A young catholic boy stands up for what he believes in while so many, of his own friends and classmates, turn on him because they do not want to be set out like outcasts. Meanwhile, teachers use their power for their own wants and needs and sit back while evil lurks the halls. Robert Cormier uses both a student and teachers point of view to create a powerful novel that involves both the abuse of power and evil within. Looking back on the events of his son’s and his life, Robert Cormier not only shows the battle of power and evil, but also how the 1970s and 1980s impacted his life the most in The Chocolate War.
Understanding a little about Robert Cormier will help understand how he came to be as a writer and how it influenced his novel. Cormier
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Cormier wrote three published works (“The Chocolate,” Novel) before writing The Chocolate War. The novel received the “Maxi Award” and the “Margaret A. Edwards Award gain by American Library Association” (Iskander). But unfortunately critics dislike the novel due to it being inappropriate and “disturbing” for it’s “distorted view on reality and… feeling absolute hopelessness” (Moss and Wilson 70). The book starts out talking about the main character, Jerry, who starts out high school at an all boy catholic school. The problems that occur in the novel are done by the The Vigils who are the schools gang. The group exists because of a boy named Archie who assigns things for the boys to do and if the assignments are not done by the time he tells them there will be a punishment awaiting them. Archie later finds out from one of the teachers, Brother Leon, that the original principle becomes sick and has to go to the hospital so he will be filling in for him. Brother Leon then tells Archie that the amount of chocolate that needs being sold in their annual sale will be doubled because Leon spent the money for school for his own personal demands. Brother Leon then tells Archie that he needs his help. But instead of doing what Brother Leon asked he starts up trouble by giving Jerry an assignment not to sell the chocolates which starts a lot of problems for Jerry and the …show more content…
When Cormier first started to write his novels he wanted to write about his kids lives, which was said in the previous paragraph. The novel is based around “Cormier’s son Peter, who, after discussing it with his parents, decided not to participate in his school’s annual chocolate sale as a matter of principle” (Angel 9). One thing that both Cormier and Jerry share is that they both, unfortunate, lost a person very close to them that overtakes a big impact it in many of their young lives. First, Cormier sadly lost his father to cancer when he was a young child and was raised by only his mother (“The Chocolate,” Literature). But in the novel, instead of Jerry’s father dying when he was younger, his “mother died last spring. Cancer” (Cormier 16). The novel takes place in an all boy catholic school that goes by the name Trinity. Trinity plays a big part in the major conflicts that Jerry faces throughout the book. John Cohen, writer of the chapter, “The Chocolate War Was Inspired by an Event in Cormier’s Life” in the book Peer Pressure in Robert Cormier’s The Chocolate War, interviews Cormier regarding his son and how he “went to Catholic private boys’ school of 400 boys (33). By saying this in the interview it allows the setting to be more realistic. Incorporating a catholic
When Charley joined the First Minnesota Volunteers he along with many others wanted to help support his country during war. Everyone from the Union and the Confederacy thought that the war would be over soon but sadly they were wrong. The war that Charley had just joined would be bloodiest American war yet. Charley found out in this book that war changes people and that it is often not what people make it out to be.
The Creighton’s had so many people they knew and loved in war. Two biological sons, and adopted son, and their children’s schoolmaster that their daughter was in love with, to be exact. In this story, so much goes on that messes up their family. Two sons go to fight for the Union, along with their schoolmaster, and one goes to fight with the Confederates. Their father, Matt, had something like a stroke or heart attack, and is not allowed to work anymore.
Man’s Worst Angel War is one of the most violent and primitive things ever done by man. In “My Brother Sam is Dead” by Collier and Collier, war is the focus point in the novel. The main characters consist of: Sam, Tim, and Mr.Meeker. Mr. Meeker is Sam and Tim’s father, and has certain views on politics that Sam doesn’t agree with, while Tim is unsure. Tim is torn between the gruesome realities of war and the fantasy of glory Sam is in love with.
Do you understand the feeling of being different? Ever feel those staring eyes peering into you like a laser beam because your not dressed like everybody else? Of course you have everyone has unless you live under a rock but anyway everyone has felt different but why the staring why do they have to make you feel alien? Well it’s simple some people just simply don’t like change and if you aren’t like everyone else the order of things might get screwed up. And when people feel their way of things is being tempered with they can get a bit extreme meaning you better prepare for the worst.
The major themes of this novel include discussing the topics of unchecked authority/power, fear, manipulation, psychological impacts, and the consequences when a person disturbs the order of a certain societal hierarchy. There is a very noticeable power struggle within this novel, between Brother Leon, the Vigils, Jerry Renault, and the rest of the school kids and staff. The Vigils have always been in power at Trinity, they constantly use this to their benefit and have been able to make students do whatever they want without the interruption of the teachers, despite the fact that the teachers do seem to know what is going on. Brother Leon acts as the one person more powerful than the Vigils and The Vigils and Brother Leon seems to blend their powers and work alongside one another.
Although he learned that he had to learn to cope with every single physical, emotional and mental stress factor that came his way. He learned with every guy in his platoon, they all stuck together. This novel was a very well written book. Each story was different, and gave a different aspect on war every time. The emotions were real, and very descriptive.
Charley and Henry had to kill people in hand to hand combat, so these soldiers have gone through a lot in the war. The main characters in this book were both young, Henry was the legal age of 18 but he was still young, and Charley was only 16 when he signed up. The hardships of the war and all the kill caused both characters to go insane from the killing. the soldiers were in the same war, the Civil War, but fought in different battles. Overall the soldiers were required to go through tight and nervous experiences while in
For thousands of years the stench of gun powder and drying blood has burned the innocence out of boys, turning them into men hardened by years of violent warfare. Joby, a young drummer boy in the American Civil War, is just one example of a young man being greatly impacted by events that occurred in the war. The short story follows Joby’s fears before the Battle of Shiloh, he feels defenseless, hopeless, and scared as he believes his position as the drummer boy is all but preferable. Joby’s attitude changes after a well-respected general comes to speak with him at night while Joby is crying out of fear. The General offers Joby support and reassures him of his importance, leaving Joby feeling important and confident.
Tomorrow When the War Began is a novel by Australian Author John Marsden. Published in 1993, it tells the story of a group of seven teenagers led by the main character Ellie, who narrates the events that happen in the novel. The group goes to a place called Hell to camp and when they come back their lives are changed forever, their homes and town are abandoned and they soon discover they are at war. They struggle to fight for survival and to save their friends and family as the twisted morality of war strain their relationships and test their loyalty.
War has no boundaries. It separates families, tears down homes full of memories, and turns people against each other. A memorable piece of literature that epitomizes the true effects of war is Obasan by Joy Kogawa. Obasan is a valuable piece of literature; it shows another aspect of World War II and its devastating effects. Japanese-Canadians are silenced, brutalized, and punished due to the paranoia of war.
Pat Conroy, a man with many years and much knowledge, is an author of many novels and writings. It is the year 2007, Mr. Conroy is writing a letter to the editor of the Charleston Gazette, about why the banning of his books is depriving students of the real world knowledge they enclose, while also setting back the teachers from teaching to their fullest ability. He is not the happiest man in the world as he replies, his work showing how he feels. Conroy uses powerful statements along with personal examples and metaphors to establish his message within the text.
The kids were tested and their own greediness was their fallout. Only the pure of heart and intentions, Charlie, is able to go through the factory, unharmed, and claim his freedom. Much like Dante's Inferno, the deeper they
The Wars is a symbolic masterpiece that illustrates the great impact war brings on the microcosm of society and how individuals juxtaposed to the war are affected. The novel itself requires active reading; because without it, the novel would seem very simplistic; however, after further examination, readers can evidently recognize the complexity of Robert’s character with the aid of many heteroglossic components, techniques, devices, and the reworking of literary conventions. Robert’s physical, mental and emotional journey he endeavours, followed by the constant re-evaluations of his truths and becoming a more proficient soldier, can be seen through a formalist perspective with the use of foreshadowing to signify Robert’s transition from a sane to insane soldier; the utilization of animal imagery highlighting Robert’s development through the horrific experiences of war; and the several themes in the text to illustrate Robert’s evolution as a soldier through his inner
Cormac McCarthy’s novel ,Child of God, is the tale of a violent, dispossessed man living on the outskirts of society. Set in 1960s rural Tennessee, the novel focuses on the life of Lester Ballard, a murdering necrophiliac who seemingly only follows his own rules. Ballard is represented as a despicable, unhuman character, who apparently is, “A child of God much like yourself perhaps” (4). While Ballard repeatedly commits evil acts, one cannot help but find a soft spot for this man who was unloved as child and seems to be a product of his cruel environment. On the surface, Ballard’s actions make him seem alien to “us” (society) but to delve deeper, one discovers a true understanding of Lester Ballard.
Ever since the release of the Lois Lowry’s famous novel “The Giver” in 1993, millions of readers have loved enjoyed reading the book very much, with over 12 million copies of the book being sold. However, schools have banned the book for its themes of suicide, puberty-related talks about sexual emotions, and rebellion. Some readers have even despised disliked the book for the involvement of religion, whether it’s the absence of religion in the story, or aspects from the Bible being present in the story, including Biblical names being present in the story. The fact that the book is being banned in many schools for these reasons is quite unjust upsetting because despite its somewhat violent themes, it teaches some important lessons. These