What is the moral dilemma in Judith Ortiz Cofer's "American History"?

In Judith Ortiz Cofer's "American History," the protagonist, Elena, faces a moral dilemma on November 22, 1963. This is the day President John F. Kennedy is shot and when the country mourns the shocking loss of a beloved man. Elena and the other students from school are sent home out of respect for the country's loss. Elena notices on her way home that her apartment building is completely silent. This silence is unusual because there are...

In Judith Ortiz Cofer's "American History," the protagonist, Elena, faces a moral dilemma on November 22, 1963. This is the day President John F. Kennedy is shot and when the country mourns the shocking loss of a beloved man. Elena and the other students from school are sent home out of respect for the country's loss. Elena notices on her way home that her apartment building is completely silent. This silence is unusual because there are usually different types of music blasting from the windows and people socializing out front. On this day in history, however, Elena's building is silent to show respect for a time of mourning.

The moral dilemma occurs when Elena decides to go to Eugene's house for their study date rather than to church with her mother. Elena's mother attempts to change Elena's mind by saying the following:

"Hija, the president has been killed. We must show respect. He was a great man. Come to church with me tonight." 

Elena's mother believes her daughter should cancel studying to attend church with her to pray for President Kennedy, his loves ones, and the nation. Elena does not want to miss going into the house next door for her study date with Eugene. Elena's mother argues that her daughter is forgetting who she is and what she should be doing at a time like this. Also, she takes the time to inform Elena that she is headed for trouble if she continues to chase after Eugene and her dreams about his house. Again, the moral dilemma is whether Elena should exercise respect for the president's death or go to Eugene's house to study.

Ultimately, Elena exercises her freedom to make her own choices and decides to go over to Eugene's house against her mother's wishes. Elena is not able to enter the home, though. Eugene's mother, who has a prejudiced and intolerant attitude towards other races and social classes, refuses to give Elena permission to enter the home or be friends with Eugene.

Describe the relationship between Sebastian and Antonio in Twelfth Night.

Antonio looks after Sebastian.  He really cares about Sebastian, and wants to protect him.  This is why he stays in Illyria even though his legal history is such that he really should not be seen around there.

Antonio seems to think that since he rescued Sebastian from the shipwreck he should continue to look after him.

SEBASTIAN

O good Antonio, forgive me your trouble.

ANTONIO

If you will not murder me for my love, let...

Antonio looks after Sebastian.  He really cares about Sebastian, and wants to protect him.  This is why he stays in Illyria even though his legal history is such that he really should not be seen around there.

Antonio seems to think that since he rescued Sebastian from the shipwreck he should continue to look after him.

SEBASTIAN

O good Antonio, forgive me your trouble.

ANTONIO

If you will not murder me for my love, let me be
your servant.

SEBASTIAN

If you will not undo what you have done, that is,
kill him whom you have recovered, desire it not. … (Act 2, Scene 1)

Antonio gives Sebastian his purse to hold.  They agree to meet up later.  It is all fairly innocent except there is the one problem.  Antonio is a wanted man in Illyria. 

Sebastian ends up in the same place as his twin sister, by chance, having no idea that she is alive or that she is pretending to be a man.  When Cesario/Viola is dueling with Sir Andrew, Antonio steps in.  He feels that helping Sebastian is the right thing to do, since Sebastian is his friend.  Then he gets arrested for his past deeds.

Antonio asks Sebastian for his purse.  Cesario refuses.  Antonio is very upset.  He has been an excellent friend to Sebastian, and in his time of need, Sebastian turns on him and refuses to give him his own money!  Cesario/Viola is confused, offering to give what little money he/she has.

ANTONIO

I must entreat of you some of that money.

VIOLA

What money, sir?
...

ANTONIO

Will you deny me now?

Is't possible that my deserts to you
Can lack persuasion? … (Act 3, Scene 4)

In the end, they get it straightened out that these two are twins, and that Antonio actually gave his purse to one twin and asked for it back from the other.  However, he was still able to offer a valuable service to Viola when he intervened for her in the duel, thinking he was helping Sebastian.  Therefore, he was a friend to both twins.

What is the relationship between Hally and his mother in "MASTER HAROLD". . .and the boys?

In Fugard's "MASTER HAROLD". . .and the boys, the relationship between Hally and his mother is weak and seemingly distant. The audience never meets Hally's mother as a present character--she is only referenced in the telephone conversations that Hally has with her while she is at the hospital with Hally's father. But when she calls, she asks Hally to look after his father, which Hally does not want to do. Hally says that his mother...

In Fugard's "MASTER HAROLD". . .and the boys, the relationship between Hally and his mother is weak and seemingly distant. The audience never meets Hally's mother as a present character--she is only referenced in the telephone conversations that Hally has with her while she is at the hospital with Hally's father. But when she calls, she asks Hally to look after his father, which Hally does not want to do. Hally says that his mother allows his father to push her around, and he cannot understand why his mother does not stand up to his father. Both Hally and his mother seem to cower in the shadow of the father, and each wants the other to "solve" the problem. They do not seem to see each other as a support in dealing with the father. Hally wants his mother to be strong so that she can protect him from his father, but his mother does not appear to be in a position to do that for Hally.

What are some notable quotations in Zlata's Diary?

The most effective quotes from Zlata's Diary are ones where the terror of war can be seen through a child's eyes.  

Zlata's Diary enables us to see how a child sees war.  The result is war's inhumanity is displayed in a very poignant way. One example is when Zlata personalizes the war experience:

That’s my life! The life of an innocent eleven-year-old schoolgirl!! A schoolgirl without school, without the fun and excitement of school. A child without games, without friends, without the sun, without birds, without nature, without fruit, without chocolate or sweets, with just a little powdered milk. In short, a child without a childhood. A wartime child.

When talking about war, we get lost in how human beings are uprooted.  Borders and military objectives diminish when we see how war permanently alters people's lives. Zlata captures this reality when she talks about how her childhood has been robbed because of war.  She has lost innocence, "fun and excitement," and "the sun."  I find this quote meaningful because it brings a human account to war's political dimension.

Zlata's personalized view of war is enhanced when she sees what the conflict is doing to her parents.  Children look to their parents for guidance.  Despite what parents say, kids observe their parents' facial reactions to indicate the reality of a situation.  Upon doing this, Zlata writes about how war weakens the people who have to endure it: 

...I look over at Mommy and Daddy. ... Somehow they look even sadder to me in the light of the oil lamp. ... God, what is this war doing to my parents? They don’t look like my old Mommy and Daddy anymore. Will this ever stop? Will our suffering stop so that my parents can be what they used to be cheerful, smiling, nice-looking?

The most poignant part of this quote is how Zlata yearns for the "cheerful, smiling, nice-looking" parents she used to know.  There was a time when Zlata's family loved life, and drank from its cup without hesitation.  The war has robbed them of the joy they once knew.  Zlata's words illuminate the yearning and ache that comprise war's psychological footprint.

Finally, I think that one of the most random details in the diary is also one of Zlata's most effective piece of writing. She writes about the stray animals that have emerged because of the war:

There are lots of beautiful pedigree dogs roaming the streets. Their owners probably had to let them go because they couldn’t feed them anymore. Sad. Yesterday I watched a cocker spaniel cross the bridge, not knowing which way to go. He was lost.

For a child, the suffering of animals is one of the most painful elements.  When Zlata writes about how the cocker spaniel did not know which way to go, she is mourning. She mourns not just for the lost dog, but for herself.  She identifies herself with the dog. Like the dog, Zlata is also not "spared by the war" and does not know where to go or what to do.  Her identification with the dog's predicament is another quote that notably illuminates war's pain.

In N. Scott Momaday's book The Way to Rainy Mountain, what is an example of the way in which Momaday adapts history so that it makes sense in a...

In the Prologue, Momaday tells the story of the Kiowa's last Sun Dance in 1887. He tells this story through the eyes of his grandmother, who was then seven, to make it more accessible to the reader. He also relates the last time the Kiowa came together to commemorate the Sun Dance, even though they did not have a buffalo, as was their tradition. Instead, they hung a hide from a tree as a remembrance...

In the Prologue, Momaday tells the story of the Kiowa's last Sun Dance in 1887. He tells this story through the eyes of his grandmother, who was then seven, to make it more accessible to the reader. He also relates the last time the Kiowa came together to commemorate the Sun Dance, even though they did not have a buffalo, as was their tradition. Instead, they hung a hide from a tree as a remembrance of the buffalo, and soldiers came from Fort Sill to disrupt the Kiowas' ritual. Momaday writes:

"Forbidden without cause the essential act of their faith, having seen the wild herds slaughtered and left to rot upon the ground, the Kiowas backed away forever from the medicine tree...My grandmother was there. Without bitterness, and for as long as she lived, she bore a vision of deicide" (page 2).

In other words, the Kiowas at this ceremony witnessed the death of their gods, or "deicide," and they no longer could observe their rituals in the way they wanted to. The means by which they could find the sacred in life was gone forever. The way in which Momaday relates his grandmother's sadness about the destruction she and her people witnessed is to show her praying. He observes her praying when he is young. Though he does not understand Kiowa, he understands that "there was something inherently sad in the sound, some merest hesitation upon the syllables of sorrow" (page 2). By relating the images and sounds of his grandmother praying, he is able to relate how the history of the Kiowa affected her and to make the history of the tribe more accessible to the reader.

How did the Mexican Revolution end?

The Mexican Revolution did not end in a “clean” way; that is, there was no clear end to the revolution, like a final battle or the signing of a peace treaty. Instead, the revolution sort of sputtered to an end. Historians do not all agree as to when the revolution ended. Let us look at two answers they might give:

First, we could say that the revolution ended in 1920. It was at this point...

The Mexican Revolution did not end in a “clean” way; that is, there was no clear end to the revolution, like a final battle or the signing of a peace treaty. Instead, the revolution sort of sputtered to an end. Historians do not all agree as to when the revolution ended. Let us look at two answers they might give:

First, we could say that the revolution ended in 1920. It was at this point that the main violence of the revolution ended. 1920 was the year in which the last revolution-related assassination or execution of a president occurred. In 1920, Venustiano Carranza was president. He lost support and ended up being assassinated. He was eventually replaced by Alvaro Obregon, who served a full term as president. In a sense, you could say Carranza's and Obregon's election marked the end of the revolution.

We could also say the revolution did not end until 1934, when Lazaro Cardenas became president of Mexico. He was the first truly reformist president to come to power after the revolution. He instituted many of the reforms that the revolution was supposed to address. He was also, in a sense, a founder of the PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party) that ruled Mexico until the election of 2000. This can be seen as the end of the revolution, as there was no real organized violence after this year and because Cardenas’s rise to power marked the beginning of the time when the government was really working towards the revolution's goals.

We can say, then, that the revolution ended either with the death of Carranza or when Cardenas became president.

What characteristics does Walter Mitty wish he had in "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"?

Walter Mitty would like to be assertive, commanding, courageous, brave, fearless, heroic, and unwavering.

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" is a darkly humorous tale of a man who is defeated by authority and audacity, and emasculated by an insensitive wife. Apparently consigned to conducting his domineering wife to town and running silly errands for her, Walter drives along pretending that he is the courageousCommander of a Navy hydroplane until reality interrupts. Then, he...

Walter Mitty would like to be assertive, commanding, courageous, brave, fearless, heroic, and unwavering.

"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" is a darkly humorous tale of a man who is defeated by authority and audacity, and emasculated by an insensitive wife. Apparently consigned to conducting his domineering wife to town and running silly errands for her, Walter drives along pretending that he is the courageous Commander of a Navy hydroplane until reality interrupts. Then, he is reduced to what has been called the "hen-pecked" husband as his wife scolds the meek Walter and reminds him to buy overshoes and wear his gloves.

Shortly after dropping off his wife at the salon, Mitty drifts into another wishful daydream in which he is again a leader. This time he is a famous surgeon, who assertively fixes a faulty piston so that an operation can continue. In sharp contrast to this heroism and commanding persona, Mitty is reduced again by reality as a lowly parking-lot attendant shouts at him, "Back it up, Mac!" Then, Mitty becomes so nervous that he cannot maneuver the car correctly. Embarrassed, Mitty almost forgets to hand the youth the key; then, the attendant backs up the car with insolent skill that demeans poor Mitty.

"They're so cocky," thought Walter Mitty, walking along Main Street; "they think they know everything."

Mitty recalls how he was mocked by a garage-man who had to come out to take off the winter chains from the car because in his attempts to do so, Mitty had the chains wound around the axle. "...next time...I'll wear my right arm in a sling...." This compensatory plan leads to another daydream in Mitty: This time he is himself and he is on trial for murder. However, his shooting arm was in a sling on the night of the murder. Boldly, nevertheless, Mitty asserts, "I could have killed Gregory Fitzhurst at three hundred feet with my left hand." Chaos breaks out in the courtroom and a beautiful girl hugs Mitty. When the District Attorney strikes her "savagely," the fearless Mitty punches him on the chin, saying, "You miserable cur!"

In reality, the submissive Walter Mitty walks down the street and he remembers the second errand, "Puppy biscuit." A woman laughs as she passes him, saying to her companion, "He said 'puppy biscuit' to himself. Later, Walter Mitty walks to the hotel where is supposed to wait for his wife. In the lobby he sits in a large leather chair that faces the window. After having picked up a copy of a political and general interest magazine of the time named Liberty, a new daydream comes to him. This time he is a captain in World War I and heroically he is going to blow up the ammunition dump of the Germans. Pouring another brandy and "tossing it off" with much machismo, Captain Mitty straps on his huge Webley-Vickers automatic and sets out to destroy the enemy's ammunition. "Cheerio," the heroic Mitty shouts bravely.

This dream is interrupted by his returning wife, who immediately scolds him for sitting where she cannot see him. When she asks him why he hides, Walter Mitty tells her, "I was thinking....Does it ever occur to you that I am sometimes thinking?"

She looked at him. "I'm going to take your temperature when I get you home," she said.

Mitty makes no comment to her demeaning response to him. But, the doors seem to make a derisive sound as they depart the hotel. "Wait a minute," his wife commands him. "She was more than a minute." Walter Mitty lights a cigarette as it begins to rain. He leans against a wall with his shoulders back. "'To hell with the handkerchief,' said Walter Mitty scornfully" as he imagines himself facing a firing squad. All his hope for bravery and assertiveness dashed, Mitty is yet unwavering in his escape.