Having to move on from something can be very challenging. It could be from a relationship, a career, or the past. Many people are scared of moving on because they are not sure what they are going to do afterward. This is the main topic that Andrew Brininstool talks about in his short story, “Portrait of a Backup.” However, the main question he wants the reader to reflect upon is if a person should be scared of moving on with their life. Honestly, they should not be scared of moving on because it will make it more difficult to move on in the future. The way Brininstool structures the story and applies literary devices helps the reader understand why the Backup is afraid of retiring from football. “Portrait of a Backup” is about a professional …show more content…
The tone is what the author wants the reader to feel, while the mood is how the reader actually feels. Another reason why people are scared of moving on is that they do not know how to express themselves. The mood of the story can be best described as gloomy and reflective. After the team wins the first game of the season, the Backup is drunk by midnight in his living room. He is watching the game highlights on the television and sees that the Kid is having all of the attention. The reader knows that the Backup is feeling jealous because after they won the game, he spits out his gum. Spitting out gum is seen as a rude act, which the Backup does because he just wants to play and have a significant role in the team. During the game against Washington, he is allowed to play, but his body is slower than his mind. He is then replaced by the Kid and is told that he will be needed later, which ended up being false. The fact that the Backup decided to keep going with his career instead of retiring tells the reader that he wants to continue, even though he is past his prime. He does not have the confidence to tell anyone about how he feels about not playing many games because he knows that most of them will tell him to retire, which he does not want to do. The tone of the story has been straightforward, until the near end, when it changes to feeling optimistic. While playing football with the other husbands at the party, he …show more content…
The major thing that the reader notices in the structure are that there are no quotation marks in the story. At first glimpse, the reader might see that there is no dialogue, but as they read it, they notice that there is a lot of dialogue. This allows the reader to pay attention to the story and to read carefully because they could simply read through it without realizing that the characters are talking to each other. This applies to real life, where people have to be great listeners to have healthy relationships with others. People trying to move on might have someone who will listen to their issues but are afraid of what they are going to say. They do not know if their response might be positive or negative, or if the response is not what they like. They might not be able to understand the issue because of their generation. The story has two major symbols: “the Backup” and “the Kid.” The Backup represents the old generation, while the Kid represents the new generation. All that the Backup wants to do is play in the games, but he cannot because of the Kid. The Backup is an older experienced player near the end of his career, while the Kid is an inexperienced rookie with the skills and talents to play in the big league. The reader understands why the Backup wants to play more games, but they also know that the Kid needs to play more if he wants to keep
At the film's beginning, Jimmy is reluctant to play on the team because of his previous experiences with basketball. However, through his interactions with Coach Dale, he learns to trust his abilities and becomes integral to the team's success. Coach Dale also learns to trust his players and rely on their strengths, which leads to the team's success. On the negative side, there is a relationship between the town's former star player, Everett, and his father.
Coach Rockwell was seriously ill, and their new coach did not appeal to them. What stuck out to me during this book was the theme that the author was trying to convey. Even when times get tough, that doesn’t mean you should quit; you should push on because it will pay off. “Chip was really bugged now, but he kept quiet, resolved to play as hard as he knew how,” (Bee 126). Before this, Coach Brasher was screaming his lungs out at Hilton for not going 100 percent.
Boobie Miles is one of these revered players. However, when a serious knee injury in a preseason scrimmage stops him from playing, his life begins to go downhill. Bissinger portrays Boobie as a quitter, who essentially gives up in the face of a challenge. On the contrary, it seems that the true cause of Boobie’s failure comes more from the pressure of the town’s high expectation of his performance. The crippling pressure eventually causes him to cave emotionally, as he loses potential football scholarships and, unable to re-achieve the level of play he once could, quits the team.
He started drinking and showing up late to practice, and he was even caught in an affair. This being a complete 180 from the earlier portions of both his life and of the article, Thompson uses this type of juxtaposition to bring the reader into the fall of Jason Rabedeaux’s life and career, the end of it all. Rabedeaux’s losing streak continued and so did his substance abuse. He was drunk more than he was sober, and he was unable to contribute wholeheartedly to his coaching position or his newfound second marriage. According to Thompson, Rabedeaux became “belligerent, reeking of
He believed that since he had been denied this chance, his kids, especially Cory, shouldn't have the same chance in football. He was furious about everything sports-related because of the
Milyana Mentor Ms. Brewster June 5, 2023 The mood is an essential aspect of storytelling that can make the reader feel as if they are a part of the story. It creates a sense of an atmosphere and can help the reader feel the emotions that the characters have. The mood is there to help grab the reader’s attention and make sense of the environment. All fiction books use this method, but two novels that used it especially well are Dracula by Bram Stoker and Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. To begin, Dracula’s mood is very gloomy and dark.
“A child can teach an adult three things: to be happy for no reason, to always be busy with something, and to know how to demand with all his might for what he desires.”(Paul Coelho) This quote seems a bit out of context doesn’t it? Don’t worry, in due time it will all make sense.
The player chose to risk it, and that risk gave a bad ending. But to some people, college is too much of a risk. For example, if someone gets into a college team, but then they get a injury that does some permanent damage, then the player’s future may be ruined, or if the player does get into the NBA/NFL, they are probably going to earn less than if they had never gotten injured. Also, to some people, college is a waste of time. If the person actually got into the NBA/NFL they could’ve earned a lot
(page 112). Emotions like this enhance the feeling of the text and changes how things are inferred. Imagine the tone and mood are the center of the universe, the wonders of how things are created, or the juiciest part of a burger. Without the meat, the burger(story) is just lame, and no one wants to eat(read) it. The mood and tone are building blocks to the theme, and the whole novel, or
Tone, the general character or attitude the author has towards a piece of writing. The tone in “Harrison Bergeron” is represented, by the author, in a number of techniques that writers have in their arsenal such as, satire, irony, symbolism and diction. The author uses Satire many times thought this story to give us something to think about and ponder instead of giving us what we are supposed to think. For example; when he tells us about the ballerinas and how they are held down by weights and how a horrid mask covers their beauty, we are saddened and depressed by the fact that something so beautiful and wonderful has to be covered up and weighted down just for everyone to be normal and the same.
The tone of the novel is very blunt and direct which makes it much easier for the reader to understand and get into. Tone refers to the author’s writing style and use of words to convey their attitude or feelings towards a topic. The tone of the author refers more to their attitude which is different from their voice, voice refers to their personality. Butler’s tone in the novel is very direct, but also melancholic. The story also includes a number of allusions, metaphors, symbolism, imagery, and more.
The structure of the story graphs out the narrator 's life in chronological order. Each year is unique by presenting new information about the narrator 's life along with simple conclusions within that year. Throughout the years, a reader can draw
The setting describes the time and place of the story, whereas, the tone is the attitude of the story. When a setting is dark and mysterious, the tone tends to be dark and mysterious as well. In “A Sound of the Thunder” the setting is rather spooky and unknowing. Imagine that two kids are playing Hide and Seek and
It engages readers through the entire novel by reading events through the eyes and minds of four separate
Tone us pretty much an overall feeling of the story. When you start to break down tone into feelings, you can see how you could manipulate it to express your feelings. Jamaica Kincaid chose to attack loving by the fact that the lecture is advice on life. Ms. Kincaid attacks caring by telling her what not to do. The author attacks strict by not letting her speak very much.