3 Stories About Coming of Age Essay examples

Words: 887
Pages: 4
Open Document
The definition of coming of age is the attainment of maturity. In these three stories “To Every Thing There Is A Season” by Alistair MacLeod, “The Sunrise on the Veld,” by Doris Lessing, and “Stones,” by Sandre Birdsell, all of the same theme “Coming of Age.” They all go through hardship, pain, and loss. In each of these stories the protagonist realizes reality in three different ways: by facing death, by watching one closest to them get hurt or made a fool, and by realizing his or hers surroundings.

Firstly in the story “Sunrise on the Veld,” by Doris Lessing the main character notices the real world by seeing death in a harsh way. In this story their was a boy who lived in South Africa who had just turned 15 years old. In the boys …show more content…
Also, it was special because this Christmas was most likely the last Christmas with the 11 year old boys father. At the very end the father tells his son, the protagonist, “Every man moves on.” Alistair MacLeod, (305) The quote proved that the father was telling his son that it is time for him to leave behind his childhood and start becoming a man of the house. The next quotes the father says “ But there is no grieve. He leaves good things behind.” Alistair MacLeod, (305) The father is indicating to the protagonist that even though Santa Claus is not real there is many good moments in the future. So in closing one can determine reality through hints, for example the father hints about his sickness.

After seeing “Sunrise on the Veld” by Doris Lessing, “Stones” by Sandre Birdsell, and “To Every Thing There Is A Season” by Alistair MacLeod there are various ways of facing reality by examining death, by observing wicked people, and by clues to determine the real world. They all have a turning point in life if it meant by giving clues or seeing death. In these stories the protagonist always loses something they can relate to. Each one of us that becomes a person will face maturity no matter what
Show More

Related Documents: 3 Stories About Coming of Age Essay examples

Rites Of Passage In 'Ritual And The Medicine Bag'

adolescents, there are two experiences that will be compared, “The Medicine Bag” and Apache Girl Preparedness For A Coming-of-Age “Ritual” . The differences in these two rites of passage aren’t huge but there are small differences that make a big differences. However, the circumstances and narrators are quite similar except for some traditions and characteristics. When you look at the stories they are actually quite similar. For example, Martin and Dachina both belong to Native American tribes. They are…

Words 402 - Pages 2

Gender Roles In Octavia E. Butler's Blood Child

Octavia E. Butler’s “Bloodchild” clearly makes itself a coming of age story with it’s first line, “My last night of childhood began with a visit home” (3). I was prepared to read a story about the loss of childhood, but was surprised with the dystopian world setting. It is comparable to human sexuality when Gan is impregnated near the end of the story, but with a reversal of typical gender roles. The power struggle between the two species in the story reminded me of the tensions between black and white…

Words 325 - Pages 2

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay

Emily Armstrong Hanson, period 3 April 20th, 2015 Coming of Age Coming of age is realizing life isn't fair. In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, there are many instances where young children realize that life isn't perfect and never will be. They wont always get their way no matter how hard they try. The world is exaggerated to be such a happy place as a child, yet when people are put into mature situations in reality, which is when they mature. Discrimination is a common problem…

Words 648 - Pages 3

Essay Sadat

often used in literature to convey a message to the reader. In her short story “Eleven”, Sandra Cisneros uses literary elements to express how she feels throughout the entire story. The major theme in Cisneros’ short story is coming of age, which she describes as Rachel turns 11 in her birthday. Her story is like any child who didn’t feel an immediate change in age on their birthday and how sometimes wishes to be another age. Sandra uses literary elements to make a point to support her theme and express…

Words 655 - Pages 3

The Red Badge Of Courage By Stephen Crane

written in 1895 by Stephen Crane. Crane writes about a Union solder named Henry Fleming who fights with the 304th Regiment during the Civil War. This story can be interpreted as a coming of age story that shows one man's quest for maturity and redemption in the backdrop of war. Throughout life, each man faces the questions of how to become a mature competent man and how to redeem himself when he falls short of his or the expectations of his peers. In the story, Henry Fleming is a young man who joined…

Words 860 - Pages 4

Essay on Justice has bee Served

involves people getting what’s coming their way; it is a punishment for those who have been against the law children/adults now days, are all going against the law, notifying others just to get their attention in doing things their way even if it’s a crime/illegal. In this essay that I’m about to write it will briefly examines what justice has been served to the ones that has found guilty in many ways of explaining the benefits followed as consequences and short comings in each, in other words “ JUSTICE…

Words 736 - Pages 3

Tell-Tale Heart Argumentative Essay

literature. There are many well-known stories coming from this genre, but the “Tell-Tale Heart” takes the cake. One of the only problems the novel faces is an accusation is it is not appropriate for middle schoolers. The Tell-Tale Heart is appropriate for middle schoolers because Modern day entertainment is much more violent, middle schoolers are mature enough to read the Horror genre, and presses students to use their imagination and learn new skills throughout the story. Body Paragraph 1: To begin with…

Words 440 - Pages 2

Catcher in the rye Essay

is clearly unhappy with his surroundings, which is evident not just by the fact that he is telling his story from some sort of mental hospital, but also by the fact that he seems to find something to dislike in everyone he is around. Whether it’s his roommate Stradlater’s self-obsession, or his neighbor Ackley’s lack of personal hygiene, Holden seems to find something wrong with everyone. From 3 unintelligent girls at a bar to his old girlfriend Sally Hayes, he can’t seem to stand anybody because…

Words 495 - Pages 2

Examples Of Morality In To Kill A Mockingbird

Kill a Mockingbird, Scout transforms from a naïve first grader to a sophisticated young woman due to the reality of life after her witnessing the trial and hearing about Tom Robinson’s death. In the beginning of the book, Scout was very naïve and gullible. Scout would agree to anything that Jem or Dill asked. She was very intelligent for age and her grade. Scout would fight people for something that she did instead of taking the blame. Scout did not completely understand the things that were going on…

Words 509 - Pages 3

courtly love Essay examples

love, and if you are marrying someone, you can only love this person and no other. In the middle ages, the rules of love were not the same. Before, the art of love presented itself with its own rules. In the middle ages, Andreas Capellanus wrote a book named “The Art of Courtly Love” that provided rules of sexual and court life at that time. A lot of stories were inspired from these rules. From those stories, we can recall two that best interpret this art: The relationship between Lancelot and the Queen…

Words 1128 - Pages 5