The Drawer Boy

In the novel “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” James Joyce uses narrative devices that are characteristic of the Bildungsroman genre to focus on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood encountering various difficulties. A Bildungsroman “concludes at a momentous point in the hero’s life, which signals the culmination of a process of self-discovery, or the moment when a life-defining decision is made” (Cañadas 16). A Bildungsroman is a novel…

time and for the reader to be able to understand how and why his expectations change, Dickens purposely has Pip describe his life as a child, adolescent and mild aged man. The purpose of Dickens using a bildungsroman is to have Pip grow from a young boy who has many fears and expectations into a man who can then reflect on his mistakes and his life as a whole. One of the first scenes of the novel begins with Pip running into Magwitch and having Magwitch demand that Pip bring him a file and…

in relation to theme development is to highlight the old man's loneliness and want of friendship. Throughout the novel the old man longs to have the boy on the boat with him to keep him company. An example of this can be seen when the old man thinks, "But you haven't got the boy...You have only yourself..." (Hemingway 52). His constant want of the boy demonstrates his need for companionship and friendship. The age contrast between the two characters draws attention to their friendship. If the…

Like paint to a canvas and sounds to music, words constructed in order create a beautiful piece of art called poetry that attempts to instill a piece of life in the reader using the word choices and order. In Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden the entire poem seems to be discussing a father who gets up early in the morning to start a fire. The first stanza discusses the specifics of the father’s labor. The second and third stanza, however, discuss the son’s reaction and relationship to the…

When boys talk about a problem they have, they usually tell the other to shrug it off. When girls converse about their issues, they enjoy getting in depth about the other’s problem and want to understand. This is shown in the context when, “Whereas women reassure each other by implying ‘You shouldn’t feel bad because I’ve had similar experiences,’ men do so by implying, ‘You shouldn’t feel bad because your problems aren’t so bad’” (120). Boys typically do not make eye contact…

The Modern Myth of Innocence The poem “The Myth of Innocence” by Louise Glück, is one that brilliantly transcends the test of time and holds a brilliant message that resonates with people in modern times. The main theme of this poem is maturing, and in Persephone’s case she is immediately thrown into the life of a woman rather than a girl. This poem was written as a metaphor for the process of growing up, and almost seems to expertly predict the future by metaphorically describing the behavior…

For as long as time itself men have lived and died for Honor. Men have been elevated to Knighthood or left in squalor for an act or breach of Honor respectively. In the story “Barn Burning,” by William Faulkner (1897-1962) describes this very battle between a man and his son. The honor of the family versus the honor of one’s self. The story takes place in Yoknapatawpha, an imaginary county in Mississippi. In this county like most across America there are a couple family names that hold a lot of…

Cory Mackenson Character Development Hardships are inevitable in life. One would be burdened with the weight of the past if they did not keep moving forward. Boy’s Life by Robert McCammon illustrates the journey of a young boy, Cory Mackenson, as he navigates life and what it means to grow up. Living in a sheltered town in Zephyr, Alabama where seemingly nothing bad ever happens, Cory is ignorant about loss and hardships. However, pivotal events in the novel affect him: the death of his dog,…

boyhood to a young adult. In his resolve to find himself, he flounders by placing his identity in one Irish institution after another--education, religion, carnal pleasures. This presented the audience with several versions of Stephen—first as a young boy trying to survive the arduous nature of school and lastly as a nearly confident young adult, determined to make a path for himself with his art. In his journey of self discovery, his identity seemed to be determined by his relationship with the…

1. The giver is written in third person limited, in which the narrator takes no place in the story but tells the story in the point of view of the protagonist, which is Jonas. In the book, Jonas is a twelve year old boy, in the movie however Jonas is eighteen years old. The age difference between the book and the movie is one of the major differences between the two; the maturation of the characters in the movie adds more romance and unnecessary drama. In both the movie and the book Jonas was…