the book.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Never Changing
Authors Note: In this following piece, I will be discussing how Dallas Winston from “The Outsiders” is a static character. There are many reasons and examples from the book that make Dally the most static character from my point of view.
Throughout the entire book of “The Outsiders”, Dally had never changed. His attitude and the way people thought of him had always stayed the same. He was the most stubborn and self-centered one out of their whole group and that’s how people always thought of him. Dally is a static character because he never became sympathetic even after conflicts had happened.
In the beginning when everything was considered normal: the Greasers didn’t have empathy for the Socs and the Socs could care less about the Greasers. After Johnny had killed Bob, everything changed. There were fewer fights between the Greasers and Socs, but mostly, after Johnny and Ponyboy were recognized for saving the children in the burning church, people changed. Randy, who was Bob’s best friend, was a mean guy in the beginning of the book, but he realized the Greasers weren’t so different from the Socs than he thought after he had a conversation with Ponyboy. As some people were changing their minds about each other, Dally stayed the same. He never considered Socs as anything but rich snobs and nice clothed people who brag about the size of their house and the amount of money they have.
Next, while Dally, Ponyboy, and Johnny were on their way home, they saw that the church they had been staying in was burning down because of a fire. People had been surrounding the church with mothers’ crying dreadfully. Ponyboy and Johnny hopped out of the car and ran to the people, asking what was going on. They told them their children were in the church, so Ponyboy and Johnny went in the church to go save them. Dally was angry at the two of them because he didn’t care about the kids’ safety. He didn’t want to help the children and become recognized as a hero, he just wanted to get back to where they live and smoke a cigarette.
Lastly, while Ponyboy and Dally had visited Johnny in the hospital from getting excruciating burns from the fire, Johnny had perished. Dally was heartbroken because Johnny was the person he loved and cared about the most out of anyone in the world. He let all of his anger get to him and had himself shot by the police. Just as Dally died, Ponyboy said “Dally didn’t die a Hero. He died violent and young and desperate, just like we all knew he’d die someday”. This is one of the most important key quotes in the book because it shows that Dally never changed from the beginning of the book to the moment he died.
To conclude, all of these reasons state how Dally is the most static character in the book. Dallas Winston was just the kind of person that too many bad things had happened to, and he thought that he could never turn his life around even though he never considered it in the first place because he liked being a bad and tough guy which partly made him a static character.
Throughout the entire book of “The Outsiders”, Dally had never changed. His attitude and the way people thought of him had always stayed the same. He was the most stubborn and self-centered one out of their whole group and that’s how people always thought of him. Dally is a static character because he never became sympathetic even after conflicts had happened.
In the beginning when everything was considered normal: the Greasers didn’t have empathy for the Socs and the Socs could care less about the Greasers. After Johnny had killed Bob, everything changed. There were fewer fights between the Greasers and Socs, but mostly, after Johnny and Ponyboy were recognized for saving the children in the burning church, people changed. Randy, who was Bob’s best friend, was a mean guy in the beginning of the book, but he realized the Greasers weren’t so different from the Socs than he thought after he had a conversation with Ponyboy. As some people were changing their minds about each other, Dally stayed the same. He never considered Socs as anything but rich snobs and nice clothed people who brag about the size of their house and the amount of money they have.
Next, while Dally, Ponyboy, and Johnny were on their way home, they saw that the church they had been staying in was burning down because of a fire. People had been surrounding the church with mothers’ crying dreadfully. Ponyboy and Johnny hopped out of the car and ran to the people, asking what was going on. They told them their children were in the church, so Ponyboy and Johnny went in the church to go save them. Dally was angry at the two of them because he didn’t care about the kids’ safety. He didn’t want to help the children and become recognized as a hero, he just wanted to get back to where they live and smoke a cigarette.
Lastly, while Ponyboy and Dally had visited Johnny in the hospital from getting excruciating burns from the fire, Johnny had perished. Dally was heartbroken because Johnny was the person he loved and cared about the most out of anyone in the world. He let all of his anger get to him and had himself shot by the police. Just as Dally died, Ponyboy said “Dally didn’t die a Hero. He died violent and young and desperate, just like we all knew he’d die someday”. This is one of the most important key quotes in the book because it shows that Dally never changed from the beginning of the book to the moment he died.
To conclude, all of these reasons state how Dally is the most static character in the book. Dallas Winston was just the kind of person that too many bad things had happened to, and he thought that he could never turn his life around even though he never considered it in the first place because he liked being a bad and tough guy which partly made him a static character.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
The Key to Life
Authors Note: This piece of writing is going to be about one of the main topics or themes of the story “The Outsiders”.
While walking through the streets of Milwaukee and New York, you see gang members walking all together in a group. They protect and care for each other as if they are a family. Sometimes, the best thing to do is to stick with the ones you care for and that care for you. Just like in the book "The Outsiders", the main greasers in the book are a family; they're not related, but they protect and love one another.
First, Johnny was living in a house with his parents, with his father beating him all the time, and neither one of them caring weather he’s home or not throughout the night. Even though he has a group of friends who consider him as family, he still cares about his mom and dad. “I like when the old man is hitting me. At least he knows I’m there” is a quote from the book that Johnny says to Ponyboy. This particular line is so important because it shows that Johnny wants a mom and dad. They want him to care about him and see that he’s there so he likes when his dad is beating him.
Next, Darry, Sodapop, and Ponyboy are all brothers. For the first three quarters of the book, Ponyboy has always felt that Darry hates him; scolding and picking on him all the time. Ponyboy never saw that Darry always yelled at him because he cared about him. He loved him and would risk his life for him because they’re family and that’s very important to Darry considering their parents died. “The only reason Darry couldn’t be a Soc is because of us” is one of the biggest quotes from this story because it’s
Lastly, Dally has never had his parents by his side since he was young. He grew up without anyone looking after him and that really effected how people see him now: a hard and careless person. The only family he ever had were his friends. Going from one house or apartment to the next because he didn’t have a stable home. The person Dally cares the most about is Johnny. Dally looks after Johnny as if he’s his little brother. When Johnny passed away, Dally took all the anger against himself and gave his life away to be with Johnny because he loved him and cared for him so much.
In conclusion, these are all examples of how close these group of friends are. They all depend on each other and are a big family even though they’re not related. Through the book, there were many more details on how close and caring they were of each other; but these three were the biggest ones.
While walking through the streets of Milwaukee and New York, you see gang members walking all together in a group. They protect and care for each other as if they are a family. Sometimes, the best thing to do is to stick with the ones you care for and that care for you. Just like in the book "The Outsiders", the main greasers in the book are a family; they're not related, but they protect and love one another.
First, Johnny was living in a house with his parents, with his father beating him all the time, and neither one of them caring weather he’s home or not throughout the night. Even though he has a group of friends who consider him as family, he still cares about his mom and dad. “I like when the old man is hitting me. At least he knows I’m there” is a quote from the book that Johnny says to Ponyboy. This particular line is so important because it shows that Johnny wants a mom and dad. They want him to care about him and see that he’s there so he likes when his dad is beating him.
Next, Darry, Sodapop, and Ponyboy are all brothers. For the first three quarters of the book, Ponyboy has always felt that Darry hates him; scolding and picking on him all the time. Ponyboy never saw that Darry always yelled at him because he cared about him. He loved him and would risk his life for him because they’re family and that’s very important to Darry considering their parents died. “The only reason Darry couldn’t be a Soc is because of us” is one of the biggest quotes from this story because it’s
Lastly, Dally has never had his parents by his side since he was young. He grew up without anyone looking after him and that really effected how people see him now: a hard and careless person. The only family he ever had were his friends. Going from one house or apartment to the next because he didn’t have a stable home. The person Dally cares the most about is Johnny. Dally looks after Johnny as if he’s his little brother. When Johnny passed away, Dally took all the anger against himself and gave his life away to be with Johnny because he loved him and cared for him so much.
In conclusion, these are all examples of how close these group of friends are. They all depend on each other and are a big family even though they’re not related. Through the book, there were many more details on how close and caring they were of each other; but these three were the biggest ones.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Result in Happiness
Authors Note: This piece of writing is focusing on the predictions I made in the book “The Outsiders”.
Through the first six to seven chapters, a lot has happened to the characters of “The Outsiders”. Ponyboy meets a SOC Cherry Valance who seems to be different from the others, Ponyboy and Darry get into a fight, which leads to him running away from home, Johnny had to kill someone to save Ponyboy’s life, they had to catch a train and go to a different town to get away from the police, and Johnny and Ponyboy saved children from a burning fire while on their way home with Dally (another member of the Greasers) so Dally had to pull them out of the fire but Dally and Johnny got severely injured. Looking at what will come next, I predict that Johnny and Dally will be ok, and Ponyboy and Darry will make up. Eventually, I think some of the friends of the SOC who was killed by Johnny will come after him and he will be brutally wounded.
First, after Ponyboy and his friends were walking Cherry Valance and her friend home, it was already two o’clock in the morning when Ponyboy arrived at his house with Darry awake reading the newspaper and his other brother Sodapop, laying asleep on the couch. Darry was furious at Ponyboy because he was worried sick about him; which Ponyboy didn’t realize. Pony had to run away because he got slapped across the face from Darry. Later in the book I think Ponyboy will realize that Darry is always getting on him because he is the youngest and cares a lot about him and wants a better life for him.
Next, from looking at the beginning of the book, it’s a sunny day, which shows that this book will either be a comedy or a romance. Once you get to chapter six, you wouldn’t expect this book to be a comedy or a romance because of the things that have happened, but the modes of literature are always right so Johnny and Dally should recover from their injuries from the church fire.
Lastly, I don’t think the SOCS will let the Greasers get away with the death of Bob who was one of the popular SOCS; who everyone looked up to. One of the Greasers could get killed by the SOCS, or even brutally injured.
In conclusion, my predictions aren’t always that accurate unless I’m completely sure about something. These predictions I made I’m confident in because they all make perfect sense. Once I finish the story, I’ll know if what I predicted was what really happened.
Through the first six to seven chapters, a lot has happened to the characters of “The Outsiders”. Ponyboy meets a SOC Cherry Valance who seems to be different from the others, Ponyboy and Darry get into a fight, which leads to him running away from home, Johnny had to kill someone to save Ponyboy’s life, they had to catch a train and go to a different town to get away from the police, and Johnny and Ponyboy saved children from a burning fire while on their way home with Dally (another member of the Greasers) so Dally had to pull them out of the fire but Dally and Johnny got severely injured. Looking at what will come next, I predict that Johnny and Dally will be ok, and Ponyboy and Darry will make up. Eventually, I think some of the friends of the SOC who was killed by Johnny will come after him and he will be brutally wounded.
First, after Ponyboy and his friends were walking Cherry Valance and her friend home, it was already two o’clock in the morning when Ponyboy arrived at his house with Darry awake reading the newspaper and his other brother Sodapop, laying asleep on the couch. Darry was furious at Ponyboy because he was worried sick about him; which Ponyboy didn’t realize. Pony had to run away because he got slapped across the face from Darry. Later in the book I think Ponyboy will realize that Darry is always getting on him because he is the youngest and cares a lot about him and wants a better life for him.
Next, from looking at the beginning of the book, it’s a sunny day, which shows that this book will either be a comedy or a romance. Once you get to chapter six, you wouldn’t expect this book to be a comedy or a romance because of the things that have happened, but the modes of literature are always right so Johnny and Dally should recover from their injuries from the church fire.
Lastly, I don’t think the SOCS will let the Greasers get away with the death of Bob who was one of the popular SOCS; who everyone looked up to. One of the Greasers could get killed by the SOCS, or even brutally injured.
In conclusion, my predictions aren’t always that accurate unless I’m completely sure about something. These predictions I made I’m confident in because they all make perfect sense. Once I finish the story, I’ll know if what I predicted was what really happened.
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