Ballarat Mile Race Quotes

Understanding that there is a big separation between rich and poor, Gordon Parks was in for a rude awakening in ‘Flavios Home’ when he came face to face with a family doing all they can to survive. Parks comes across a young fellow named Flavio da Silva who was struggling to carry water in a tin over his head and is immediately intrigued to learn more about him. Having an assignment over poverty, Parks took the chance to get better insight by following Flavio home. Recreating the environment and interactions he had creates an awareness that is able to give those not in nor around those in poverty to make a change. Parks goes beyond just going through the events by using descriptive words that allows readers to accompany him.

In ‘The Story of Tom Brennan’, the protagonist confronts a traumatic incident which compels him to undergo a physical relocation and sudden emotional change. The transition Tom predominantly faces is sudden as moving into the town of Coghill where he has to deal with social alienation and the horrific trauma inflicted through past events including Daniel’s anger and selfishness which hinders his physical and mentally growth and development. Tom experiences flashbacks of the ‘usual’ Australia Day with his family showing the complete paradox with what is now their reality and horror juxtaposed towards his flashback of the tragic accident of his older brother Daniel: “Running towards the car. Running into the headlights. Running into the silence of death.” The anaphora and repetition of ‘running’ highlights his emotional and physical devastation which emphasises the initial stages of the novel and negative connotations of ‘death’ assumes the setting. As a result of the crisis, Tom responds rather opposing towards transferring to a new setting of Coghill. Depressing motifs are frequently implied throughout the novel to express the feeling of despair and sadness: “There aren’t words to say how black and empty pain felt. It was deeper than the

In Always Running, Luis J. Rodriguez recalls his time growing up in Los Angeles during the 60s and 70s. Rodriguez writes of the hardships that his family had first encountered while trying to assimilate into American society and how he would often, while growing up, be criminalized by his teachers, law enforcement, other people, his peers, his community, and eventually people who cared most for him. Rodriguez recalls the times where he and some friends came together and created a family, a brotherhood of sort, in order to fulfill his need of belonging, but as other people in the community had also formed groups to consolidate power, thus marked the beginning of rivalry and the introduction of gangs. Rodriguez’s gang life had been filled with tragedies and filled with great times, but ultimately he tried to leave the life of crime and commit to an education. Rodriguez tried stepping away from the gang lifestyle by going to school and writing poetry, but ended up back in the life of crime after a serious altercation with the police. When Rodriguez went back to his gang lifestyle, he found the same gang that treated him as a brother, had shunned him away after Rodriguez had offered a solution to wither away the gang violence.

Imagine: A young boy scavenges for food to provide for his impoverished family which was composed of his ill mother and starving siblings or a homeless, single mom desperatley seeking for shelter. These synopses from "Angela's Ashes" by Frank McCourt and "The Street" by Ann Petry share a common theme: perseverance through hardships. In "Angela's Ashes," a memoir by Frank McCourt, he stells about the harships he endured through his childhood, such as, struggling to assist his family in the midst of poverty by stealing food to provide for them. Futhermore, in "The Street," a novel by Ann Petry, tells the story of young Lutie Johnson, a homeless single mom who is seeking shelter for herself and her children. In these two excerpts, the authors use the characters, settings, and events to develop the theme, which I've identified as perseverance through hardships.

Walter and his family faced many hardships in life. They were dirt poor and couldn’t afford food, nevermind shoes. Because of this, Walter caught hookworms, a disease caused by walking through hog wallows and barnyards barefooted. In spite of starving and the fact that “he had hookworms(Lee76)” Walter went to school everyday and faced the pain and embarrassment that came along with it. Just like Walter, Robert was able to face difficulty fearlessly. Robert’s father died, hence there was no one around to support his family. Predictably, Robert stepped up and got “a regular job at the feedstore (Peck80)” rather than going to school like the rest of his peers. Robert was able to sacrifice his childhood and put aside his grief to provide for his family. The two young people’s ability to ignore their losses to strive for prosperity proves they have notable

Debra Brett is a 36 year old single mother housed in rented social housing on a south London high-rise housing estate. She is dependent on council contractors for repairs, with four children the flat is overcrowded,she feels invisible and hopeless.Debra Brett’s low income from benefits effect her education chances by her not being able to afford childcare, and are also effecting her older daughter’s education who is supplementing the family income by working part time while also at college.This will dictate the type of jobs possible for Debra and her family and prospective income of the family. The family relationship and future is dictated by their current “life chances”. The Confino family live geographically quite close but have very different “life Chances”, a large house which they own, both parents are in well paid professional work. Extra activities, classes, computers and educational resources also support the children learning, they have space to study. The Confino’s have choice in education, they have enough money and transport to travel to schools out of area and of their choice. The family enjoys a busy social life with theatre trips, holidays and meals out. They look forward to a good life which they can to afford to plan for in the

Throughout their stories we get to see how their families had a huge impact on their lives, how their way of thinking and approaching things affected them and their most decisive decision which was continuing studying or be a drug dealer. The author’s mom name is Joy, she was very young when she moved from Jamaica to the United

In the detailed story of an impoverished family during the late 1900’s, Jeannette Walls describes her experience from the young age of 3, up until adulthood. The family of 6, with Rex Walls as the father, Rose Mary as the mother, and her three siblings, Lori, Brian and Maureen, were constantly moving throughout the country with little to no food or cash. The memoir shows how dysfunctional the family was, but never seemed to force the reader to condemn the parents. In a life of poverty, the have to move for own to town, and often lived in various mining towns. Although they each found something they learned to love (like Jeannette’s rock collection) in the desert, they had to leave them behind once Rex’s alcoholism only worsened, and they ran

The odds are stacked upon Luis Rodriguez, an upcoming sixteen year old that has found himself in the world of gangs. Luis is a human, and it is expected that he would make many mistakes in his life, however when given choices, he always seems to choose the wrong one and never learns from his mistakes. The theme of Luis Rodriguez’s autobiography, “Always Running,” is that many people feel like they are alone in the world, and that the world is always against them, but there will always be people that will stand in your corner and help them achieve what they were meant for. He proves this by including examples from his childhood and the mistakes he has made and the supports he has had.

Tim Winton’s epic saga Cloudstreet chronicles the lives of two families, the Pickles and the Lambs. Set in Perth Western Australia and spanning twenty years from the 1940’s to 1960’s, the families endure great hardship: death and loss; poverty and illness. It is the experience of hardship which challenges who they are and the very nature of their existence and determines how they view and live life. Despite their different views ultimately the characters come to understand that misfortune is inevitable and that family, love and belonging are important in enduring suffering because in the end “that’s all there is.”

Jackie French’s Nanberry Black Brother White is a tale set in the year of 1789, detailing the First Fleet’s arrival on the shores of Sydney Cove. The four key characters, Nanberry, Surgeon White, Maria and Rachel all share the unsettling experience of displacement, removed from their respective communities and placed in an unfamiliar environment. This essay will explore their dislocation and resultant loneliness. Firstly, the outbreak of smallpox in Nanberry’s clan gave reason for the compassionate Surgeon White reason to adopt him as his son. Secondly, Surgeon White comes to Australia without his family, struggling to alleviate feelings of lonesomeness. Thirdly, Rachael and Maria experience feelings of isolation in

Fortunately, eighth-grader Sarah and her parents have big brother Miles to lean on, with his tough, common sense outlook, ready shotgun and a photographic memory stocked with information on living off the land. But they can’t always depend on him, as they discover when he is helpless because of a devastating injury. Weaver paints a realistic picture of life without electricity or plumbing, from the constant labor required to keep the wood pile stocked to killing and dressing a deer. And, even more compellingly, in the Newells’ contacts with others, he portrays a society in which some struggle to maintain honorable values and balance while others give in to increase suspicion, parochialism and

Despite their differences, Pete found the need to defend his brother as he marched into the principal’s office as he so desperately wanted to see him onto the right path and not the downward spiral he had been heading down. Pete played an intricate role in getting Louis to a better place as “he told the principal that Louie craved attention, but had never won it in the form of praise, so he sought it in the form of punishment. If Louie were recognized for doing something right, Pete argued, he’d turn his life around” (13). Growing up, no one was completely sure on whether or not Louis would amount to anything, but with the help of Pete he became one of the greatest runners in the world. Training constantly, Louis was pushed past his limits by Pete to achieve monumental heights in his running career. “Pete herded him out to train every day and rode his bicycle behind him, whacking him with a stick. Louie dragged his feet, belly-ached, and quit at the first sign of fatigue. Pete made him get up and keep going” (14). As a result, Louis began winning and became the fastest high school

Poverty is a terrible condition, which as unfortunate as it is, many people across the globe suffer from. Poverty can present itself in many ways and in many different circumstances, which is shown in the following stories. In ' Angela's Ashes' by Frank McCourt, young Frank is burdened with the responsibiliity of providing for his family. Similarly, in 'The Street' by Ann Petry, Lutie, a single black mother, is struggling to find shelter for her family. In both 'Angela's Ashes' and 'The Street,' a key member of each family is desperately trying to support their loved ones and meet their basic human needs. In both passages, the author uses specific characters, events, and settings to demonstrate the theme that one needs perseverance to overcome poverty.

Roberts organizes his book based on certain themes, such as culture and day-to-day life, paying special attention to the pre- and post-War periods so as to emphasize the evolution of the slum throughout the period of time covered. He divides it into chapters that cover specific aspects of society and day-to-day life in order to accentuate certain points. His writing style is a unique and well-chosen blend of personal reminiscences and historical research. Much of his writing, including his own experiences, is presented in a very matter-of-fact way. The impact this style has on the reader is great because he is able to state such horrors so bluntly, as only someone who was truly there can. Occasionally, however, his emotions break through, as is evident in his explanation of his parents' separation and subsequent death on page 238. Lastly, the work is scholarly and concise, as Roberts chooses to get straight to the point and elaborate on it rather than saying the same thing in many different ways.