Pulitzer Prize for Fiction winners

In his essay “Reimagining Destiny,” Paul Berman questions the idea of destiny as a whole, asking facetiously, “Is there a single destiny for mankind?” (Berman 1). Berman battles with the idea that their are natural imperatives that govern all people, citing the newly found freedoms of women and ethnic minorities as proof of free will and individualism in people. He also uses the form of government liberal democracy to argue his claim. However, Berman twists the argument in his favor with a pessimistic view, suggesting that the natural order of things is chaotic and unfair. He makes the claim that humans have complete control over everything because of certain social and political achievements of mankind. In contrast with (name), in their short stories, “The Swimmer” and “The Snows of Kilimanjaro,” John Cheever and Ernest Hemingway propose that humans lack agency within their own lives. Cheever and Hemingway suggest the lack of agency in the lives of people by describing the apparent inevitability of situations in their protagonists’ lives, by depicting their protagonists’ lack of control represented by a reliance on alcohol, and by establishing unexpected and uncontrollable conclusions to their protagonists’ journeys. In “The Swimmer,” John Cheever asserts this idea specifically by highlighting the inevitability of certain aspects in the protagonist’s life. Comparatively, Hemingway also contends that humans lack agency in “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” by emphasizing the…

Hello and welcome to Columbia University’s’ Pulitzer Prize Awards Night. Every year we gather here to acknowledge and celebrate America’s excellence in Journalism and Arts. The Pulitzer Prize has been around since 1917 and was founded by Joseph Pulitzer, a newspaper publisher with a keen eye for politics and journalism. Through his legacy and grant to Columbia University, Pulitzer was able to start up this internationally admired honour given annually to the best of the best. With twenty-one…

Although she did not complete her law degree, she “later was awarded an honorary degree by … The University of Alabama School of Law.” (“Harper Lee” 1). This, along with her sister, Alice, (who became a lawyer) helped to educate her in regards to the knowledge of law, and essentially aided her in writing her award-winning novels (Harper Lee won a Pulitzer Prize for To Kill a Mockingbird). Her roots and her family background inspired many facets of her writings. For example, Lee’s father…”…

Prejudism is Real “No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background or his religion. People learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite,” said Nelson Mandela, civil rights activist. This quote explains the prejudism going on in To Kill a Mockingbird because there’s judging going on with everyone and the young kids in the story don’t see why it happens because…

Scott Momaday. Morrison is a modernist; realist and fiction writer who redefine and reform the way African Americans writers were looked upon during 1945 era. Morrison did not allow society to dictate how she would write her stories. She was poise, confident, bright and a brilliant writer with the novels and followers to prove it. Moreover, there are some similarities in both narratives. The first encounter, Recitatif is a short story where to friends (Roberta and Twyla) meet at a psychiatric…

Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird and The Black Eyed Peas’ song “Where is the Love” both tackle the problem of racism and overall intolerance of others. Lee’s novel takes place in the 1930s and focuses on the Finch family as the father, Atticus, takes on a case where he is defending a black man from the accusation of a white man and women. On the other hand, “Where is the Love” addresses discrimination as a whole and seems to question your empathy for other people. When placed side by…

When taking a look back on social concepts of the 60s the words music, drugs and culture are often at the foreground of one’s thoughts. This was a diverse and booming era for many bringing upon the uprising of a new class. Although this truth is recognizable without looking past the surface, taking a deeper look at social aspects uncloaks the seemingly ever changing times then, proving them to be consistent with issues we recognize today. This is strongly displayed in the novel A Confederacy…

Mockingbirds, known for their lovely music and existence, are a true gift. The sweet sounding tweet they bring is amazing, mockingbirds, do not bring any harm. These magnificent birds stay out of the farmers silos, also, they take care of the damaging insects in the soil. In the story," To Kill a Mockingbird," Atticus Finch tells Jem And Scout, "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." Jem and Scout learn that they shouldn't harm a animal or person if they haven't brought harm to them. Later in the…

It’s a Sin to Kill Innocence Mimus polyglottos which is also known as the mockingbird, it’s a songbird that is known for its beauty and music. The mockingbird is seen as an innocent creature that does no harm. The novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee is set in the 1930’s and deals with racism and social normalities that were unjust. One of the prominent ideas in the novel is innocence weather it would be child like or when being prosecuted innocence is a driving force for the moral…

The stories Saving Sourdi and A&P have two interesting main characters Nea and Sammy. Nea is a young Asian American girl that is from South Dakota and Sammy is a Nineteen year old boy from Massachusetts. In both of their stories they try and rescue people from situations that they make out to bigger than it is. Nea trying to save her sister and Sammy trying to save three girls that come into his store. They are both rescuers in their own sense but, they both ultimately end up falling short.…