The Contender is a book about a young black boy named Alfred Brooks, growing up in a poor part of New York. Alfred is faced with a struggle inside himself to become a better person. Alfred does not want to be just another "good little slave", but he doesn't want to find himself in trouble with Major and Hollis either. Alfred talks with another local boy named Henry, and learns about a nearby gym for boxers. He decides to go there one night, and talks with Mr. Donatelli about what it takes to become a champion boxer. Mr. Donatelli explains to Alfred that "Everybody wants to be a champion. That's not enough. You have to start by wanting to be a contender..."(20) Alfred thinks about the speech for a while,
I would recommend this book to anybody with confidence problems. This book helps the reader feel that the can conquer great barriers. If a boy like Alfred can become a contender, then they can too. He goes from having nothing, to having nothing... but at least he knows he is a contender in life.
as to overcome is boxing skill. Alfred has very little knowledge about boxing, but is ready to learn. He trains very hard for quite a while, and shows that he is devoted to becoming good. He learns many new techniques, and different combos, and becomes ready to fight. The final obstacle Alfred has to conquer is confidence. Alfred is not sure of himself and must continually be reassured by Mr. Donatelli and Henry that he is doing fine. The end o
All papers and essays are for research and reference purposes only!
Copyright 2002-2009
Direct Essays , LLC. All Rights Reserved. DMCA Webmasters make $$$$