One of the central conflicts in this story revolves around the relationship between Sarty and his father. Sarty’s father has a habit of burning down barns belonging to his landlords. He wants Sarty to lie for him in court. Sarty knows that what his father is asking him to do is wrong, but he feels he must be loyal to his family even though this goes against his own values.Have you ever been in a situation like this where you had to choose between betraying someone you cared about and being true to yourself? What did you choose? Why?

For this essay, you will begin by summarizing the story making sure you discuss the choice that Sarty made and why he made this choice.
In the second part of the essay, you will discuss the time when you had to make such a choice drawing parallels between your conflict and Sarty’s conflict.
SONNY’S BLUES
“Sonny’s Blues” is a story that focuses on human suffering, something we can all relate to in some way. Sonny turns to drugs in high school because he feels trapped in Harlem, in school, and by what he is expected to do and what he wants to do. He is like many high school students who are trying to find their way in the world. They are not quite an adult, but they are no longer a kid.
Sonny, in many ways, is like a teenager today. He has to listen to his teachers and his parents but he also has his own ideas, view of the world, and passions that the adults don’t understand. He wants to express himself but feels that nobody is taking him seriously. His brother doesn’t relate to his desire to play music or join the military. Sonny feels that he is trapped and makes some really bad decisions in trying to deal with his own suffering. On one level, the story is about being young and misunderstood.On another level, it is about the decisions that we make and how these decisions can affect us for a longtime.

If you choose this prompt, the first part of your essay will summarize the story and will focus on Sonny and his relationship with his brother and his family. You will summarize the events that led up to Sonny’s arrest and what happened after Sonny got out of jail. Talk about the narrator’s revelation at the end of the story after he goes to the bar and listens to Sonny play the piano.
In the second part of this essay, you will respond to the themes of growing up and the importance of the decisions that we make. Discuss a time in your life when you were “young and misunderstood”and made a decision (good or bad) that had an impact on your future.
PUPPY
In “Puppy” George Sanders alternates between the perceptions of two women, Marie and Callie.Although these two women may appear to be opposites, they do have some similarities.
In the first part of this essay, you will be writing a comparison/contrast essay on these two characters. You can set this up using block by block style or point by point (see explanation in Canvas).