Blog

For this discussion board, please answer the following questions over “Sticks” in paragraph format. Be sure to include evidence from the story in the form of quotes or paraphrases in your answer. As always, please respond to at least two of your peers, and make sure you meet the word count minimums. When responding, try to add more information to your peers’ answers. What other evidence did you find that your peers did not? Where you surprised by anything anyone said? Why or why not? post must be 250 words and each response 100 min. peer 1 : (Nate bebe) peer 2 : ( ) The pole in the front yard, at first, seems like a decoration to Dad. He dresses the pole up every holidays and events, such as Uncle Sam on Fourth of July, “… Veteran’s Day a soldier, on Halloween a ghost.” As the story goes on, Dad’s decorations also shows readers that the pole symbolizing something much more than just a decoration. Although the author says that the pole is “… Dad’s only concession to glee,” the pole also represents Dad’s emotions and beliefs. Decorating the pole is also an odd way for Dad to communicate to his children about his unsaid feelings. ——————————————————————- The father’s character was drawn mostly through Dad’s personality rather than his appearance. s image, in my personal opinion, is stiff and strict toward his children. The short story describes how he reduces his kids’ spendings on things in their early years with “single Caryolafrom the box at a time”, “shrieked at Kimmie for wasting an apple slice”, “hovered over us as we poured ketchup”, and “birthday parties consisted of cupcakes, no ice cream”.  He’s somewhat a traditional and old-fashioned type of father, and a bit taciturn. ——————————————————————- In the second, or last, paragraph, the readers can start to realize what Dad is trying to communicate with them through decorating the pole after Mom’s death. He puts photos of Moms after she died, and later on, “tubes of Mom’s mak

eup” is found one day by the author. These images create a feeling for readers that Dad is mourning for Mom and she’s so important to Dad. Moreover, Dad’s talismans, such as “army medals, theater tickets, old sweatshirts”, are a way so Dad can tell his younger days for his children to know: about he has been a soldier, about which movie he has seen, and how he has worn that old sweatshirt. The strongest message is when Dad symbolizes the pole as himself by “hammering in six crossed sticks around the yard” and “ran lengths of strings between the pole and sticks”. Dad shows the connection between him and the kids through those strings and through “a sign saying LOVE”. Those written index cards about “letters of apology, admissions of error, pleas for understanding” are his silent messages for them as if he already knows that his time has come. “FORGIVE?” sign is a way of Dad saying sorry for all those years making his children feel “the seeds of meanness blooming within…” them, even when they’ve grown. ——————————————————————- Is the father a stand in for something larger, or this is just a quick story about one man’s efforts to communicate? Before running in to this question, I only view this as a quick story of a father. However, as I think about it, I somehow see the father in “Sticks” also represents love. Love doesn’t have to be tender and sweet, sometimes. Love can be tough. Like how oddly Dad shows love in this story, some people show love in their own kind of way and we, as the author, might take it wrong. So, I guess, the moral of the story is: treasure people around us, they might love us endlessly and quietly and we don’t know until they are gone. Reading quizzes are multiple choice quizzes covering the main ideas of the reading. You will only have one attempt at taking the quiz. However, all quizzes are open book, open note quizzes. Once you begin this quiz, you must complete it. You will have 50 minutes to complete this quiz. Purchase the answer to view it