ComparitiveEssay

My brother and I had always been a like at similar ages; although I never understood that when he said that we would be a like. Yet at the same time we are very different. One memory that I have of this is very fresh. When he was my age he would have loved to get out on Thursday for break and have a week off; but now even though I still would love the week off my brother got out last Friday and has a month off. This makes me very jealous and want that month but it conveys how much we were different but the same we were/are. In the novels My Brother Sam is Dead and High Heat Tim and Shane are a little like my brother and I. They have many similarities but at the same time differences.

Shane and Tim are very similar; one example is that they both had to overcome the loss of their dads. This was shocking to them because the loss of their dads were both very unexpected. Due to the very unexpected deaths they had to man up to become the man of the house. They had to help their moms through the time of mourning. With Tim him and his dad were on a supply run and on the way back it snowed a boat load. Tim's dad went ahead and Tim was getting suspicious; he never found his dad and he was later reported dead. Shane's dad got arrested, was bailed out and was depressed. No body knew what was going on with him until he committed suicide. Tim had to run the tavern and take more tasks at home;  Shane had to take more care of his sister when his mom was working, he had to take all of the crap at school too. Now may I remind you that these two very similar kids grew up in different times. Tim grew up where everyone found out at different times cared but after a little bit it was back to normal.  With Shane his dads death was on the front page of the paper. Since Shane lived in a rich area everyone made fun of him because a crime in his area hasn't been committed in a very long time. Tim would have been the talk of the town if he had gone too school because everyone would be asking him questions about his dad.

Stating the fact that Shane came from a very wealthy family it was very hard for them because they had to fend for themselves now that the money was taken by the government from them. They found a car, a town house and the worst to the kids a new school. Their mom had to start working and stop being an at home mom. With Tim his mom had to really up the anti. Tim's mom had to start to do the same caliber  of work that Tim did(But not the exact same work), Tim had to replace his dad; who runs the tavern. Since it was the winter and the war was going on. They struggled to get food and supplies; they ran out faster than usual because they didn't  make their annual run to New York. In this way they both have to fend for themselves. With all of the similarities there are some differences.

With all of the similarities there are many differences. There are two major examples; one is their schooling. Tim didn’t have the chance to go to school, growing up on a farm/tavern is hard enough work itself. Yet Tim knew what he needed to know. On the other hand Shane has supreme schooling. Shane went to a private school in Oregon with very prestigious teachers. Shane knew everything there was to know. The reason why their schooling was different was the needs around the house; if there hadn’t been the need in Tim’s household he could have gotten the equivalent amount of schooling to Shane but we don’t know. On top of that another major difference is the time period that they each grew up in. Tim grew up in a much more troubling time; with the war, no technology, all day chores and staying on your toes if the war comes to your city/village. Tim has it a lot worse than Shane; Shane is growing up in the modern time period. Shane comes from a very rich family so he had all the gadgets, almost no chores and was the star on the baseball team. Due to these very different times they grew up very different boys. They still grew up very well but Tim had more to worry about than Shane. Yet they both grew up in very Bad times with no father to grow up with.

                 

Can you understand and realize what these kids had to grow up with? Would you be able to understand it? Or do you want to just pass these kid’s lives up and not think about the troubles they had? Just think: my brother is getting a nice month off; coming home relaxing until my mom wants him to work all day and he has to do everything.With a sudden change like that it can really mess someone up. However, my brother's life still won't be as messed up as the lives of Shane and Tim.