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Mao's Last Dancer

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Good morning teachers and fellow classmates. How can you understand about yourself or the world around you? Journeys can be inner, imaginative or physical. The journeys that we experience help us understand more about ourselves, others and the world around us. In the novel, “Mao’s Last Dancer”, the protagonist Li Cunxin takes an emotional journey as he discovers and learns more about the world around him. He experiences an inner journey and also gains new insights about himself and others. The related text, “The Road Not Taken”, also explores an inner and imaginative journey, and the emotional effect that this has on the persona through various techniques. As a young boy living in poverty, Li Cunxin was accepted to a ballet academy in Beijing, China. After attending for a while, one of his ballet …show more content…
For example, “Nothing I had seen matched the dark, decaying, depressing picture of America the Chinese government had painted in my mind… I was confused. Someone had lied to us about America being the poorest and China being the richest.” Li’s inner journey continues as his eyes open up to the world. His inner journey becomes deeper as he questions values that he was brought up with. The related text, The Road Not Taken, has a strong emphasis on an inner journey just as, “Mao’s Last Dancer”. The related text also explores an inner and imaginative journey. The persona’s emotional journey is found through various techniques. One technique is end-rhyme. The words fair, wear, there, claim and same are found in the end of each verse. For example, “Then took the other, as just fair, And having perhaps better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for the passing there, Had worn them really about the same”. This means the persona is weighing up his options and trying to justify what path he will take. The persona’s inner journey begins as he is undecided what choice he will

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