The Kite Runner Week 3 Madison Deiter

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini brought up so many emotions and even left me in tears at some points. I haven't read a book like The Kite Runner in such a long time which is probably the reason why I finished it in 2 days! Hosseini did a wonderful job keeping the reader on their feet since many things were unpredictable. Everything was mapped out perfectly, as it jumped from the past to the future in a way that made the reader really connect to the characters like Amir and Hassan.
SparkNotes did a really nice job of giving an in-depth description of the characters and how the characters reacted in important situations throughout the book. For example, I noted that Amir was very insecure growing up as he competed with Hassan for Baba's affection. I enjoyed seeing Amir grow up through the novel and how Amir reflected back on his actions towards the end, which made me realize how his character evolved. SparkNotes describes Amir as "passive-aggressive" with his relationship with Hassan. SparkNotes also notes the change in Amir "from a selfish child to a selfless adult". I agree with the part of Amir being a selfish child, but there were many aspects where Amir still had that selfish immaturity in him when he went back to Pakistan. Amir always had a way of putting his feelings first, but how he grew was realizing that that wasn't always the best answer.
 “My body was broken—just how badly I wouldn’t find out until later—but I felt healed. Healed at last. I laughed.” (p. 289) This quote stood out to me and SparkNotes because this is when Amir finally felt like he got what he deserved. As a reader, this made my confidence in Amir grow because throughout the book, Amir's guilt showed me that he wasn't evil, his guilt showed that he was human and that humans do make mistakes. The reason why this quote is so vital to Amir's character is because Amir finally came to terms with his guilt and felt like things were even between him and Hassan. SparkNotes summarizes this quote more than analyzes it which was disappointing. SparkNotes implies that Amir carries around his guilt because he felt like he never got the punishment that he deserved which I fully agree with. However, I believe there is another part of Amir's guilt that SparkNotes didn't cover which is the fact that Amir's guilt is what ultimately made him a good person. 
All in all, I was pleased with the way SparkNotes broke down the charactres and highlighted the important parts of the book, but there were somethings that one would have to read in order to get the full effect of this amazing novel.

The Road Week 4-Madison Deiter

“The Killer” A Sonnet –Maddison Deiter

Inspired by: The Road by Cormac McCarthy

How can someone try to love a killer?

He only has sleeping to free his mind

Yet to go fourth is his one painkiller

His gun starved with two bullets makes him blind

Why must we have to fear one another?

Watching the hand that can pull the trigger

His mind is a grave left with no brother

It is wry one is scared by a finger

But can a killer become pure of grief?

And yes his mind grew flowers from his son

A killer’s dreams been taken by a theif

Just to be returned by leaving the gun

A man and his son walking together

Leaving behind the killer forever

I wrote this sonnet about how the boy and the man were seen as the good guys throughout the book, but yet the boy was having trouble accepting they were good especially after the man killed a roadagent because killing was for the bad guys. I wanted to show the strength of the boy’s conscious as I believe the boy changed the man by showing him what good actually is.

“Dreams” –Madison Deiter

Inspired by: The Road by Cormac McCarthy

The man dreams about the dead eyes, each dream gets worse and worse as the man’s sweat mixes with the grass morning dew.

Dreams, the only time the man sees the creature and what the world was when his eyes are closed.

Dreams, the only time the man can reassure himself that he is strong. He is wise. He is good. Why is it that when he dreams of evil, he is comforted?

Dreams, the only time the man knows his happy dreams are worrisome, and the dark dreams are calming.

Dreams, the only time his wife is alive but to only be killed by the man’s guilt and hurt.

Dreams, the only time he sees the boy happy and childish as if cold and starvation are only a thing of legends.

Dreams, the only time the man’s subconscious mind melds with reality leaving him stumped. His dreams are a metaphor that he will only understand when he closes his eyes for eternity.

I wrote this because I was reminded of the importance of dreams throughout the novel. I found it very interesting that nightmares were a thing to be praised but good dreams were a sign of weakness. It just shows how this world they lived in is so parallel to what the world actually is. The man’s dreams were also a foreshadow for his slow death which made it easier for me to follow along and to grasp.

“The Good and the Bad” –Madison Deiter

Inspired by: The Road by Cormac McCarthy

As the day dies, the boy’s thoughts began to thrive.

The boy is welcomed by questions, ones that God can only keep alive .

The boy’s mind is a road that becomes split into two- one is bright, the other bleak.

The boy can see the man take one step closer in the direction of darkness making him weak.

The bullet left his gun and entered the skull of another.

The boy sees the man halfway down the road of despair when he intentionally tries to kill a brother.

The boy is told the man is good. They are good. This is what the good do.

But is it? The boy cannot hold back his heart nagging him to question, leaving his mind blue. Shall the boy dare lead the man by his heart rather than his mind?

The boy’s heart becomes stronger as his conscious leads him down the road so kind.

He is his own person now, he decides what makes one good and what makes one bad.

The boy imagines the bullet that killed a man. He remembers the man that was left to die from who the boy thought was his dad.

Similar to the sonnet, I really like how McCarthy made the man and the boy somewhat of a foil to one another just because the man had different values than the boy when it came to deciding what makes one good and what makes one bad. I liked how as the story went on, the boy’s character really began to grow stronger and more independent to the point where the boy’s values overrode the man’s. It showed me what good actually was and how good can help survival more than bad can.

Week 1 Running With Scissors- Madison Deiter

One book that has had a lasting impact on me was Running With Scissors by Augusten Burroughs. I read this last year in AP Lang as one of the memoirs of choice. This memoir showed the struggles of LGBT teens and how easily they can be taken advantage of. However, there were other aspects to this memoir where I did connect to. Having a mentally ill mother is something that Burroughs and I have in common. Burrough's mother was always in and out of his life unexpectedly and he had to grow up really fast as did I. Currently I do not have a relationship with my mom and I haven't encountered anyone else in my particular situation. That's why Running With Scissors made me feel like my situation wasn't uncommon and it made me feel less alone. Burrough's struggles with sexuality brought out feelings of depression and loneliness and I have suffered from depression and I know exactly what loneliness feels like even if you are surrounded with people who love you. I really enjoyed reading this book and it made me realize how much I appreciate memoirs and how sharing your story can help so many others like it did to me.

Prynne and Offred - Nick Brandt

   While in the course of our minute existences, we incur a toll on the psyche. Whether self-imposed, cast upon us by a rigid society, or by another being: the result is a taxed system. This poison unfettered can wreak havoc on a weak willed person, yet this is not the case of Hester Prynne, Puritan seamstress, garnished with a red ignominious badge of shame in The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Yet the same oppressive color has seemed to hammer A Handmaid's Tale (by Margaret Atwood) alleged heroine, Offred, into complacency. The two characters share a certain likeness, yet their internal substance stratifies them all the same.

   To begin with a simple commonality expressed throughout both works, these women are not innocent. Both, in a Judeo Christian frame of reference, are sinners just as all of mankind is. Hester fell victim to lust, just as Offred stagnated in the life of a harlot. The circumstances could be argued, but semantics aside they objectively sinned in the aforementioned context. Also, the Judeo Christian perspective should be deemed most fitting considering both Gilead and Puritan society are Christian theologies. 

   Speaking on these societies, as with all schematics, the commissioner, builders, foreman, and all those involved in the realization of said blueprint can misalign the frame and render the project corrupted. This is the case with both theologies, albeit in some stride of difference. Gilead is littered with rank hypocrisy, inequity of race and gender, and morose bending of the word of God. The rich are indulgent, exploitative, and adulterers, among other things. The case of Puritan Boston is similar in that it's air is saturated with hypocrisy. The community harbors no tenderness of heart, and casts judgement as the Lord is supposed to. Hester finds herself paying back heavenly and earthly tithes because of a single sin committed. This is where we can distance the narratives of Hester and Offred however, because Offred committed no virtual offense, she was simply a woman.

   Offred was largely a victim of circumstance. She was a slave, forced to have sex with the Commander and prodded into trying to get pregnant with Nick. Hester was never forced into anything. She could have chosen to abandon the place of her sin in lieu of wearing the brazen scarlet on her chest and donning the penance in her soul. Yet she chose to stay, and she chose to forge her own destiny in this seemingly simple action. She was kind and charitable and worked her way back into the hearts of a cold, frigid people. She found God smiling down upon her and her posterity. Likewise, when offered a chance to leave opprobrious conditions in Gilead, Offred declined. Yet she did this out of sheer complacency and a lack of will. She was content to live in her present shackles as long as Nick could offer her companionship.

  While Hester doesn't accept her societal fate, she hearkens the belief that her sin has besmirched her and tainted her soul. To clarify, Hester might seem that she is accepting her peer's judgment of fate, but she is in essence doing good because she wants to, nobody else could force her to. Silently and in reservation, Offred disapproves the conditions she and her people are subject to. However, she refuses to externally act on her beliefs, unlike Hester's aforementioned abundant acts of good that encapsulate her good intents to right a wrong. This inclination in her moral fiber might be a product of her raising, however, old works of fiction don't require excessive discourse on such details.

   Offred is subject to Aunt re education as Hester might seemingly be indoctrinated with Puritan principles. Though Hester was brought up surrounded by feminists who gave her blended perspective on her reality, Hester was raised in a traditional religious English camp of thought. Therefore all thought not genetically given would be molded to certain virtue, thought process, etc.

   The will to blaze one's own path is not present in all people, fictional or otherwise. Hester Prynne never once lets anything other than her own action dictate her future, while we see the narrative of a victim present in Offred's storyline. Both characters posses many faults and are certainly not bereft of good qualities. They both portray a lesson in all of their exploits.

Week 8 Explanation

For this week’s blog I’d like you to make comments on the posts of anyone who has participated. Find three different posts to comment on, preferably by different people. You can choose the posts based on whatever draws you to them. When you write your comments, focus on the ideas the blogger presents in his or her post. Agree or disagree with what they present and add your own two cents' worth. You may also comment on the strengths of the blogger’s writing style; at this point, please give only positive comments. To comment on a post, go to the bottom of your chosen post and click on the “comments” button.

You are required to make 3 comments -- one each on 3 different posts -- and each comment should be about 250 words long. Remember which posts you commented on for you will be asked to include your comments when you turn in a printed copy of your posts at the beginning of the school year. You should use first-person POV. There will be no example for this week as you have plenty of leeway to respond positively as you see fit.

With this assignment, the summer blogging is complete! By the end of this week, you should have completed 6 out of 8 blog topics. Remember, this summer blog alone comprises 20% of your first nine week’s grade. If you need extra credit for missing a blog, you may comment on 3 more posts. If extenuating circumstances caused you to forgo the blogging experience, there will be an alternate and less convenient assignment.

When you write for this assignment (and most of the others) keep the following general guidelines and possibilities in mind: 1). DO NOT SUMMARIZE. I don’t care if I haven’t read your book; I’m not asking for the plot. 2). Pay attention to your content, ideas, organization, using quotes, and citation as you structure your post. 3). Deal with other issues that are interesting, novel, and intellectual yet still relate to the general topic of the post.

Try to have a good time. Remember internet safety protocols: don’t use your entire name or give away identifying information. You should probably change your display name if you’re using your real name. Be tactful and don’t disparage anyone. You are graded on the quality of thought and expression in your post, its length (between 700 - 1000 words), and on using quoted material properly (if you use any). I suggest writing the post in a word processing program and then pasting it into the post window. Contact me if you have any questions and I’ll answer ASAP. There is no example for this week’s blog. Enjoy the vestiges of summer. See you soon!

Hester Prynne and Sula Peace - Martin

Characters are important parts of most novels. Their decisions and interactions are an essential part of the plot. A character can make or break a book, especially if the entire storyline revolves around them. Hester Prynne in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and Sula Peace in Toni Morrison’s Sula are essential character’s to their novel’s plot. They are both important women who have their similarities and differences.

Hester Prynne and Sula Peace are similar women. They are both fiercely independent and do not conform to the society in which they live’s social norms. Hester refuses to acknowledge her child’s father. She insists on raising Pearl herself and is adamant about keeping the father’s identity a secret. Sula refuses to marry and have children because she wants to remain independent. While in an argument with Eva, Sula says, "I don't want to make somebody else. I want to make myself" (1937,21). This shows that Sula wants to be her own person and plans to stay that way. They both defy social norms. Hester refuses to let the scarlet letter define her and Sula refuses to settle for a life of just marriage and children. Sula and Hester also have defining physical attributes. Sula’s birthmark on her face is seen as many different things by different people, and what they see it as reflects on them. Hester’s scarlet letter defines her to many people, but Hester does not let it define her. Both women also have sexual affairs, but Sula’s is not as defining because she is not married and Hester was. Both characters are very honest. Hester never lies, and even says "A lie is never good, even though death threaten on the other side!" Sula is very honest in who she is. She does not try to change herself or censor her actions in order to fit in to the community. Both women are also hated by their peers for not conforming to societal norms they are subjected to.

Hester and Sula have similarities, but they also have many differences. They live in very different societies and time periods. Hester lives in Puritan New England in the 1600’s and Sula lives in the black community called The Bottom in the 1900’s. As a reader, one does not know much about Hester Prynne’s past before the book takes place but much of Sula Peace’s life is accounted for. Hester’s affair is the main focus of her life because it leaves her with Pearl while the affair that Sula takes part in does not define her life. While both women are independent, they are independent in their own ways. Sula refuses to get married and have children, while Hester was married and has a child. Sula has friends and family while Hester mainly keeps to herself and has no close friends or family other than her daughter Pearl. Hester’s life choices go against what Sula wants for herself. While both women experience sexism, Sula is also subjected to racism because she is black.

I can somewhat relate to Hester and Sula because I am also a woman so I experience sexism although it may not be as extreme. I also wish to remain very independent for the rest of my life. I cannot relate to many of their hardships as I have not experienced them.

Hester Prynne and Sula Peace play important roles in their stories. They are both portrayed and written well. They experience real problems that readers can relate to, making them seem more realistic. They are both important characters.

Hester and Celie - Hostetler

Up until recent decades, society has assigned roles to people by their gender and has been heavily oppressive of women. The capabilities of women have always been questioned and restricted by the "superior" male counterparts. This is why so many novels and cinematic productions have become so popular and sought after when the story relates to women breaking through the reigns of men. Nathaniel Hawthorne and Alice Walker both published stories of maltreated women during a time when this male tyrannization was acceptable and expected. Hester Prynne from The Scarlet Letter and Celie from The Color Purple are both female protagonist who dealt with the struggles of societal inferiority, yet dealt with it in contrasting fashions.

The isolation of Hester Prynne arose from the guilt society instilled upon her breast for breaking Puritan Law and disgracing her name with sin. No one in the area wanted to be associated with the the hell bound sinner, therefore making Hester's life rather lonely, "Lonely as was Hester's situation, and without a friend on Earth who dared to show himself" (Hawthorne, 57). With her collapsed social status, she was made a spectacle within the community, practically foreign. The scarlet letter branded upon dress identified herself among others to be culturally exiled, "When stranger looked curiously at the scarlet letter, ---and none ever fail to do so, ---they branded it afresh into Hester's soul; so that, oftentimes, she could scarcely refrain, yet always did refrain, from covering the symbol with her hand" (Hawthorne, 60). Exposing her to stern ridicule and harassment, the token slowly tore apart at Hester's spirit. Because women at that time were assumed to eventually fall to sinful desires, her adultery only made the bedevilment worse, "This woman has brought shame upon us all, and ought to die. Is there no law for it? Truly there is, both in the Scripture and the statue-book. Then let the magistrates, who have made it of no effect, thank themselves if their own wives and daughters go astray" (Hawthorne, 38). The audience member voicing this sentiment upon Hester's punishment implies that no woman, by nature, is able to control herself or her sins. In repercussion, society assumes her sinful nature after falling to adultery, and give the verdict of a lifetime of embarrassment. From the scarlet letter punishment arises the personal burden of coping with her eternal societal isolation and sadness.

I'm relation, Celie feels the same sadness and isolation, but it stems from constantly submitting to the will of others and refusal to stand up for herself. From the beginning, Celie accepts the fate of physical abuse and rape from her father (later finding out he's not her father) as admissible. Sofia is sure to bring it up to Celie, "...to tell the truth, you remind me of my mama. She under my daddy thumb. Naw, she under my daddy foot. Anything he say, goes. She never say nothing back. She never stand up for herself" (Walker, 43). Celie is sold off like property to marry Mr. _________, and the abuse simply continues. As Mr. _________ deems fit, he does not refrain from physically punishing Celie, "Harpo ast his daddy why he beat me. Mr. _________ say, Cause she my wife. Plus, she stubborn. All women good for—he didn't finish" (Walker, 23). It was socially acceptable to beat your children at that time, and Mr. _________ treated Celie just like another child he can abuse, "He beat me like he beat the children. Cept he don't never hardly beat them. He say, Celie, git the belt. The children be outside the room peeking through the cracks. It all I can do not to cry. I make myself wood. I say to myself, Celie, you are a tree. That's how come I know trees fear man" (Walker, 23). Being submissive and covering her true feelings are not only what fuels her sadness and isolation, but they are the societal expectations that have been placed on women during this era and prior to.

Hester Prynne always possessed an equal resistance to the role she was placed in as Celie, yet she passively accepts what society have given and lives the rest of her life doing what is expected of her. Through the conditioning of her neighbors, she becomes the model Puritan woman, quiet and submissive, "Even the attractiveness of her person has undergone a similar change. It might be partly owing to the studied austerity of her dress, and partly to the lack of demonstration in her manners. It was a sad transformation, too, that her rich and luxuriant hair had either been cut off, or was so completely hidden by a cap, that not a shining lock of it ever gushed into the sunshine" (Hawthorne, 112). In addition to the coarse dress and rigid cap, Hester put all others problems before her own. She indicated to the community her acceptance of the brutal environment through selfless acts of charity and love to help not only the underprivileged, but the whole economy for everyone, "It was perceived, too, that, while Hester never put forward even the humblest title to share in the world's privileges, ...she was quick to acknowledge her sisterhood in the race of man, whenever benefits were to be conferred. None so read as she to give of her little substance to every demand of poverty; even the the bitter-hearted pauper threw back a gibe in requital of the food brought regularly to his door, or the garments wrought for him by the fingers that could have embroidered a monarchs robe" (Hawthorne, 110). Only in Hester's mind exists a disconnection from the conformities of society, but it is a natural part of her character to follow the status quo. She buries the will for rebellion and humbly faces the letter's packaged torment and burden behind constant charity, "Standing alone in the world, ---alone as to any dependence on society, and with little Pearl to be guided and protected, ---alone, and hopeless of retrieving her position even had she not scorned to consider it desirable, ---she cast away the fragments of a broken chain. The world's law was no law for her mind" (Hawthorne, 112). By conforming to the expectations of Puritan dogma, she only gains herself isolation and sadness.

In contrast to Hester's outcast lifestyle, Celie found the blessing of Shug's love to help her break through the expectations of both her husband and the society surrounding her. The process of empowering herself is initiated when Shug tries to convince her to not let herself be abused by Mr. _________. However, it was only after the discovery of Nettie's hidden letters when Celie let out her true anger, "Naw, I think I feel better if I kill him, I say. I feels sickish. Numb, now" (Walker, 151). Expressing her hidden desire to murder Mr. _________ allowed Celie to take her first action in confronting him. During this triumphant moment at the dinner table, she expels all of her repressed anger that had been boiling up inside, overcoming the his expectation of women, ignoring acceptance and seeking just results, "You a lowdown dog is what's wrong, I say. It's time to leave you and enter Creation. And your dead body just the welcome mat I need" (Walker, 207). Blatantly a step aside from social normality, the men around the table sat flabbergasted at Celie's statements. The women understand society's misconception and back up the words of Celie to laugh in the face of their oppression.

Hester Prynne and Shug Avery - Dickens

Throughout our lives, we will come across all sorts of people: big, small, short, tall, smart, athletic, weird, the list goes on. However, we will also come across people that we find many similarities with and with whom we are able to connect with on all levels. These people tend to become some of our greatest friends. However, despite the deep connections you can form with other people through staggering similarities and equal beliefs, there will always be the few differences you find in personality and appearance and beliefs that separate you from your friends. We are all unique in our own special ways no matter how many similarities two people may have. When I read The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Color Purple by Alice Walker, I could sense and feel a connection between Hester Prynne and Shug Avery. However, I believe the reason why I felt the connection between these two empowered, beautiful, strong-headed women, is because I felt I also was able to relate to them and their personalities.

In The Color Purple, Shug Avery is represented as an oddball of sorts in the society she lives in and is amongst. She faces many obstacles but never seems to let any of these obstacles phase her. An example of such obstacles would be how Shug strives to be an independent woman as a black female, in a time where being a African-American and a female basically automatically puts you at the bottom of the social pyramid where you are frowned upon or seen as worse than those “superior” to you. Yet, despite theses great odds, she fights back anyways and expresses herself in ways against the standards of society. Similar to which, in The Scarlet Letter, Hester is ridiculed and scoffed at by the Puritan society where she lives with her (previous) husband, despite how she feels isolated amongst them. Against the obstacle she is faced with when she is forced to wear a cap with the letter “A” on it as her punishment for committing adultery, having an affair with a man for whom she cared for while married to her husband who she does not love. Instead of subjecting herself to the humiliation however, not long after being granted this punishment, she speaks out to the Puritans and rips the “A” off that hat. Both women find ways to combat society in extraordinary ways.

The previous point made that pointed out their similarities focused on their personalities, specifically their desire to stand up for what they believe in, and their driven nature to do so. However, their similarities don’t only lie in their personalities, but in their physical appearance as well. Both women, Hester Prynne and Shug Avery, were known by their surrounding communities for being some of the most beautiful and gorgeous women in the land. Hester is physically described in the book at the beginning as a tall young woman with a "figure of perfect elegance on a large scale." Additionally noted as her most impressive feature, is her "dark and abundant hair, so glossy that it threw off the sunshine with a gleam, and her beauty shone out, and made a halo of the misfortune and ignominy in which she was enveloped." Shug is described as beautiful with the most gorgeous hair and most perfect body. Another character in The Color Purple, Celie, often finds herself gawking with jealousy of Shug because she considers herself to be ugly. Both women stand as figures in their community by their looks, because they are seen as beautiful on the outside.

In the midst of all of these seemingly astounding similarities, there are a variety of differences as well. First off, in The Color Purple, Shug Avery’s personality is seen as “self-centered” and “superficial” to most, unlike the warmth and kindness evident to many in Hester Prynne’s that is shown through the affection and love she gives to her daughter. Also, a blatant difference is that Hester is white, while Shug is black. While their situations and experiences are similar, the obstacles the African-American people faced, versus those that white people faced is blaringly different, especially given the time each of their stories were set in.

In conclusion, Hester Prynne and Shug Avery, while both come from very different stories and times, their experiences and similarities in personality and appearance are obvious and inevitable to notice, despite their few, assorted differences.

Hester and Offred - Elzinga

In the books The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne the characters of Hester Prynne and Offred are both similar and different.  They are similar in that they both committed acts that were seen as breaking the laws in the societies in which they live and were spared from the worst punishment, those societies are very similar because they are based on religion, both characters are fairly strong minded, but they have been forced to conform by circumstances.  They are different in that Hester’s child is seen as a reminder of her sin while if Offred were to have another child then that child would serve to promote and protect her, whereas Pearl just serves to further Hester’s punishment.  Another difference is that Hester got to keep Pearl whereas Offred lost her own child, Hester had Pearl as company and didn’t have to suffer the loss of a child while Offred had her child torn away from her and given to another family, and Offred has to suffer through the constant pain of imagining her child being raised by someone else and possibly not even remembering her.

First, beginning with similarities, both Hester and Offred committed acts that broke the law of the societies in which they live, and both were spared from death.  Hester committed adultery which in the Puritanical society of Salem, Massachusetts in the mid-seventeenth century was a crime of the highest order that could have been punishable by death, but Hester was spared and given a somewhat lighter sentence.  Offred tried to run away in a society where that was also punishable by death, but rather she was also spared and instead given the job as a handmaid.  

Second, both of the societies in which the characters live have laws and governments that are based on religion.  In the Puritanical societies of the 1640’s the governments and laws of the colonies were mainly set up by the colonists, and in Salem’s case were based purely upon religion.  The Puritanical societies were very strict and were based upon a literal interpretation of the Bible.  In, Atwood’s tail, a fictional society is created where an extremist religious sect has taken over the entire country and forced everyone within it to conform to their ideals.  Both of these societies have very strict laws based upon religious interpretation that are impressed upon the people who live in the society.

Another similarity between the characters is the attitude which both of them have toward their situations.  Both characters are fairly strong-minded, but are slowly beaten down by their circumstances to conform to the ideals of their societies.  Hester in the beginning walks out of the jail with her head held high, her scarlet letter ornately embroidered, and Pearl held in her arms like a trophy.  She shows the people in the town that she doesn’t care what they think and carries herself with a quiet dignity which most people would not possess in the same situation.  Throughout the book, she begins to become more and more embarrassed by the stares and the gossip about her and slowly wears down to where the letter and Pearl become a bigger burden than they had been.  Offred goes through the same thing.  In her flashbacks she reveals that originally she was someone who was strong-minded and opinionated, who would fight for what she wanted.  Yet, as time wore on and she was captured and forced into her line of work, she is worn down through the torture of the girls who tried to escape, and through the oppressiveness of her situation until she conformed into the part she was supposed to play.

Now, onto the differences.  Both of the differences are related to a similar topic, children.  In Hester’s society the fact that she had Pearl out of wedlock causes the child to serve as a constant reminder of her sin and shame, whereas any child born into the society of Offred would be valued and cause Offred to secure a better position and not be sent away.  Pearl, for Hester, serves as a sort of constant torture, while Offred would actually be made more secure if she were to produce a child.  This causes the characters to have different mindsets about children.  Another difference is that Hester got to keep her daughter, whereas Offred had hers ripped away from her when she was captured.  This affects the characters’ attitudes.  Through all of Hester’s shame and punishment she had Pearl, who though a constant reminder of her shame, helped none of the less if only because it was another person to go through it all with.  On the other hand, Offred had to suffer through knowing that another family was raising her child, who may or may not remember her.  She had to live without knowing what happened to her daughter or her husband.  At the very least, Hester had closure in knowing what happened to either Pearl or Reverend Dimmesdale.  

In closing, the characters of Hester Prynne and Offred share many similarities in that they both live in societies based on religion in which they have committed acts which broke the law and were spared, they also were both once strong-minded, but were worn down by circumstances to conform.  The characters are also different in relation to the way their children are treated, Pearl is treated like Hester’s scarlet letter, while any child Offred would have would be raised by a family of good standing and would serve to promote her.  Hester is also different because she got to keep Pearl, whereas Offred had her daughter ripped away from her.    

Hamlet and Sydney Carton - Koski

Characters in literature are often challenged with multiple astounding tasks; thus in reality, authors are challenged to create characters who can further the storyline, who can form bonds with the audience, and who can engage in a plot that draws an emotional response. Just as every person is unique, every character is unique, and a vivid character will help create a distinctive plot. Playwright, William Shakespeare, and novelist, Charles Dickens, develop characters with noteworthy complexity that enhance the overall feel of their most famous pieces, Hamlet and A Tale of Two Cities. Despite the fact that the pieces were written more than 200 years apart, similarities can be drawn between the protagonists, Hamlet and Sydney Carton. 

First, both men undergo serious transitions. Hamlet, a philosophical college student at the time of his father’s death is driven mad by several “injustices” during this time period. Hamlet is overcome with grief, which is intensified by the fact that no one around him seemed to be grieving as much as he. He is outraged with both his mother’s decision to remarry his uncle a month after his father’s passing and by her lack of grief all together. His mother, Queen Gertrude even states “Thou know'st tis common, all that lives must die/Passing through nature to eternity” (I.ii.71-2). Hamlet further sees her actions as cruelty when he reminisces of how remarkably King Hamlet treated her. Hamlet states, “So excellent a king, that was to this/Hyperion to a satyr, so loving to my mother,/That he might not beteem the winds of heaven/Visit her face too roughly; heaven and earth,/Must I remember?…” (I.ii.141-45). However, Hamlet is not the only character affected by the decisions of Gertrude and Claudius—Ophelia, Hamlet’s former beloved, suffers the consequences of Hamlet’s tainted thoughts toward women. Ophelia perishes under Hamlet’s cruel words and actions. Thus, another transition is evident in Hamlet, he is fueled by anger and thoughts of his mother’s betrayal, ultimately destroying his former love by using her as an outlet for his hostility. Then, when Hamlet returns from exile, the audience witnesses yet another transformation. Hamlet seems calm and collected. He believes fate controls our outcomes: “There's a divinity that shapes our ends,/Rough-hew them how we will” (V.ii.10-11). 
As for Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities, the audience witnesses a man with little purpose in life. During a conversation with his co-worker, Stryver, this idea becomes even more evident. Stryver claims, “(Y)our way is, and always was, a lame way. You summon no energy and purpose” (3). He seems to be only a lazy alcoholic, however, readers can sense from the beginning Carton feels something he cannot articulate. He makes the claim he cares for nothing and no one. Then, he reveals his true feelings of interest in Lucie Manette with his bitter comments. But, readers see Carton’s largest transition when he finally confesses his love for Lucie to her face. There is even evident foreshadowing when he makes the statement, “Think now and then that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you!” (4). Carton admits that his feelings for Lucie have influenced him to see a brighter future and a purpose for himself. Carton pictures “…lying in the wilderness before him, a mirage of honourable ambition, self-denial, and perseverance. In the fair city of this vision, there were airy galleries from which the loves and graces looked upon him, gardens in which the fruits of life hung ripening, waters of Hope that sparkled in his sight” (4). 

Secondly, both characters encompass an element of complexity that enhances the plot. Hamlet can be described as both compassionate and thoughtful. Shakespeare wanted to employ a character with the ability to think. A man prone to thinking is incapable of acting. For example, Hamlet is given the perfect opportunity to assassinate Claudius, however, he prolongs acting by justifying that Claudius would be sent to Heaven for praying during his death. Despite the fact that Hamlet is reflective and cynical, he can also be impulsive and rash. When he acts, it is without premeditation. Such as when he kills Polonius through the curtain without checking first to see who it was. When Hamlet speaks, the audience gets the feeling that there is something important he knows but he is not sharing. Lastly, he is discontent with the state of his family and the affairs in Denmark, but he is not concerned with the threat of invasion or the internal fallacies of the country. Although Carton’s complexity presents itself differently, its also there. From the beginning, readers can sense there is more to Carton than just a drunk who doesn’t care for anyone or anything. These suspicions are proven accurate when Carton makes the ultimate sacrifice for the woman he loves despite the fact that she’s married to Darnay. Carton’s death also makes him complex because he is willing to sacrifice his life to find meaning. While he’s headed toward the guillotine, he envisions a peaceful and successful Paris with a bright future. This vision influences readers to believe he died a martyr whose death enables the happiness of Lucie and ensures his own immortality. 

Lastly, less prominent comparisons can be made. Both men are willing to accept death at one point or another. During Hamlet’s period of melancholia, he states that “...To die; to sleep,/No more, and by a sleep to say we end/The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks/That flesh is heir to; 'tis a consummation/Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;” (III.i.60-4). Carton never took much interest in his life, but by the end of the novel he accepts death because it gives him purpose. Also, both men are willing to make sacrifices for those they love. Hamlet realizes the potential dangers of murdering Claudius but chooses to carry through with it anyway to avenge his father. Carton clearly makes the ultimate sacrifice to keep Lucie, his love, both alive and happy. Each character is also realistic and relatable due to their flaws. Hamlet is indecisive, hasty, hateful, brutal, and obsessed and Carton is a hard drinker, idle, and unpromising. However, their flaws give them the potential to make great impact and form connections with the audience. 


In summary, despite the different styles and time periods, Shakespeare and Dickens both possess the ability to create complex characters which enhance their prominent pieces of literature. Accordingly, their pieces remain entertaining and eminent in modern society. 

Hassan and Celie- Kransberger

“The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini and “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker are very different novels with very different story lines. However, the themes surrounding two of the leading characters in these stories are not too different. Both Hassan and Celie face discrimination from society because of categories in which they are placed by their anatomical makeup. Celie because she is a woman and Hassan because he is a Hazara. Both characters deal with sexual and physical abuse as a result of something of which they lack control over. A major difference, however is their attitude towards it. Both incredibly courageous, they have very different approaches to their injustice.

In “The Kite Runner” from the time Hassan is a little boy, things between him and Amir, who is not a Hazara, appear fairly similar on the surface. They get along like best friends who constantly play together and seek adventures in their Afghanistani hometown. When the sun goes down, however, Hassan and his father go to bed in a small hut located in the backyard of Amir’s father’s mansion. Hassan is denied the opportunity to receive an education and learn to read and write, while Amir aspires to be an author sharing his work with Hassan. As the boys grow, instead of fighting to change the system, Hassan remains humble and endures rude comments from other young racist boys. While Amir admits that he knows it is wrong he feels that he does treat Hassan differently when others are around because he is aware that in the eyes of society he is better. Regardless, Hassan is passive and genuine focusing on only the good moments of their friendship. Even after deliberate betrayal from Amir, Hassan continues to see the good in his situation. In a letter written to Amir years after Amir watched him get raped and then framed him for stealing because he couldn’t bear the sight of him in his father’s house anymore Hassan says “ And I dream that someday you will return to Kabul to revisit the land of our childhood. If you do, you will find an old faithful friend waiting for you.” (218)

Celie on the other hand, is nowhere near as accepting of her situation. Tossed around between abusive men one of them being her father (or so she believed), separated from her little sister whom she loves with her whole heart and robbed of the two children she birthed as a result of her rape, Celie confides in God through letters as a shoulder to cry on. She is not disobedient or rebellious and similar to Hassan is willing to put herself second even if it means she endures pain for the ones she loves. Unlike Hassan however, she is not so willing to roll with the punches. When she is shown inferior treatment, she questions the world around her and thanks to her lover, Shug, even become curious about her confidant, God, himself. “...have you ever found God in church? I never did. I just found a bunch of folks hoping for him to show. Any God I ever felt in church I brought in with me. And I think all the other folks did too. They come to church to share God, not find God.” (165)

Both victims of oppressive situations based on social class systems in their societies, Hassan and Celie have much in common. The major difference in the end is how they chose to deal with it. Granted, Hassan was treated like family by a very slim number of the people in his life while Celie had her family yanked away from her. This definitely had something to do with the situation, Hassan decided to return to the city of his oppression while Celie eventually gained the courage to flee hers. Both choices were courageous but created very different outcomes. Celie eventually becomes reunited with Nettie in the house in which they grew up while Hassan loses his life to the Taliban. Maybe things could have been different had he put himself and his safety first like Celie but he has a huge heart and would probably allow the outcome to be the same “a thousand times over.”

Celie and Meursault--Beck

Character development is an essential component to every type of storytelling. Quality characters that are interesting, complex, and relatable propel a story’s plot and make audiences more apt to enjoy the overall piece. An example of this is Fitzgerald’s creation of Jay Gatsby. The mystery surrounding him along with the human emotion readers see within him are what makes The Great Gatsby a classic. Similarly, Alice Walker, author of The Color Purple, and Albert Camus, author of The Stranger, are both celebrated for their creation of the characters Celie and Meursault respectively in their aforementioned books. Both unique to their stories, these characters are different in several regards such as the environment in which they live and the situations they encounter while being connected in other ways such as how they respond to the world around them.

The Color Purple and The Stranger are two very different books that deal with different issues and, as a result, have different themes. In accordance with this, Celie and Meursault contrast each other in several ways. First, the most blatant differences between the characters are physical and geographic. Celie is a young black woman who lives in rural Georgia in the early 20th century while Meursault is a male living in French North Africa in the similar time of the mid 20th century. As a result of these varied settings, Meursault  and Celie’s experiences are very different. Celie faces severe oppression, facing racism, sexism, and abuse. Meursault, however, does not have to deal with any form of discrimination for his physical appearance, sex, or race. While Meursault is looked down upon for his actions, the abuse Celie experiences is different as she had no control over it.

Aside from their physical differences, the two characters are different as a result of how their authors developed them throughout the book. A central theme of The Color Purple is the ability an individual has to change the circumstances they find themselves in. The color purple, a symbol of hope, along with Celie’s friend Shug Avery help change Celie from the woman that felt nothing and viewed her life as pointless. This transformation can be seen when Celie stands up to her husband saying, “You a low down dirty dog, that's what's wrong. Time for me to get away from you, and enter into Creation. And your dead body'd be just the welcome mat I need” (Walker 201). This change in hope and ability to restart your life is not developed by Camus in Meursault. Unlike Celie, Meursault does not hate his life but instead describes himself as content with his life and saying, “I wasn’t unhappy” (Camus 41). Meursault never makes the transition Celie makes into a new life. Even when put on Death Row, Meursault reflects that death is inevitable and that there is no difference between put to death tomorrow than dying of natural causes 30 years later. This resistance to change can be seen in his response to the minister's question, “Have you no hope at all? And do you really live with the thought that when you die, you die, and nothing remains?” (Camus 117) with a simple “yes”  towards the end of the book.

Despite these differences, Celie and Meursault are alike in many ways. The largest similarity between these two is the seeming detachment from life they both experience. Even though Celie’s personality changed over the course of Walker’s book, the emotions and views on life she had for the majority of the book correlate with Meursault’s personality. An example of this detachment is their relationships with others. Celie writes, “Everybody say how good I is to Mr._________ children. I be good to them. But I don’t feel nothing for them. Patting Harpo back not even like patting a dog. It more like patting another piece of wood. Not a living tree, but a table, a chifferobe” (Walker 63). Likewise Meursault struggles with relationships largely due to his lack of interest. He attends his mother’s funeral where he doesn’t cry and the most grievous thing he says is that he would rather her not have died. Furthermore, Walker and Camus characterize them such that it appears as if life is just passing them by. In Celie’s case, the reader sees time elapse in her letters without any change in her attitude. The entire time she describes the lack of emotion she feels towards her husband and family members giving the reader an impression of her as a ghostly observer to a stranger’s life. Likewise, Meursault’s life is symbolized in his court case when he thinks, “In a way, they seemed to be arguing the case as if it had nothing to do with me. Everything was happening without my participation. My fate was being decided without anyone so much as asking my opinion” (Camus 98).

In addition to their detachment, these two characters are similar as a result of their believability. Despite the unusual situations these characters are in, it is very easy for the reader to imagine both Celie and Meursault as real people. The reason for this is the authors were very thorough in developing their characters. Both authors used the first person point of view with these characters being the protagonists. This made it so the reader could very easily understand the character’s thought process while also being able to clearly see and experience their emotions.

In conclusion, these characters, who are seemingly completely different, are perhaps more alike than they are not. While their physical characteristics and setting are not in common, their more important personalities are shockingly similar. As previously stated, Celie’s personality did eventually change, however, Celie’s detached personality, which was present for a majority of The Color Purple, corresponds very well to Meursault’s personality. Both Walker and Camus were successful in creating strong central characters that were interesting, believable, and easy for the reader to relate to. The Color Purple’s and The Stranger’s success are largely because of these strong protagonists.

Offred and Biff- Hegerfeld

People differ in millions of ways from the way they look to the way someone thinks. Although there are very many areas where people differ, there are also many opportunities to look at people and find similarities. For example, in The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood and The Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, both have characters who may seem to be very different, but also have common characteristics. As well as being comparable to each other, they are also able to compare and contrastable to myself.

    Offred from The Handmaid’s Tale and Biff from Death of a Salesman do not seem to have any correlation at all until one dives into their internal struggles. To start, throughout A Handmaid’s Tale, Offred struggles with being looked down on and being controlled by higher powers. She and almost all of the women in the book are oppressed and constantly told what to do as well as disrespected. Then, when reading the play Death of a Salesman, The character Biff Loman is also not highly respected, but instead of by higher powers, it is mostly by his father. As both characters go through their struggles, people try to help them succeed. Both Biff and Offred cherish the ones that will stay by their side to help. Biff has his brother with him at his side for some of the play, as well as his mother who at the beginning of the play tries to defend him by saying things like “You shouldn't have criticized him Willy, especially since he just got off the train” and “He was crestfallen, Willy, you know he admires you” (Miller, 7). While Offred’s situation is not parallel to Biff’s, she finds and befriends people who try to help her such as Nick and Ofglen, who in the end are the ones the help her to her new life (mostly Nick).

    On the contrary, these characters also have their share of differences. To begin, the two are different genders which means they think differently. When contrasted, Biff wants to do his own things. Through the play he dreams about “the territory” which means the west, and longs to free roam and do what he loves out there, as well as find himself. Now, Offred in the end does the right thing and escapes the brutal reality of Gilead, but through many chapters of the book she just follows commands and almost gave up, giving in to the ways of the sexist city. She began to accept her defeat while Biff at least pursued and tried to do what he wanted to.

    The character that compares more with me is definitely Biff. Although his situation is different than mine and probably most peoples, at times, just like him, my dad thinks I am an under achiever and begins to get disappointed in me too. Also, unlike his family, Biff knows when he fails and acknowledges it, therefore learning from it and somewhat turning it into a positive event (in the end). This trait is similar to me as well, as much as I hate failing and losing, usually I am able to learn from my mistakes, and avoiding making similar ones in the future. When I put myself next to Offred on the other hand it is more of a contrasting view. Even though my dad may look down on me in certain situations I am by no means oppressed. Offred Went through most of her life following orders and not standing up for her rights, even when she had the opportunity to by joining the rebels with Ofglen and fight against the higher power, instead deciding to remain how she was. This is not similar to me, which is the biggest contrasting view. Throughout my life I have stood up for what I think is right and not giving in to people who do wrong things.

    In conclusion, people can be very similar to others, very different, or anywhere in between. Offred and Biff Loman both have similar problems and situations, but when it comes down to handling these situations the two characters have different mindsets. Also both characters may have some common characteristics when compared to me, Biff definitely compares better while Offred contrasts better.