Many children have divorced parents and are faced with many situations and problems
such as morality. The story "Ashes" by Susan Beth Pfeffer is about a girl named ashes who's
parents are divorced, and her father has financial problems. The father wants ashes to take her
mothers disaster money so he can settle some financial problems. This short story shows how
someone who cares about you can change your life so greatly and make you do tasks you
aren't comfortable doing. This story also shows the reader how desperate some people are for
money. Ashes needs to know when her father is taking advantage of her, and she has to be able
to say no. This story is revolved around the fathers need for money and how he is handling it
immorally.
Ashes father doesn't understand how she is not someone to rely on for financial aid. One
example of this is when Ashes father says " "You're one in a million," he said to me.
"The best daughter a man could dream of." " Ashes father is telling ashes how wonderful and
amazing she is and how she's the best daughter ever, but he is actually just using these words
to manipulate ashes into stealing the money. Another example of the father manipulating Ashes
is " "You look radiant," he said. "You get more and more beautiful. Turn around. Let me admire
every single inch." " the father is always so nice to Ashes, she loves him, but he uses her love to
manipulate her into stealing money from her own mother, which is a horrible thing for a father to
tell a daughter to do. Ashes relationship with her father is very strong. Ashes says that whenever
she saw her dad, "the sun cast off just a little more warmth than it had the day before." This
shows how strong their relationship is with each other.
Ashes doesn't realize that her father is nice to her to manipulate her later on. One piece
of evidence is that her father says " "For a special date with my daughter?" he replied. "Of
course I can afford it..." " this quote shows the reader how much the father and Ashes love each
other. The author also puts symbols into her writing one of these symbols are the weather. This
is a symbol because when her father is around, it is not as cloudy and cold. Another symbol in
the text is the ash grey sky at the end. This represents ashes emotions and how she feels about
stealing the money. Ashes mother would never do anything like what ashes father would do.
The father dreams about his life, while the mother is realistic and sees that dreams don't always
come true, and she can accept that and be prepared for things to come.
All in all, Ashes father may love her and she may love him, but that doesn't mean that he
can manipulate and influence ashes poorly. The father should learn to get a job and save his
money and spend it wisely. He also needs to come to reality and see how horribly he is
influencing his daughter. In her future, a bad influence may have a detrimental impact.
