Theme Development "A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich" by Alice Childress

Prompt: Theme

A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich Alice Childress

Finished

      In the book A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Sandwich by Alice Childress, one of its main themes ,power of the mind vs. authority, is supported by the character’s actions. This theme means what someone thinks against the jurisdiction. In the book it says that the main character, Benjie, is taking heroin and that his family and school are trying to make him stop. Benjie's thoughts is that heroin can calm you down and that it is a good decision to take it. On the other hand the people who control him, his family and school, try to convince him that taking drugs is wrong. The theme is being supported by his actions because he is physically taking these drugs and decides to not obey what his family and school think. His actions are representing what his mind thinks. By him taking the drugs he is going against his family and school's beliefs. The message that the author is trying to get to the reader is that you should sometimes listen to other peoples opinions or ideas. If Benjie listened to his family, he probably wouldn't have gotten into drugs in the first place. That is one of the main points that the author is trying to teach the reader.

     Another reason that power of the mind vs. authority is one of the main themes in the book is that there is a man named Nigeria Greene, a teacher, who thinks that what is said in history is wrong. In the book it states, "When I discuss him, I don't go by what's in these history books or we'd be dealin in lies." This means that Nigeria thinks that some history is incorrect. What he thinks goes against what is supposed to be taught. He thinks in a different way, and makes sure that his students think the same. The reason why the author includes this is because she wants the readers to know that there are different points of views instead of just what everybody tells you.

     The theme is also supported by the setting in which the character lives in. The character lives in a rundown ghetto town, there is violence and drugs everywhere. In the book it says, "My block ain't no place to be a chile in peace. Somebody gonna cop your money and might nock you down cause you walkin with short bread and didn't even make it worth their while to stop and frisk you over." This quote is explaining that the neighborhood that Benjie grew up in is rough and not peaceful. It also says that being surrounded by drugs sort of influenced him to do the same. The combination of living in a place where you are afraid to go down your own street and that you are surrounded by drugs can cause a person to do bad things. The setting extremely supports the theme because it causes the main character to make many hard decisions.

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1st Quarter Reflections

     During the 1st quarter of school I have learned a lot about the world. I have learned about what is happening in other nations, not just what is happening in the US. The Syrian Refugee Crisis was a major event that I studied. It has been taking place in the Middle-East, but is affecting the US as well. This event has taught me that some other parts of the world are not as fortunate as the United States. It has also taught me that the world is facing some horrible things. In the Middle-East some children haven't gone to school in years and haven't seen their families in a very long time. I am grateful that there isn't a huge war occurring in America. Since there is this big war happening in the Middle-East many people are suffering and their lives will never be the same.

    In my 40 Book Challenge I have not improved a lot. I have only read one other book besides the one I am about to finish. This has happened because I have been very busy and have not managed my time properly. This first quarter has been very chaotic for me and I have tried to be involved in a lot of things. I hope that I can at least read 4 books this month and fully understand them. If I do not finish the book I am currently reading in this week I will spend my whole weekend reading. To improve I will read a lot on the weekends and everyday before I go to bed.

    I think that I can improve a lot in the 2nd quarter. In the 1st quarter I didn't fully understand some things and I didn't put my best quality into things. Some of my AoWs I was rushing and trying to finish quickly so I didn't put my best effort into it. This quarter I feel like I have been very lazy. To change this I will focus more of my time on homework and make sure that the standards are met. I hope that this quarter will be an exceptional one.