Timeless Themes in Literature: A Northern Light & A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
Literature exposes readers to new ideas and causes us to think. This is can be done through literature's timeless themes. A Northern Light and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn share the same theme: education is important. These two books include characters with a strong desire towards education for themselves and others.
A Northern Light is a book about a young girl named Mattie Gokey. Mattie lives in a small town where money is scarce and working hard on the farm is a way of life. She steps up to the "mother" position, taking care of her three younger sisters and father after the passing of her own mother. Mattie believes in the importance of education. Her desire to want to further her education is evident. In chapter nine, Mattie says, "Weaver and I had spent most of the year preparing for our exit examinations. We are going to take the hardest ones." (Donnelly, pg 59). Mattie kept attending school and working hard while most kids her age had already dropped out to work on the farms. This shows her determination towards school and how strong her desire is towards getting an education.
Mattie not only attends school daily, she also works hard in hopes of being accepted into Barnard College in New York City. In order to fulfill her dream of attending, Mattie must find the money needed to pay her way. Another way it is evident that education is important to Mattie is that she gets a job at the Glenmore, a hotel about six miles from her house, working for money. Money is scarce in her family and where she lives. The Gokey family barely makes enough money to feed the four children and Pa. (Donnelly, pg 239). There is definitely not any money for anything but necessities, meaning she is not able to depend on her family for money. School is not a part of a child's daily routine in Mattie's small town, especially in the 1900's.
Brooklyn is the largest of New York City's five boroughs. ... Brooklyn contains many landmarks of all four categories. Brooklyn is home to the oldest building in New York City. ... Brooklyn is also home to the historic district Cobble Hill. ... Prospect Park is a notable scenic landmark of Brooklyn. ...
A comparison made between Crossing Brooklyn Ferry by Walt Whitman and The Lime-Tree Bower My Prison by Samuel Coleridge effectively demonstrates the validity of this assertion. ... They often ridiculed mankind for its growing obsession with material gain and technological conquest. ... The Lime-Tree Bower My Prison This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison by Samuel Coleridge exemplifies Romanticism in the way that the whole of the poem involves an idealization of nature. ... Crossing Brooklyn Ferry In Crossing Brooklyn Ferry, Whitman communicates observations made by him while traveling on the Broo...
He soon became editor for a number of Brooklyn and New York papers. ... On his return to Brooklyn in the fall of 1848, he founded a "free soil" newspaper, the "Brooklyn Freeman". ... He begins to compare his life and friendship with this live-oak tree growing as a symbol of this. ... The poet saw the oak tree growing. ... He again states that the tree maintains it willingness to grow among no others and continue to grow beautifully and halcyon. ...
The Brooklyn Bridge contributes a lot to the economics of the country, and also created a system of transportation between Brooklyn and Manhattan. Located between the boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan, the bridge was completed on May 24, 1883, 2:00 PM. ... [Encarta, 2003] The main contribution of the Brooklyn Bridge is believed to be the fact that it provided easy and fast modes of transport for the range of businesses that operated in the coastal stretches of Brooklyn and Manhattan. ... Because of an ancillary service, transportation between Brooklyn and Manhattan would become quicker....
Niya Carrington Discover New York The Past Present And Future The experience at the Brooklyn Navy Yard is one that many would not forget. ... In 1857, the Brooklyn Navy Yard built the USS Niagara, which sailed to England to lay a cable between Europe and North America. ... At the Brooklyn Navy Yard, it had host two towers that served the third Naval District. ... At the Brooklyn Navy Yard, I learned things that I did not know occurred in my own neighborhood. ... The Brooklyn Navy Yard is the past, present and the future and has much more great things to come its way. ...
This struck me as a simple metaphor of growing up. ... There is no dividing line for growing up, growing up happens from understanding circumstances that happen in life and learning how to overcome those circumstances the best possible way. Overmore, Sees behind Trees resolves the struggle with his manhood from the death of Gray Fire. ... Sees Behind Trees realized if he wants to go back home he would have to grow up and learn not to rely on someone else and use the senses he had practiced hours on end to find his way back home." ... It doesn't matter what culture or century you grow up ...
The Brooklyn Bridge was part of that New York. ... These faster, more reliable ferries helped Brooklyn grow. ... Brooklyn's population steadily increased. ... On May 24, 1883, the Brooklyn Bride was opened. ... The Brooklyn Bridge was built. ...
