The Things They Carried: Writing Exercise

Select ONE of the following quotes and write a long paragraph reflecting on how the quote connects with the events of the chapter.

“They all carried ghosts” (10).

“They carried all they could bear, and then some, including a silent awe for the terrible power of the things they carried” (7).

“Some things they carried in common. Taking turns, they carried the big PRC-77 scrambler radio, which weighed 30 pounds with its battery. They shared the weight of memory” (p14).

“He was realistic about it. There was that new hardness in his stomach. He loved her but he hated her.
No more fantasies, he told himself” (24).

“It was very sad, he thought. The things men carried inside. The things men did or felt they had to do” (25).

“You want my opinion, Mitchell Sanders said, there’s a definite moral here.
He put his hand on the dead boy’s wrist. He was quiet for a time, as if counting a pulse, then he patted the stomach, almost affectionately, and used Kiowa’s hunting hatchet to remove the thumb.
Henry Dobbins asked what the moral was.
Moral?
You know. Moral.” (13)

A Raisin in the Sun

Over the year, we've seen many variations of The American Dream. The Puritans achieved their dream by sailing to a new world and making a life for themselves where they had religious freedom. The founders of the country achieved their Dream by gaining political independence. Immigrants to America have achieved and continue to achieve the American Dream by creating a better life for themselves and their family in a foreign country. And in the Great Gatsby and Of Mice and Men, some people trying to achieve their American Dream did not succeed.

What is The American Dream in A Raisin in the Sun? Were they able to achieve it? Finally, what is the play's commentary with regard to the American Dream?

**OR**

What does it mean to be a man? How is Walter's manhood challenged? Does he achieve manhood in the end? Why or why not?

Gatsby Essay Free Write

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