Beneatha’s Robes: A Feminist Lens Approach to Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun

Thesis: Women of colour are prevented from expressing her own identity due to the societal expectations of womanhood.

Rationale:

I chose Beneatha’s robes (the ones Asagai gave to her) to show that stereotypically pink dresses are considered “feminine”. On the robes has a grape vine pattern to express how connected yet different the characters’ viewpoint are. I picked out these 7 quotes to put into my literary element project because they regarded the discussion between the main characters of gender roles and societal expectations of womanhood in the late 50’s:

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P.32

Walter: (Rising and coming to her and standing over her) You tired, ain’t you? Tired of everything. Me, the boy, the way we live — this beat-up hole — everything. Ain’t you? […] You couldn’t be on my side that long for nothing, could you? […] A man needs for a woman to back him up… […] that just goes to show you what women understand about the world.

The quote above shows how the family are affected by gender roles. Male to female relationships have two roles: men taking on the dominant role and female being the submissive role in the family. Walter rises to stand over Ruth foreshadows what society has taught men: to act as though one is “above” his wife. He willingly uses the power men have over female at anytime throughout the play, as to a contributing topic of oppression.

P.38

Walter: Who the hell told you you had to be a doctor? If you so crazy ‘bout messing ‘round with sick people — then go be a nurse like other women — or just get married and be quiet…

This quote shows that Walter is uncomfortable with a younger woman achieving a higher level of education than himself as he did not take his sister’s dreams seriously. Walter represents the men in the late 50’s that belittled the dreams of women. He argues that Beneatha’s future is decided by him and he disgraced his sister for not being womanly enough as opposed to her feministic attitude if having a male dream job, and “like other women” strongly implies that women are fit for the supporting role in the family. The reoccurring idea the men have is Beneatha can’t become a doctor because of her gender, instead she should stick with the social norms and find a man to marry to reach her fullness like “other women”. Additionally, the sexist comment “or just get married and be quiet” further proves Walter’s old-fashioned idea of women should be “seen and not hear” in the male-dominated society.

P.49 and 50

Lena: What is it you want to express?

Beneatha: Me! Don’t worry — I don’t expect you to understand.

Ruth: You ask me, this child ain’t sweet on nobody but herself — (underbreath) Express herself!

Beneatha: … but first I’m going to be a doctor, and George, for one, still thinks that’s pretty funny. I couldn’t be bothered with that. I am going to be a doctor and everyone around here better understand that!

As a feminist trying to figure herself out, Beneatha wants to make her life challenging gender stereotypes. Mama and Ruth teases Beneatha while she claims to trying to “express” herself, an idea at which Ruth and Mama have a laugh. Then, the next person they discuss is George Murchison who Beneatha thinks is “shallow” and saying that her wanting to become a doctor is “pretty funny”. Beneatha, unlike the women in her family, desires to pursue her independent rising career without wanting to rely solely on a man. “I couldn’t be bothered by that”, her attitude towards George shows that she is the least traditional, and no one understands her because she is the youngest and the most ambitious of the trio.

P.59

Lena Younger: (Immediately suspicious) “She” — what doctor you went to?

Following on the subject of female doctors, by just mentioning the doctor Ruth went to see as a “she” triggers Lena that the doctor could be unlicensed. The advice drew Ruth to believe that abortion of her baby was a solution to the unwanted pregnancy. However, the idea of being a woman and being a black at the time held back a lot of choices and decision-making of a mother. This further extends the fact that Mama’s understanding of Ruth‘s attitude toward abortion when it was illegal during the time. The motherly actions of Mama were selfless and self-sacrificing in this scene when empathized strongly with Ruth as she takes on the problem of the undecided future of her grandchild as her own.

P.63

Beneatha: You see! You never understood that there is more than one kind of feeling which can exist between a man and woman — or, at least, there should be.

Asagai: No Between a man and a woman there need by only one kind of feeling. I have that for you… Now even… right this moment…

Beneatha: I know — and by itself — it won’t do. I can find that anywhere.

Asagai: For a woman it should be enough.

In this scene, the last line “For a woman it should be enough”embarks the idea of Joseph Asagai that love should be enough for all women, yet Beneatha argues “and by itself— it won’t do” builds up her determination to fulfill the idea that women needs more than love. Furthermore, women should be able to find herself as an individual and not be defined as the support of the man she marries.

P.96

George: I want you to cut it out, see — The moody stuff, I mean. I don’t like it. You’re a nice-looking girl… all over. That’s all you need, honey, forget the atmosphere. Guys aren’t going to go for the atmosphere — they’re going to go for what they see. Be glad for that. […] Because this is stupid! I don’t go out with you to discuss the nature of “quiet desperation” or to hear all about your thoughts — because the world will go on thinking what it thinks regardless —

This character, Murchison, is a symbol of the population of the people of colour who absorbed themselves into the American culture. The excerpt follows onto the toxic interaction between Beneatha and George, who wants Beneatha to change herself in order to accommodate men. What Beneatha finds as ignominy is hearing of George’s “You’re a nice-looking girl […] That’s all you need, honey” comment, which also represents what men expect their idealistic women to be as superficial. George doesn’t want Beneatha’s personality to get in the way, he only wants her to compliment his manliness and uplift his self-esteem. Throughout the play, both the women and the men are fighting for the idea and behaviors within their gender roles. This passage reveals how the unbalanced society of the 20th century brainwashes the minds of males to preferring a simple girl who obeys orders given by men to using their power to eliminate women, such as Beneatha, who fears of being controlled by men.

P.133

Asagai: You with all your talk and dreams about Africa! You still think you can patch up the world. Cure the Great Sore of Colonialism — (Loftily, mocking it) with the Penicillin of Independence — !

Beneatha: Yes!

Asagai: Independence and then what? […] Then isn’t there something wrong in a house — in a world where all dreams, good or bad, must depend on the death of a man?

The relationship of Joseph Asagai with Beneatha represents the undying connection Beneatha has to her heritage. “You still think you can patch up the world”, Asagai mocks Beneatha for thinking a woman like her could achieve something so great and attainable only by men. Asagai suggests to Beneatha that if liberated individuals consider themselves to be free and independent, then the world would not have any more problems. However, Beneatha’s point of view transcend that it is easier for men than women to admit of having enough freedom. The encounter between the two men challenged the efforts Beneatha’s made to discover herself as an independent woman to forcing her into traditional views on gender roles that undermines Beneatha’s personal potentials of becoming a doctor.

—

           “Aahhh!”

           You sit up and far away you see a little girl at the age of ten thrusting herself overboard in fear as the deadly herd of white horses began to gallop faster and faster towards her. Their nostrils flaring, and their eyes were devilish. They were feared, and not one to mess with at sea, as the coward yellow boat quivered under their monstrosity. WHOOSH! The collision brushed upon her like a spritz of a salty cold shower and she found herself choking from the overload of seawater.

…

           “Wait up!” I called to Garrick.

           My cousin waited for me as I took off my black cast for a whole day for the first time in February. I jumped into the shiny pool and felt relaxed, a feeling I lost a long time of being underwater. I’m older now. But I do still remember when it wasn’t like that, and when I had a full Life of Pi odyssey.

           This may sound incredulous, but at a young age, I went on a vacation that ultimately changed my life. Like all kids at the time, I had short hair and a trusty yellow cap. The sun was scorching hot, but it was the middle of Autumn in Malaysia. I was doing the usual routine: building sand castles with a fellow tour friend, Dakota. It was noon and her last day in the Shangri-La Hotel, she probably should’ve left to the airport with her family already. I stayed behind at the beach to keep playing. With my companion gone, I was wandering around like one of those fluffy marshmallow dudes in the troposphere. To cheer me up, my dad decided to go canoeing with me and take pictures of the Kota Kinabalu sea by boat. The next morning, we arrived at the sandy beach next to the hotel we stayed at. The water was translucent from the slightest turquoise to royal blue. It glittered under the sun and reflected the puffy clouds of the sky. The breeze gingerly blew crispy cool air in my face. I did not know the rules of kayaking, but I was still very excited.

           After we got our life vest fastened, my dad went to ask the surfer den people for the helmets. He came back with those two ruby-red bowls with black buckles. “Ugh, red? Do I have to?” I asked. I hated the colour red, even more, I hated having something tight and heavy squeezing my head. To be honest, I don’t even wear helmets when riding bikes, for goodness sake.

           “Yes. You wouldn’t want to get hurt or be in danger out at sea, right?” Dad replied, as he helped me adjust my buckles.

           “Fine,” I took off my bright yellow cap.

           We treaded along the heated sand, lugging and rolling the canoe we rented earlier, and stopped dragging it by the shoreline. As soon as we got into the icy, blue water, tiny air bubbles tickled our ankles. My dad helped me get in, and we pushed ourselves into the sea. Paddling was hard at first and I did not get used to it. However, little by little, we reached to the area between two mountains. In every direction, the faded navy-blue sea collided with the snowy-white clouds in the sky on the horizon. We were so in awe of the view that I suggested we’d paddle further. By the time we were at the tip of the left safety zone, our arms were floppy, and we were exhausted. We decided to head back and let the waves gently rock us there.

           While my dad got out from the front, I got up as well to sit at the front and rested my head on the metal bar of the paddle. The sun shone fiercely above me. It looked like a yellow candy dropped in a pool of blue. What I didn’t know was that the canoe was peacefully floating away from the beach like a teeny-tiny seed tumbling into the thick ocean. I started to drift mindlessly out at sea, and then the silence of the journey was broken when I heard a playful gurgle a few feet away from the tip of the canoe. I noticed the sky went dark and a drop of rain plashed against my nose. At first, just the gentle swaying movements of the cerulean mini-tides were audible. Then, the waves increased a few centimetres by the second. Realizing this and panicked, I madly dash and scramble for the metal bar and drive myself back on land. I was small and weak for a double-seated canoe, spanning around 4 meters object.

           “DAD! DAD! Help!” My lungs bawled out. And across, I could see a figure scavenging his way over, breaking through the wicked waves at war.

           “Come! Swim!” He waved his arms. Me and my dad were miles apart. Even worse, the sky was crackling, and wave of panic washed up on me.

           I can’t.

           I fiddled around in my seat and the buckles on my chest. I felt my paddle slipping away from my grasp, and without thinking I lunged for the metal bar. At the same time, I realized I was going to fall into the water, so I desperately reached back to my seat.

           Violent blasts of rain had accompanied the treacherous waters and the canoe was rocking heavily. In despair, a raging wave, like a resentful bull charging at several meters yonder, began to build up and barrel towards me. The yellow canoe flipped, and I tripped over the sides of the canoe, sending my body to completely plunge in the water. My body was fighting for every last bit of air, I was thrashing wildly inside of an invisible tank. I grasp onto my life vest while water was pushing around me from all sides. As I kicked viciously through the water, I felt a jolt of pain in my right ankle. Seawater flicked into my eyes, and I wanted to cry just then. I was stuck underwater with the mass of the canoe over my head. I wasn’t strong enough to push it out of the way, and I unwillingly drank a handful of seawater. Injured, my whole right leg ended up twisted in a crouch position.

           My breath was terribly short. I saw the shimmer of sunlight rippling on the water above, but I no longer had the strength to pull myself out from under. I grew tired of paddling and eventually, my dad came and helped me out of the sea. I used my one-legged swimming skills to lift myself out of the canoe. What a relief! It took seven minutes but felt like an hour. After the ceaseless paddling to land, I collapsed onto the heaps of sand with my muscles numb and burning. The sand smelt of petrichor, and I coughed out seawater. The sun was bright again and glaring intensely at my weak back.

           We went to a hospital later to examine my damage. I learnt, after that, that I had to rest and needed wear a black cast for at least 4 months. From then on, I reduced on doing varieties of sports and any types of extreme physical activities. This, which the ten-year-old me would be afraid to hear. I used to be great at physical activities, however, my injury negatively affected my life on sports. Since then, I’ve developed a pretty nasty fear called thallassophobia. That was one crazy experience that happened too early in my life.  Even at the mall and at school, the people would look at me weirdly and then continue to glance at the cast hugging my ankle. Oh, how I hated that the cast reminded me of my unfortunate experience.

Almost like walking through a fashion hall of fame, this is a non-fiction book called Fashion Rebels. It is different from most non-fiction books owing to the fact that it is about iconic women in history who changed fashion and shaped how people are styled today.  In the book, it mentions fashionistas who rocked their styles, some such as Cleopatra VII, Marie Antoinette, Coco Chanel, Audrey Hepburn, Frida Kahlo, Ellen DeGeneres, Michelle Obama and many more. I felt this book connected to fashion today and the history of how it remodels throughout the ages. It gives a background for each person, fashion tips, and a historic timeline about when the idea was passed on by several other fashion designers. An example included in the book is the Coco Chanel-famed LBD. It as first brought by her in the year 1926. It’s amazing how this classic still lives on today. The idea of females wearing the color black, short just-under-the-knee dresses, pants and small hats came from Chanel as well. To summarize, if you don’t like to wear tight dresses, then you should thank Coco. Madonna is also an inspiration in this book, she said, “It all has to do with an attitude and loving yourself the way you are”. Flipping through her styles, she creates bold and a reborn in style, more original than the last. Katharine Hepburn (who is NOT the sister of Audrey Hepburn) agrees with Madonna’s fashion-stretching idea, adding “If you obey all the rules, you’ll miss all the fun”. We also cannot forget about Marilyn Monroe, when the craze of replicas of the ivory-colored halter-top dress were bought during the year 1955. This book is packed full with designers or fashionistas who played a role in the fashion universe. Lady Gaga took part to create the wildest fashion; Mary Kate and Ashely Olsen putting the most simple one-colored  clothing together; Venus Williams and Serena Williams who made the slightest change in clothing for sports.

The modernized series of Sherlock Holmes novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the first character we meet is a wounded Afghan veteran Dr. John Watson. He then meets the main protagonist, Sherlock Holmes, who was introduced by an old friend named Stamford. Sherlock Holmes is a brilliant consulting detective; a job he made himself. The two moves in a flat on 211B Baker Street. Their landlady, Mrs. Hudson, acts as a housekeeper. The first case is called “A Study in Pink”. The story goes when Sherlock scavenges for clues for the connection between the recent deaths of three people. His special “power” is deductive logic. It shows at the beginning that

the desire for Sherlock is just wanting to solve mysteries, not having fame for the cases he solved. Some major questions I asked during the TV show were: will Sherlock solve the mystery? Will Mycroft or Mrs. Hudson be the serial killer? The following scenes and characters connect through Sherlock. John, on the other hand, is new and fresh to the small-minded town of people. He meets an interesting and powerful person, Mycroft, who reveals himself as part of the Holmes family. There are a lot of characters to keep in mind, but just about enough for the audiences to find the story entertaining. Important and supporting characters include DI Lestrade, Molly Hooper, Mycroft Holmes, Jim Moriarty (appears in later episodes), Mary Watson (appears in later episodes), Anderson and Sergeant Sally Donovan. The conflict was resolved, and all of the major dramatic questions were answered clearly. The external conflict of Sherlock occurs in Individual vs. Society would best fit in this Season. The characters in the episodes often reject Sherlock Holmes, the high-functioning sociopath.

Cheque? Check.

“Order by Cheque” written by Wuther Crue, tells a tale written only by cheque. It tells a story through a cheque about the life of two: a father and a son. In this version I am writing a diary-like story, inspired by Julius Ceasar’s death. It reveals life behind the Exeter family in the cheque left behind.

You should always…

“Cheque the Time”

August 30,1903: A billionaire named Lawrence Exeter bought a baby bottle and baby stroller for $148.50. He knew it was going to be a girl, since his wife had told him. He even began to plan to name her Annabeth.

September 2, 1903: The following Tuesday next week, had he been happiest his whole life. Except, it was a boy. Lawrence was so bummed, he decided to name the infant after himself, just because of their similar facial features. (He used $100.00).

October 3, 1903: Lawrence Sr. and his wife watched the happy and healthy little toddler grow. “How do I become a dad?” he asked one day, “Why do I feel terribly stressed?”

“You should go see a therapist. My friend knows one, she’ll help you.”

Lawrence Sr. reached to the end of the street and found Dr. David M. McCoy’s house.  (He used $475.00).

December 19, 1903: Lawrence Sr. bought toys for his son.  (He used $83.20).

October 6, 1909:  The father of one gave grade-one Lawrence education at Palisades School for Boys, which the tuition costs $1,250.00.

April 18, 1910: One of the ways Dr. David told him to get rid of stress was to exercise more, which Lawrence rented a $52.50 bicycle from City Bicycle Co.

August 25, 1915: Lawrence sent little Lawrence to the Columbia Military Academy for $2,150.00.

February 18, 1927: Lawrence Jr. started to sign checks as his father had taught him.

August 23-30, 1929: He heard about the land’s richest person, Tony Spagoni. He owned the Spagonian Beaches next to the infamous University Club Florists. He was known for his aggressiveness towards his employees. Lawrence worked at the club, with a master degree in computer science and technology.

November 15, 1930: Lawrence Jr. married Mrs. Lawrence Exeter. They paid the wedding shop and the photographer $5,000.00 altogether.

In the year 1931, on the first and second of July, Jr. had a meeting with Tony, and signed a check that held $200.00. That same week, he found out that Tony had been shipping weed to the North and East of Hollywood through the delivery truck ever since 1912.

Jr. ran off to the police station one night. DONG! He looked west to the gigantic church bell vibrating in the distance. DONG! DONG! DONG!

VROOM! A car drove in, and a spotlight was following him. He could just make out the plate number 32K8N9. When he realized it was the Tony Gang, Lawrence kept running faster and faster.  He was almost there when the car screeched to a hault. It knocked over two huge, green trash cans, squashing Lawrence Jr. under it. It was a sudden blackout, and Lawrence’s whole life flashed before his eyes. Then, the car did a U-turn and drove off.

July 15, 1931: “Can you help me? Can you help my son? How do I deal with the grief of my wife AND my son?” Lawrence Sr. asked Dr. David. (He used $175.00)

People never knew what happened to Jr., but he was placed in a $1,280.00 coffin at the Hollywood Mortuary in July 16, 1931. Lawrence-the-older stood next to Lawrence’s wife, between his two graves. Lawrence looked at his last cheque, and tearfully crossed out his Sr.

Original Passage:

“If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned, and I worked hastily, but in silence. First of all I dismembered the corpse. I cut off the head and the arms and the legs.

I then took up three planks from the flooring of the chamber, and deposited all between the scantlings. I then replaced the boards so cleverly, so cunningly, that no human eye –not even his –could have detected any thing wrong. There was nothing to wash out –no stain of any kind –no blood-spot whatever. I had been too wary for that. A tub had caught all –ha! ha!

When I had made an end of these labors, it was four o’clock –still dark as midnight. As the bell sounded the hour, there came a knocking at the street door. I went down to open it with a light heart, –for what had I now to fear? There entered three men, who introduced themselves, with perfect suavity, as officers of the police. A shriek had been heard by a neighbour during the night; suspicion of foul play had been aroused; information had been lodged at the police office, and they (the officers) had been deputed to search the premises.

I smiled, –for what had I to fear? I bade the gentlemen welcome.”

I started out as a perspective from the old man’s evil eye. In my interpretation, I retold the story with a completely new person, the mailman. He may seem distant, but I elaborated more on the setting and described the tall, broken and haunted flat. I changed all the “I”s to “he”s, so it is quite limited. I also asked myself if the madman threw away the old man’s body instead, what would have been done differently? Who would’ve answered that door? And what would that person be holding? Could it be old man’s body? Hmm….

The Tell-Tale Heart: from the perspective of the mailman

POV: third person limited

A scream was heard on the 28^th of October. It was at 6:40pm, 2 hours before Charlie work up with a start. His boss came in and asked, “There’s a new box that came just now. Can you deliver this package to 278B on, uh, Kingston Street?” He looked at the slip of paper in his hand.

“Another Kingston Street package?”

“Yes, and do hurry, your night shift is almost over.”

Charlie hesitantly picked up the newly-delivered package, Oomf! It was as heavy as an adult’s head. It rattled a little bit, making a bumping sound. He wasn’t sure if the sound was coming from inside the box or was it just his stomach growling. He hadn’t eaten in 8 hours, and was only able to afford a few rice crispy treats down the neighborhood. In fact, since the Manhattan burnt down, all people has been living in minimum wage. He was so hungry and tired that when he was biking to the empty alley of the Kingston Street neighborhood, he lost his focus and almost crashed into a car. Slightly lifting up the cardboard box, he dragged it all the way to gates of house 278B.

This house looked truly abandoned. A line of tall trees concealed the broken-down house; as it echoed a dark silhouette, like death has sprung onto a sealed coffin. And the only light of moon shedding its luminous glow between the tiny holes from the leaves on the trees.

“Hello? Delivery!” Charlie thought leaving the package outside the gates was rather rude and unsafe. He knocked again, and this time the gate opened at his slight touch. He started walking, and wince when the hinges of the gates gave a sharp and devilish squeak.

Charlie approached on the cracked surface of the brick path. He placed the package onto the floor. Buh-Bum! Buh-Bum! went the box. Charlie just stared at the box, what could be in it? He rang the bell twice. A minute passed, he was not sure if the person of this house had heard him.

Just before he knocked and rang again, the door opened, and a tall man popped out from behind. He looked –oh so bloody and dangerous– and his eyes, a menacing glare. But he covered it well, with a dark and broody cloak.

“You are?” He asked gruffly.

“StarPost Delivery Service. Please sign here for this package you ord-”

The man cut him, “I never ordered a package. Who sent you?”

This was quite odd for Charlie, he questioned, “Is this Kingston Street, house 278B?”

“That is correct, but I’m sure you’re mistaken. Check again, and don’t ring unless it is sent to my house number.” With that, the man slammed the door.

Charlie checked again: 278B Kingston Street, Kingsly Avenue, New York, USA. There was obviously a disconnection to this. Ignoring the man, he rang the doorbell again. This time the man looked frightened, but after seeing that it is the same delivery person, he relaxed.

“What did I tell you, boy?” He growled.

Charlie picked up the little slip of paper, “It says here that I am supposed to deliver this to house number 278B, see?” Charlie continued, “Your order for this package came today at 8: 43pm. So I don’t see the misunderst-”

“Fine, just give it to me.” The man snatched the box from Charlie’s grasp. Buh-Bum! Buh-Bum! Buh-Bum! The man’s eye widens, and the box flipped when he pulled it too hard. Charlie bent down to help, but nothing came tumbling out. The box was empty! It was a dead silence; until, that is, the only sound was coming through the man’s chest. Buh-Bum! Buh-Bum! Buh-Bum!

Found Poem HERE

Have you ever felt different and wanted to break out of you secured boundary to encounter a new surrounding? In the novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, author Sherman Alexiecreated a round character named Arnold Spirit, also known as our misfit protagonist in the book. The story goes as Arnold tells us the worst thing about poverty, and gives an example of putting his dog Oscar out of misery by shooting it. The character goes by Junior, as he thinks himself as stupid, ugly and poor, because he’s an Indian. The fourteen-year-old lives in the Indian Reservation in the town of Wellpinit with his parents and his sister. He goes to school and was given the same book his mother has used before, which angered and frustrated him. Then one day, teacher of his, Mr. P, suggested to Junior that he should attend to a different school. One, meaning that leaving could potentially change his life around forever. Two, he is given more chance to have a better education, because he cares about his life and growth as a person, he wants more than just a poor environment with a book used in decades. Opposite of that is leaving, also means betraying and leaving his best friend Rowdy. This conflict can be expressed through Junior’s thoughts, Sherman Alexie,

“But I had to stand eventually,

the first one to leave the rez

when I did,

The Indians around here are going to be angry

and my best friend had become my worst enemy”

In our found poem, one of the stanza that stood out to me was:

“My sister is running away to get lost

but I am running away to find something.”

To me, this seems relatable in a way that if we were put in Junior’s position, the thing we are finding is a balance. A peaceful balance between life within the Indian Reservation and Reardan High School. Skipping the next line, the turning point of the poem is the seventh verse, which we put in:

“I suddenly understood

if every moment of a book should be taken seriously,

every moment of life should as well.”

A question you may still ask is: why is Junior different? Why does it tie with confidence?
Junior was “born with water on the brain”, in which the condition gave him a stutter, lisp, seizures, a large head, irregular amount of teeth, and a variety of physical differences. These diseases made him a common victim of bullies. However, with these differences, he spends a lot of time drawing cartoons and spending time with his best friend, who protects him and is a smaller version of a bully himself. As you read halfway through the diary, you will begin to see how Junior finds confidence within himself because he IS different from the rest of the people back at the rez, and positively views it as an advatage.

Perhaps the most recognizable symbol of China is the Ancient Great Wall. It is known for the greatness of Qin Shi Huang, China’s first emperor, and an ancient wonder of the world, but for young hikers, it is the legendary wall, an adventure they would never forget. Forty students from the International School of Beijing’s 7th grade Futures Academy enter the Wall and collects trash for their Project “We Are One”. They discover the new pathways for the Great Wall, which now still stands on the peaks of the Gobi Desert and Inner Mongolian mountains. As the mysterious trail lingers on, it is soon not a wall, but a series of several fences.

The students are led by an expert; William Lindesay, the author of The Great Wall Explained, who has lived in and explored China since 1986. The Chinese people have been awestruck that a foreigner would make his way through The Great Wall; traveling further than any man in the past few years, discovering ancient parts of the awaiting dragon. “When I was at school, my first head teacher told us we should have an atlas by our bedsides. So I when I was about 11 years old, I looked at China in my atlas, the place were very difficult to pronounce. And then I saw a battlement and it was labeled the Great Wall of China,” he began, “And to me that was a natural journey, a very interesting journey, you know, had a start and a finish. And I thought when I grow up I’m going to do that. And I did my growing up, and luckily, about fifteen years later, I was a keen marathon runner in England. And we have a long wall in England, built by the Romans; it was called Hadrian’s Wall. My brother, Nicolas, and I ran along the Hadrian’s Wall, and that was when it made a connection.”

The only way to appreciate the Great Wall’s viewpoint is to stand on its walls and watch it snake across the Gobi Desert and China’s placid mountains like a ridge-backed dragon. The “Long Wall” has a history more than 2,300 years, and it is important to keep it as it is. However the view now is long gone, since people often throw trash along the side of the wall hoping no one would see the trash that they left behind.  Climbing up upon a steep mountain, the students see half empty and empty plastic bottles built up off the road. Most people would climb up the hill, eat breakfast, and just toss it away. “Not everyone treats the wall in a respectful manner,” says Mr. Lindesay, “The future of the wall will be in great danger as the Chinese population gets bigger as the economy gets bigger. So I thought I was in a good position to defend the Great Wall from what I call ‘modern attacks’.” The forty students started their hike on a Tuesday morning, only appreciating the glow of the soft glittery stars. A student once recall, “I had never seen so many stars in China’s night sky before”. Mr. Lindesay answers to that, “Pollution does not need a passport or a visa, it just runs free. That’s why there are no stars at night in Beijing.”

The Great Wall of China is the world’s longest defensive fortification; it stretches through Datong, to Lop Lake in the west, and along the arc on the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. There are different types of walls, whether it is around mountains to fight nomads or deserts for trading routes. Surely the ones on the mountains tend to have better quality, due to the fact that they could gain better resources, such as granite and limestone. Though not powerful, the wall on the Silk Road trade had one built with reed and gravel built in order to protect the wall. The Ming Dynasty Wall (1368–1644) is still here today, but people who live on the foot of the mountain have houses made from the bricks that the Chinese wall builders used to make the wall. As the students collected trash, one of them stated, “I have never expected so many garbage on a single bush!”

“I collaborated with the first Great Wall explorer, William Geil. I took pictures, and put the old view and the new view side by side to evidence the changes, and in some places this formula showed that there were no change, but in another it would show that in 1908 there were magnificent towers there, and now there are no towers,” he explains, “ Most people thought the Great Wall was tourist sight, but I made it known that most of the Great Wall is wilderness, taking over by nature, and that’s the true Great Wall, because this is the period of the Great Wall’s history.”

“I stood up as an individual, and said the Great Wall is a national icon, the Great Wall is a world heritage, but the fact of the matter in reality is in great danger. It is an outdoor museum, and often the local communities and provinces didn’t really care about it, and we have to change this,” Mr. Lindesay is not satisfied with his work over the few year, “Of course I want to do more. I don’t believe the Great Wall has a great future unless it is studied more, like most problems in the world, education is the key to solving the problem, and I think it’s a tragedy that the Great Wall is not studied seriously in University level in China, so I have proposed a semester length course in Great Wall studies.”

To the students, with eyes of admiration, knew it would be the best adventure they ever had!

Sources:

Owen, James. “”Lost” Great Wall of China Segment Found?”News.nationalgeographic.com. National Geographic, 20 Mar. 2012. Web. 03 May 2016.

Interview. Lindesay, William. Interview

This is a book trailer from a series by Chris Colfer’s #1 Land of Stories.

Bailey twins, Alex and Conner, has just recieved an old story book from their Grandmother. But the book is not an ordinary book, at night it flashes and things disappear or come out of its pages. Then one day, Alex tumbled into the book, followed by Conner. Insides includes the world of the fairy tales we read today. But not every story background can the same. Goldilocks is wanted fugitive, Little Red Riding Hood has her own kingdom, and Cinderella is becoming a mother. The kids find more about themselves as they encounter the world’s most frightening villian: The Evil Queen.

Will the kids return safely back to their world? Or will the Evil Queen get them before they reach home?

Author Chris Colfer blends in different fairy tales as puts in comedy and action-packed adventure, for he has also won the Golden Globe Award and has been New York Time’s Bestseller.

There are 5 main parts when coming to a short story:

Exposition: We start with the setting at night in a village where the Whites live. The son won the chess game. Then suddenly Sergeant-Major Morris appears.

Rising Action: Sergeant-Major Morris has a cursed Monkey’s Paw, but he won’t let the Whites touch it. He says there’s dangerous dark magic. The Whites thinks it’s like Arabian Nights, or a piece of toy.

Climax: Mr. White wished for the $200 pounds. His son was crashed into a machine. A messenger came to their house telling them that it came with the $200 pounds.

Falling Action: Ever since the messenger came to the house telling them that their son was hurt but not in any pain, which means he was so hurt, in fact died, that he couldn’t feel the pain, the mother and the father wondered for days how to get their son back. The mother suddenly got an idea, since they had two fingers left to wish for on the Monkey’s Paw, they wished for their son to come back alive.

Resolution: Then there came an unexpected knock on the door: “Knock! Knock! Knock!” There it came again! “Knock! Knock! Knock!” The wife rushed to meet the stranger, but the her husband pulled her away from the door. The woman yelled at her husband, who still grabbed her on “What if he’s not in his human form?” he muttered quietly. As the women ran to the door, he wished his third wish; to make his son disappear again. He caught his breath as the woman opened the door only to see the silent wind flowing pass them.