• The American Dream vs. The American Nightmare
• fragmented identity vs. self-definition
• desire vs. lack of fulfillment
• success/accomplishment vs. displacement/disillusionment
• materialism/wealth vs. emotional/social disconnection
• self-loathing (self-hate) vs. self-absorption/self-centeredness
•  optimism vs. pessimism, discipline/control vs. excess/chaos

I feel that the idea/concept that best connects with Charlie Wales is optimism vs. pessimism. Charlie reflects optimism through his progress in becoming sober and leaving his chaotic life behind, having hope in reuniting with his daughter and living a responsible, fulfilling life.

Meanwhile, pessimism is seen in his failing to regain custody of his daughter, the temptation of his old partying friends, Marion not believing in him, and the effects of his past actions on his present life. In the text, “They couldn't make him pay forever” supports the idea that his past actions are still controlling his life.

The concept of control vs. excess/chaos best fits with her character. She is very young but she seems to be pretty mature for her age. They way she thinks and the stuff she says is something a 9 year old shouldn’t be thinking or saying. As said in the story, “ She was already an individual with a code of her own,” this implies that Honoria is “grown”. She was basically forced to grow up quickly due to the complex family struggles. She is aware of a lot of things at this age and it is pretty sad. This can reflect her control or self-discipline. She is also the reason why Charlie has tried to have better control over himself. On the other hand, Honoria is also the chaos in Charlie’s life. Honoria reminds Charlie about the past. As said in the story, “He made plans, vistas, futures for Honoria and himself, but suddenly he grew sad, remembering all the plans he and Helen had made.” Honoria is the reason Charlie wanted to change and Helen believed he would be a great father according to Marion, “She said that he was perfectly right about Honoria and that she wanted Honoria to be with him. She said she was glad he was being good and doing better.”

Honoria is the control vs. excess/chaos in Charlie’s life.

In "Babylon Revisited" the character Charlie connects to the American Dream vs American Nightmare. He shows the American Dream in his past life where he was wealthy. We know that he had success, wealth, and partied a lot. He was living his best life going out with his wife and partying, leading up to his wife dying. He represents the American Nightmare once the effects of his "party life" start happening, like losing custody of his daughter and having to fight back for her.

In the story "The Emperor of Ice Cream," it takes place in the 1920s. The way they talk about women in the story relates to the time period, speaking negatively about them. I want to know how it impacted modernism and how it affects modernism now.

World War 1 had a huge impact on modernism. The massive destruction, loss of life, and failure of technology to prevent war made people question the idea that human progress was inevitable,

The post-modernism time period focuses on diversity. Mostly during this time, it was gender roles between women and men rather than racial roles. However, that does not mean racial issues didn't exist. This helps understand how the stories relate to what is going on during that time period.

Both Eliot and Pound believe we should continue to remember the past. Eliot focuses on the idea that art should be understood and read as a part of a continuing art reflective of the past. We see this when he says, "the existing monuments form an ideal order among themselves." Pound focuses on how innovation comes from knowing the past well enough to improve or transform it. By leaving his hometown, Harvey leaves behind their close-minded ideas and reaches for success instead. He doesn't leave it but rather becomes a new version of himself.

In "Battle Royal" by Ellison, we can see many boundaries being crossed throughout the story. The first obvious boundary crossed is a Racial Boundary. We can see how the white men who are "superior" to the colored man use them as entertainment instead of humans. They are also disrespectful and discriminate against them just for their skin color. Another boundary could be emotional boundaries. While the black men are being used as entertainment, their feelings are not taken into consideration; they cause them to feel embarrassment, fear, and humiliation. Lastly, another boundary seen crossed is an educational boundary; the narrator is invited to give an educational speech, but he is made fun of and used as entertainment during it. These transgressions relate to the feeling that "nothing is sacred" because valuable things like respect, education, and emotions are not treated as important as they are.

A quote from the story that relates to the information about the idea that in the Postmodern world, traditional values aren’t reliable and “nothing is sacred,” would be the quote "Everybody laughed as I struggled.”. This quote shows how he is used as entertainment while trying to do an educational speech, taking away from his dignity.