Coalwood

In terms of the word Appalachia there are both positive and negative connotations. There have been many stereotypes made about the Appalachian region. The positive ones are uplifting and speak about the culture. While the negative one talk about stereotypes that can be seen as offensive today. One stereotype that hurt the Appalachian region is that of how the area lacks education. Outsiders of the Appalachian region tend to believe these stereotypes, and the life of an Appalachian tends to revolve around coal mining. The Film, October Sky, was directed by Joe Johnston in 1999, portraying the life of Homer Hickam. The movie takes place in Coalwood, West Virginia revolving about the main character Homer Hickam, played by Jake Gyllenhaal,…

and give support are the women of Coalwood. Sonny’s success in rocketry is influenced heavily by the women in his life, those being Miss Riley, his mother, and Emily Sue. The first, and one of the most influential women, is Miss Riley, Sonny’s science teacher. Throughout the story she gives support to the BMCA and Sonny. Her influence and help contribute directly to their success as they explore rocketry. The first example of this assistance comes when they are trying to set up the BMCA. Mr.…

There are many themes that show up in the book Rocket Boys. One of the most prevalent themes is how dreams and goals are set, achieved, and destroyed. Homer Jr faces many obstacles in his hometown of Coalwood that set him up for failure but he never gives up on his dream because of people around him encouraging him to never give up his dreams. Growing up in Coalwood, Homer was taught to go to school, and then work in the mines. Homer Sr, Homer’s father, wanted him to follow in his footsteps by…

Throughout the movie October Sky the main protagonist (Homer Hickam) faced several challenges that held them back and delayed their dream of building rockets. Most people would have given up after a failure. In Coalwood people do not go to college or leave the town and are destined to become a coal miner unless they are good at football. But Homer doesn’t want to be a coal miner and works to get a scholarship. He and his friends persevered (even after several rocket explosions and mishaps) and…

From the rather extensive list of summer reading books we were subjected to choose from, I, like everyone else read two books in order to complete my summer assignment. The first, surprisingly my favorite of the two, was October Sky, written by Homer Hickam, whom I discovered after a quick Google image search, is not the same persona as Homer Simpson, to my disappointment. It tells the narrative story of your average small town boy, the author himself, Homer ‘Sonny’ Hickam, the son of a coal…

The early autumn of October is a beautiful time, there are four children memories about the rising rockets on October sky. There is a film about the agreement between four children and sky that is named October Sky, which is based on true story. This paper tells of this motivational movie about chasing the dream.There are four children who change their original destiny by researching manufactured rockets. There are many obstacles in the way of chasing dream, but they also keep enthusiasm. Even…

Sky high (2005) directed by Mike Mitchell is a It has a sentimental take on the epic hero journey that follows the typical epic hero story structure. The film centers around Will Stronghold, son of the two greatest superheroes in the world, the Commander and the Jetstream. The main problem will goes through is not having powers. In the film, Will Strongfield is just an average teenage boy, but that is a problem because his parents are the greatest superheroes in the world, the Commander and…

Extended Metaphor Assignment Rational John Hickam, the father of the lead character Homer Hickam in the movie October Sky, possesses many personality traits and characteristics which are developed, changed, and evolved throughout the film. The three evident key traits that he seems to have which have been modified throughout the movie are his values, his personality type, and his expectations. The format that I chose to represent the values of John Hickam is a drawing, as his values are one…

October Sky book by Homer Hickam was a true story about a boy growing up in a small coal-mining town. The book was first released in 1998. In this book, we have acknowledged that women in Coalwood were strong in the 1950’s, and were feminist before the term even existed. Feminism is a personal, social, political, and economical movement that shares a common goal for women’s rights. It’s been said that the term “feminist” did not take place until the 1970’s, but many women were feminist before…

As stated by Sonny Hickam, “A rocket won’t fly unless somebody lights the fuse” (419). In the small town of Coalwood, West Virginia, everyday life is completely dependent on the coal mine that seems to consume all its citizens. The book October Sky by Homer Hickam, Jr. is a memoir that centers itself on a family of four making their way through life in the mining town. The family consists of Homer Hickam, the father who is the superintendent of the mine; Jim Hickam; the older brother; Sonny…