INTRODUCTION
The theme of my portfolio is childhood. My essential question asks how our childhood affects us as we get older. My portfolio includes works I have written as I progressed through year, starting with an excerpt from my summer reading assignment, and ending with an analysis of Chuck Palahniuk’s novel Survivor. Also included is an essay on my personal dreams, a video portraying a modern take on
Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, an excerpt from an essay about
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter, and an interview with my mom about my theme. All of these works have a common connection to my theme of childhood.
The first essay in my portfolio is an analysis of my summer reading book,
Kristin Hannah’s Night Road. The excerpt I chose to analyze showed the background of the protagonist’s childhood. The protagonist, Lexi grew up in foster care, constantly moving from house to house, from a family of strangers to another family of strangers. This constant movement from house to house, not having a definite family, and lack of a stable environment as a child affects Lexi as she get older. It affects her decision making, lifestyle choices, and feelings as she matures. Because of her childhood situations, Lexi’s life is completely transformed, thus relating to my theme of a childhood connection.
The next piece of work in my portfolio is an essay about my personal dreams.
This connects to my theme of childhood in many ways. For one, I talk about how my childhood shaped my dreams for the future. For example, because I grew up in a large, tight-knit family, I would like to start and be part of a large, tight-knit family

when I am older. My life as a child was shaped by music, causing me to pursue a career in music. As a child, I was constantly surrounded by medicine because my uncle was a doctor. This instilled in me a desire to grow up and become a doctor as well. I talk about becoming a pediatrician, helping kids have as good a childhood as possible.
The next slide in my portfolio is a modern video adaptation of Mark Twain’s
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. My video deals with peer pressure, a common problem in teens. Many children are faced with problems related to peer pressure, whether they are 3 and pressured into playing tag instead of drawing, or 17 and pressured into smoking, abusing drugs, or committing a crime. My video ties into peer pressure because Tom tries to pressure Huck into playing a terrible prank on
Jim. Peer pressure, a common problem in young people, often shapes the childhood of many people. Peer pressure can lead to addiction, depression, and dependency, which in turn can lead to much worse lifestyles as they mature into adults. This is another example of how a person’s childhood affects the rest of their life.
My next excerpt is an excerpt from an essay written about the contrast between private and public guilt in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlet Letter. In the novel, Hester suffers from public guilt, as opposed to Dimmesdale, who is suffering from private guilt. Hester is better off in the long run than Dimmesdale because she is open about her guilt. A reason for this openness is Pearl, her daughter born through sin. Many things- lies, isolation, symbolism, and more shaped Pearl’s childhood. Pearl was greatly affected by these things and had to learn to stand up to

bullies, read past deception, and realize she couldn’t trust everyone. This is another example of how childhood shaped someone’s future.
My next work is a Song of Myself poem. It relates me to an orchestra. I was able to write and relate to this because of my knowledge of an orchestra. Because my childhood was filled with an appreciation of music, orchestras, band, rehearsals, and performances, it affected me as I grew older. This poem is a demonstration of my knowledge, which was shaped throughout my childhood.
My next essay is about the dangers of conformity as satirized by Chuck
Palahniuk in his novel Survivor. The essay talks about conformity in children.
Because children conform at such an early age, most of them loose a lot of their individuality. A loss of individuality is common among young children, yet another connection between the effects of childhood on adulthood.
My last piece is an interview with my mom about my theme. The answers to my questions prove that childhood does have a profound effect on adults. Decisions, lifestyles, friends, education, and everything in between had an effect on my mom as he or she matured.
Throughout my portfolio, a common theme between all of my pieces was childhood. Each piece has a link to the effects of childhood on adults. My essential question asks whether or not our childhood affects us as adults. All of my pieces address this essential question and theme of childhood.