A Christmas Carol Short Analysis

Author's Note: This is a short analysis of a passage in A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens. I had to analyize the purpose, the meaning, and the tone of this passage. I would like feedback on my abilitiy to pick apart text and create connections to it. Thanks!

There was nothing of high mark in this. They were not a handsome family, they were not well dressed, their shoes were far from being waterproof, their clothes were scanty, and Peter might have known, and very likely did, the inside of a pawnbroker's. But they were happy, grateful, pleased with one another, and contented with the time; and when they faded, and looked happier yet in the bright sprinklings of the Spirit's torch at parting, Scrooge had his eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim, until the last.

Page 68-69, A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

Christmastime is a time of joy, of love, of happiness, for all people. Or, at least, for most people. A person that didn't agree with the love and joy of Christmas was Mr. Scrooge. He didn't understand what Christmas meant, and how people could enjoy the holiday season without any money. In this passage, the tone of the paragraph is a tone of what Christmas is supposed to mean, gratefulness for what we are blessed with, and not having greed for more. Tiny Tim's family didn't have a lot of money or extra means, yet they loved each other and had a sense of gratefulness for what they have. The meaning of the paragraph is to figure out what you have and be thankful for it, and to not take anything for granted, not to have a desire for unnecessary means. If you do, you will miss out on the true Christmas spirit. Charles Dickens wrote the passage to give a purpose to Stave Three of A Christmas Carol. That purpose was to attempt to have Mr. Scrooge learn how to be thankful for what you have, and to not have a desire for money and extra needs. This is exactly what Mr. Scrooge didn’t understand how to do.

Life as We Knew It Theme Essay

Author's Note: This is my theme analysis of my group's novel. I said that the primary theme was the importance of family, and how sometimes traumatic events heighten the theme and the connects the characters have with their family. I would like feedback on my content. Thanks!
 

                Every author can create a varied world for the reader of their novel to live in. Authors also create a leading theme in a book to have the reader ponder. In Life as We Knew It, by Susan Beth Pfeffer, the primary theme is the importance of having a family, especially during unsettling times. In the beginning of Life as We Knew It, the foremost theme isn’t really that prominent. Only until the characters realize that family life is the most important concept in this terrifying new life is when the theme becomes a main part of the book. 

                In the beginning of Life as We Knew It, all of the characters led lives outside of family life. Of course they still loved each other dearly, yet they weren’t a crucial part of each other’s lives. Once the meteor crashes into the moon, though, that begins to alter. Susan Beth Pfeffer is able to develop the primary theme by having awful events happen to each character that makes them love family life even more. For example, Miranda, the main character, didn’t really love her pet cat very much. She always felt that he was an annoyance. During the middle of the nighttime, though, she lets the feline out for a bathroom break. He doesn’t come back. Miranda panics, and that panic makes her see how potent her infatuation with her pet is. Susan Beth Pfeffer has to create a traumatic occasion for Miranda to realize that, and doing so makes the primary theme even more potent.

                Even though Susan Beth Pfeffer seems to create a world that no other author would be able to design, there is another writer that made a novel with the same primary theme as Life as We Knew It. That author is Susanne Collins of The Hunger Games. In The Hunger Games, the prime individual of the novel is Katniss. Katniss is like Miranda in many ways, and just a single example of that is how family affects her. In the start of The Hunger Games, the only two beings she truly loves are her best friend, Gale, and her younger sister, Prim. Katniss doesn’t feel almost any affection for her Mother. Susanne Collins develops the theme of importance of family by forcing Katniss to take her sister’s place and go and fight in the outdoor arena. Once she’s placed there, Katniss begins to have feelings of love evolve for her mom, and a newfound feeling of respect for what she’s gone through. Susanne Collins develops the leading theme by arranging awful predicaments to happen to the main character, just as Susan Beth Pfeffer does.

                       In our world, we see many awful disasters. Tornadoes, tsunamis, and hurricanes are just a few of those events. In the aftermath, what happens to the living? Usually, we begin to realize what truly matters in life, which is our family. After disasters, humans figure out that family is and should be the most potent theme in their life. That is how Susan Beth Pfeffer and Susanne Collins develop their themes in Life as We Knew It and The Hunger Games, by having terrible events happen to the primary characters. This makes them feel more affection for their family members, and has them understand that family relationship is the most leading theme in life.           

 

Life as We Knew It Character Analysis

Author's Note: This is a character analysis of the main character in my novel, Life as We Knew It. I analyze Miranda and then connect to the main character of another novel, Matched. I would like feedback on word choice. Thanks!

Miranda, the primary character in Life as We Knew It, is a very complex person. She has many different emotions, and with all that's going on in her life, Miranda is struggling to deal with it all. So, she has begun to close herself off from the world. Miranda hasn't spoken to her best friends in weeks, and pick fights with her mom about topics that aren’t very important to her (page one hundred and eleven and page one hundred and two). Her actions have affected the events of the story because when she fights with her mother, she adds stress into her life. That means that Miranda is placed under more stress, since her mother's emotion end up affecting hers, as well. She's not just harming herself; Miranda is harming all of her family members.

The main character’s actions in this novel remind me of another character from the story Matched, Cassia. Cassia had a problem handling all of the changes going on in her life, so she snapped at her younger brother, Bram. Doing this made the whole family tense for a few days, and it damaged her relationship with her little sibling for a long time. This is precisely what Miranda is doing to herself and her family. If she doesn’t figure out what is happening, the relationship between her and all of her loved ones will never be able to be the same again. Even though Miranda is turning herself away from others, I know that she doesn’t want that to happen. Hopefully, Miranda is able to realize that and change, to benefit her family.

Author's Note: This is a response to a journal entry we were assigned. The journal was to choose an event in your novel, and show how it would have been told in a minor character's point of view. The part I chose is Miranda not wanting to have contact with her friends, and the minor character I chose to be have her point of view shown is Miranda's mother.

In Life as We Knew It, Miranda brings a certain flair to the novel that interprets the way the reader ponders the book. For example, on page one hundred and eleven, Miranda makes judgments about her friends and says it doesn’t matter that she has not seen them in weeks. Since it's in her point of view, most readers simply agree with her, and don't think about the topic any further. If the author had put this scene in another character's point of view, like Miranda's mother, the reader probably would have thought about it different. Her mother felt that making sure Miranda had people to relate to other than family during these times were very important, and would have said that it was crucial for her to visit them. Obviously, Miranda didn't feel the same way. The reader of this novel probably would have thought of the event in a different light if Miranda wasn't the one narrating the story.

Life as We Knew It Minor Character Response

Author's Note: This is an reply to a journal we were assigned today. That journal was to choose a event from your book and say how it would be told in a minor character's point of view. I chose when the main character, Miranda, was rearranging her house so her family would be warmer. The minor character I chose to say the point of view of was her cat, Horton.

Rearranging your home usually comes with a certain aura of stress. Yet when you are rearranging your home so your family member don't die from freezing cold, the stress obviously intensifies. Though no one thinks about it when reading this event in Life as We Knew It, moving around their home affect Horton, the family's cat, just as much as it affects the rest of the family. All Horton can see is his beloved ones shifting around where he lives as if their lives depended on it. He doesn't understand the reasoning behind it, just the changes. It actually makes him more upset than the rest of Miranda's family, and that's something they can't see.

Life as We Knew It Predicting Piece

Author's Note: This is a piece about my group book, Life as We Knew It, by Susan Pfeffer. I wrote about my prediction and how it might be wrong because of something that happened to another main character in another book. I would like feedback on my text evidence. Thanks!

Life as We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer is a complex book that keeps the reader guessing about what will come next.  After reading a hundred and ten pages of this book, I think that Miranda, the main character, will begin to sever ties with anyone that is close with her, and close off into herself. In Life as We Knew It, Miranda has already not seen her two best friends in weeks, and hasn’t even thought about them or missed them. Then, she began to pick fights with her mother and then retreat into her room, where she would stay for the next day or two.  Finally, Miranda hasn’t thought about any other family member that doesn’t live with her, and it’s beginning to seem like she doesn’t care what happens to them.

However, in another book I’ve read that’s extremely close in content to Life as We Knew It, The Hunger Games, Katniss, the main character, closes herself off from the world and shows no emotion in the outdoor arena. Or so it seems. In reality, Katniss did care about people inside and outside of the Games, and came out of her shell when she found the person in the arena that she had feelings for. While reading this book, you think that Katniss will win the games coldhearted, with no show of emotion. Truthfully, she had and showed feelings of love and affection, after certain events brought them to life. Since The Hunger Games is so like Life as We Knew It, this connection has me wondering if my prediction will be correct, or if Miranda will come out of her shell into herself, just like Katniss did.   

The Changes of the Characters of Life of Pi

Author's Note: This is a literary analysis essay on the Life of Pi by Yann Martel that I wrote for my upcoming conference. I would like feedback on my content of the essay and my conclusion. Thanks!

Every person in the world is unique. They have different appearances, feelings, and ways they act. The same principle applies to animals, as well. Sometimes, terrifying situations will change the person or animal from the inside out, from the kindest living soul alive to a horrifying monster that would stop at nothing to save their own life. In Life of Pi, Pi Patel must quickly learn how to survive with these beasts without getting himself killed. It’s an awful place to be in that I hope would never happen to me. If I was one of the animals aboard the lifeboat, I would have not in a million years become a total savage like the rest of them. The Life of Pi, written by Yann Martel, is a thought-provoking novel that shows how terrible living conditions can change animals and humans alike.

In the beginning of Life of Pi, Richard Parker was a defiant tiger who didn’t have to have a fear in the world. Richard was easily taken care of, and didn’t have to defend himself against dangerous animals or weather. He was the animal everyone feared, not the other way around. Yet when he was thrust into the rowboat, everything snapped for him. Suddenly, he was the fearer, not the defiant animal being feared. This observation led to him attempting anything to save his own life. If I was thrown onto the lifeboat with Pi and the other animals, I would sincerely hope that I would not become like Richard Parker. Although, I have never been in a situation like Richard Parker’s.  Maybe if I was, my feelings would change, since my life would be on the line. Horrendous areas of living could simply change the very foundation of who a person is on the inside.

Even though it seems like Richard Parker is the most vicious animal living on the lifeboat, don’t forget about the zebra that was contained with Pi and the animal as well. Out of all of the animals living alongside the lifeboat with Pi, the zebra was the most humane, yet only because this animal boarded the rowboat seriously injured. This zebra wasn’t able to defend himself against Richard Parker, the orangutan, and the hyena. Supposing that this animal was thrust onto the lifecraft uninjured, I feel that this animal more than likely have became a second Richard Parker, willing to do anything to survive. Living in this condition would have changed him just as much as it changed the rest of the inhibiters of the boat. After reading Life of PI, I think the zebra’s characteristics are the ones that I think I would have followed, if some of my life was lived on the lifeboat. Out of all of the characters in this novel, the zebra places the most unanswered questions in my mind.

Though the zebra and the tiger create enough unanswered questions and interesting back-stories for two novels, there is another beast placed on the lifeboat as well. This animal was by far the most terrifying, the animal that you had to protect yourself from. Fear was the primary reasoning for his actions, not unlike Richard Parker. These two beasts gathered together and preyed on the innocent life of the zebra. The hyena was always defiant and ready to kill, and being thrust into this way of life heighted his senses and turned him into more of a killing machine than he already was. Out of all of the characters in Life of Pi, this is the one that I can’t place myself in. I would never allow myself to become such a savage like the hyena. If I was in the rowboat, unlike this creature, keeping my sanity would have been a necessary component of life.

After all of the turmoil that the animals of the lifeboat created, it doesn’t seem possible that there could be another living soul on the lifeboat. There was, and that person was named Pi Patel. Pi was always a god loving boy, one that would never step a toe out of line. Once Pi was placed in the lifeboat, everything changed. His life was thrown upside down.  Living on a lifeboat for two hundred and twenty seven days altered his physical and mental well being, a lasting affect that would never return to its normal state. Pi used be a vegetarian, never touching animals other to help them find their homes. When on the lifeboat, he killed turtles and devoured every inch of them. Pi became disgusted with himself.  Yet a part of himself that wasn’t altered?  His belief and devotion of the gods of all three of his religions.  Nothing that happened to him would change that. If I was with him on the lifeboat, I would hope that my characteristics could be like Pi’s, always trusting in a power coming to set him free. I hope I wouldn’t succumb to despair and desperation, like the rest of his company did.

With all of the unique characters in Life of Pi, you can’t deny that someone wouldn’t be able to put themselves in a character’s place. Out of the inhibiters of the lifeboat, my actions more than likely would have been the actions of Pi. Pi was changed as a person during his extended stay on the boat, yet he never killed something that wasn’t crucial for his survival. That outlook of life while living in the rowboat would be the outlook I hope I would have. Life of Pi, written by Yann Martel, is a beautiful book that makes the reader ponder who they really are inside.

Poem Collection

Author's note: This is a poem collection of three different types of poems I wrote for a conference. I would like feedback on my word choice. Thanks!

Haiku: A haiku is a three line poem. The first line has five syllables, the second line has seven syllables, and the third line has five syllables. It’s usually written about a certain object, and my object is the season of autumn.

Enchanting autumn

All of the many treasures

Begging to be found

Cinquain Poem: A cinquain poem is a five line poem.  The first line is one word, the object of the poem. The second line is two words that describe the poem. The third line is three words that tell the action of the word. The fourth line is a sentence that expresses the feeling of the object the poem is being written about, and the fifth line is one word that recalls the title of the poem. My poem is written about a flower.

Flowers

Delicate, exquisite

Swaying, enduring, expanding

Aching for a reason to appreciate life

Vine

Carpe Diem Poem: A carpe diem poem is a poem that has to do with the theme of living life to the fullest every day. This is a poem that I created with that type of poem in mind.

Acknowledge, appreciate and gather life in your hands, elongate it as much as possible

What is accessible today

Could vanish in an instant

Our acquaintance time speeds along with no intention of holding back

Life of Pi Quote Response

After reading this interview between Yann Martel and Ray Suarez, this quote stood out to me the most: "the idea of a religious boy in a lifeboat with a wild animal struck me as a perfect metaphor for the human condition. Humans aspire to really high things, right, like religion, justice, democracy. At the same time, we're rooted in our human, animal condition. And so, all of those brought together in a lifeboat struck me as being... as a perfect metaphor." My interpretation about this quote is that every human being tries to be the best person that you can be, and we try to think that we can go through our whole lives being perfect and good, with no mistakes or wrongdoings made. Once Pi is on the lifeboat though, we see that humans can easily lose the sense of attempting to be good and turn into total beasts. All of us try to think that we would remain good, yet that's simply not the case. Being thrown into a situation as awful as Pi's would quickly turn us all into monsters.

Patriot's Pen

Author's Note: This is my reply to the Patriot's Pen essay assignment we had to create. I'm not making it into an essay, just a post.

 Being proud of your country doesn't necessarily mean that you agree and are proud of all of the decisions made. I certainly don't agree with our decisions regarding the economy, or wars. Not agreeing with every decision doesn't mean you aren't proud, or that you don't love your country. I feel that truly being proud of your country means that you must have your own opinion on what's going on in life. You can't just melt into the background, try to force yourself to agree with what you feel is a wrong opinion, and believe you can't do anything to change the situation. You comprehend what is happening in America, and being strong enough to defy it, if you feel you must. That's key to truly loving and being proud of your country.

Persuasive Essay Conclusion

Author's Note: This is a conclusion to a essay about why my family should buy an iPad. I wrote a full essay on this for a conference piece, so if you see it in a future post, that's why. I would like feedback on my word choice and voice. Thanks!

How could you not want to purchase an iPad? All of the amazing features that will actually help me reach far in life, unlike most computers that just wither away my time on topics that don’t matter to me. It can easily also help my family as well! Wanting to buy an iPad is actually a very selfless craving. Who doesn’t want to get an item that makes you feel selfless? An iPad computer is a wonderful purchasing option for my entire family.  

Robin Hood Story Conclusion

Author's Note: This is a different conclusion to the classic Disney move, Robin Hood. I feel that this is a good conclusion because it follows what the topic of the movie was, with a twist. I would like feedback on my voice. Thank you!

Finally! After fending for himself for three days, fearful for his life, Robin Hood had finally found the treasure. The gold! So much gold! Gold that would last him for the rest of his life! Robin Hood was overcome with emotions of joy and happiness. Quickly scooping up as much as possible into his pockets, and grabbing the rest in his arms, he started to run off into the sunlight. His getaway was stopped by his worst nightmare: all of the Merry Men! They could easily see all of the gold in his arms. Oh no, he thought. There's no way this won't led to a fight to the death. Dropping some of the treasure, Robin Hood whipped out a dagger, ready to fight. And fight they did. The Merry Men and Robin Hood fought until there was only one person alive. What person was that, you may ask? It was, shockingly, Robin Hood! All of the gold winking up at him gave him the drive to win. Picking up all of his bountiful treasures, he ran off into the sunlight yet again. This time, no one attempted to stop him. 

Story Hook

Author's note: This is the story hook from the lesson we learned a few days ago. It's just a journal entry sort of piece, not the beginning of a creative story or essay.

It's the end of high school. If it was up to me, high school wouldn't have ended at all. I'm perfectly fine spending the rest of my days in this time period of my life forever. I've been schooled here in this dojo for my whole life, waiting until I can take in and run the dojo by myself. With is something I do NOT want to do. Even when I was a young child, I didn't want to run this dojo. I knew I could help the world better in another position. The main runner of the dojo, Sensei Chin-Chin, is running out of the moisturizer that lets him survive, to not shrivel up into a little pulp and die. There's a bunch of students going to attempt to find this moisturizer. I'm not allowed to go. Since I'm supposed to run this dojo one day, the other heads of the dojo won't allow me to be put in danger's way. But how am I going to run the dojo if I've never set foot off of the grounds? I won't be ready for the danger I will face. So I'm leaving with them all. Tonight.

My New Life

Author's Note:
This is a fictional story that I thought of while sitting in Language Arts class.

I can’t believe I’m doing this. I can’t believe I’ve even willing to do this. Sitting on a plane by myself, alone, going to live with my crazy aunt and uncle. Why do I have to go live with them? No matter what they say, I know that I am not an awful child. Am I quite hard to live with? That, I know, is the truth. Am I so bad that my parents are forcing me to leave their home at the tender young age of sixteen and be thrust into a world of which I have no knowledge? That is something I know I do not deserve. What does it matter that I got kicked out of my previous three schools by stealing, cheating, and setting the bathroom sink on fire (that was an accident! I swear! It’s not my fault!) I don’t deserve to be thrown into New York, the biggest city in the world, when I’ve lived in a minuscule town in Wisconsin my whole life. Life is definably not right sometimes. How will I survive?  

Touching down onto the ground of New York, I feel all of the breath wash away from me in an instant. My body freezes to the seat from a mix of shock and nervousness. There’s no way I can do this. To get up and walk off of the plane is to accept my life as it is right now, and I can’t do that. If I just sit here and refuse to get up, will the plane take off with me still on it and take me away from this nightmare?

“Hello, and welcome to New York! Checked bags will be received at Baggage Claim #8. You are all free to get up, grab your bags, and venture out of the plane and into the great state this is! Enjoy your time here!” The flight attendant tells us all.

Great, I think to myself. I’m going to have to get off of the plane, and go find my Uncle Tom and Aunt Tiffany. Will they accept me? How will I deal with all of these changes? Guess I’m going to have to find out, right now.

The first emotion I feel gushing through me is shock. I’m so shocked I can’t even bring my mind to think one understandable thought. Are these strangers really my aunt and uncle?  This just doesn’t seem possible at all.

“Claudia? Is it really you?” My aunt Tiffany calls out to me. “Gasp! It is! Oh, my goodness! You’ve gotten so big!”

Suddenly, all I can feel is the life being squeezed out of me. Aunt Tiffany is hugging me way too tightly for my personal taste. It’s been ten years since I’ve seen her, and I can’t believe that so much can change in a personal in that time. For starters, she looks like she hasn’t bathe in about three years. It’s kind of grossing me out just a bit. Also, even though she’s only thirty-nine, Aunt Tiffany doesn’t look a day younger than fifty. Uncle Tom has the same issue. Gosh, I think to myself. What are they eating?

“Aunt Tiffany! Uncle Tom! You guys look amazing!” I exclaimed.

Sometimes it’s better to left thoughts unsaid than to hurt other people’s feelings.

“We are so excited to show you the apartment! I am absolutely positive that you will love it. It’s pretty tiny, I have to admit, yet we have made it our own. Also Claudia, Uncle Tom and I want to let you know, whatever you did at your previous schools, we forgive you for it, and we believe that you really didn’t set that bathroom sink on fire. We love and trust you.” Aunt Tiffany said.

“Thank you!” I spoke aloud to her.

I knew a gigantic lie when I heard one. Of course I did. Those schools expelled me for stealing and cheating. Do you really think that I didn’t know a lie when I heard one? Aunt Tiffany is just trying to butter me up before she stabs me in the back (or, more accurately, the heart.)

Before I realized it, we were already in their car, driving toward the prison that would become my new home. Is there any way I can escape now? Would I be able to jump out of the car and run far, far away without badly injuring myself? I didn’t think there was. When in situations like these, shouldn’t you always try to think of the positive?  Maybe my Aunt and Uncle’s home could become mine as well. I can get adjusted to a large city and enjoy myself. I’m going to love it here!     

How in the world could I have been so positive? There’s no way I can live here! When it’s hard enough to fall asleep, fearing for your life is an added stress that I really do not need. Oh stop it Claudia, you’re probably thinking, I’m sure it’s not that bad. You can deal with it. Well, person, you are what I like to call WRONG! I fear for my life right now! Something is more than likely going to jump out of one of the millions of disgusting piles of objects I can’t even name and mane me. What happened to the sweet Uncle Tom and Aunt Tiffany I knew? The original ones always made sure that their beautiful home was sparkling clean. Not one speck of dust was there. What happened? Were they abducted by aliens who gave them a brain transfer or something? I’m not waiting to find out. I am getting out of here tonight!

“Do you still like Mexican, Claudia?” Uncle Tom calls out from the kitchen.

“Yes, Uncle Tom, I still do.” I reply back to him.

Once dinner is finally finished, after my aunt and uncle have showered, powered down, and finally went to sleep, I’m making my escape. This plan has taken me a lot of thought! After they are both snoozing, I’m going to repack only my necessities and put them in the most minuscule bag that I have. There’s no way I can walk around NYC with a gigantic wheeler suitcase with me.  After packing is finished, I will quietly tip-toe out of the apartment and get out of the building as fast as I can. What’s next? I think I’m just going to wing it. With almost two-thousand dollars to my name (please don’t ask where I got it) I figure I can last in a hotel for a few and then jump a plane going to anywhere but here.

Mexican food simply doesn’t taste as good when the only other thing in your stomach is worry. For a woman my age, I feel I’m smarter than most of the others are. Yet do I have enough brainpower for myself to survive on the streets of the largest city in the world? I guess I’m just going to have to wait and see.

“Are you alright, Claudia? You seem very….tense.” Aunt Tiffany glances at me after saying this, with her eyes showing worry and a slight mix of fear.

“Yes, Aunt Tiffany, I am fine.  Just tired from all of the traveling I have done today, that’s all.”

Were they onto me? I figured that I was doing a great job of covering my feelings up. After being kicked out of three schools, I knew exactly how to cover up all of my emotions. My actress skills had to doubt and fail me now, at the most important time of my life? Work harder, Claudia, I coach myself. Don’t let your fear show. You are strong enough to do this.

Dinner couldn’t have finished fast enough. Thankfully, there was a fact about my aunt and uncle that hadn’t changed: they were early to bed, early to rise.

“Claudia, your Uncle and I are heading off to bed. Your room is straight down the hall and to the left. Good night!” Aunt Tiffany said to me perkily.

I hate when people are perky. I smile fakely and nod.  

“Good night!”

Footsteps and the sound of two people getting into bed are the only things I hear. I scramble to my feet and pack up everything I will need as quickly as I can. Feeling quite proud of myself, I start walking to the door and give everything in the apartment a simple last look. Thank god I don’t have to stay in this nightmare anymore.

Disaster strikes. After letting myself look over the place a final time, my foot smacks the coffee table. Aunt Tiffany’s dumb glass bowl, overflowing to the brim with useless objects I can’t pronounce, tips over and shatters into a million tiny pieces onto the floor. You can’t even tell where the pieces went because the floor is so littered with junk. I hear hurried, panicked steps.

“Claudia? Claudia! What happened? What did you do?” Aunt Tiffany yells at me.

A bitter seed that was already inside of me snaps and overflows. I can’t hold my tongue. Everything that I am feeling comes rushing out of my mouth like a waterfall.

“What did I do? What did I do? Are you kidding me? You’re just like everyone else! It’s always my fault! Everything always is! I didn’t even do half of the things everyone accuses me of! Well, most of the things I did do, yet did you ever think what drove me to attempt to do it? I don’t have the perfect life. How would it feel to you if your parents looked you in the eye and said they can’t handle you anymore? To me, that felt like they were saying we don’t love you enough to figure out what’s wrong. We are just going to ship you off like you’re a piece of cargo. Then, you get to your aunt and uncle’s house, and they turn out to be two totally different people than the ones you knew before! They feel like aliens to you! Where they call home is definably not what they would have called home ten years ago. You can’t relax without fear you will sit on something that would kill you! It’s a pig’s home, not a person! I don’t know who you guys even are. What happened to you? Where are you? Oh, and I broke the bowl trying to run away. I can’t deal with you guys like this! I simply can’t!”

Uncle Tom and Aunt Tiffany stare at me in stunned silence. Then Aunt Tiffany takes a shaky breath.  She looks at Uncle Tom.

“You’re right, Claudia. You are so right. The house got so out of our control because we felt out of our own control. We couldn’t handle everything in life, so we let go. Please stay with us. Live with us. We promise we will trust you more. We’ll clean up the apartment and become the people we used to be and still are inside. Your parents were wrong for giving up on you. We won’t.”

“I agree with Aunt Tiffany.” Uncle Tom says.

Wow, I thought to myself. This is a lot better of a reaction than I thought I was going to get. It truly seems like they really care, and really want to make a change for the positive in their lives.  I have a very strong feeling that I’m always going to regret it if I do not give them a chance.

“OK. Let’s see how everything works out. I’m sorry that I jumped to a conclusion so quickly, and didn’t try to see what you all were truly feeling. Will you forgive me?” I say to them.

“Yes.” They reply.

ONE MONTH LATER

Life is surprisingly going great! Aunt Tiffany and Uncle Tom’s apartment is all cleaned up, and it looks great. I’m doing quite well at my new school, and made new friends. Uncle Tom, Aunt Tiffany and I have gotten very close and I feel like I can share anything with them.  It turns out that all I needed to get my life back together was people who made me feel like I matter. I finally got that. 

In my creative story, the exposition is when Claudia is going to live with her aunt and uncle in New York. She can’t stand the fact her parents are forcing her to go, and she doesn’t know how she will survive. The rising action is when the main character sees her Aunt Tiffany and Uncle Tom for the first time, and figures out they are absolutely nothing like they used to be. In this piece, the climax is when Claudia decides she can’t take living with her aunt and uncle, and thinks of a plan to escape. The falling action is when my main character accidentally hits the coffee table with her foot and breaks a glass dish, waking up Uncle Tom and Aunt Tiffany. The trio talk about how they feel, Claudia explaining to them why she wanted to run away and Uncle Tom and Aunt Tiffany tell her why their live spiraled out of their control, and what they will do to fix it. In my story, the resolution is when Claudia decides to give her aunt and uncle a second chance and makes their home hers as well. The mode of literature for my piece is a comedy.