Every life knows tragedy. While some tragedies may be greater than others, it is tragedy all the same. In his book Night, Elis Wiesel brings light to one of the most tragic events in our history The Holocaust. Wiesel describes his torturous treatment in the concentration camps, a place which stole everything from him: his home, his family, and even his faith in God. After seeing people tortured, gassed, and burned, Wiesel states, “my eyes had opened and I was alone, terribly alone in the world without God, without man. Without love or mercy. I was nothing but ashes now, but I felt myself to be stronger than this Almighty to whom my life had been bound for so long. In the midst of these men assembled for prayer, I felt like an observer, a stranger”
Night Flying Woman is a story about a young girl who had to make a lot of changes during her life. In the beginning of this story Oona(Ni-bo-wi-se-gwe) was a young child who observed from her elders. Her own story is reflected from the hardships she had to go through as a child and how she had to grow as a Native American Woman during the time in which they were being contained and assimilated. It is a story based on the Ojibwe culture.
Many of the names were chosen from the bible on the day of a child’s birth. Letting God choose a child’s name shows a level of faith in the parents which often results in awkward and weird names. The use of the name, Magdalena called Lena, is similar to the phrasing in the bible in names like Simon called Peter. Toni Morrison put a lot of emphasis into the characters' names in Song of Solomon. The main characters' last name of Dead has a lot of emphasis. The first man in the family that was named Dead ended up being murdered. Guitar repeated uses the joke, “You can’t kill someone that is already dead. The names have a greater meaning and Toni Morrison wants her readers to get a similar understanding, or any understanding out of them at
Pilate’s name is significant and very interesting throughout the novel “Song of Solomon”, for the reader knows who she is from the moment they learn her name. Pilate was named after the biblical figure, Pontius Pilate, the man who was responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus, but Pilate does not resonate with Pontius Pilate at all. Although she doesn’t share any characteristics with the origin of her name, when pronounced as “pilot” her name fits her like a glove. Pilate is very knowledgeable when it comes to geography and has migrated to many different places to call her home, such as Virginia. Instead of following the path that her name made for her, Pilate avoids the evil that is found in the name and makes a new path as a pilot. As pilots
Pilate is the protagonist of Song of Solomon because she serves as the novel’s moral compass. In the novel, Toni Morrison does not give a direct insight into the feelings or thinkings of Pilate, but here importance is still understood within the audience. Pilate Dead’s name is purposefully used by Toni Morrison to draw a contrast to the biblical reference of Pontius Pilate. In the Bible, Pontius Pilate is a man that looked for himself in adversity and choose the easy way out. He was the man who ordered Jesus to crucifixion even though he internally knew the Jesus was innocent. However, despite being named after an individual who ordered Jesus crucifixion, we know Pilate Dead is not, in fact, cruel or ill-minded. In fact, she serves as a compass
Is it possible for people to become fully autonomous without giving up, to leaving behind certain parts of their life? For many people, the answer is no. There may be certain aspects of their culture or society or beliefs of their family that go against what that person has to do to become autonomous. Esperanza, the main character of the book The House On Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, definitely has let go of certain things to achieve her freedom, and this has an effect on her identity. Her desire for autonomy shapes her identity by forcing her to accept the reality that things will have to change in order for her to achieve autonomy. Cisneros illustrates this development and understanding through the use of symbolism.
Pilate is born without a navel, which causes her to be alienated by others. Ironically enough, she is nearly opposite to Milkman on how she deals with the deformity. Whilst Milkman is incredibly self counscious of his leg, trying to hide it from the general public in every way that he possibly can, Pilate seems to not care at all about her navel. It is only other people who care so deeply about it, and because of her lack of a navel, others come to think of her as inhuman. Furthermore, unlike Milkman's leg, a deformity which was “mostly in his head”, Pilate's navel is a real deformity. She just doesn't think it effects he life in any sort of meaningful way, and doesn't like it do so, unlike Milkman, who lets his leg control huge decisions in his life involving his family and others. It is also a possiblity that her lack of a navel was a part of her being shunned by her own brother, Macon. He describes her as a snake while telling Milkman to stay away from her, showing that he believes she isn't human. “A snake, I told you. Ever hear the story about the snake? The man who saw a little baby snake on the ground? Well, the man saw this baby snake bleeding and hurt. Lying there in the dirt. And the man felt sorry for it and picked it up and put it in his basket and took it home. And he fed it and took care of it till it was big and strong. Fed it the same thing he ate. Then one day, the snake turned on him and bit him. Stuck his poison tongue right in the man’s heart. And while he was laying there dying, he turned to the snake and asked him, ‘What’d you do that for?’ He said, ‘Didn’t I take good care of you? Didn’t I save your life?’ The snake said, ‘Yes.’ ‘Then what’d you do it for? What’d you kill me for?’ Know what the snake said? Said, ‘But you knew I was a snake, didn’t you?’ Now, I mean for you to stay out of that wine house and as far away from Pilate as you can” (Morrison, 54,
Returning from his escapade, Milkman, with his newfound information, reads road signs with interest, a far cry from his reaction to the community when he arrived. He began to think of how many people have died without anybody truly knowing their name and says, “Names had meaning. No wonder Pilate put hers in her ear. When you know your name, you should hang onto it, for unless it is noted down and remembered, it will die when you do” (329). Although, Pilate’s name has biblical undertones, she is the exact opposite of her namesake. Names provide a means of identity and self-worth, allowing people to create a sense of individuality. Even-though, her name name has negative religious connotations, Pilate embraces her name because it allows her to free herself from the constraints of societal norms. She is able to become her own person and truly find herself in the world. Pilate keeps her name in her ear, so she is able to pass on her character to her kin. Finally, to not allow her name to “die” when she does, Pilate creates an unforgettable essence for her to be remembered by. Talking to Macon, Milkman’s father, Pilate tells how she went back to the cave where Macon and she killed a hunter three years later, to collect his bones and carry them for repentance. She
Toni Morrison uses Pilate’s motif of names to represent the importance of heritage to Milkman. Beginning with her own name, Pilate embraced the name her father gave her despite the connotations it carried. She appreciated how thoughtfully he chose it to the point of wearing it in her ear. Before travelling to Virginia, Milkman’s name bore no significance to him. He didn’t know the history of his family, and he didn’t go by his given name. Pilate’s responsibility in literally carrying her past with her, whether in her earing or her father’s bones stressed to Milkman how little of his past he knew. She drove him down his path to their past. The name motif follows Milkman as he travels south. Upon reaching Solomon and discovering that many people,
To most people, being honorable is important. To them, upholding their morals and protecting their beliefs is crucial. To others, it may not be as significant. Some people might give in and sacrifice their morals to save their reputation. It’s up to those people to decide which is right. In the play The Crucible by Arthur Miller, he challenges the idea, should one fight for their honor or struggle to maintain their reputation. People who fight for their honor are driven by their morality and beliefs, which follow them to the grave, unlike reputations that are forgotten about and rely on if others even still remember.
All in all, having the choice of giving your child a name is a special thing until unique parents decide to name them "Lucifer" and "Talula Does the Hula From Hawaii." That is to say that those kinds of parents take away the precious meaning of honoring your child with a typical name. With their lack of oppurtinities, I would not forgive parents for their creativity. Given all these points that I adressed parents should not have the right to name their child whatever they
At some point in everyone’s lives, they get the opportunity to name something. Whether it is a toy, a dog, or a kid, people usually put in a grand amount of effort in making this decision. The reason for this is people acknowledge that names can influence us on how others interpret or act towards someone or something. We also just try to pick the right name to describe the object. In the article, “What’s in a Name?” by Roger Dooley, he talks all about the importance of naming in the world of advertising and in our general lives.
Gogol is a strange name, but that strangeness does not define who he is. “The Namesake” is about a boy who has foreign parents and a peculiar name, but he learns that what he is called is not who he is as a person and that it is okay that his name is out of the ordinary. In “The Namesake,” Jhumpa Lahiri establishes the theme that it is okay to be different through family traditions, relationships with others, and experiences.
I went over hundreds of names in my head, from Kris to Kendal to Kenneth, but no name I thought of seemed to fit me very well. I knew I wanted it to start with a “K” and it had to go with my middle name (which is Nicholas, the American, masculine version of my Russian middle birth name: Nikita.) So in a last ditched effort to fine a suitable name for myself I turned to the only place I had left; the internet. Several hours and thousands of names later I found myself staring at a somewhat simple name that had appeared on my screen. “Keegan” it read. I stared at that little blue highlighted name for over half an hour mulling it over. “Lord Keegan Nicholas Holmes.” I quietly mumbled the new name along with my family title under my breath (I come from a long line of noble families from Ireland, Scotland and Great Brittan.) I couldn’t help but smile as the new name seemed to immediately flood my body with endorphins at the thought of what it represented for
In Italian my name means clear, bright, and famous, the meaning in Latin is the same thing. . What stands out to me my name meaning, in Swahili means princess.Also, my name means in Irish, dark, small. My mom came up with my name from the movie The Lion King II Simba’s pride. She felt the character is strong minded, as for I feel I’m pretty strong minded. My name meaning to some people that I’m independent.. I feel as being Kiara I’m a short human being. I feel the vibe of my name means powerful, compassion, and strong-minded.