Shiloh Bobbie Ann Mason Analysis

The main character is sent by his father to stay with his grandmother. This is where you learn that the strong heart runs in the family. This is true because she is a seventy-eight year old woman and will still patch out two acres of corn and make enough bread for the winter to do what she can to keep her family feed.  In her old age she hasn’t kept the best health. Some days she is too sick to get out of the bed. The main character takes care of her he cooks all the meals for her and helps her start to feel better. Living with her he hears stories of his father and how he is an honest man. Also his grandmother tells him about his grandfather and all the great things he would do.  Living with his grandmother is a great experience for the main character because she brings him history of his family and teaches him many things on how to live a content life.

Literature work always has some lesson for the people that could even leave a thought-provoking effect on their lives and compel them to understand the reality of the world. However, there are some people, who just read literature as a source of entertainment, but the real meaning, of the reading or encountering any literature work, is realized when a reader understands a message. Which writer intends to give to a reader. It is because the literature work has a connection, in addition, influence on the character building process.

Themes within ShilohWithin the story "Shiloh" by Bobbie Ann Mason, the three main reoccurring themes are self-fulfillment, independence, and marriage. From these themes, a variety of symbols emerge to demonstrate why both Leroy and Norma Jean have their own particular problems. There are multiple symbols that relate to these themes. One of these symbols is the log cabin that relates to self-fulfillment. Secondly, Norma Jean takes steps and changes her life style to live independently. Lastly, the Civil War relates to the theme of hardships in a marriage.The short story "Shiloh" is in the narrator 's point of view. The story begins with the main character, Leroy Moffitt, watching his wife Norma Jean exercise. Leroy

Recently the class and I read a short story called Blue Against White, which focuses on the importance of memories during childhood and how it affects one's life. Jeannette C. Armstrong the author, uses writing techniques like symbolism through common motifs to aid the reader to have a better understanding of the the hidden morals within the story.  Literary elements that were applied in the story includes plot and character which also had immense connections towards the author itself. This can be shown through the word choice and the placement of the setting, which displayed a large significance in assisting the reader through imagery. The fact that Jeannette C. Armstrong developed such a self-discovery story helps bring attention

Shirley Ardell Mason also known as (Sybil) was quietly living in Lexington Kentucky, and had ran a art business out of her home in the 1970s. She later died on Feb 26, 1998 from breast cancer due to declining treatment. There was a movie based on Shirley Ardell Mason Life called “Sybil” which came out in 1976, her real name wasn’t used in the book or movie because she wanted to protect her identity. The movie depicted on what Shirley had gone through as child, which included physical, emotional, and severe sexual abuse of the hands of her mother who was diagnosed with Schizophrenia. Due to Shirley’s trauma as a child she was diagnosed with a multiple personality disorder also called dissociative personality disorder, which consisted of 16 distinctive personalities in 1973 diagnosed by her therapist Dr. Cornelia Wilbur. Shirley Ardell Mason was born on January 25, 1923 in Dodge Center, Minnesota. Her parents Walter Mason and Martha Alice Hageman raised Shirley in Dodge center where they were well liked by others.

“Shiloh” is about Leroy and Norma Jean, a couple who have been separated for long periods of time because of Leroy’s trucking business. But that all changes when he is involved in an accident that severely injured his leg causing him to give up his career as a truck driver (Mason 616). This forces him and Norma Jean to get reacquainted with each other and they begin to realize that they don’t know each other as well as they thought. This story is set in western Kentucky and is written in an easy to understand dialect and uses a simple writing style.

Leroy is misinformed. In fact, he is scared of what the future holds. To pass the time he

The main character in “Shiloh” is also the feminist of the story. Norma Jean fights for her own happiness, and her individuality. Because of this she is one of the main subjects of conflict. Norma Jean and Leroy have been married for around twenty years, but the conflict comes when Leroy becomes injured and is no longer able to work. Norma Jean is seen originally as the feminine wife, but as the story progresses Norma Jean obtains more masculinity and the Leroy obtains more femininity. This shift is shown by multiple symbols and Leroy is “far from being a patriarch, he is subservient in relation to the other

Leroy and Norma Jean are both victims of rapid social change. Norma Jean was the most affected by her surroundings comparing to Leroy. Norma Jean had to marry at the age of eighteen to the man who got her pregnant, and in a cruel twist of fate, the child dies of sudden infant death syndrome. This event from her life prevents her to look towards the

“A Rose for Emily,” “A Worn Path,” and “The Lottery” by William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, and Shirley Jackson all have similar writing styles in their literature. In these three short stories the authors all use contrasting nature within their literature to predict the outcome and to learn for the upcoming events in the readings. The authors take subliminal phrases and subliminal symbolic text to have the reader become more attached and understand more of what the characters, setting and theme of the story has to offer. Using these three stories the reader of this essay will understand and grasp the symbolic meanings in text of each these short stories.

The theme of this novel is to look at the good you do in life and how it carries over after your death. The moral of the book is; "People can make changes in their lives whenever they really want to, even right up to the end."

The log cabin is connected to the next symbol of the story, Shiloh, the Civil War Battle site. Mabel, Norma Jean’s mother, is constantly trying to talk her daughter and son-in-law to go visit the town from basically the second

Meanwhile, Norma Jean’s activities have her expanding and growing in broader ways that let her see the bigger picture. For a while, she is content with playing familiar music on the organ, but as she further educates herself, she does not want to play it anymore (309). She is enthralled with her college class and building muscle with her weight lifting class. She is constantly improving and strengthening her mind and body while Leroy is just observing, and content to stay the same, and when he does go out of his comfort zone, it is not in leaps and bounds like Norma Jean’s activities. All of her

Short stories have fully developed themes but appear significantly shorter and less elaborate than novels. A similar theme found in short stories “Winter Dreams” written by Scott F. Fitzgerald and “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner included the social and environmental influences that encouraged and controlled the character’s life and decisions. In “Winter Dreams”, the main protagonist-- Dexter-- fell into a fixation over a young, whimsical blueblood, Judy Jones. His obsession led him to believe that Judy Jones reciprocated his feelings for her, leaving him bare and mortal-- despite prior beliefs. Following her father’s death, Miss Emily fell into a dark obscurity due to the pressure and compulsion of having to carry on the honorable family name. While using a unique point of view (first person peripheral), “A Rose for Emily” followed a mysterious and desirable woman named Miss Emily as her hometown tried to understand her peculiar ways and began to find her disgraceful. By comparing and contrasting these two literary pieces, a similar organization-- including the writers’ purpose and themes-- should become clear. By using literary devices-- such as point of view, dramatic irony, detail, and figurative language-- Scott F. Fitzgerald and William Faulkner conducted two short stories similar in aim and reasoning, probable for contrasting and comparing elements within the parallel writings.

deeper meanings than what the reader can see on the surface. The allegorical meaning is the writer’s real purpose in writing the narrative so that a lesson can be found when reading below the surface. “Young Goodman Brown”, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a perfect example of an allegorical story and is filled with many symbolic elements.