Comparing is showing the similarities whereas contrasting is looking for the differences in two or more things that are related in some way. By comparing and contrasting in literature, the author invites the readers to see a deeper truth of the stories, especially for the character or the actions. In “The Gold Cadillac”, an African American girl Lois and her family went on a trip in a brand new car, the Gold Cadillac, driving into one of the most racist states in the United States, Mississippi, to visit their grandparents. The father was arrested by the white policeman for stealing the car, which he did not do. In “Nadia the Willful '', a stubborn girl Nadia lost her brother Hamed. After Hamed died, Nadia’s father changed from being gracious to cruel, and he forbade people from talking about Nadia. Nadia adopted a more positive attitude to grief at Hamed's death by talking about Hamed. In “The Bracelet”, Ruri and her family were sent to the internment camps after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor because America considered each Japanese could possibly be spies in the war. Before Ruri left, her best friend Laurie gave her a friendship bracelet, hoping Ruri would remember her. Let’s compare and contrast these three stories in the following.
The authors always use characters to compare and contrast the attitudes, behaviors, personalities, or reactions toward something in the story. The actions, behaviors, and talking represent what people think and what kinds of attitudes people hold toward the events they experienced. In The Gold Cadillac, when the father brought a new car, the relatives admired it while the mother was unhappy. When the father wanted to drive the car to the south, the relatives were very worried about it while the mother supported his decision. But no matter what, both the relatives and the mother all loved and supported whatever father did. Everyone has his own attitudes toward the events or things they care about, which result in some agreements or disagreements. Whether a person likes or dislikes the event or things, he shows his attitudes through his reactions or facial expressions. In Nadia the Willful, when Hamed was dead, both Nadia and her father were very sad but the reactions toward Hamed’s death are different. Nadia still talked about Hamed to release her sadness while her father banned the speech of Hamed. Obviously, one’s reactions and behaviors toward painful matters are greatly affected by his thoughts and attitudes. When one’s thoughts and attitudes are positive-oriented, his reactions and behaviors toward sadness are healthier; same reasonings for negative thoughts and attitudes. People have different views and emotions, causing them to have different reactions to the same event.
There can be differences and changes in a character over time as he or she encounters more events. The changes have huge impacts on a character’s attitudes, behaviors, actions, and personality. In The Bracelet, Ruri originally lived in a nice house or neighborhood. After the war, Ruri was sent to the internment camp. This suggests that one’s lifestyle or surroundings could be changed widely after an event took place unexpectedly. Since the event is unexpected, one does not have any control of it and the change would be out of their hands. In Nadia the Willful, Nadia got mad easily. However, after Hamed’s death, Nadia became very gentle and nice. This implies that one’s personality and attitudes could be largely alternated over times when they suffer something huge, like losing loved ones. The quality of the change depends on how and what people think toward this matter or thing. In The Gold Cadillac, before the trip to the south, the father loved the car since it gave him the pride of being able to buy a luxury car and he wanted to show off. However, traveling to the south with the car puts him and his family in danger, so he decided to sell the car. Clearly, one’s attitudes and opinions toward the events or things could be greatly changed as the time passes when undergoing something big. If the experience is bad, then one could change his attitudes from positive to negative. As time progresses, people have different thoughts or personalities than their original ones.
Characters have different feelings or emotions throughout the story as they react to the events or the change. How people think of something or what attitudes people have toward something will have great impacts on their emotions. In The Bracelet, Ruri was so jubilant when receiving the bracelet from Laurie, meaning that their friendship is eternal. But when the bracelet got lost, she was very sad because she felt that her best friend was “gone”. Then her mother comforts her by saying the memories are carried in the heart, not just in the bracelet. Ruri’s emotion toward the bracelet changed from being happy, to being sad, and to being comforted by her mom. One’s emotions could be easily changed through some events. The difference in emotions is affected by one’s reactions or people around him. In Nadia the Willful, Nadia got agitated easily while her father was kind. After Hamed’s death, Nadia decided to talk about his death to release her sadness, which had Naida become gentle and calm. But her father refused to mention Hamed and got mad quickly. Nadia then persuaded her father to talk about Hamed. Eventually he became peaceful. One’s thoughts and attitudes definitely control his emotions. Positive thinking results in positive emotions. Furthermore, one’s emotion could even affect others' emotions. In The Gold Cadillac, the father was proud of the car at first. After getting arrested during the trip, the father felt dangerous about the car. After some special experiences, what people think of a particular thing could significantly change over time, which in turn, changes their emotions toward this particular thing. People have many different emotions, and different emotions develop a whole story.
By comparing and contrasting the characters in stories, readers could identify an object or people in the story to represent something, called symbolism in literature. In The Bracelet, the bracelet means that Luaria is insecure about how to protect their friendship, so she gives Ruri a friendship bracelet, meaning the unbreaking bond of friendship. In Nadia the Willful, Hamed symbolizes the power of love. Although Hamed died and would never be back, he still lived in Nadia and the father’s minds, meaning the love never goes away. In The Gold Cadillac, the Gold Cadillac symbolizes discrimination towards African Americans and family love. The car got the father captured because of the racial background. The father sold the car because of family love. He wants to make sure the family is safe. Comparing and contrasting the similarities and differences between two or more literature give readers an opportunity to deeply reflect on the genuine meaning of main ideas, the characters, the actions, the emotions, or symbolism.
Comments