Shreya's English Blog

"What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up? Like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore--And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat Or crust and sugar over--Like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags Like a heavy load Or does it explode?" Our dreams are what keep us going; they motivate us to wake up every morning and put our best foot forward. In the low points of our lives, dreams are what tell us to get back up and keep trying. But what would happen if these dreams were taken away from us and we weren't given a chance to chase them? How would we go on? In the poem above by Langston Hughes, all the lines imply that the "dream" is already somewhat dead and unattainable. To show this, Hughes uses the words, "dry up, fester, stink, crust, sag and explode". The poem portrays the dream as "lost" and unattainable. However, the dream is being lost not because the chasers were not hard-working but because they were never given an or ...

"They were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made..." (Fitzgerald 179) This quote pretty much sums up the whole novel. The rich people in the novel have a higher status and more influence over the poorer people. Even with the rich, there are divisions--"Old Money" and "New Money". In the novel, the "Old Money" characters are able to commit wrongdoings but get away from the consequences by shifting the blame on to someone they believe is of lower status than them. Without any regard for their victim's feelings, they simply stomp all over them and run away from the mess they created. We see this when Daisy is driving Gatsby's car. When she crashes in to Myrtle and kills her, she fleds the scene and doesn't event stop to check on Myrtle...

So far, all the characters in The Great Gatsby have seemed to be interested in wealth and power. For almost all of the characters, attaining wealth and power is a driving force for them to carry on with their life. In addition, most characters in the book value social status and try to do everything they can to climb up the social ladder. For example, Myrtle is unfaithful to her husband to be with Tom so that she can be considered of higher status. Characters who do have wealth associate themselves higher up the social ladder. For example, Jordan tells Nick that she doesn't care about being a careful driver because she expects that "they'll keep out of my way..it takes two to make an accident" (Fitzgerald 58). Because of her social status, Jordan thinks that she is superior and more powerful than other people and thinks that people should respect this and look out for her. Although achieving wealth and power was a common ideal upheld by people in the 1920s, I thin...

In this blog post, I am writing from the perspective of Milkman from the Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison: Before, I wasn't really aware of the people around me and what they were going through. I only took regard for myself and didn't consider other people's feelings. I used people. My sister Lena told me that her childhood revolved around me yet I never asked her how she was and showed no feelings of appreciation. I also hurt Hagar so bad that it eventually killed her. I used Hagar when I wanted her love but when I didn't want it anymore, I disregarded her and didn't consider the consequences. I tried to be someone who I was not. I strutted around and showed off my materialistic wealth in hopes of being integrated into the white society. However, I still wasn't and I also didn't fit in the African American society. My financial status isolated me from the other African Americans because I couldn't connect with them and failed to understand w...