Homework Case

Living life is hard. You can't always do what you want to do, because there are duties to do; vacuuming, doing the dishes, homework etc. The school takes a lot of time and the homework has to be made! But that is not completely true. If you want to go to school, then yes, your homework has to be done, but if you don't want to make your homework, then don't. Life is, and will always be, what you make it to. This short story from 2008 "A Gap of Sky" is written by Anna Hope and she is focusing on what life is and how the main character Ellie should do what she wants to do or what she have to do. A problem many young students can recognize.

The main characters name in the story is Ellie. Ellie is a 19-year old student. She is taking a class because her mother and father said she should. Ellie is from the beginning of the text very doubtful on what she wants. Ellie is not a very good student she preferred drink and partying instead of making her homework. Once she wakes up after a wild party and she can't remember much. She was drunk and stoned "Cans, some cans of lager, and then more coke arriving and - K, didn't they so some K?" But Ellie develops through the story. One day she went for a walk in the city (London), to get some ink to print her essay. She was in the beginning not in the right place for writing the essay, but she was aware that she had to write it - therefore she went for the walk. But later she sees one of the city's plaques. It says "Living and Dying" and Ellie say to herself she isn't ready to cope with death. From that thought she changes. She finds out how she, temporary, wants to live her life. "Ellie doesn't want to go to a shop now, couldn't go into a shop now, doesn't want any bloody ink, can't write an essay, no matter what, no matter what it matters, doesn't want any more coke, ever again." She is now aware of what she wants and what she doesn't want. She was irritated at her mother and father because they sent her to London to take this class against her will! So when she says she doesn't want to write the essay, she also says she doesn't want to listen to her parents, but this change very quickly. "With a jolt, Ellie remembers her mother giving her a stone like this. [...] it was still an expression of something, a distilled expression of something, of her mother, of her love, and Ellie had just shoved it away, taken it for granted."

After this "meeting" with the stone which reminds her of her mother, she changes her mind once again. Now she is happier and positive with being in London - and she want to write the essay. [...] "she is nineteen and in London and she has an essay to write and she needs to buy some printer ink... [...] She will write her essay and that will be a good thing to do. A good thing and the right thing to do." Her progress and development is positive, because she realizes what she wants to do with her life in this situation. Therefore we can call Ellie an antagonist