Ishmael Beah

universal themes. Ishmael Beah’s memoir A Long Way Gone is appropriate for the Sterling High School English IV curriculum because of its use of complex ideas and universal themes that make this text a worthy champion for the curriculum. Beah’s extensive and sophisticated figurative language appeal to the reader and forces him to think beyond literal representation and think about the deeper meaning. For instance, Beah’s imagery portrays the state of chaos that Sierra Leone is in when Beah…

A Long Way Gone (2007) is a true story of Ishmael Beah, who unwillingly is forced to become a child soldier when a civil war breaks out in Sierra Leone. The story starts with Beah only 12 years old, who is away to perform along with his brother and friends when rebels attack his village. During all this chaos, confusion and ambiguity of war, all of them are left to wander from village to village in search of food and shelter and along the way commit to acts they had never thought of doing so…

mentality . An amazing memoir A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier shows how different people impact and help Beah to survive . Beah was a typical young boy who likes listening to the rap music and…

“A war is when the government tells the people who the enemy is, a revolution is when you figure it out for yourself.” This was not true in the case of 12 year old Ishmael Beah who not only had to figure out who the enemy was, but also had to escape the trials of danger that came along with being at both ends of an AK-47. No child at that young age would deliberately put themselves in a situation where kill or be killed was their daily life motto. I think the child soldiers were highly unaware…

The topic of child soldiers has been a very controversial dilemma for a very long time. Many people argue that child soldiers are victims, while others argue that child soldiers are perpetrators. The real question though, is whether or not all child soldiers should be given amnesty (legal forgiveness) after the war is over. But with further research, it is clear that overall, child soldiers should be given amnesty if they were forced or manipulated into joining the war. Child soldiers usually…

“Blood was running down [the woman’s] dress and dripping behind her, making a trail. Her child had been shot dead as she ran for her life,” (Beah, 2007). Although graphic, traumatic events like this are common in some parts of the world and it’s the kids who witness and commit them daily. It’s natural to think that events like this should not be happening in 2015. Unfortunately, that’s not a reality. Because it is estimated that 250,000 children in 19 countries around the world are deprived of…

to stay alive. Children do not kill out of desire, they kill because they are ordered to kill. These kids do not fully understand the implications and the causes their actions have. They simply follow orders made by their commanders. The case of Ishmael Beah, who was forced into being a child soldier, shows how giving him amnesty and putting him through rehabilitation can have positive results. Adolescents who have been sent to Guantanamo, like Omar Khadr, usually are not given the chance to…

may think I believe we should allow Ishmael Beah to speak to us about child soldiers. I find the best way to comprehend an issue is through an expert, and the best way to realize the issue of child soldier is though Mr.Beah. He has endured first hand what it’s like to be a boy soldier and the steps to redeem himself for the consequences of war and revenge. Though his words Mr. Beah can create a concept for us to envisage. The best way to demonstrate why Mr. Beah should speak is by seeing his…

A Long Way Gone by: Ishmael Beah Chapter 1 Ishmael (main character) ten years old describes the idea of war as entirely abstract to his young mind and insists that he and his fellow villagers didn't have the capacity to understand what the refugees coming through his village had experienced Ishmael, Junior, Talloi, and Mohamed sing rap music- learned during visit to Mobimbi (fathers and other foreigners worked for an American company) music has defined how they dress and speak January 1993- set…

The memoir A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah should be a requirement for English IV. The emotionally diverse memoir offers the readers connections to the real world and ideas of complexity. Significantly, the memoir has impacting information to help the reader connect with real world issues, therefore being a positive attribute as an English IV curriculum. For instance, in the memoir the war in Sierra Leone had just started, leaving everyone helpless and despaired. Food is the one source that…