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Literary Prohibition, by Alex Andy Phuong

27/2/2021

 
FOOD
During The Roaring Twenties, people defied the laws of prohibition. There might have been a law against drinking alcohol, but some people have also been denied the ability to read. That is a very unfortunate truth in the real world because there have been times in history in which women faced discrimination because of their gender. Therefore, it is a blessing to know that literary works have the ability to enrich the mind and enlighten the soul, for knowledge is like food for the brain. This story is about summoning the courage to defy convention, and advocating the right to literacy…
Violet was much more than a dainty flower. She was a beautiful woman who loved to read. She also had two friends named Daisy and Rose, and they would oftentimes gather together to read secretly. They had to do this because of how patriarchy and white supremacy went against the notion of women having the right to vote and think like their male counterparts. Violet knew that she wanted to be a schoolteacher ever since she taught herself to read at a precociously young age. Violet also enjoyed her name because the color purple was a mixture of calming blue with the fiery passion of red flames.
The color red foreshadowed her demise, though. While walking around New York, Violet had flowers in one hand and a (supposedly) empty bag in the other. A homeless man was begging for food, money. and forgiveness while lying around on the street one morning in August. Violet was generous enough to give the man a dime, but the aging man grabbed the bag to see if there was food inside. Instead, he found a book that belonged to Rose. Because of the law against reading, the homeless man started shouting with pain, agony, and pure anger. Police assembled swiftly and violently…
Violet struggled to escape the grasp of the policeman who wanted to confiscate her book.
“Does it matter if I am a woman?!”
“I’m sorry miss…but the law is the law.”
Daisy and Rose were part of the crowd that accompanied the large and disturbing scene. Since they both loved Violet so much, they started beating the policeman in an attempt to set Violet free. Chaos then broke out about all because of an inedible object that composed of merely ink and paper.
A year had passed since that horrific incident took place. Violet’s husband, named Daniel, was mourning the loss of his one true love on another hot and sticky morning in August exactly one year after the unfortunate occurrence. Daniel still honored the legacy of Violet, and planted several violet flowers on the grave at the local cemetery. Rose’s grave had roses growing in front of her gravestone, and Daisy had nothing in front of hers simply because no one in the town really loved her. In spite of that empty and bare spot, Daniel placed some bread upon the ground as an attempt to fill that void.
Mary Wallace
28/2/2021 12:42:24 am

Some interesting facts here Alex. Thank goodness the world has moved on since there. I wouldn't want to live in a world without my books.

Sue Clayton
28/2/2021 01:20:13 am

Was this true, Alex? These three women were truly beautiful blossoms in the literary garden.

Alex Andy Phuong link
5/3/2021 10:51:59 pm

Hi there. This is a work of fiction, but thank you for enjoying it.


Comments are closed.

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