Foster 1
John Foster
Honors English period 4

John Steinbeck was arguably the greatest American writer of the early 20th century. But, what made his works stand out? A large amount of credit is due to

his ability to depict positive qualities in the most troubled of characters. notably in those with physical impairments, and among minorities.

In The Grapes of Wrath, the Grandfather was getting quite old and becoming weak. even in the face of his decline, however, he remained strong, particularly

in his unwillingness to give up his family's land. His impairments did not stop him in his desire to provide for his family. Of Mice and Men harbored Candy, who, even with

one hand, was willing to work right up until he couldn't do it anymore. Candy was a kind old man, who cared for things that had lost their use... namely his old dog. In

despair after his dog is killed, he even cries out, "You see what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasn't no good to himself nor anybody else." (Steinbeck 60).

His empathy for the weak and helpless is inspiring.

Minorities play a small, but profound part in Of Mice and Men. Crooks is a black stable buck with a bad back. And, though cold and hardened through years

of degredation, at heart, only wants to know people and have friends. He even invites Lennie into his room to talk after his initial intrusion. Crooks was portrayed in a

dignified light, which is very unusual, given the time period, and the lack of compassion and understanding of minorities therein. But that only further signifies his sense of

self-respect, and his desire to be an equal. Minorities are presented with an unbiased view in Steinbeck's work, which allows them to be seen as thenormal people that

they really are.

In comparison to minorities, the physically impaired hold few unique gems. Minorities seem to have a more heightened sense of dignity and tendency to

perseverance in his novels, whereas the disabled tend to lean towards kindness and selflessness. Both groups prove their inspiring strength and integrity in Steinbeck's

novels time and again.

Steinbeck knew how to give a character life. He knew all of the problems and pain to make the individual real and relatable, but he also knew to add strong

positive traits to inspire readers into accepting more people by seeing the good in everyone. In all fairness, minorities and the physically disabled are just examples. no one

is purely evil in the utopian works of John Steinbeck.

Foster 1
John Foster
Alaska State History period 6
10/12/06

Alaska's Heroes

Alaska's Heroes, by Nancy Warren Ferrel, is an inspiring collection of stories of courage, selflessness, and heroism. The basic premise of the books revolves around the State of Alaska Award for Bravery-Heroism, a medal and honor given to a select few people who have demonstrated an unrivaled amout of, you guessed it, bravery and heroism, in a time of crisis. The book chronicles many of the most notable acts that recieved the award. Not surprisingly, all of the events described in the book occur in Alaska, with the exception of Sam Hoger's noble pool rescue in New Orleans. From downed bush planes, to rescues in the Bering Sea, to children falling through a hole in the ice on a pond in the winter, to traffic accidents on the highway, to scorching house fires, every story shares one characteristic: the incredible heroes that permeate them.

The book is divided into chapters, each chapter having it's own sub-group of crises or rescues. the section devoted to plane crashes and rescues held stories about bush pilots trapped in burning planes, far from civilization, commercial tours gone terribly wrong, and (though not in the same chapter) even a tale of Alaska's very first skyjacking, and the cool, calm rookie flight attendant who managed to diffuse the situation without bringing harm to anyone-- not even the skyjacker. Stories of Water and fire rescues give amazing stories of sinking ships and helicopter-rescues, as well as tales of deadly housefires, and the brave soulds who charge in to save those trapped inside, regardless of their own ability to make it back out. Vehicle rescues chronicle the deadly tale of a burning tour bus, and the two heroes that worked tirelessly to save the passengers. Another story told of a man who bludgeoned a fellow driver's car door and tore it from it's hinges to save a woman from the inferno that it had become. No story is unspectacular-- not even the truncated ones toward the end.

I genuinely enjoyed this book. It reminded me of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, except I didn't feel like a transvestite for reading it. The stories are inspiring and emotional without being overly dramatic and poncey. You can only read so many stories about a 13-year old coming out of the closet to his foster parents before you get sick of gagging yourself with a spoon, and want to read about something interesting, like plane crashes, house fires, and highway pile-ups, and about the insane, but oddly-inspiring individuals who run TOWARDS the disaster and make a real difference by saving lives. I also really respect how much a person is recognized for earning the award, and the book does a great job complimenting the honor with such in-depth recounts of the amazing stories. The stroies don't feel uniform and bland, which is great, because any lack of character in this book would make it contradict it's own narrative, which would piss people off, and ruin how important the message behind every hero is. Think about it. What does the hero ALWAYS say? Something like: "Well, I just did what anyone would have done." It's pure crap, because people aren't that brave or noble, but it's a great thing for people to try and emulate. This book does a great job of spreading that message.