Mattie Fears For Her Mother's Life example essay topic

Laurie Halse (rhymes with 'waltz') was born on October 23, 1961 in Potsdam, New York, to Methodist minister Frank A., Jr. and manager Joyce Holcomb Halse. The author says that she decided to become a writer in second grade. Her teacher taught the class how to write haiku. She enjoyed it a lot and hopes that every second grader will learn to write poetry. Halse soon started reading library books for hours. The magic of the elementary school library came alive in life.

Heidi, one of Halse's favorite books, sparked her interest in foreign cultures. Halse's creative thoughts began as a child. For instance, Halse recalls trudging through the snow on her way to school. She imagined that she had changed into an enormous polar bear. Writing also started as a little girl for Halse. She enjoyed watching her father write poetry and read the comics spread out on his office floor.

She used her father's old typewriter for hours, writing newspaper columns, stories, and letters. Halse declares that the dictionary is her favorite book. As a senior in high school, Halse visited Denmark as an American Field Service exchange student. She lived on a pig farm and learned to speak Danish. The author obtained an associate of arts degree in 1981 from Onondaga County Community College. She married Gregory H. Anderson, chief executive officer of Anderson Financial Systems, on June 19, 1983.

They raised two children: Stephanie and Meredith. The author earned a bachelor of science in Languages and Linguistics (B.S.L.L.) degree in 1984 from Georgetown University. Laurie Halse Anderson belongs to the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Anderson organized the SCBWI's Fall Conference in Philadelphia from 1994 to 1996. She decided to write Fever 1793 after reading a newspaper article in August of 1993 that explained the yellow fever epidemic that devastated Philadelphia 200 years earlier. The U.S. capital in 1793, Philadelphia served as the political and cultural hub of the nation.

Anderson believed these ingredients would create a story with strong elements of conflict and a rich background. She also suspected that stories written about this period were rare. Moreover, her upbringing near Philadelphia inspired her to begin research. Researching the idea proved to be no simple task, however. It took two years. Anderson read about the period's architecture, food, class structure, social roles of taverns and coffeehouses, education levels, gardening, religion, and politics.

She visited museums and studied her findings. She sought out eyewitness accounts of the epidemic. As she did her work, she began to develop the realistic characters of the era, like Mattie's critical mother. Fever 1793 won several book awards, including The New York Public Library Best 2001 Books for the Teenage, 2001 Teacher's Choice; American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults; and the Junior Library Guild named it as a selection. It received a starred review from the Bank Street College of Education as one of 'The Best Children's Books of 2001. ' Anderson believes that the world holds an abundance of goodness.

She hopes that her books contribute goodness. She thinks that being an author has been an privilege. Anderson enjoys travel, reading, history, genealogy, running, skiing, hiking, and basketball. Overview Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers published Anderson's novel Fever 1793 in 2000, an historical novel set in Philadelphia during the post-Revolutionary War. Readers encounter the harrowing experience of the 1793 yellow fever epidemic. Anderson gives insight into this deadly disease that killed nearly five thousand people, ten percent of the Philadelphia population, and halted its prosperity.

The story uses real-life recollections to develop the bitterness and fear of neighbor toward neighbor as people physically cast aside the infected and buried thousands. The novel begins by showing the normal, everyday conflicts teenagers face in dealing with strict parents, changing body images, and the death of friends. It then weaves a realistic tale of the losses that occurred as it conveys to young adults a message of hope. Readers realize that, through perseverance and self-reliance, any horror can be faced. Setting The significant events occur within a four-month period during which the characters of this once-thriving town are changed forever.

The story begins with Mattie waking to a mosquito whining in one ear and her mother hollering in the other. Mattie lives in a room above the family coffeehouse. It is August and the relentless heat pours into the modest bedchamber. Struggling to awaken to begin her chores, Mattie typifies the life of a teen. She struggles with her desire to do the right thing and her need to have some fun.

She finds her mother annoying and dreams of the day when she can slip free of family restrictions. Mattie thinks of her friend, Nathaniel Benson, who understands her dreams. Anderson effectively puts readers in the hubbub of the nation's capital, Philadelphia. She describes the hustle and bustle of the city, with its horsemen, carriages, and carts. A neighbor gossips as a dog barks at a pig running loose in the street.

A blacksmith's hammer hits his anvil. The author sets the topography and political climate. From Mattie's coffeehouse, she can see the rooftop of the State House where the Congress met. The coffeehouse sits two blocks away from President Washington's house. Politicians, as well as merchants and gentlemen, enjoy cups of coffee, a bite to eat, and the daily news. On a clear day, Mattie can see the masts of the ships anchored at the docks of the Delaware River.

These historical and geographical details place the readers in the era quickly and effectively. Anderson uses unique events to substantiate her historical depiction. She refers to Blanchard's yellow hot air balloon that rose over Philadelphia in January of 1793. She incorporates the work of the African Free Society and its heroic members. She bases Mattie's adventures on the real-life events of yellow fever with credible symptoms, treatments, and attitudes. The author shows the compassionate and honest nature of teenagers.

She portrays Mattie like an authentic teen-trying new ideas, new personalities, and new dreams. Anderson seems to view the world as if she is fifteen years old. She grabs the readers' attention and takes them through Mattie's experience. She does this so effectively that readers may begin to cheer when Mattie's secret sweetheart, Nathaniel Benson, notices her.

Themes and Characters Anderson employs the first person point of view. The fourteen-year-old protagonist, Mattie, gives readers the facts of Philadelphia and the epidemic quickly. Anderson selected the title Fever 1793 because the story occurs during the period when Philadelphia suffered severe losses from the 1793 yellow fever epidemic. Set in the post-Revolutionary era, the story explores the worldwide themes of friendship and death. As Mattie matures, she learns perseverance, hope, and self-reliance.

Mattie is in conflict with her mother, at odds with her body, and is dreaming about her future when she hears about the death of her childhood friend Polly. Shocked, she finds little time to grieve as she helps her mother serve coffeehouse clients. Confused about what killed Polly, Mattie and her family begin to hear about yellow fever but quickly dismiss the predictions as pessimistic. Readers learn in the first chapter about Mattie's crush on Nathaniel Benson. Nathaniel enjoys Mattie's sharp wit and her zest to try new things. Together they reminisce about the launch of Blanchard's hot air balloon, an event symbolic of the new attitudes that Mattie and Nathaniel embrace.

Nathaniel gives Mattie flowers as a way to remember him as the city locks its doors to the fever. Mattie's memories help her to endure her many hardships. It is this hope that keeps Mattie going until the first frost that ends the epidemic. Lucinda, Mattie's mother, serves as the antagonist.

Widowed for several years, she raises Mattie by herself as she manages the coffeehouse. Lucinda knows how to persevere through tough times, and she passes on this ability to Mattie. Mattie describes her mother as the type of person who 'had given birth... in the morning and cooked supper for ten that night. ' Lucinda drives herself hard. Luanda's callous character forces Mattie to stand up for herself.

Mattie wonders if her mother enjoys her life or if it is filled with bitterness. She shows little compassion for herself or for Mattie, making Mattie's journey to adulthood a hard one. Lucinda gets yellow fever. Mattie finds out when a stranger dumps her out of a wheelbarrow in front of the coffeehouse. For the first time, Mattie sees her mother out of control.

Mattie fears for her mother's life as she sees her mother shiver and vomit uncontrollably. Luanda's eyes are poisoned with streaks of yellow and red. Mattie, like her mother, puts her fears and sadness aside so that she can go about the business of taking care of her mother. Fearful that Mattie will catch the contagious disease, Lucinda sends her out of town to the Ludingtons at Gwynedd with Mattie's grandfather. Mattie experiences a mix of emotions. She wants to nurse her mother to health and ensure she is okay, yet she feels helpless against this unknown and deadly virus.

Mattie does not find out if her mother survives the fever. This unresolved conflict effectively adds to the suspense of the novel. Mattie's grandfather, Captain William Farnsworth Cook, protects her like a father figure. He teaches her practical lessons. For example, he frequently interrogates her about what a soldier needs to fight.

Mattie answers: a sturdy pair of boots, a full belly, and a good night's sleep. Mattie and her grandfather leave for the Ludingtons. Grandfather's cough and drowsiness raises their coachman's suspicions about his health. Fearing the grandfather has yellow fever, the coachman dumps Mattie and Grandfather outside Pembroke. Mattie cares for her grandfather. She makes good decisions that provide them with shelter, food, and water.

This experience cultivates her self-confidence and she experiences self-reliance. Grandfather and Mattie travel together, overcoming several misfortunes. Grandfather takes Mattie to Philadelphia when she catches yellow fever. He helps nurse her back to health, and they return to the abandoned coffeehouse. Grandfather dies in a battle against thieves who have come in the middle of the night to ransack the coffeehouse. Mattie grieves his death and remembers his life.

She demands a reading from the Bible at his burial in a mass grave as a way of honoring him. Mattie's relationship with her grandfather enables her to expand her self-reliance and perseverance. It teaches her practical ways to handle tough situations, and it provides her with courage to win her battles. After Grandfather's death, Mattie reaches her lowest point. The life she knew has vanished.

The coffeehouse is vandalized and empty. Disease and death surround her. Mattie wanders the streets, wondering what to do. She discovers baby Nell cowering in a corner and sucking her thumb, her blonde hair loose and tangled, her feet bare and black with dirt.

Nell's mother has died of the fever. Mattie decides to care for Nell. She finds Eliza, Lucinda's valued peer, who joined the Free African Society. Thick into the action, Eliza befriends Mattie.

She asks Mattie to work alongside her as an equal, thus giving Mattie the opportunity to further realize her self-worth. She does not interfere when Mattie makes her own decisions, helping Mattie mature to the woman she is quickly becoming. When Nell contracts yellow fever, Mattie and Eliza follow the French medical treatment: fresh air, rest, and fluids. Her suggestion works, and Nell heals.

Nell symbolizes hope for a brighter future, and she enables Mattie to take on the responsibility of adulthood. At the novel's resolution, Mattie's character transforms as she realizes that she must persevere. She knows that she has many choices. Mattie cultivates her friendship with Nathaniel.

She opens up the coffeehouse with Eliza as her partner and begins to implement her dreams for a growing business. Nell stays with her and depends on her like a mother. Lucinda returns from the country in ill health. Forced into a life of leisure, Lucinda must also depend on and trust in Mattie to run the coffeehouse. Lucinda begins to respect Mattie's choices and to treat her with respect and compassion. Anderson does an excellent job of developing believable characters with realistic themes set against a rich background.

She shows how this disease changed her characters, much as horrific life events change real lives. Young adults will emerge from this novel with a sense of hope, perseverance, and understanding..