Similarities and Differences

Similarities and Differences

Authors Note: This is an assigned piece for comparing and contrasting. I decided to compare the main characters from two books, Adam Cooper from April Morning by Howard Fast and Jack Ryan Jr. from the novel Dead or Alive  by Tom Clancy.

            Differences make people who they are. Nobody is the same but similarities are often shared between people.  Jack Ryan Jr. from the novel Dead or Alive and Adam Cooper from April Morning have many similarities and differences.

            One thing these two characters have in common is that many of their decisions are influenced by their fathers.  They both still somewhat live under the command of their fathers.  Jack and Adam (the main characters) do not have complete control over their lives.  For example, when war arose in Lexington it was not Adam’s decision to contribute by enlisting in the military, it was his father who made the final decision.  While Jack keeps his job in the secret services hidden from his father because he is afraid that his dad will force him to quit.  Both characters’ fathers still influence the decisions that they make.

            Another similarity these two characters share is the constant effort to get approval and respect from their dads, both wish to be treated like men.  Jack goes into government related business hoping to impress his father with his success, while Adam tries to achieve this by going to war to fight alongside the other men in Lexington.  A constant seeking for approval is another thing these two characters have in common.

            While both characters are seeking approval from their fathers, they are approaching it in different ways.   Adam goes straight to his father to earn his respect and approval, his approach is very direct.  He went straight to his father and confronted him about being part of the war, and insisted on joining the militia.   While Jack keeps what he is doing a secret, thinking  that his father will eventually find out on his own that he is working for the secret services  Another difference between these two characters is the relationship between them and their fathers.   Adam and his father do not have a good relationship.   Adams father manages to see negative in everything that Adam does and he scolds him for it.  Jack on the other hand has a good relationship with his father. They have little contact with one another but they get along well unlike Adam and his father.  These are some of the things that set these two characters apart.

            These two characters share many similarities and differences. Both are not under complete control of themselves but they attempt to gain this control in very different way.  They are both alike and different in several ways.

           

           

           

Loss

Authors note: This piece is about the climax and the cause and effects of the climax of the historical fiction novel April Morning

 How would it be if you lost something that changed your life forever? This is exactly what happened to Adam Cooper from the novel April Morning by Howard fast. The novel is a historical fiction novel based on the battle of Lexington. In the story thousands of redcoats planned on marching from Boston to Lexington. A battle then took place. The redcoats did not win the battle and were driven back to Boston. At the very beginning of the battle Adam’s father was shot and killed by the redcoats. The loss of Adam’s father (Mosses) was the climax of the story.

            The death of Mosses was the climax of the story. Without his father Adam’s Life would never be the same. There is no going back from that point; there was no way to bring back Mosses Cooper. The climax of a story is sometimes called the point of no return, which means there is no going back. Once Mosses is dead there is no going back to a normal life for Adam, which is what makes this the climax.

            The cause of the climax was the decision of the colonists to protect what was rightfully theirs. Meaning they were not going to let the British walk over them and take what is theirs. This rebellion against the British caused the battle which is when the death of Mosses occurred.

            The climax has a major effect on Adam’s everyday life. Things will never be the same for him without his father. He will have to try to do everything his father once did on his own with no help. Adam’s life will never be the same due to the death of Mosses.

           

           

Change of Perspective

Authors note: This is an assigned piece that is supposed to explain how the perspective of a narrator can change the way the reader looks at the events.

In April Morning, there is a fifteen year old boy named Adam who struggles to get along with his father. The story is written in Adam’s point of view.  From this perspective, a lot of events and characters are described in a way that creates a negative feeling towards his father in the reader about the way his father treats him

            One way that Adam’s point of view influences the reader's interpretation is that it makes it sound like his father does nothing but scold him. It makes the reader think that his father always yells at him because he hates him.

            However, the reader would feel a lot differently about the relationship between Adam and his father (Mosses) if the novel was written in the point of view of Mosses. Later in the novel Adam told his mother about how he gets the impression that Mosses hates him. Shortly after that Adam overheard a conversation between his parents. “Well he seems to have gotten the you hate him.’ ‘Hate him!’ my father exploded. ‘Of all the crazy notions! Of all the idiotic ideas! There a boy, my first born son- why, how could any man love a son any more than I love that boy?’”(p.45) This shows that his father does not hate Adam and that the story would’ve obviously sounded different from his father’s point of view.

            As you can see, the point of view of a story forces the reader to see just one side of an event or topic. In April Morning, the narrator's perspective makes the reader see Adam’s father as mean and cruel when that is actually not the case. The point of view will always change from narrator to narrator due to bias.