Personal Narrative Analysis by Catherine Carlson

Caged Bird

jinchenxi — 2024-11-19 13:23:20 UTC

This story demonstrates that there can be good and bad people who can impact you life drastically. Magauerite said to Mrs. Flowers, "'Yes, ma'am'" in response to Mrs. Flowers asking her whether she liked the book the read or not and "it was the least [she] could do," to express her thanks, "but it was the most also" because of the trauma she expreienced (Angelou 180). Mrs. Flowers helped Maya speak again after not speaking for a long time due to her abuse, showing how people can impact your life for the good.

Caged Bird

jinchenxi — 2024-11-19 13:27:43 UTC

Marguerite's tone throughout the piece is admirement towards Mrs. Flowers. She describes Mrs. Flowers as being "one of the few gentlewomen I have ever known" and "has remained throughout my life the measure of what a human being can be" (Angelou 18-19)

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

carlsoncatherine — 2024-11-19 13:28:20 UTC

Mrs. Bertha Flowers

Momma

Marguerite

Brother

Sister Wilcox

Mrs. Flowers is the most significant character in this story because she helps Maya, the narrator, overcome her trauma and encourages her to speak. She is portrayed as "the aristocrat of Black Stamps" (Angelou 4) by the narrator, which shows how she sees and idolizes her.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

carlsoncatherine — 2024-11-19 13:36:08 UTC

The author reflects on the story, and her younger self "didn't question why Mrs. Flowers had singled [her] out for attention, nor did it occur to [her] that Momma might have asked her to give [the author] a little talking to" (Angelou 195-197). This quote shows the author's reflection and how she thought during the story when she was younger.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

jinchenxi — 2024-11-19 13:49:21 UTC

Maya in the beginning of the story describes her first impression of Mrs. Flowers. "Her skin was a rich black that would have peeled like a plum if snagged, but then no one would have thought of getting close enough to Mrs. Flowers to ruffle her dress, let alone snag her skin"(Angelou 10). From this quote Mrs.Flower almost seemed unapproachable with her appearance.

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

carlsoncatherine — 2024-11-19 13:55:39 UTC

The story is set in "Black Stamps"(Angelou 4) in "the Arkansas summer" (Angelou 5). This affects the development of the plot because Arkansas is in southern America, where racism and slavery used to be more common.

Pretty Beyond Belief

jinchenxi — 2024-11-21 18:55:12 UTC

Beauty affects one's life. In the story "Pretty Beyond Belief" by Amy Tan. The narrator, Tan, wrote about her beauty compared to her mother who was described as " had the looks of a movie starlet (Tan 5). She was pretty beyond belief, but just because she was beautiful that did not mean that she would live the best life ever. "When she was nineteen, she married. She was innocent, she said, and her husband was a bad man" (Tan 7). This marriage ruined her life potential, and many felt bad for her because of how pretty she was.

Pretty Beyond Belief

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-21 19:03:37 UTC

Amy Tan

Amy's mother

Amy's mother is the most important charecter in the story. Her mother critized her for not being pretty enough and the narrator comes to terms that she "would never meet [her] mother's standards of beauty" (Tan 8). Because of her mother, the narrator cares more about her own beauty as she "long[s] to look like [her] mother" (Tan 11), who is very beautiful.

Pretty Beyond Belief

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-21 19:09:25 UTC

The story is set in Oakland, California. This setting is obviosuly very different from where Amy's parents were from, China, as the customs and standards are different. Beauty is a very important trait in this book and being in the United States also contributed to how Amy was viewed. She "once asked [her] mother whether [she] was beautiful by Chinese standards" because she belived that she "was not according to an American aesthetic" (Tan 1), which examplifies how being in California shaped her views about what beauty is.

Pretty Beyond Belief

carlsoncatherine — 2024-11-21 19:09:28 UTC

The author states that "[s]ince my mother died, I find myself looking into the mirror more often than I did when I was twelve." (Tan 11). She questions "If beauty is bad luck, why do I wish for reasons to be vain? Why do I long to look like my mother?" (Tan 11), showing how much she values her mother and how her mother put her beliefs upon Tan, yet doubts the importance of it.

Going to Japan

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-25 22:13:40 UTC

At the end of the story, the author reflects back on how her friend explained to her that "forgiveness [is] the highest satisfaction, and [she] understood it it really for the first time" (Kingsolver 69-70). She begins to view the world around her differently after she finally understands her friend's words; she "[gives] [her]self away...as a kind of public service" (Kingsolver 77) by letting herself make mistakes and be forgiven.

Going to Japan

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-25 23:42:31 UTC

Throughout "Going to Japan," Barbara uses diction and syntax to bring humor to the story. She lists the things her aunt brings or she brings to Japan alphabetical order. She says her Aunt Zelda took "Appliances, Battery packs, Cellular technology..." (Kingsolver 15) to Japan because it was a modern place. Of course, her aunt didn't actually do this and it was to just bring humor to the story.

Pretty Beyond Belief

carlsoncatherine — 2024-11-30 15:36:32 UTC

Tan's mother says, "Why do you want to be beautiful?...Pretty can be bad luck, not just good." (Tan 4), demonstrates how much her mother values but also condemns beauty.

Spring 2005

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-30 17:00:17 UTC

Until you tell someone everything about yourself, they won't know who you are fully. Saeed confesses that he is gay to his mother, but finds himself thinking that even though he told her this, he "had not come out to her as [him]self" becasue "there was still so much [he] hadn't told [his] mother" (Jones 98).

Spring 2005

dantulurivaishnavi — 2024-11-30 17:10:35 UTC

Saeed's tone throughout the peice is nervousness about coming out to his mother as being gay. He described "coming out to her" as being "a daunting prospect" and "like watching a melodramatic silent film without the captions" (Jones 95).

Spring 2005

carlsoncatherine — 2024-12-01 22:26:22 UTC

Mom

Saeed Jones

Rob (mentioned)

friends on the speech team (mentioned)

Saeed's mother is the most significant character because she helps Saeed feel more comfortable about himself than at the beginning of the story. This is shown by how Saeed thinks it would be "like watching a melodramatic silent film without the captions"(Jones 95), which realizes how uncomfortable it would feel for him. Near the end of the story, Saeed's mother says "I love you, Saeed. And honestly, you sound happy. If you're happy, I'm happy" (Jones 97), which helps him be more comfortable around her and in general.

Spring 2005

carlsoncatherine — 2024-12-01 22:41:14 UTC

There are multiple settings throughout the story. It begins with Saeed being in college, since he is concerned with "surpassing the extent of [his] mother's own college experience" (Jones 95). It affects the plot because he does not want to talk to his mother about his studies, which eventually prompts them to talk about Saeed's love life. The other setting is "at Rob's house... out to the back porch" (Jones 97), where he tries to get very drunk, and the porch allows him to have a moment of privacy.

Going to Japan

carlsoncatherine — 2024-12-01 22:49:52 UTC

The main message in the story is that there are many different cultures and customs and you should not assume them. Forgiveness is also a main theme in the story, being important in Japan. These are shown when the narrator's friend says, "To forgive, for us, is the highest satisfaction" (Kingsolver 57), which shows how different things are in other cultures and hoe important different things, like forgiveness, can be.

Going to Japan

carlsoncatherine — 2024-12-01 23:00:39 UTC

The tone of "Going to Japan" is reflective of herself and her trip. This is shown through the use of the past tense and how many times she quotes herself throughout the story. She is also very critical of herself throughout the piece, shown by her constant remarks and comments like "I became an awkward giant. I took up too much space. I blended in like Igor would blend in with the corps de ballet in Swan Lake" (Kingsolver 22, 23).

Going to Japan

jinchenxi — 2024-12-01 23:15:34 UTC

The protagonist’s life as she prepares to travel to the setting Japan. At the beginning of the story the narrator says, "Then I grew up and was invited to go to Japan, not with the fantastic Aunt Zelda but as myself" (Kingsolver 10). This is a reoffence to a childhood game the narrator used to play. Aunt Zelda would go to Japan and take appliances with her. Naming the appliances in alphabetical order was the purpose of the game. This time though it was not Zelda going to Japan, but it was the narrator.

Going to Japan

jinchenxi — 2024-12-02 00:10:58 UTC

Aunt Zelda

Host

Japanese friend

Airline official

The Japanese friend was the more important to the narrator. When she was struggling and trying to fit in with the people of Japan. She remembers something that her friend said. "I remembered my Japanese friends' insistence on forgiveness as the highest satisfaction"(Kingsolver 70). Then on the plane that would take the narrator home, and all the passengers had to be escorted off the plane. Everyone was disappointed but the narrator said, "You have no idea, I told him, how thoroughly I forgive you" (Kingsolver 90). This represents what the narrator learned from her friend.

Spring 2005

jinchenxi — 2024-12-02 01:53:36 UTC

Saeed was always afraid to come out to his mother. Every time that his mom would call, he would only ever talk about school and never anything more, but once he finally blurted the fact that he was gay she was shocked and hung up. Saeed thought that was not the best way to come out to his mother. After the last conversation, his mother called him again. "I love you, Saeed, she said. And honestly, you sound happy. If you're happy, I'm happy"(Jones 97). When his mom said all that, it made him felt less like a burden of being gay. This experience made him realize that he had so much that he had not told his mom. " There was still so much I hadn't told my mother, so much I knew that I would probably never tell her"(Jones 98).

Spring 2005

jinchenxi — 2024-12-02 02:19:24 UTC

When Saeed finally came out to his mother the first thing she asked was "Have you had an experience?...Did you use protection" (Jones 96). This short but awkward conversation made things a bit embarrassing for Saeed.

Pretty Beyond Belief

jinchenxi — 2024-12-02 13:57:35 UTC

The tone in Pretty Beyond Belief was having the feel of not living up to her mother beauty. Even thought she though that she did not care for the lack of buety that she had. " BY then I didn't care that I would never meet my mother's standards of beauty"(Tan 8). after when her mother past she left that she had cared more then before. "I find myself looking into the mirror more often then I did when I was twelve" (Tan 11th).