The Time is Ticking

The room was completely white. The walls, the floor, the corners, not even a shade of another color-- just white. I found myself sitting in the middle of the room. I looked around and I saw nothing. No windows and no light. I looked down; I was wearing a pale pink dress. As I slowly raised my hands to straighten out the wrinkles on the dress, I saw a watch on my left arm. It was a silver Rolex watch with a blue face. It looked like an antique as it had scratches on the sides. The time stopped at 4:37 and the date was set to the 27^th. I did not really care for the watch at the moment; my mind was too focused on trying to find out where I was. I slowly slid on my chair in order for my two feet to touch the ground. The ground felt cold, I started wiggling my toes around as I got up. I turned to my right then I turned to my left. Still nothing. I started walking straight and a blur started forming. The closer I got to it the more focused it got. I began to run towards the blur, and then I realized it was a door. I started running towards the door and finally reached it. The handle was gold, but had rust surrounding it. From the knob, I saw my reflection. I looked so different I thought it was a stranger staring back at me.  My cheeks were sunken in with no presence of pink on my face. I decided to ignore my horrid visage and decided to open the door. I placed my hand on the handle, but I was too scared for what was to come. I was scared that this would be a trap and that I would have to live in this white box forever. I became hesitant. But, I decided to take a risk and open the door. It was a bright shining light so I had my hand act as a shade for my face. From a distance, I saw a man coming towards me.  I stepped backwards as I let him approach me. As he came closer, my eyes closed and I heard a whisper in my ear. He said, “Welcome, to your beginning.”

It was a warm Sunday and the cherry blossoms had just blossomed. My mom had just woken me up from my sleep with tears filling up her eyes. I woke up worried and asked her what was wrong.

“Oh Sammy, I’m so sorry. You don’t deserve this. How about we just spend this day with the family, okay?” she said.

I was confused, but I just stayed quite and let her hold me in her arms. I didn’t know what was going on, but I started tearing up as well. For some odd reason, I knew that this was going to be about me. She pulled herself away and said, “You only have 24 hours to live.” I couldn’t handle the story, so I acted as if I didn’t hear it and went on with my daily morning routine.

I was standing right in front of my closet deciding what to wear. Knowing that it was going to be my last outfit, I knew I had to at least look good for my grandparents. I started scratching the side of my face trying to think of a nice outfit. I wanted to look good for my grandparents. My family and I come visit them every Sunday and we always look forward to it. I opened up all my closet doors and saw a pink dress peeking out from all my other dresses. I had not worn it in a long time, so I decided to try it on. I put on my white bag across my shoulders and was ready to head out with my family. I was about to walk out the door, when I stopped and turned back. I looked at the mirror one last time. I wanted to check how I looked, I said to myself, “Better look good for you last day.” I put on my white ballet flats and walked out the door. My parents and my older brother were waiting for me in the car. They all had sunken looks on their faces and the car ride to our grandparent’s house was silent. I looked out the window and saw the cherry blossoms surrounding the city. Everything seemed normal and I still couldn’t believe that my life was going to be over in 24 hours.  The car ride to my grandparent’s house was the most dreadful ride ever. It felt like hours to arrive there when it usually only took 30 minutes. When my dad parked the car, everyone just sat there for a while. We didn’t know what to say. I knew everybody was upset and they didn’t know how to handle the situation. Then my mom broke the ice, but in a sad way, “They should have taken me.” When I heard this, I screamed. I had let out all my anger at this moment.

“Don’t ever say that, mom. They took my for a reason, don’t blame yourself for this.” I said.

            I then walked out of the car and rang my grandparent’s doorbell. The doorbell was pink and had a floral printing for the background. My grandma had opened the door with a big smile. She always had that smile on whenever we came to visit. She greeted each and every one of us and told us to come in for lunch. She had the whole table set up for us. When everyone sat down on their chairs, I noticed my grandpa wasn’t sitting with us. I asked my grandma where he was, and she said he did not feel well and was lying in bed.  I excused myself from the table and went into my grandpa’s room. My grandpa was my favorite person in the whole world, besides my grandma. I looked up to him as a role model and a best friend. 

What is Cassius suggesting and how does he build his argument?

Cassius believes Caesar is not capable of ruling Rome. He believes Brutus would be a much better leader than a man who is weak and inferior. Cassius asks if Brutus sees himself as a person, but he says he cannot, to which Cassius replies, “That you have no such mirrors as will turn/ Your hidden worthiness into your eye” (I ii 56-57). He tells Brutus that he will be his personal mirror so that he can see what kind of a man he is. Cassius says that the people of Rome believe Brutus is worthy and honorable, but it is just him that does not believe so. He tries to build up his argument and convince Brutus he is capable of being a leader, by comparing themselves to Caesar. He says, “I had as life not be, as live to be/ In awe of such a thing as I myself” (I ii 95-96). Cassius says that he “was born free as Caesar; so were you:/ We both have fed as well, and we can both/ Endure the winter’s cold as well as he” (I ii 97-99). He believes even he himself and Brutus are the same as Caesar, there is nothing special about this man. If Caesar was so amazing, he would be different from everyone else. Cassius builds up his argument by telling the stories of the times where Caesar was weak and vulnerable, and that rulers should not be like this. He tells the story of when Caesar was swimming in Tiber River and he was too weak and started sinking as he cried for help. He does not understand how he can save Caesar, who is weak, but now he has become a god in the eyes of others. And the other time when Caesar had a fever in Spain, he started to shake. Cassius questions if god’s shake or even manage to get sick with sickness commoners get. Cassius adds on by saying, “Men at some time are masters of their fates:/ The fault, dear Brustus, is not in our stars,/ But in ourselves” (I ii 139-142). He believes men should decide their fate and take action. He then questions what the difference is with the names Brutus and Casear. “What should be in that “Caesar”?. Why should that name be sounded more than yours?” He compares the names constantly as he adds in the word “as” to everything Brutus and Caesar have equally. Cassius is able to sway his thoughts and consider what he is saying. 

How might you refute the argument that Holden's plight derives from him simply being a misanthrope and/or hypocrite?

Throughout the book, The Catcher in the Rye, we see that Holden gets himself in a lot of tough situations, such as getting in a fight with Stradlater, or even getting kicked out of Pencey. Behind every problem there is a reason why. The difficult situation some readers find is that Holden cannot accept the corrupt world. He believes that the majority of the people on this planet are phonies. As I have said before, behind every story there is a reason. Holden could have started believing the world was so unfair after the loss of his younger brother. In the book, there are only a couple people Holden admire, his two siblings, Allie and Phoebe, Carl Luce, and the two nuns. The only reason why he does not think of them as phonies is because they have valuable qualities. They please Holden, they interest Holden, and they also amuse Holden. Holden does not shun himself away from others. We see that Holden still interacts with people throughout the book. Therefore, he is not a complete misanthrope. When Holden’s younger brother passed away, Holden had no idea how to handle this situation. The day of Allie’s death, we find him in the hospital. Holden does not know how to control his feelings. Therefore, he takes them out on the world. He wants to believe the world is corrupt for taking away his beloved younger brother. Holden gets himself into difficult situations for his actions. We cannot always say, “Oh, it’s because his younger brother died.” There are a lot of people out there that lose a valuable family member, but we do not see them failing at life. They want to succeed, and carry on with their life. Holden just uses his brother’s death as an excuse to escape from the real world, and enter his idealistic version of a “real world” so that he does not ever have to face reality. This part of Holden is immature.  

Holden’s claim that he loves the museum

Every since Holden was a little boy, he would always visit the Museum of Natural History. It was his favorite part of New York. He knew the museum like the back of his hand. Holden claims that he loves the Museum of Natural History because nothing ever changes. Since the age of a young boy and till now, the Eskimo is still fishing for the fish, the Native American woman still has her bum showing, and the birds are still “flying” in the air. The museum exhibits would and always will be in the right place. That was one of the reasons why he loved it so much. For Holden, the museum was a place for him to escape from reality. Everything there would stay the same. Holden didn’t adapt to change very well. He has that sort of personality. He wanted his own life to stay the same and never change. Holden’s love for the museum represents that he can’t adapt to reality. In the world we live in today, there will always be phonies. But, Holden can’t accept that fact and doesn’t understand why people change so often. He wants his life to be simple, never changing, and comprehendible. Another reason why Holden claims he loves the museum is because the exhibits will never judge him back, and he can do all the judging. We can tell from the book that Holden has a lot of interest in the museum. For example, he always ends up near there whenever he finds himself in some sort of problem. For instance, the time when he went on a date with Sally and got in a huge fight. He found himself walking towards the museum. And another example is when he is about to leave his family behind, but his last farewell place is near the museum. The museum is a big symbol in Holden’s life. He wants to cling onto something that he knows will never change.

The Cater in the Rye Cover page

I decided to draw my cover page of Holden smoking a cigarette in the streets of New York. As I was reading throughout the book, I realized that Holden is very depressed. He criticizes the people around him, calling them all phony. He isolates himself from the world and even his friends. That is why I drew Holden a lone, smoking his cigarette. The cigarette symbolizes the stress he has built up inside of him. Every time he exhales the smoke, it is him exhaling the stress and getting it out of his system. In the picture, the smoke shape is of duck. The reason for this is because throughout the book, Holden constantly mentions the duck to the taxi drivers. In English class, we learn that repetition means it is something important the author is trying to point out. The ducks could mean freedom, or even moving on. As we all know, the ducks tend to migrate when the climate becomes colder. Maybe, the author is trying to say Holden is trying to migrate from his past and start a new, better life. As you can see, the only object that I have colored in is the red hunting hat Holden has on his head. The reason of this is because the hat symbolizes the color of Allie's and Phoebe's hair color. No matter where he goes, he always has his two beloved siblings along with him. The hat gives him security and acts as a barrier for Holden. We realize that he always puts on his hat when he feels lonely or uneasy. Also, I drew Holden with the ear flaps down. There is an instance in the book, when Holden is walking on the streets and puts his earflaps down. To me, I believe he is doing so because he is muting the world out. 

Why do you think Holden cries before he leaves Pency?

Holden leaves Pency due to the fact that he cannot handle the morons and the phonies at his school. He realizes that it would be easier to leave earlier than the actual day he is supposed to. Before he left, Holden put on his red hunting cap and yelled out, “sleep tight ya morons!” Then after, he looks at the hallways and begins to cry. Holden starts to cry because he feels as if he never accomplishes anything. He never finishes what he has started. It could be the burden of being the only child in his family that is not successful in life. After being kicked out of a very prestigious school, and never having the chance to wear those hockey skates that his mother gave him makes him depressed inside. In the book, Holden portrays himself as a dark boy who is alone and usually finds himself thinking more than talking. Holden’s cries also portray the failures he has gone through. Not only did he fail almost all his classes, but he does not even have the guts to talk to a girl he has not kept in touch with for a really long time.  Personally, I believe Holden’s cries are full of shame for all the past mistakes he has made. Before he does cry, he puts on his red hunting cap. The red hunting cap is a symbol of his younger brother and sister’s hair color. Having that cap on his head makes him remind himself of his own childhood. Throughout the book, we realize that Holden always puts on his red hunting cap when he wants to be isolated from others. Kids find themselves isolating themselves from the problems they face. In a way, Holden is a kid. The red hunting cap makes him childish. That is why he cries before leaving Pency and yells out “sleep tight ya morons”. 

Robert Burns, "Comin Thro' the Rye" Interpretation

As the class was reading “Comin Thro’ the Rye” by Robert Burns, it was a hard poem to understand. Although, it was hard, it seemed to have a lot of meaning behind each word. The word choice of the author was in Scottish, but when we translated them to English, it made a little more sense. In my perspective of this poem is a little different than the others. The author is writing a poem about a girl named Jenny. It takes place in the 1870’s. Jenny is weak and alone and the only tangible object she has with her is her own petticoat. She is walking on the fields alone, dragging her feet behind each step. Not wanting to take another step further because she is afraid of what will happen next. Jenny is wet and she does not know what to do. She has no one to go to for comfort or even companionship. She is wet because it has just rained; the rain signifies the sorrow she is going through. The rain could be another way of presenting her tears. She is shunned from the rest of the world for a crime she has committed. She has committed adultery. The explanation to why I think she has committed adultery is because the author says, “Gin a body meet a body… Gin a body kiss a body.” The word ‘gin’ stands for ‘when’ or ‘if’. When a body meets a body, they kiss. She could have had a husband, but when she met another form of a manly body she kissed it. Although, the author writes as if no one is on her side. It shows that he is. He questions why the world thinks she is looked down upon. This is because he questions why she should cry. He believes Jenny should be strong and not let the others put her down.

In Gryphon, describe three ways Baxter intertwines the conventional and unconventional and for what purpose this interplay is used.

In the story, “Gryphon”, Charles Baxter wrote it in a way to expand the imagination of the readers. Not only does it include unconventional and conventional facts, but puts them in ways where readers can understand why he did so. The story starts off with Mrs. Ferenzi coming in as a substitute teacher. The first things the students realize are the marionette lines on her face. It wasn’t normal for people to have marionette lines on their faces. This could be both conventional and unconventional. Unconventional because most people do not have it and usually is shown on puppets. But, it is also conventional because Charles Baxter actually had a teacher who had marionette lines. The marionette lines on the teacher reminded the protagonist, Tommy, of Pinocchio. He also could have been reminded of Pinocchio because he too is a puppet and not real. There was something unreal about Ms. Ferenzi, as if she belonged in another world. Her thoughts and views of certain things were different than most people viewed them. Baxter did a successful job at intertwining the unconventional when it came to the students doing arithmetic. A student named John Wazny was up for doing the tables of six and answered six times eleven is sixty-eight. When a student catches his mistake she tells the teacher, but Ms. Ferenzi replies, “Yes. So it is. But, and I know some people will not entirely agree with me, at some times it is sixty-eight” (41, Gryphon). This was an example of “substitute facts”, which are either simply wrong incorrect. But, they can also be myths or imaginations. She says the answer is sixty-eight because she likes to expose the facts, which can be true and false, to the kids just to expand their sense of wonder. Not only does it give the kids to view things in different ways, but also help them be a little more creative. Lastly, when Ms. Ferenzi was teaching the class about Egypt, she adds in how she saw an actual Gryphon. But, a gryphon is known to be an imaginative creature or practically a myth. Although she knows that the gryphon is not real, she says she saw it because she wants the kids to be exposed to exotic facts and possibilities. Overall, all Ms. Ferenzi was trying to do was expand the kids imagination, by mixing a little bit of truth and false statements in her teachings.

How Jhumpa Lahiri expresses the unmet needs of the characters through her short story, "Intepreter of Maladies"

In the short story, “Interpreter of Maladies”, Jhumpa Lahiri uses the minor action and subtle details to express the unmet needs through Mrs. Das, Tina, and Mr. Kapasi. Mrs. Das married at an early age not able to enjoy her young life. She had a baby in her early twenties and while her friends were out playing, she would be testing the milk on her hands to see if it was warm for her baby. She met her husband, Mr. Das in high school and married him after college. By doing so, she was not able to enjoy her love life with other men. She felt as if she was unloved, unappreciated, and jealous of those who did not have children. Mrs. Das did not feel love from her husband because he was always busy at work and never had the time to give his all to her. She felt unappreciated because she was always at home, taking care of Ronny and no one acknowledged it. This lead to her cheating on her husband, although it was completely wrong to do, it allowed her to have some fun and feel wanted for once in her life. Tina, Mrs. Das’s daughter also has unmet needs. She always wants love and attention from her mom, which she never gets. Tina tries hard to me like her mother, but Mrs. Das never realizes. In the short story, Tina has a white American doll she always carries around. She plays with that doll because she does not get attention from her mom. The doll symbolizes her mother, the short hair, the American heritage, and the clothes. Because she cannot get the love and appreciation from her own mom, she puts out her anger towards the doll. She throws it around and abuses it, showing to respect for it at all. She shows the opposite reaction to her mom, showing her kind side while hiding the other and expresses through her doll. Besides Mrs. Das and Tina, Mr. Kapasi too has unmet needs. His wife shows no appreciation towards his job and life, which leads him to lose interest in her and starts to have feelings towards Mrs. Das. She was the only woman who ever acknowledged his job and appreciated what he did. The unmet needs in “Interpreter of Maladies” makes this short story a bit more interesting, not only does it hype up the scene and make you wonder what’s going to happen next, it also leads you to make your own endings and have your own little short story towards the end.

What is the driving force in short stories? What is your impetus when reading them?

Short stories get to the point faster than reading books. The author’s make it intriguing in order for the reader not to lose interest. When reading short stories, I have realized that they all have a scene where it is so intense you do not want to stop reading. I think that is one of the main points when writing a short story- the driving force that lures the reader into the narrative. When the class was reading the short story by Tobias Wolff, we were all ensnared by the story because of the curiosity of what would happen to the girl. The driving force for this story was the creepy man who knew everything of the girl. We all wanted to know what he was going to do next, or who he actually is. The driving force for short story writers are the characters they place in their books. What kind of character they are, how they act, and how they represent themselves. Are they interesting, are they boring, do they play a main role? How the author’s present the characters is what really matters. If the protagonist is not interesting, then why should the reader want to read? The character must be full of mystery, fun, or have an interesting life where the reader wants to learn more of him or her. If the protagonist is mysterious, we as readers have the urge to read more and find out their true personality or whatever he or she is going to do. If the main character is fun, then the readers would want to know what kind of other things they are going to do or say. It also goes for them having an interesting life. We would want to know more of it, maybe we can relate to it- maybe not. This is what the driving force for short story writers are and our impetus would be our curiosity.

My Divided Interests and How I Chose them. "The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant"

Every kid wants to become someone significant when they grow up. We all start off saying we want to become a doctor, a firefighter, a surgeon, a teacher, a president, a businessman, a captain, and so many more. But, as we grow older we start to realize what our talents are and how we want to show it in our future. I wanted to be everything I listed when I was little. I thought I could have multiple jobs and be the richest woman on earth. But of course, my senses came to reality and I realized I have to choose one and persevere to become successful, no matter how hard it is. This was when I started to have many divided interests. I narrowed my list down to becoming a fashion designer, an artist, a doctor, and a businesswoman. All these jobs were in different categories and I was confused on what I wanted to become. I know what you may be thinking… This girl is only 15 she has plenty of time to decide what she wants to be. But I’m the kind of girl that likes to plan out how I want to live in my future. I don’t want to take the wrong paths and have regrets later on. I found out that being a fashion designer can be tough, and when I started learning about designing it didn’t really catch my attention as much as I thought it would. Visioning myself become an artist in the future was hard to imagine, since I lack creativity- so that got crossed out. Then I wanted to be a doctor, but little did I know I cannot stand blood and literally faint when I see it. This left me with becoming a businesswoman, I knew I could follow my dad’s footsteps and become as successful as him. I could also combine my interest of fashion in it too. From then on, I knew it was going to be the perfect job for me.
In the short story, “The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,” the author foreshadows that the protagonist will be unsuccessful at wooing Sheila Mant because he realizes they do not share a common interest. When the protagonist comes to pick up Sheila Mant, her expression to the boat was not a satisfying expression. It’s as if she expected to be picked up in a Corvette instead of the boat he planned on riding. From there, he realizes that he has already lost her interest. When they were riding the boat, Sheila Mant only talked about herself and showed no interest in the protagonist’s life. He realizes he won’t be able to woo Sheila when she states that “[she] think[s] fishing’s dumb” ( (38, Wetherell). The fact that Sheila hates the idea of fishing and thinks it’s gross put the protagonist in a position where he feels like there is another else to show off. This immediately shows that he has given a slight bit of hope, therefore it shows that he would not be able to woo Sheila Mant into his arms.

Where Would The Article 'No News from Auschwitz' by Rosenthal Belong?

The article ‘No News from Auschwitz’ by Rosenthal was an inspiring and touching story; I believe that this article would have been in the middle of the New York Times newspaper. Since this article is about the past event that occurred, it would not be in the front, unless something huge or eventful just happened. Although I do not read newspapers on a daily basis, I do occasionally look at them time to time. I realized that the most important news that happened throughout the week is always on the first page. Towards the back would be open job listings and the topics that do not really connect or have anything interesting to read to the readers out there. I believe that the article was written to help remember how terrible the holocaust was and how people should not look at it so lightly. ‘No News from Auschwitz’ was also to help the readers realize that there was such a place that existed in this world. It might have also been written to show some sense of reality to the ones who are ignorant to the events that happened. New York Times would have most likely put this article somewhere in the middle of the newspaper. It is not as important as the top news that is occurring at the time, but it is also not pointless or ineffective to the readers. But, just because the article is in the middle, does not mean it is unimportant. Newspapers only include stories that can relate to the readers or remind them of an event that should not be forgotten. For example, every year, since year 2001, on September 9 there is an article about 9-11 to respect the ones who lost there loved ones. This is why I believe that ‘No News from Auschwitz’ should belong in the middle of the New York Times newspaper.

A Collage of My Words

The Authors Tone Differences

Langston Hughes and Malcolm X both view their position in the white and black status differently.  In the poem, “Theme for English B”, Hughes has optimism tone in his words. Although he understands that black people do not fit in the ranking for white people, he believes they are equal in some ways. For instance, near the end of the poem he tells his professor that they are both a part of each other. Although the professor might not want to be a part of him, but because of the assignment he assigned, they are. Langston Hughes starts off putting himself in a low position because of his color. But as the story goes on, he starts to slowly show that he is proud for who he is. That although he may be a minority in the city he lives in- he can be equal to the whites as well. He states that black people and white people can all learn from each other, although they are  “somewhat more free”.  Unlike Langston Hughes, Malcolm X had a different perspective and viewed himself lower than he actually was. His tone in his voice is pessimistic and tried to change his self image in the beginning. His negativity towards his race leads him to going through pain to change himself and make himself look more “white”.  Going through pain finally made Malcolm X realize that white people were not superior towards black people. As he says in his memoir, changing his hair color was self-degradation to himself and his race as well. His tone in his writing, lead him to believe that burning his scalp and going through pain will help him feel as if he was a little bit closer to the ranking of white people. But, in the end he regrets his actions and also starts to believe that black people should not be inferior to the Caucasians. The author’s tone of voice leads both of them to what they say or do.

Accepting Who You Are

In the two memoirs, Malcolm X and Langston Hughes, both feel degraded by their own race. They were both born and raised in a white populated community. Both knowing that they do not belong and that they are not equal to the whites. But, they handle the situations in a different manner. Malcolm X did not believe that Caucasian and African American people could be together, or treated equal. He always believed that the White people had the priority and that they were above his own race. This is what had led him into the decision of changing his own appearance to become like the “white” people. He went through pain and suffering to bleach his hair so that it looked like a white man’s hair color. Despite the fact that he had different color hair, it did not change the fact that no matter what he did, he would still be African American. In the end, Malcolm X regretted his actions and realized that there nothing wrong with his looks in the first place. On the other hand, Langston Hughes had different perspectives. He had a more passive approach and tried to think of everything in an optimistic matter. He believed that both “White” and “Black” people could learn from each other. In the poem, Hughes lists the things he likes because he tried to show that he is not pessimistic about his life. He was also expressing individuality and commonality with the instructor and the others. Unlike Malcolm X, Hughes accepted himself for who he was. He did not try to change his appearance to “fit in” nor did he try to act a different way to socialize with the white people. Aside from all the differences, they also had similar ways of thinking. They both were uncomfortable with the color of their skin. This was because they lived in white community. Which led them to being uncomfortable with adaption and change. This all leads to accepting who you are and no matter what, you should never look down on yourself. 

Why Did Amy Tan Title Her Memoir Fish Cheeks?

Amy Tan titles her memoir Fish Cheeks because it signifies her culture and herself as well. During the Christmas dinner with Robert and his father, Amy Tan’s dad plucks out the eyeballs and the fish cheek and puts it on her plate. This was the first time she felt embarrassed of her culture. Fish cheeks were the reason why her memoir was created. That is why fish cheeks are so important to this memoir. Without it, she would not have realized her respect for her own culture and family. It played a big role in this story; it helped her realize that she should not be ashamed of her culture and her own favorite food just for a guy she has interest in. It gave her pride and respect. Every culture has their own different types of food that signifies them as well. For instance, Korea is known for their kimchi. The title, Fish Cheeks, also signifies the Chinese culture as well. It also exhibits the unification of two cultures. It combined Western with Asian, showing that two cultures can learn from each other. For example, the pastor probably learned that it was polite to belch loudly after a meal, which showed that you were satisfied for the cooking. This once again ties back to the question: Why did Amy Tan title her memoir Fish Cheeks? Although she could have titled it differently, she chose Fish Cheeks because her culture has their own unique types of food and in order to represent it, she puts it as a title. It was also a clever way to do so, because it makes the readers curious. Why did she title it Fish Cheeks? Not only was it just a title, but a way to help others gain knowledge of her culture as well. 

With or Against?

The title of the memoir, By Any Other Name gives away the fact that the author does not agree with dual personalities. The author clearly points out that she is against the dual personality with the title. As she goes on telling her story, she lists out all the negatives that can happen when you are not yourself. Her real name is Santha, but because the teacher believes it is too hard to pronounce, she calls her Cynthia instead. From the beginning, she doesn’t like the sound or the thought of that name. It must have been very awkward for her. Not only was she a new student, but she was also new to the whole idea of a school. By the time she arrives to school, she leaves her other half at home and brings, “Cynthia” instead. The fact that she cannot be herself at age five, shows that she is a lost, young, little girl. Dual personalities will never let you be your own true self, but hide inside a shell until it is broken. Santha’s shell was broken when her sister barged into her classroom and made her come out of the class. I would have to say that that was the best thing her sister could have ever done for her. If Santha was in that school for any longer, she would have eventually forgotten her true identity of being herself. Cynthia was a totally different person compared to Santha. Santha was hyper, energetic, social, and loved learning from her mother. But, on the other hand, Cynthia was quite, shy, and didn’t like the teachings from the school. Even now, she reflects on the past and realizes that she should always be herself no matter what or who tries to change it. My thoughts on this opinion conclude to the reason why I believe the author was against dual personalities.