From The Ashes Annotated
Poetry is a language of creation and can be a powerful literary form of self-expression. Jesse Thistle, the author of From the Ashes, includes poetry throughout his memoir to share his emotional and inspiring story of overcoming addiction and homelessness. He has now become an author and a rising Indigenous scholar. Thistle begins the memoir with the poem "A Little Boy's Dream," introducing the theme of suicide and displaying Thistle's struggles with his family. Throughout the memoir, the readers witness how abandonment affects Thistle and leads to his constant battles with addiction and homelessness. Towards the end of the memoir, Thistle includes the poem "Fighting the Darkness," where he acknowledges that he was once 'from the ashes' but …show more content…
The poem "Fighting the Darkness" displays the theme of Thistle finding his identity. The poem also includes the rhetorical device of parallelism and the literary device of personification to create pathos and connect with the readers. In the poem, Thistle recalls his past and describes how different he used to be, "once, in a not-too-distant life/i was a different person" (Thistle 293). Self-reflection is essential for self-awareness as it helps an individual become more aware of their values and views of the world that influence their actions, which is necessary for changing one's behaviour. Not long ago, Thistle had been homeless and drunk on the streets, but he has recovered from his experiences, and so much has changed that he feels it was a different life altogether. Thistle uses parallelism in the poem, "live for today,/forget the past,/damn the future" (Thistle 293). Thistle places more than two parts of a compound idea in similar grammatical form, creating rhythm and emphasis. Thistle explains the darkness he used to live in, part of which was by the 'criminal's creed'. Thistle then uses personification, "that is how i can fight the darkness now./because i once was the darkness" (Thistle 294). Thistle gives personality and life to the idea of darkness. He describes that he can fight the darkness because he was once in the darkest place of his life and was 'from the ashes.' Earlier in the text, Thistle describes darkness, "That's all any of the darkness really is-just love gone bad. We're just broken-hearted people hurt by life" (Thistle 260). Thistle is on his journey of reconciliation but reflects on his past and acknowledges that he once felt as if he had nothing left to live for, but he is overcoming his past by employing lessons he learned. The poem is placed in the reconciliation segment of the memoir as the poem exemplifies how Thistle is fighting his battles to find his identity and
Jesse Thistle From The Ashes Sparknotes
951 Words | 4 PagesA little boy who wants admiration from his dad becomes a drug addict that is completely wretech but finds his path towards a successful man in the future. Jesse Thistle, the author of From the Ashes is an agonizng yet compelling story that retells someone life experiences with addictions, trauma and identity. From the Ashes is a memoir about life and on how people can be impacted by systematic racism, homelesness and trauma but can overcome them with the help of family, friends and culture. Most of us have dealt with some sort of form of bullying but Thistle deals with this for most of his childhood. Thistle’s Métis identity is made fun of by his classmates.
Inscriptions In The Dust Sparknotes
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Jesse Thistle's Lack Of Dignity In 'From The Ashes'
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On Turning Ten By Billy Collins
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Symbolism In Trethewey's Elegy
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Of Extinct Authoritative Parent Connection In Jesse Thistle's From The Ashes
830 Words | 4 PagesThistle's experience with homelessness is also evident in his work, as seen by his statement: "We'd been homeless for just over 4 months and were barely hanging on." (Thistle,164). This illustrates the uncertainty and desperation that are associated with being homeless as well as the obstacles of attempting to survive without a reliable residence or supporting structure. Homelessness just makes Thistle's other problems, like drug addiction, worse. " So there I was, once again, heckling the screws and counting the days and cinder blocks.
Personification In Autumn By Alan Bold
243 Words | 1 PagesThe present effects of the autumn season are vividly depicted in Alan Bold's poem "Autumn. " Personification is used to describe how autumn arrives "like an experienced robber." (l.2) This simile and personification not only emphasises the suddenness of autumn's arrival but also suggests that it is taking something valuable away. The use of "his tracks''(l.4) reinforces the personification that autumn is a person that robs summer of its greenery.
An Analysis Of 'Reluctance' By Robert Frost
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Innocence In Wordsworth And Chimney Sweeper
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