Share your literary essay with the rest of the students that chose this short story. Take some time to read 2 or 3 other essays. Comment on them. Your comment should be about something you noticed them doing well from our lessons. For example, "You did a really good job explaining your evidence."
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds. It takes place in Brooklyn. The short story is about two teenagers that are in love. However, the girl, Shay, is moving to another state. Shay decides to give the guy, Dante, an eraser tattoo. The author uses this to teach us lessons about memories, and how it can keep love going, even if there is distance.
ReplyDeleteSymbolism is a big part of this short story that relates to the theme. The eraser tattoo represents Shay and how she wants him to remember her. Everytime Dante looks at the scar on his arm, he’ll be reminded of Shay.
The tattoo on Dante’s arm is a S, so the S symbolizes Shay and the first letter of her name.
The setting can represent the theme. Dante and Shay both have lived in the same houses in Brooklyn their whole lives. In the story it also says that her mom had lived in that home for more than twenty years.
After living in Brooklyn her whole life, Shay wants a career with sea life. That causes her to move near an ocean, so she’s moving to North Carolina. These actions illustrate the theme. Because even though she’s moving, she’ll still love Dante.
Jason Reynolds uses a lot of figurative language in this story. When Dante and Shay were talking about the first time he said “I love you” Shay’s response was, “No doubt homie!” Dante then repeated the phrase again in the story. The author uses this quote to show repetition, because repeating the phrase shows the mood or excitement. This could be interpreted as love, but it clearly shows memories, because they were repeating the memory they were talking about.
During the same memory, Shay used a simile to describe how Dante looked. The simile was, “And you had this wild look in your eye like my face was lunch or something.” This relates to the theme, because Shay started to go deep into her memory to the point where she had a great description on how he looked.
At the end of the story, Shay is about to leave. Dante says, “I love you” to Shay and she responded with, “No doubt homie!” They repeat what happened in the past to lighten up the ood. This really represents the theme of Memories can keep love going, even if there is distance.
ReplyDeleteIn Eraser Tattoo by Jason Reynolds, Shay is moving away and has to leave her childhood best friend/Boyfriend. Shay doesn’t want to go and Dante doesn’t want her to go. Minutes before shay leaves her and dante are sitting on the porch steps while shay gives dante an eraser tattoo of the letter S. So whenever he looks at it he’ll remember shay and the memories they had together. The Author uses memories, and the eraser tattoo to show true love and friendship are not easily forgotten.
As shay gives Dante the eraser tattoo, the story explains her and Dante's conversation. They go over past memories like when they first say “I love you”, and how Dante loved Juice boxes. Which leads to the theme being Memories. The story includes Dante and shays full conversation even the not so good parts. Dante was talking about the future and Shay moving back to brooklyn. Shay on the other hand seems skeptical “let's be real” she said “what if we break up?” This quote may be interpreted as don’t hurt the ones you love but it clearly means memories because shay wants to live in the moment and remember their memories not think about their future and growing up.
Another main topic in Eraser Tattoo is moving away, and how hard it is to be separated from the ones you love. A way the author hints the theme is memories is using figurative language. Some similes in Eraser Tattoo were “And you had this wild look in your eye like I was lunch or something.” Explaining a Memory using figurative language. Another way the Author hinted the theme was memories was using repetition throughout the story like “Okey Dokey, OKEY DOKEY” describing what they said after “I love you” this is also a memory that can lead to theme.
All in all Eraser Tattoo by Jason Reynolds teaches the Readers many lessons. One being it can be hard to leave your loved ones but you’ll always have those memories there when you need them. In the end Shay and her Mother drive away and Dante watches the car as it turns the corner. He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever, but the memories would.
“Eraser tattoo” by Jason Reynolds is about a girl named Shay who is moving. In the story, she spends her last 10 minutes in her hometown with her boyfriend Dante. Shay spends that small amount of time giving Dante an eraser tattoo. I believe the theme in this book is you can get through anything if you love someone enough.
ReplyDeleteOne thing that really helps to point out the theme is Shay giving Dante the eraser tattoo. She indents her initials into Dante’s forearm using an eraser. Even though the tattoo hurts so greatly Dante is still going through with Shay giving him the tattoo. Dante is trying his best to be brave for Shay before she has to go. So even though it hurts he’s doing it for Shay because he loves her.
For one thing, Shay moving really points out the theme. She’s moving to Wilmington a place where buses can’t get to. Dante and Shay will no longer be able to hang out with each other all the time. They will no longer attend the same school. However, that doesn’t break them apart. There staying together through thick and thin because they love each other.
The thing that makes the theme the most obvious is some of the figurative language. On page 9 it says “It hurt like hell like someone was trying to strike a match on his flesh.”This shows how much the eraser tattoo is hurting Dante. Though he still continues to let Shay give him the tattoo. He’s going through the main because he loves her.
Another piece of figurative language that really spoke out to me in the book was” All packed in a clunky truck that was already headed south”.This kinda helps the reader sink in that Shay is actually leaving.
With this in mind, I still think the theme in you can get through anything if you love someone enough. I think this because shay is moving two hours away but she and Dante are still gonna stay together because they love each other. The eraser tattoo is hurting Dante but he is still going through with it. He’s doing it for Shay because he loves her. So now I know the theme is you can get through anything if you love someone enough. For Shay and Dante distance is far but there loves stays the same
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds. In the short story it has symbolism, Figurative language, and dialogue in it that shows the theme. The story is about this girlfriend and boyfriend and the girlfriend who’s name is Shay is moving away and gives her boyfriend Dante an eraser tattoo.
ReplyDeleteThe eraser tattoo that Shay gave Dante is an example of symbolism. They are trying to show that the tattoo is showing that Dante will always have a piece of Shay when she moves away. Although it could be argued that their love isn’t really love because love doesn’t make you hurt the other person. For this story it is showing that love can make you do crazy things and that’s what I think the theme is.
“I’m gonna buy you a plane ticket shoot I might just buy you a whole plane.” This dialogue shows that Dante would do anything for Shay just to make her happy. Him wanting to do that also shows that love can make you do crazy things. For Dante to say all of this stuff to shay can really put an image in your head that they really love each other.
In Addition, to using dialogue the author also used imagery such as “ I love you. It slipped easily from his lips. Like breathing, like usual.” This part in the story could really put a picture in your head of what was happening. This imagery also showed the theme. He used it to demonstrate that Dante is crazy in love with Dante to let Shay give him an eraser tattoo.
At the end of this story it says “ He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever. But the scar would.” I think the Author of this story was trying to say that the pain wouldn’t last forever but their love would.
Eraser Tattoo is a short story by Jason Reynolds and focuses on teenage love and friendship along with obstacles. Dante and Shay are the main characters and have been friends for as long as they can remember. The problem is Shay is moving away to Wilmington a small town in North Carolina. Dante is devastated because they’ve been friends forever it’s not easy to say goodbye. The author used emotions to teach us lessons about friendship; time or distance can’t stand in the way of true friendship.
ReplyDeleteThe “Eraser Tattoo” symbolizes their friendship and how much they value it. The author uses this quote “She grabbed him by the wrist yanked his arm straight. Then she flipped the pencil point side up and started rubbing the eraser against his skin. To show that nothing will get in the way of them and there’s no going back, “Shay vanishing from sight, Dante glanced down at the “S” on his arm. He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.” These actions illustrate the theme by showing love.
Dante and Shay have known each other for many many years which also means they’ve had a lot of memories together. They start to discuss some memories that mean the most. One memory is around kindergarten-1st grade is “Dante told Shay that he loved her a long time ago, back when they were 5 years old and she taught him how to tie his shoes.” And Mrs. Davis their teacher would clean the wounds, apply the Band-Aid that would stay put only until school was over. Then Dante would slowly peel it off.” These two memories show a lot of character about Dante and Shay.
Moving away from close ones isn’t easy, but the author uses figurative language to express emotions. While Shay is giving Dante the tattoo the author uses this simile “like someone was trying to strike a match on his flesh.” The use of imagery in the text shows the theme by expressing emotions. To describe the pain that he was going through.
At the end of the story, when Shay leaves for North Carolina, leaving Dante behind. Shay and Dante have spent the past couple hours remembering memories and also making them special. Dante is devastated about Shay leaving but he remembers the S tattoo and he knows it will always be with him just like his love for Shay.
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds that takes place in Brooklyn. A highschool couple, Dante and Shay, are getting prepared to say “goodbye” before Shay moves away. As they grow up together, they keep their memories. Most importantly, they remember all the times as kids they told each other “I love you”. Until one day Dance truly means it, and everything in their friendship changes. Ever since they found out Shay was moving away, they planned to give each other eraser tattoos. Now the time has come and they have to live without each other. I think this story teaches the consequences of falling in love, by showing the challenges and thoughts of not being with your loved ones.
ReplyDeleteWhile in the making of the eraser tattoos, Shay and Dance discuss their futures but also their memories. Growing up together they felt like family. Everyday they would do their special handshake, then say `I Love you”. Both of them thought it was no big deal, until one day Dante held on a little longer and truly meant it. At that moment the setting changed in their relationship and things started to get a little more serious. In this case, this detail is important to the story because it shows the start of them falling in love.
Still in the process of making the eraser tattoo, there starts to be a discussion about Shay’s future in specific. She goes on to say that she’ll be near the water and she’ll be able work on her career as a marine biologist. The tone of the text gives off a sad vibe. You can tell that Dante is sad about her leaving, but also happy for her that she’s forming a successful career. Although this could be argued as jealousy that Shay gets to live her dream, the text provides the information to show that Dante is happy for her and wants her to succeed. They continue discussing her future plans but then Shay says “I just don’t want to think about that. Right now, I just want to think about burning my initial into your arm”. This adds the fact that she also doesn’t want to leave him, and she just wants to focus on the times they’re still with each other.
ReplyDeleteWhile Shay is making her tattoo on Dante, she pops the question “What if we break up?” She then adds “Not that we will or that I want that, because I don’t. But...what if we do?” With Shay saying this, it gives the reader the thought that they’re worried if their love lasts. Will long distance work for them? One of the consequences of love is leaving the people you love and the worry of keeping someone’s promises and trust through the journey.
Another sign of them being said of Shay moving is when Shay is talking about her future. She talks about how being near the water is good for her. She catches herself and says “And that’s good. I mean, it's not good that I have to move”. She doesn’t want to move because she is worried if their love will last. Another detail is that they bring up the first time they said “I love you” more than once throughout the story. Everytime with the time being upset/sad, and then longing for the time to come.
The figurative language in this short story I feel gives off a lot of emotion. It uses figurative language when Dante says “the girl who taught me how to tie my shoes so I wouldn’t hurt myself in now...hurting me”. To put it another way, this is a double meaning. She’s hurting him externally by giving him the eraser tattoo, but also her moving away is hurting him internally.
Another place the author used a double meaning was when they talked about how Shay enjoyed the sound of kissing. They described it as- like something sticking together, then coming unstuck. Not only did it provide imagery, but it also described their relationship in a way. They’re been with each other for almost their whole life, but now they’re being seperated/unstuck.
At the end of the story, Dante watches Shay and her mother pull away. Dante feels the burn and looks at the “S” burned onto his skin. The last two sentences of the story say “He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever. But the scar would.” He would always have that S on his arm and he would never forget her or his love for her.
In the short story “Eraser Tattoo” by Jason Reynolds, the main character Shay is moving away. Shay and her boyfriend Dante have to say their goodbyes. When they found out Shay was moving, they decided to give each other an eraser tattoo. Their dialogue throughout the short story helps us to find the theme. The characters Shay and Dante have known and loved each other for so long that when she moves away they will both be very hurt. The author uses dialogue, events/actions, and figurative language to help us find the theme of the story which is love can hurt as much as physical pain.
ReplyDeleteWhen Shay is getting ready to leave, she spends her last hours in her hometown with Dante. The author adds a flashback from when Dante first told Shay that he loved her for real. In the flash back, Dante said “I love you” and Shay said “No doubt homie” not believing him. This hurt Dante a lot because he had been building up the courage to tell her that he loved her.
We find out that Shay really did love him back. She didn’t know if he was serious or not so she was scared to say I love you back. Dante thought that his “heart would split in half” the way she reacted. Now he knows that she really did love him and they joke about it.
After they are done talking about the memory, they start talking again about the eraser tattoo. There is a part in the story where shay is asking Dante if the eraser tattoo hurts, and he said “It hurts, Shay. It hurts. It didn't at first but now it does.” This quote relates to the theme because not only does his wrist hurt where he is getting the tattoo, but his heart also hurts because shay leaving is becoming a reality.
While some people might think the theme is love can make you mean, there are a lot of reasons why that doesn’t work. Dante is the only person who got an eraser tattoo. He wanted to give one to Shay but she said no. If they broke up, she didn’t want a “big ugly D” on her wrist. This does make her sound mean, but right after that she said “Not that we will or that I want that, because I don’t. But…” This is proof to backup that love can make you mean doesn’t really work as the theme.
The whole plot of the story revolves around their love. It’s also about how they are getting hurt, and how their love has and is changing. For example, most of the short story takes place with Dante and Shay talking. They bring up past memories and the future that they want to have together. It shows how many moments and experiences they’ve had with each other.
There is a lot of figurative language in “Eraser Tattoo”. Some of the figurative language is repetition. When Dante was talking about how he was hurt when Shay said “no doubt homie”, Shay said “okay, okay”. That is repetition and that is important because after that she talked about how she always loved him and was too scared to say it back. The repetition shows theme because Shay didn’t mean to hurt Dante but he was crushed. The pain she caused him because of their love hurt as much as physical pain.
There was also symbolism at the very end of the story where it says “He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever, but the scar would.” The author used that sentence to show theme because not only does he have a scar on his wrist from Shays tattoo, but he also has a scar on his heart from Shay leaving.
In the end, all of this evidence leads back to the thesis, love can hurt as much as physical pain. They have known each other their whole lives and loved each other even if they only used to love each other as friends. The author used repetition in an important part of the story to show the theme. He also uses symbolism to show how love can be painful. He used plot, events, and character interactions to show theme. When Shay left, she left a scar on Dante's heart. Just like the scar from the eraser tattoo on his wrist.
Pt.1
ReplyDelete“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds, that takes place in Brooklyn, New York. What makes the story unique is that it shows us a different side of some relationships that not many people always hear about. Though there is a negative to the side it helps teach the readers even more about the theme. Shay and Dante are two teenagers who are in a relationship together while Dante loves Shay very much, Shay isn’t so sure. Shay is about to move away and Dante can’t cope with it. Dante has loved Shay from a young age, But Shay doesn’t love him back at some times. The author uses their relationship to teach readers about love, and that love can hurt.
While Shay and her dad are preparing to move to Wilmington, North Carolina, Dante is dreading it. From the beginning of the story, Dante has always reminded the readers how much he loves Shay. Many times Shay pushes Dante away in certain situations she says things such as “you didn’t mean it when you said it then,” But Dante has loved Shay since he said it when he was a little boy. Shay makes Dante feel very happy, but she continues to hurt him. Sometimes Shay doesn’t understand that what she’s doing to Dante hurts him more than she thinks.
Throughout the story, the author continues to use symbolism to get across the theme that love can hurt you. Not only do readers pick up on the symbolism to help uncover the theme but as the story goes on Dante picks up on symbols too. As the story goes on I believe that Dante starts to understand that what Shay is doing to him not only physically but as well as emotionally hurting him.
The pain that Dante faces in the relationship is not fair to him. “The girl who taught me how to tie my shoes so I wouldn’t hurt myself is now hurting me?” When Dante asks himself that question is when he really realizes and takes into account that he’s being hurt in his relationship, but he loves Shay too much to let her go. Shay knows to give him eraser tattoos is wrong as she continues to ask him if it hurts while she’s giving him one. At one point Dante says “I can give you a tattoo of a “D” so you can remember me by my initial.” But Shay simply said no “I'm too cute for that,” I think that Shay is holding something back.
Pt.2
ReplyDeleteHowever this may be interpreted as love doesn’t always work out, but it clearly means that love can hurt because I believe that Shay is hurting as well because she may not want to move away and so she’s coping with it in a different way than most people. Even though Dante is being hurt it doesn’t bother him because he loves Shay. “But I love you,” Dante stated. “ But it slipped too easily from his lips,” Shay thought. The author uses that line to show how both characters feel about each other.
The author uses different forms of figurative language to express how the characters are feeling or to help make the theme clearer. For example, the author included symbols, similes, and repetition in the story. Dante once said that “It hurt like someone was trying to strike me with a match.” By including that quote Dante is expressing to the readers what the pain of the eraser tattoo feels like, by using a simile and comparing it.
Not only do the quotes play an important role in the story but so does the repetition. Dante freely expressed his love towards Shay throughout the story, but what can be harder to recognize is that he kept repeating “Wilmington.” Wilmington is the town that Shay is moving to. So why does he keep repeating it? Dante can’t come to the realization that Shay is moving yet so as an outcome he keeps repeating the town's name multiple times.
At the end of the story, Dante is left sitting on the steps by the road. Shay played such an important role in his life and he feels there is nothing to do now that she’s gone. The point often overlooked is Dante coped with all of the pain just for love. It’s important to realize the toll that the relationship took on Dante’s life as well as his emotions. There were many positive sides to their relationship that wasn’t always talked about but in the end, it’s important to know that love can hurt, and now he’ll always remember her from the tattoo.
Part One
ReplyDelete“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds that takes place in the busy city of Brooklyn, New York. Two teenagers, Shay and her boyfriend Dante have lived here their whole lives, but things will be changing for them very soon. Since Shay will be moving to a new state she wants to find a way to make Dante remember and have a part of her forever. To do this, she gives him an eraser tattoo on his arm. The author uses the plot, symbolism, and figurative language to create an important theme about love. It teaches us about how love isn’t always easy and can end up hurting you.
At the beginning of the story, Shay and Dante are outside her old home while her family is finishing packing up their belongings. As Shay is imprinting her initial on Dante's arm a lot seems to be going on in his head. In fact, during their conversation, he tells Shay that he loves her, and it makes him think of a time long ago. The narrator then explains a time when they were much younger. In detail, Dante had told Shay he loved her back when they were only five years old and she had taught him how to tie his shoes. Ever since then, they were best friends. Another key point is given in a flashback where we learn about the first time Dante seriously told Shay he loved her. It was in the ninth grade after they did their special handshake and he didn’t let go right away. Following this event, he said, “I love you” to her and she responded with, “No doubt homie”. Dante described how he felt “crushed”. Obviously, Shay made up for this event and they love each other now. However, Shay continuously hurts Dante throughout the rest of the story as well.
For instance, when Dante asks why he can’t give Shay a tattoo but she can give him one, she claims, “The first is I can’t risk getting some kind of nasty eraser infection. I'm too cute for that”. She then tells him not to back out of it and she yanks at his arm to start the tattoo. From this, we can assume that Shay is fine with Dante getting hurt from it, but not herself. At one point he even says, “The girl who taught me how to tie my shoes so I wouldn’t hurt myself is now hurting me.” These specific events of the story show that although love can make you happy, it can hurt too.
Next, I feel that the author uses the idea of the eraser tattoo as a symbol for Shay moving away. For example, when Dante complains about how much the eraser hurts, Shay says, “Am I not worth the pain?” which makes him feel guilty and stop complaining so much. Then later on when she asks him if it hurts, he can't hold it in anymore and he exclaims, “It hurts, Shay. It hurts. It didn’t at first but now it does.” Thinking deeper, this statement could hold a stronger meaning. Such as, the hurt Dante is feeling about Shay moving away. Especially at the end of the story when it says, “And as they turned the corner, vanishing from sight, Dante glanced down at the S on his arm again. The burn. White where brown used to be. He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever. But the scar would”.
Part Two
ReplyDeleteThat quote also makes a reference back to earlier in the story, before Shay taught him how to tie his shoes. After it talks about Dante falling down and getting a band-aid the narrator says, “Then Dante would slowly peel it off because Shay always needed to see it, white where brown used to be, a blood speckled boo-boo waiting to be blown. Kissed”. All of the relating evidence clearly signifies the amount of hurt Shay is really pushing on Dante; even after she healed him.
In another part of the story, the narrator states that Dante was “trying his best not to quit” when Shay was working on the tattoo. Considering that Shay seems to be causing him so much stress and sadness it could give insight on how he’s really feeling about their relationship. Since there will be a lot of distance between them and he doesn’t know when he will see her again, Dante might be feeling a little hopeless. With this in mind, when they were talking about Shay moving she mentions the idea of breaking up. Even though she insists that it won’t happen and Dante doesn’t say much about it, it is notable that he is thinking about it too. If they stay together, will Shay continue to hurt Dante forever?
Lastly, there is definitely a great amount of figurative language involved in this piece that contributes to the theme. The most common one I found was the repetition. Throughout many parts of the story, Dante is found repeatedly thinking or saying the place Shay will soon be moving to; Wilmington. When Shay first mentions the exact place she is going, Dante thinks, “He had never heard of Wilmington, so he figured it was far. Figured it was a place buses couldn’t get to”. After this, they continue to talk and Dante says, “It don’t matter anyway, because when I get rich and famous for building bridges, I’m gonna build one from here to…” “Wilmington '', Shay interrupts. As the conversation continues, Dante mentions, “I just wanna make sure before you move to Willington-” “Wilmington”, says Shay, correcting him. Then finally when Shay is leaving Dante repeats his thoughts when it says, “Dante forced a smile, closed the door, and told Shay to call him when she got there. To Wilmington. A place he’d never heard of, where buses probably didn’t go”. Surely Dante is having an extremely hard time processing the idea of Shay leaving, and it’s destroying him. To cope with it, he continuously brings the topic up to Shay but she doesn’t seem to be interested. In other words, Shay is only thinking about herself in this time of hardship and doesn’t realize that it is affecting Dante too.
At the end of the story, we are left with Dante sitting alone after Shay leaves. As he reminisces on the day they spent together, Dante is beyond hurt. As he is unaware of when he will see her next, he will have some hard decisions to make. From this point on, the author leaves no further information therefore that is for the readers to think about. All we know is that love isn’t always what it seems, and sometimes we will do whatever it takes to make someone else happy; even when we are hurting. It certainly could be said that the theme is about how life is hard, which is a good point. However, it fails to account for the personal struggles Dante is having with love. The author shows these struggles by incorporating several literary elements into Dante's thoughts and words throughout the story. Hopefully, Shay will come to her senses and fix her mistakes, but until then Dante will have to make some choices to make for the better of himself.
Part 1
ReplyDelete“Eraser tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds that takes place in Brooklyn. The setting of this story is about a girl named Shay and a boy named Dante, they give each other eraser tattoos to remember each other since Shay is moving away. This short story is about love, and how love is so strong that you will risk anything for that person including getting an infection. The characters are doing this to show love for one another because they won't see each other in awhile. The author uses this story to show us that love can make you do crazy things.
I think that the reason they are doing this is because they want to remember each other and they want it to be visual. I think that Dante was sad that Shay was moving becasue he kept asking where she was moving and Shay said “ For the millionth time North Carolina”. Shay did not want to leave and you could tell she did not want to. Her dad left a day early to go set things up in their new house and asked if she wanted to go. All she said was no, instead she wanted to spend the next day sitting on her roof with Dante giving each other eraser tattoos. Dante and Shay knew they would miss each other very much, although they knew that it was gonna hurt them to be separating they started talking about how they were gonna save money up to buy plane tickets to see each other soon.
Part 2
ReplyDeleteThis story was mostly about love because Shay and Dante love each other very much. In the text “We did our normal handshake and hugged and when I went to pull away you would not let me go then we both said I love you” That's when they both knew that they both had feelings for each other. In other words that was when they both knew that they loved each other. I think that Shay and Dante seemed like friends more than they were dating cause, they did that handshake everyday and hugged and then they both said I love you but that time Dante would let go of Shay. When Shay and Dante are sitting on the roof they talked about the times when all they would do is talk and now since Shay is leaving they feel like there is little to talk about with each other.
At the end of the story when Shay is about to leave they sit all day on Shays roof so they can savior their last few hours together. When Shay and Dante are sitting on the roof they bring up the good old times to feel closer together. And when Shay leaves Dante said “I know the sting would not last forever but the scar would ''. Then they said their final goodbyes before it was time for Shay to leave that said that they would call every night and then Shay's mom said “Lets go” they said I love you and Dante watched Shay and her mom drive away into the fog.
“Eraser Tattoo”, is a short story by Jason Reynolds. It is about a teenage couple that lives in Brooklyn. However, the problem is that “Shay”, the girlfriend has to move away. Before she goes, she wants to imprint her initials into “Dante”, the boyfriend’s arm. Shay plans to do this via a painful eraser tattoo. The author uses this simple story to teach a valuable lesson on how to have acceptance for life’s changes; accepting doesn’t mean giving up on someone or something forever.
ReplyDeleteThe plot of the story illustrates the theme of the acceptance of change. This is because Dante has to accept that she has to move away. However, instead of saying goodbye forever, they use their time going through their memories and declaring that someday they will reunite. Another example is Shay’s itintals that she burnt into Dante’s arm. This is a symbol that shows that someday they will reunite, or at least remember each other. Both these examples explain that they love each other, but accept that they will be apart for a long time.
Another way the author shows us the theme is through setting. The setting of the story is at Shay’s house in Brooklyn. This is Shay’s childhood house where she lived her whole life. While the story goes on, the author uses a mini plot in the background. Shay’s mother has to accept moving away from the house she lived in for 22 years. This enforces the theme and lesson of the story, showing more than Dante and Shay having to adapt to things changing. It shows the many stages in life that people have to accept things. The author used another way to advance the setting. They did this by illustrating how far they have to move, explaining it was all the way to Wilmington, North Carolina. This helps create an out of reach feeling looming over Dante and the reader. “He had never heard of WIlmington, so he figured it was far. Figured it was a place buses couldn’t get to.”
Although this evidence could be interpreted as the complete opposite theme of completely letting go of people/things, it could also be seen as letting go of burdens. A reader could conclude that Dante was accepting that he couldn’t get to Wilmington, or he was accepting defeat over their relationship. However, I believe that the theme of not giving up on someone is still stronger. All of the evidence stacks up to them still loving each other and reuniting someday. They accept that she is moving, but focus on not giving up on each other.
Finally, one more way the author has shown the theme is using figurative language. One of the strongest symbolism used was at the end of the story. When Dante got his eraser tattoo finished and Shay left. The author ends with Dante’s finishing thought, “He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever. But the scar would.” Dante knew the pain from her leaving wouldn’t last forever, but the imprint that she left on his life would forever stick with him.
At the end of the story, when Shay is leaving with her mother, her mother understands how hard it is to accept leaving someone. As she gets ready to leave, she notices Shay & Dante. She gave them a sad grin of loss, love, and of understanding. “You ready, baby?...Dante walked Shay and her mother to the car,...he held his arm out so she could see her work. She blew on it, her breath cooling the burn for just a moment”. The “burn” of goodbye was real, “as they turned the corner, vanishing from sight.” However, he would still be waiting to return to her someday.
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds. The story is about two kids named Shay and Dante. What makes this story unique is that two best friends have a great bond and then start to realize that their friendship is breaking apart because Shay is moving away and Dante is making a `S'' on his arm for Shay. Shay and her parents start packing up everything in their house taking out all of the furniture and as this is happening shays mom cannot stop crying and saying that she would “Miss the small, two-bedroom, third story walk up with good sunlight, and the hardwood floors.”
ReplyDeleteLater in the story when Dante was finishing the ‘S” on his arm he said it felt like “It felt like someone was trying to strike a match on his arm.” At the end of the story when shay and her parents were driving away the author shows that friendship lasts forever because even though they will be far away they will remember each other forever and as this was happening Dante said he knew “the sting wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.”
This event could mean that love lasts forever but clearly means that friendship lasts forever because with the quote when Dante said “The scar wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.” shows how whenever he looks at his arm he would think of shay and how their friendship would last forever.
In the short story Eraser Tattoo by Jason Reynolds a couple, Shay and Dante are getting separated because of college. Shay is leaving for college in Wilmington, North Carolina, where they live now is Brooklyn. Shay had an idea to give Dante an eraser tattoo of her initials. This story takes place outside Shays house in the front seat of a truck.
ReplyDeleteShay does feel any empathy towards Date, she talks about how that might break up, tells him to suck up the pain ,, turns down any conversation about their future while she's breaking open his skin with a pencil eraser. Yes the theme could also be empathy, but I believe it's more love causes you to be blind to selfishness because she doesn't care about his feelings. Shay makes it a whole big deal when he starts complaining that it's starting to burn by saying “am I worth the pain” and of course Dante responds with something to defend himself “whatever Shay. Aint like your getting my initials so don't give me that.” That's just one example why she doesn't want to commit or just is being selfish towards their relationship.
Another example is when they were talking about why Shay isn't getting an eraser tattoo she said “I can't risk getting some kind of nasty eraser infection” that's say8ing she can't get an infection but she doesn't care if he gets one. The last example is at the end of the story when Dante says “I love you” Shay says “no doubt homies” just like the first time Dante said I love you.
The eraser tattoo is a symbol that Dante is willing to commit to being with her even though its turning into a long distance relationship, Shay is not willing to do that to make the relationship last. Dante says repeatedly that she's hurting him, nut Shay doesn't care she keeps hurting him after he says it over and over. Dante is getting the tattoo and Shay is, not shows that Shay doesn't want Dante to let go of her and move on but Shay doesn't get one so that means she's willing to let go of him and move on.
This event clearly shows that love causes you to be blind to selfishness. Shay does not care about how Dante is feeling, he wants their relationship to have a future but Shay doesn't think they will, she turns down the conversation when he starts talking about how he wants them to have their own house together and start a family. At the end of the story Dante seems like he's starting to realize that she isn't ready to commit like he is.
“Eraser Tattoo” by Jason Reynolds takes place in modern day Brooklyn. Shay and Dante the main characters are sitting on Shay’s (old) apartment steps waiting. They are waiting for her mother who can’t stop crying. She can’t stop crying because her, Shay, and Shay’s father are moving away. While Dante and Shay are waiting they are going to do something they have been planning since she got the news. She is going to give Dante an eraser tattoo. The whole time Shay is tattooing Dante the new tenants who bought the apartment are pushing past them moving their stuff in. The author uses Shay and her family leaving to show how much hurting it brings to not only her family, but also her and Dante. That is why I think the theme is the consequence of love.
ReplyDeleteFirst, the author uses dialogue between Shay and Dante to show the theme. The whole time Dante and Shay are just trying to forget she’s leaving, and they’re also reliving their moments together. Therefore things like Dante not giving Shay a tattoo, Shay’s father coming back to kill him if he did, and Dante getting hurt from a once happy memory show the consequence of love. Shay and Dante have known eachother forever. It's been Shay and Dante, but Dante made you and me, us. Since they started dating Shay and Dante have fallen deeper in love. Now the thought of leaving brings them to tears. In other words loving something just makes it harder and harder to say goodbye.
“What I wanna know is why you get to give me one, but I can’t give you one”. That quote from the story is Dante asking why I get to remember you but you don’t get to remember me. To put it differently sometimes when you love something so much remembering it when it’s gone is just too much to bear. Other times you love it so much you need to remember it. A consequence if Dante gave Shay a tattoo, as Shay said,”And the second is my dad will come back, find you, and kill you for marking me”. His consequence is her father's wrath, that quote however proves my theme because the tattoo is a symbol for their love, and the consequence is Dante getting a painful scar and Shay not getting anything because of her father's love.
“And you remember what you said? Dante bit his lip to hold in a grunt. Again, part eraser, part memory”. To emphasize, Dante was remembering the first time he said I love you too Shay, but now that she’s leaving that memory hurts. Memories can be wonderful especially when they're full of love. Yet those memories that once brought happiness can now bring hurting. That’s what happened to Dante, his once happy memories with Shay now remind him of her leaving and it hurts him. There are now no memories left to make. “It hurts, Shay. It didn’t at first but now it does”. Dante was talking about the tattoo, but he was really talking about his memories. At first they were full of love because they were with Shay. When she's gone though his memories will fade and so will that love. The scar is a way to remember, a way to bring back all that love.
Second, the author uses symbolism to show the consequences of love. The big symbol of the whole story is obviously the scar. The scar represents their love. Another symbol is the moving truck with the new tenants. The tenants are rushing past them trying to push them out of the way. Shay’ family’s apartment is a symbol itself. The apartment represents her family’s love and memories. These symbols help show what happens when you love whether it be good or bad.
The scar or tattoo is a way to show love, but also a way to show loss. The scar on it’s own is a symbol for their love. Shay tattoos the scar on Dante because she’s leaving. It’s a way for Dante to remember her and the love they shared. The last sentences of the story are, “He knew the sting wouldn't last forever, but the scar would”. The sting represents their relationship, it won’t last forever. Although (the scar) their love will. To clarify when you love something the way Dante loved Shay and Shay loved Dante, no matter what happens that love will stay. You may not always feel it but it’s there deep in your memories.
ReplyDeleteThe moving truck and the tenants are a symbol for consequence. The author describes the moving truck as a “replacement”. The truck is replacing the old within moments of it’s absence. Surely that is a symbol for how life can quickly change and take things away. Although it could be argued that the truck is a symbol for life and the tenants represent change, and that makes the theme life can change in an instant. Despite that argument the text actually has more evidence to prove the theme is the consequence of love. The new tenants are constantly pushing past Shay and Dante trying to, it seems like get rid of them. This eventually makes them get up to move out of their way and then they have to say goodbye; with their last moments forced to and end. Then the apartment where Shay and her family have lived since her birth, is a symbol. Her Mother who has to leave her home and the love and memories they brought, can not stop crying. Because the apartment is where Shay took her first steps, said her first words, it is her family’s love that makes it so hard to leave.
Finally, figurative language in the story is rare, but when it is there it’s meaningful. The author describes Shay turning her heart on...Or off off before giving Dante the tattoo. He uses figurative language to describe a kissing noise and the way he does is almost a metaphor to Shay and Dante. Also figurative language is with Dante and how he's exaggerating the distance that that will soon be between him and Shay.
Probably the most prominent figurative language in the story is when Shay touches her hand to heart like pushing a button to turn her heart on, or off. She does this right before she is going to give Dante the tattoo. I believe she does this because when she’s done she knows she must leave. Indeed that hurts her a lot, so much that she feels she can’t give him the tattoo without breaking inside. So she feels she must turn her heart off. That really shows the theme consequence of love because she loves him so much that the thought of being without him breaks her heart. So she momentarily turns her heart off to avoid the hurt, the pain, the consequence of her love.
Another way the author uses figurative language to show theme is through the use of imagery. A scene with a kissing noise to be exact. He describes the noise like something coming together then coming unstuck. That is Shay and Dante they stuck together all their life now their coming unstuck. He also uses repetition. He uses repetition a couple of times, but the one I want to explain is when Dante said “where buses probably didn’t go”. He says this once near the beginning of the story and once near the end of the story. What he said is also kind of exaggeration because he is acting like there is no possible way to get to Shay. It’s important to realize that because he is feeling so hurt from the consequence of his love for Shay, he can’t think of much else than what he’s going to do without her.
At the end of “Eraser Tattoo” Dante and Shay say their final goodbyes. Dante says “I love you” like normal to Shay and says “No doubt homie” then pinches him on the butt. Although Shay’s moving away and Dante may never see her again; the author still ends the story with love not loss. Sure their consequence of them loving each other brought them great sadness, a scar that will never heal, but a love they will never forget. The author uses love to show the theme consequences of love at the end. I believe he does this to show there is no better consequence than love. If Shay and Dante never loved each other there would be no memories of love, no moments of happiness spent together, no consequence at all. Yes love can have harsh consequences, but they can be beautiful.
ReplyDeleteEraser tattoo is a short story by Jason Reynolds that takes place in Brooklyn Nyc where a couple love each other but one has to move away.This story is like a drama book because of how the relationship is.The theme of the book is love and caring can last forever but long distance relationship can last forever.
ReplyDeleteThe characters can show themes of how they act together and how they show love to each other by saying they love each other and how they kiss each other.How ever shay didn’t want to do it because of her dad and like she was having second thoughts about things but,Dante and Shay feelings changed when they had to leave each other.Dante and shay reflect on the books that they read and how they love the book however they come to find out that they love each other.Shay show her feelings to Dante by actions not words.
Their events in the book where they met when they were kids and how they met.Shay dad would be mad if she got a tattoo .They talk about how they fell in love.
Part 1
ReplyDeleteIn the short story “Eraser Tattoo” by Jason Reynolds, two characters named Shay and Dante are in a relationship. However, Shay is moving away. She decides to give Dante an eraser tattoo before she goes. As the story goes on, they talk about their possible futures, and they talk about their history together. As you read, you can see that Shay is rude to Dante showing that; love can cause you to be blind to selfishness.
When Shay’s dad leaves to get ahead of traffic, Shay starts doing Dante’s “Tattoo”. However he is kinda perplexed why she’s giving him one, but he can’t give her one. He even says “What I wanna know is, why you get to give me one, but I can't give you one.” She responds “Two reasons. The first is that I can't risk getting some kind of nasty eraser infection. I’m too cute for that.” This quote demonstrates her lack of love, and she doesn’t care that he could get an infection. He is risking an infection for his girlfriend who can’t do the same for him.
Later in the story, the eraser tattoo is being given and it's starting to hurt him. He tells her that it's starting to hurt, but she responds “Am I not worth the pain?” In this case, she makes it about her. Making him feel the pain, and giving him a scar to make sure he remembers her. However, she could get in the car and completely forget about him.
However, it’s not just the words she says that show it, it’s also her actions in the story. As I’ve said, she gives him an eraser tattoo. She does it without one given to her. Even before she started working on it, she was being pushy about it. They have a flashback in time, but once they are back in the present, they kiss. Quickly after she scolds him saying “Don’t try to get out of this, Dante” As a result of not wanting an eraser tattoo, she scolded her boyfriend. As it also appears she doesn't want an eraser tattoo either, because she thought she was “Too cute for that.”
Part 2
ReplyDeleteAt one point, they were talking about their future. The possibility of seeing each other again, or breaking up. She talks if she did get an eraser tattoo, and then they broke up. She said “Then I gotta have that ugly D on my arm forever,” and he responded “And I’m gonna have this S.” She then responds with “Yeah, but at least you’ll be able to tell people it’s a snake or something.” She notably doesn’t show that she cares about him if they break up. She doesn’t care about his future if they break up or stay together. She only cares about her future, her life. Not about the person who is showing her that he cares.
Now we must rewind back to after she said her two reasons for not getting an eraser tattoo. The second reason was that she believed her dad would come back and kill Dante for “marking” her. But he said “Kill me? Please. Your pops loves me.” After a few more words are said, She then “pushed her finger into her own sternum, like pushing a button to her heart on. Or off.” As a result of her action, we can see for only a split second that he is uncertain if she actually cares. Yet, he still goes on with the tattoo. He acts like she didn't do that, acts like it didn’t hurt him a little. He acts like she doesn't want the tattoo cause it might hurt too much. He believes it’s something that would mean she still loves him.
The author also points something out about their possible future. He repeats the city Shay is moving too. The city is Wilmington, North Carolina. Dante couldn’t remember what city and to show his love, he said he was going to build a bridge. So while saying “....I’m gonna build one from here to,” She said “Wilmington” and then he repeated to finish his sentence. But after he finishes she says “Or you could just buy me a plane ticket.” By all means, she could have said “or I’ll just buy a ticket,” or said “I’ll just buy you a ticket, just to save you some work.” But made it about him buying her the ticket. He could buy his own ticket, and while there they could walk the ocean together. Which, that statement could be interpreted as love has no limit or something else. However it's clearly Love can cause you to be blind to selfishness, because it showed she wouldn’t spend money to go to him. Or spend the money for him to come to her. She makes it about everything for her, not anything for someone else.
In the end, they say their goodbyes. Like normal he says “ I love you,” but she doesn't respond the same. She responds with what she said the first time he said it that way. She responds the same way she did when she thought he was joking. She said “No doubt homie.” The author leaves us wondering about their future, or their futures. We’ll never know if they stay together, or if they break apart.
Eraser tattoo by Jason Reynolds is a short story about a girl named Shay; Who is spending her last moments with her boyfriend Dante; while her mom packs up everything into the truck, and the couple who bought the house then move in their stuff. Like I just said the story is mainly about Shay and Dante spending their last moments together, sharing memories, talking, and of course Shay giving Dante an eraser tattoo. The author uses this to show an example that not everyone you love can stay in your life forever. They might have to eventually leave/move away.
ReplyDeleteJason uses figurative language like “All packed into a clunky truck” to show that while Shay and Dante were spending time together, Shays mom had everything packed into the truck, but instead of using the word packed. He called the truck clunky to show in a different way that everything is packed.
However adding on to that figurative language he said “Already heading south” to show that, that’s where they are heading, south to Wilmington.
Now moving on, my introduction explained the plot of the story which is Shay giving Dante an eraser tattoo, and all of the other things I just explained in my introduction. Now all of this leads up to the theme because, it's basically hinting at what will happen. It says on the third page to be exact that Shay is moving to Wilmington which is in North Carolina.
Lastly characters, characters are a big part that lead up to the theme of this short story. How so you may ask? Well Shay is the one who is leaving Brooklyn and heading south for Wilmington.
Now on the other hand Dante is the one who is staying in Brooklyn. It's not like just because someone you love is moving; in this case Shay; you have to move too. Shay had a reason to leave. Which is to pursue a career in saving the ocean. However with Dante he has no reason to go. He has no career he wants to pursue that involves moving to Wilmington too. The only reason he'd go is to be with Shay.
In conclusion my theory for the theme in this short story is that not everyone you love can stay in your life forever. For Dante, his girlfriend who he loves very much is leaving south to Wilmington, while he stays here in Brooklyn.
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds. The story is about two kids named Shay and Dante. What makes this story unique is that two best friends have a great bond and then start to realize that their friendship is breaking apart because Shay is moving away and Dante is making a `S'' on his arm for Shay.
ReplyDeleteShay and her parents start packing up everything in their house taking out all of the furniture and as this is happening shays mom cannot stop crying and saying that she would “Miss the small, two-bedroom, third story walk up with good sunlight, and the hardwood floors.”
After living in Brooklyn her whole life, Shay wants to expand her career with the sea and being by the ocean would help her so Shay and her family are moving to North Carolina. These actions show the theme with how Shay and Dante’s friendship will always be with them no matter what.
Later in the story when Dante was finishing the ‘S” on his arm he said it felt like “It felt like someone was trying to strike a match on his arm.”
At the end of the story when shay and her parents were driving away the author shows that friendship lasts forever because even though they will be far away they will remember each other forever and as this was happening Dante said he knew “the sting wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.”
This event could mean that love lasts forever but clearly means that friendship lasts forever because with the quote when Dante said “The scar wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.” shows how whenever he looks at his arm he would think of shay and how their friendship would last forever.
In the short story “Eraser Tattoo” by Jason Reyonlds, Dante and Shay are having a deep conversation because Shay is moving away. This conversation leads up to an eraser tattoo given Dante by Shay to show the love they have. I believe that the theme of this story is love can hurt but if it’s real ,the pain is worth it. The author shows us an important lesson because falling in love will hurt you.
ReplyDeleteWhile Shay is giving Dante the eraser tattoo they start talking about her moving. When the eraser tattoo starts hurting Dante, Shay sees that it’s hurting him. Shay asked if it was hurting him. Dante stated that it hurt slightly but really the pain was extreme. Therefore repetition of the word hurt is showing that the move is hurting him. It’s symbolising that the hurt or pain is the way he feels about Shay moving.
“It hurts Shay. It hurts. It didn’t at first, but now it does.” When Dante says this he might be talking about the eraser tattoo but he’s also talking about her moving or her leaving. This quote showa a relationship to the theme. In other words Shay and Dante’s memories are hurting him. Love hurts.
Dante and Shay start talking about the first time they said “I love you” but meant it other then friends. After Dante just said “ I love you” Shay said “No doubt homie.” Although it could be argued that love will always be there. The text shows that love will hurt is the theme. That is to say this shows them going back the first time they meant I love you. Showing they love each other even though Shay is moving away.
The conversation they had about how much the eraser tattoo hurt showed how much Dante truly loved Shay, and how far he would go for how much he loved her. The obstacle of Shay moving away effects their life and thought process. Shay does a reality check on Dante. She states how they could break up. Shay and Dante start thinking. Finally Shay states that she wouldn’t want that to happen. However Dante is realizing that if they do breakup he would be losing the love of his life, and his best friend. This dialogue also shows that the main theme is love hurts.
At the end of the story Shay is saying goodbye to Dante and gets in the car. Dante looks at the “s” on his arm and thinks something very powerful. In the story it states “He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever, but the scar would.” In fact, this is showing that Dante went through the pain of getting the eraser tattoo because the love he had for Shay was so strong. He truly loves Shay and would do anything for her and their love.
In the end love does hurt but if it’s real it’s worth the pain.
“Eraser Tattoo” is a short story by Jason Reynolds. This story takes place in Brooklyn. It’s about two best friends and their love for each other and one of them named Shay is moving away. Shay wants to Eraser Tattoo Dante. She wants to do it before she leaves. They talk about their love for each other. They also talk about their past.
ReplyDeleteI believe the theme for “Eraser Tattoo” is when you love someone a part of them will always be with you. One example would be the eraser tattoo. It symbolizes Shay’s place in Dante’ heart. That tattoo will always be on Dante. Another example would be the phrase that they use. “No doubt homie.” That phrase is unique and those words will always stick in his brain.
Even though Shay is moving their years of friendship. Especially when everytime Dante got a cut, Shay would blow on them. They even made their own special hand shake. Which you may think that what the theme could be friendship. The Eraser Tattoo is too much of a symbol for it to be.
Dante says “...when I get rich and famous for building bridges I’m gonna build one from here to WIlmington.” It shows how far he’ll go to be with Shay and keep their bond alive. He also said he’d buy her a whole plane. It shows that Shay will always be with Dante. He’d do anything for her that’s that love inside that will be with him forever.
The author’s figurative language was hard to find. Nevertheless, he used repetition with “Wilmington.” He also used it with the phrase “No doubt homie.”
At the end of the story when Shay and Dante hug and say good-bye. Dante saying “I love you.” and the author saying it slipped easily from his lips. Then at the very end it says “He knew the sting wouldn’t last forever but the scar would.” That example is perfect to say that the theme is indeed when you love someone a part of them will always stay with you.