N. Scott Momaday

In the book The Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Prison, author Jeffery Reiman states that the prison system in the United States is designed to fail in. It fails in the sense that the rapid expansion of the prison system fails to reduce crime, and instead is meant to create an image of a criminal class to keep the middle class in check. Reiman describes this failure as the ‘Pyrrhic defeat theory,’ as whereas a Pyrrhic victory is a victory where the losses make the victory pointless, a Pyrrhic…

Lifestyle Fantasy Society accepts a way of making the younger generation think that anyone living a lifestyle filled with name brand products, fancy cars, and extremely large houses are the goals that one must achieve. On the contrary, others in society may assume that individuals not living these extreme lifestyle goals are on the lower echelons economically, but both assumptions are not true. Portraying a lavish lifestyle and possessing millions of dollars is not the same as living a healthy…

in the night (Lawrence n. pag.).” Lawrence provides a tone of suspense and an ongoing struggle. The plot is dragged on, so to speak, and we as he reader are left in suspense until the unfortunate outcome, unlike Jackson’s story. Jackson starts off with a pleasant, happy feeling, utilizing phrases such as, “The morning of June 27th was clear and sunny, with the fresh warmth of a full-summer day; the flowers were blossoming profusely and the grass was richly green (Jackson n. pag.).” This creates…

The book, Lord of the Flies, was published in 1954, and the movie, The Maze Runner, was produced in 2014. Although these two works were developed sixty years apart, they have much more in common than just being dystopian fiction. The Maze Runner, is the movie I chose for this compare and contrast essay. Throughout this essay, I will be talking about the various similarities and differences this book and movie have. The Maze Runner, was originally a book published in 2009 by author…

The book, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates, questions how two extremely similar lives have completely opposite stories. The author and the other Wes Moore grew up in the same community. One became an accomplished author, while the other ended up in prison. At what point did their paths diverge? Do we turn into “products of our environment?” What drives our judgments and treatments of others? The Author never provides answers to any of these questions. He lets the readers determine their…

The idea of the “American Dream” was first developed in 1931 by historian James Truslow Adams. In his book The Epic of America, Adams gave a through description of the “dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement”. Although this American Dream is still possible, it has become more difficult to achieve for marginalized groups such as immigrants, the impoverished and ethnic minorities. The…

Dick Gregory was born in 1932 and was a stand-up comedian, writer, and social activist. The story "Shame" is an excerpt from Gregory's autobiography. He writes the following: "Everybody's got a Helene Tucker, a symbol of everything you want." Of course, one's symbol does not have to be a who, but also, a what. My symbol is the worldwide organization of Jehovah's Witnesses (I will also refer to it as God’s Kingdom). To me, the organization represents family, love, and The worldwide organization…

The Friendship Of Change In the coming of age novel A Separate Peace by John Knowles, a struggling friendship of a change of heart between characters Gene and Finny takes place. In the beginning of the novel, Gene’s envious mindset and lack of communication with Finny, results in a one sided friendship where Gene does not share the same feelings of their companionship as Finny. By the end, Gene grows up to recognize that his childish ways were wrong, and how blinded he really is from reality.…

Boss Politics: Hollywood and the Political Machine Hollywood’s representations of the urban political machine are depicted in the movies The Last Hurrah and The Great McGinty. Using a historical context and definitions of piolitical machines and boss’s make it easier to understand and comapare the meaning of these movies. The Last Hurrah (TLH) depicts the failing political machine of Frank Skeffington in a new England city. The movie mimics the theme and charachteristics of the weakening…

The book “Undocumented,” captures the story of the author, Dan-el Padilla, an immigrant who came to realize the “American Dream.” This book serves as a reminder of the determination and perseverance that the immigrants must have to survive in the United States, or any other host country as they try to live the life of their dreams. Through the author’s accounts, we come to realize many aspects that surround the elusive American Dream. Firstly, the definition of this context is entirely…