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Literary windows and mirrors are an important concept to understand how literature can influence and affect us. 

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Literary windows and mirrors are an important concept to understand how literature can influence and affect us. 

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A literary window is a piece of literature that shows you a point of view or experience that you are not familiar with. It gives you a better understanding of something unknown to you.

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A literary mirror is a piece of literature that reflects back to you. There is something in the work that reminds you of yourself, or reminds you of experiences that you have had. It helps to give you a better understanding of yourself, and can reassure you that you are not alone in your experiences. It also helps give you a stronger comprehension and sense of empathy for what other people are feeling and going through.

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This short story by Tom Vollman was a literary mirror for me. When I was in high school, I was a sprinter on the track and field team. I was very dedicated to becoming faster and stronger, and I trained year round. I knew I wasn't naturally fast enough to run at a good school in college, but I still placed an incredible amount of pressure on myself. Looking back on that experience, I'm glad I placed that pressure on myself because it forced me to work really hard. However, I also regret being so hard on myself because in some ways it probably made me perform worse. In order to sprint your fastest, your muscles have to stay relaxed because it allows them to contract and relax quicker than if you are tense. This long term pressure was also probably not great for my mental state. I did learn a lot about myself through my years running track, and I really connected with Tom when I read this story because I understood the pressure and anxiety he felt to be a good athlete.

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This poem by Langston Hughes was a literary window for me. Being a white person, I do not, and never will, fully understand what it is like to be black in America. This poem is about a black person being sent to eat alone in the kitchen, but despite this he knows his inner and outer beauty, and understands that one day the white people will be ashamed for how they treated him. One of my favorite things about Hughes' writing is the sense of hope and inspiration that he is able to inject into his words. This poem gives great insight into the resilience and inner strength of the black culture.

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"Speech to the Young" - Gwendolyn Brooks

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"Speech to the Young" - Gwendolyn Brooks

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This poem by Gwendolyn Brooks was a literary mirror for me. A lot of the older people in my family are of a much more conservative mindset, and they are incredibly stuck in their ways. They seem to be scared of change, either because of the fear of the unknown, or because of their ignorance to the fact that change is good and necessary. It is sad to me that this is their mindset, but I also know that no amount of persuasion can fully change their minds, and it is up to them to truly realize the importance of change for themselves. This poem is really inspiring because it is a call to young people to keep fighting for change and live in the moment, despite those that want to quiet your voice and remain stuck in the past.

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"Tonight I Can Write the Saddest Lines" - Pablo Neruda

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"Tonight I Can Write the Saddest Lines" - Pablo Neruda

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This poem by Pablo Neruda is a literary mirror for me. The speaker of the poem is talking about his feelings toward a lost love. It is an incredibly sad and touching poem, and anyone that has broken up with a significant other can relate to it. I had a girlfriend all throughout high school, and we broke up when we started college. I remember those feelings of intensely missing her, and wishing she was still by my side. As hard as breakups can be, it is reassuring to know that other people go through those same emotions and thoughts. Connecting to another person's journey of getting over heartbreak can truly help you to get through yours too.

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This poem by Langston Hughes was both a literary window and mirror for me. It is a literary mirror for me because I understand the pain and sadness that arises from your dreams being crushed. There are few things worse than wanting something so badly, and working so hard towards it, but still not achieving it. However, this poem is more so a literary window for me because Hughes is talking about dreams being deferred because of racial inequalities and prejudices. I have never had to deal with my dreams being deferred because of the color of my skin. Unfortunately, this is still something many people have to deal with throughout the world.

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"The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" - Sherman Alexie

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"The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" - Sherman Alexie

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My favorite piece of literature from this semester was "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" by Sherman Alexie. There are several things that I love about this book. The first is that it is a collection of short stories. Short stories are very fun to read, and can often be easier to digest than a normal novel. What is interesting about this book compared to other anthology's of short stories is that all the short stories are related and connected to each other. Alexie jumps around in the timeline between stories, and uses different characters, but they all connect in the end. I also like this book because it opened my eyes even wider to the injustices that the Native population face in this country. They live in mostly total poverty on small, infertile pieces of land and have been robbed of their culture and livelihood. It is incredibly sad, and I do feel a great deal of guilt for being a descendant of those that put the Native Americans into this situation, but reading about it has given me a much greater sense of empathy and compassion for them. I also really enjoy the sense of humor and unique style that Alexie writes in. If the allegations against Alexie are true, then that really saddens me, but I still do very much appreciate him as a writer.

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"All the Light We Cannot See" - Anthony Doerr

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"All the Light We Cannot See" - Anthony Doerr

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This novel written by Anthony Doerr was a literary window for me. It is set in Europe during World War II and tells two separate stories of a blind French girl living in Paris, and a young orphan boy growing up in Germany. Their paths end up intersecting at the German-occupied French town Saint-Malo during a German bombing when they are young adults, and their lives both forever change. This book was a window for me because it gave me insight into the true horrors of this war and time period, and elevated my gratitude for being able to grow up in a much safer place. This book is interesting in that it gives you a viewpoint of both someone under the control of Nazi occupation, and of someone that is forced to be a part of the Nazi regime. Usually novels about World War II just tell the story of someone on the Allied side, but it is eye-opening to read about the fears and guilt that the German citizens felt as well.