Josie Mendez-Negrete’s novel, Las Hijas de Juan: Daughters Betrayed, is a very disturbing tale about brutal domestic abuse and incest. Negrete’s novel is an autobiography regarding experiences of incest in a working-class Mexican American family. It is Josie Mendez-Negrete’s story of how she, her siblings, and her mother survived years of violence and sexual abuse at the hands of her father. “Las Hijas de Juan" is told chronologically, from the time Mendez-Negrete was a child until she was a young adult trying, along with the rest of her family, to come to terms with her father 's brutal legacy. It is a upsetting story of abuse and shame compounded by cultural and linguistic isolation and a system of patriarchy that devalues the experiences of women and girls. At the same time, "Las Hijas de Juan" is an inspirational tale, filled with strong women and hard-won solace found in traditional Mexican cooking, songs, and storytelling.…
She constantly hears the mother and daughter in the adjacent apartment yelling, fighting, and even throwing things. She is shocked by the difference between these noisy confrontations and her own relationship with her mother, which is marked by silences and avoidance of conflict. Yet, when she realizes that the shouting and weeping she hears through the wall in fact express a kind of deep love between mother and daughter, she realizes the importance of expressing one’s feelings, even at the cost of peace and harmony. Although the neighboring family lives a life of conflict and sometimes even chaos, they possess a certainty of their love for each other that Lena feels to be lacking in her own home. Reflecting back on this episode of her life, Lena begins to realize how she might apply the lesson she learned then to her married life with…
The book Dolores Claiborne was intriguing and kept me interested throughout the whole book. From the beginning I loved the storyline. I also liked that it is one big story, there are no chapters. The only thing I didn’t like, was the way it was set-up. I found it a little confusing, but since I watched the movie, it made it a little more sense. Although it was a little bit confusing, I definitely recommend it.…
Antonio Fuentes met Veronica Baker in a way that borders on sounding like a romantic comedy: a tale of spilled coffee and an apologetic lawyer, an overwhelmed grad student accepting her fate- that today would in fact, be one of the not-so-great ones. Antonio took this event, like so many others in his life, as a challenge. Admittedly, making amends with the girl he’d just scalded seemed like a nearly impossible task, but Antonio managed damage control with charm and grace. Rosa often thinks of her parents meeting as a reminder of fate, something to hang on to when she’s not sure she’s doing the right thing.…
Parable of the Sower takes place in Octavia Buttler’s apocolypse (Old English, via Old French and ecclesiastical Latin from Greek apokalupsis, from apokaluptein ‘uncover, reveal,’ from apo- ‘un-’ + kaluptein ‘to cover’). In an interview, Buttler said that when writing the book, she took many of the issues of the modern world and took them to their natural conclusion. In doing so, by defintion, Buttler has created an apocalyptic work.…
The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy is an adventurous novel about Sir Percy Blakeney, a wealthy Englishman who disguised himself under the false pretence of The Scarlet Pimpernel, a brave and clever man who used preposterous disguises to free innocent French aristocrats that had been convicted and were waiting to be put to death under the wrath of Madame Guillotine. Sir Blakeney was married to Marguerite St. Just, known to be the most beautiful and smartest women in Europe, but in France she was considered a traitor for revealing the Marquis de St. Cyr and his whole family to the bloody guillotine to help her brother Armand get revenge for almost being killed for loving the daughter of an aristocrat. This act of hers disgusted Blakeney, who started showing no love for her even though he would have done anything for her. Although Marguerite still loved her dear Percy, she couldn’t help feeling that he was a pompous jerk. Sir Blakeney’s arch-nemesis Monsieur Chauvelin struck a deal with Marguerite in her assistance to capture the Scarlet Pimpernel and his league in return for her brother’s safe release, as Chauvelin had captured him. Soon after, she realized what a horrible thing she had done and repents to Sir Blakeney, disclosing all the information she knows about Chauvelin’s plan. Sir Blakeney promised to protect Armand and stop Chauvelin by sailing to France. After he had left, Marguerite found several letters in his room stamped with the Scarlet Pimpernel. She realized that he is the Scarlet Pimpernel and enlisted the help of Sir Andrew Ffoulkes. They sailed to Calais as fast as they could in an attempt to warn Sir Blakeney that Chauvelin knew his identity. Their attempt was in vein, but Sir Blakeney was clever enough to figure out what was in store for him. He escaped Chauvelin’s trap and released Armand, revealing Chauvelin as a cruel man and casting a shadow over his name and condemning him to the guillotine. The Scarlet Pimpernel is a story of…
Moms, where would we be without them? In Like Water For Chocolate by Laura Esquivel this question is answered through the perspective of different characters. Placed during the Mexican Revolution Tita, the protagonists, struggles in her pursuit for happiness. Pinned down by society and traditions that date back many generations ago her life becomes a constant fight that has no clear winner. Her mother, Mama Elena, on the other hand tries to preserve the traditional life that Tita struggles to cope with. These polar opinions clash in Like Water For Chocolate and with the aid of symbolism Laura Esquivel showcases how these two ways of thinking are reflective of human nature. Laura Esquivel uses symbolism to comment…
Emotionally, Emily’s mother was in turmoil about the way she was as a parent towards her oldest daughter. And the author has exposed this through the pathos of…
The night-blooming cereus only makes an appearance once a year during, as the name suggests, the nighttime. This “silvery and mysterious” (Kingsolver 250) sounding name is just one example of the rich world Barbara Kingsolver creates in The Bean Trees. The cereus is more than just a flower. Its blossom symbolizes a pivotal moment in the book, the departure of Taylor and her new friends in pursuit of a better life. The way Kingsolver creates these connective moments is one of her defining qualities. Point of view adds more dimension to these moments and is another one of Kingsolver’s essential qualities. Kingsolver’s work is defined by her ability to create connections within a narrative and the point of view she uses to convey her ideas.…
Renner, Stanley. "The real woman inside the fence in The Chrysanthemums." Modern Fiction Studies (1985): 305-17.…
Edmond Dantes is a promising young man with his whole life ahead of him. He is betrothed to a beautiful woman and about to become the captain of a large ship, which would bring him much wealth. Then, his whole life is shattered by the betraying of his very own colleagues. Fernand Mondego was one of those who was jealous of Dantes and decided to take action for fear of losing the woman of his dreams. In the end, Dantes takes revenge on Fernand Mondego by simply paying back the favor which Mondego had done years before, destroying Dantes’ life and reputation.…
We live in a world where fidelity and commitment are hard to come by. Every day we see sleazy politicians lying to our faces on television, and the media twisting people’s words for the sake of entertainment. Mimicking our world, in The Count of Monte Cristo you can scarcely go a page without someone backstabbing someone else or some clandestine scheme coming to fruition. Despite this plethora of perfidy, loyalty does have a place in The Count of Monte Cristo. In this novel, Alexandre Dumas demonstrates his remarkable knack for balancing deceit with faithfulness in a world of retribution and influence. Hence, loyalty plays a dynamic role in Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo.…
One of the most dominant themes is the role of women in marriage. Women are considered objects of subjection and control in a marriage. When a woman gets married, she seems to take orders from their male partner. The role of women then becomes as an underdog who has no freedom. The other theme that is explored in details is the cruelty or oppression associated with marriages. The writer notes with concern that the marriage institution is marred with oppression, regardless of the amount of love the couples have. This idea is developed in Louise who seems to be very sad that her husband has died, while at the same time seems to be very excited at learning that her husband is truly dead. This is interpreted as the joy that came with knowing that she had finally been freed from the oppression she has experienced all through her marriage life. After marrying her husband, she feels she lost control of her life and had to give in to Brentley’s will. This joy is showed by how she walks after realizing her husband was dead, like a goddess of…
John D. Rockefeller once said, “A friendship founded on business is better than a business founded on friendship” (http://www.brainyquote.com/). In the book The Count of Monte Cristo, a novel written by Alexandre Dumas, a man by the name of Edmond Dantes is wrongfully accused by his so called “friends” and is put in the dreadful prison, Chateau d’If. After his good pal Abbe Faria dies, he escapes and finds a treasure, with the money he swears to get revenge in the most painful way possible, all are going down. When he is out of prison he makes his way to Carnival in Rome, Italy, there he meets Albert and Franz; through that time period many opinions formed about one another and gave them the opportunity to form what Albert and Franz thought was a friendship.…
The Count of Monte Cristo Theme: The Count of Monte Cristo is a very powerful book. So powerful in fact, that was controversial when it was first released. The Catholic church in France condemned it because of its powerful message it presented the reader.…