Week 4 Exercises:

1.
Martin “Tincho” Hernandez- goes by Martin, and won’t accept being called by his childhood diminuitive, “Tincho”, with the exception of those he knows, loves, and trusts; those who have truly been with him since childhood. Martin was born on November 14, 1991 (nine months, to the day, from Valentine’s Day, as his mother and many others are apt to remind him), in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic. The oldest of three children, Martin is the only child to have journeyed with his parents in 2000 from their original home in the Dominican Republic to the United States, in search of better opportunities to make a meaningful living. His memories of the Dominican Republic are hazy, though semi-annual trips to his original hometown and family have done their part to keep intact his pride, identity, and cultural heritage. The young Hernandez family struggled mightily in their new home, a housing project in the Bronx, New York City, New York; in this regard, his story is not unusual. Still, young Martin grew up knowing the nature of love, as his parents, both college graduates in the D.R., worked tirelessly cleaning houses and to provide for the young boy and each other, seldom quarreled, and demonstrated a genuine love for each other that kept the family’s bond strong through trying times. Martin excelled in the classroom, and the baseball field- despite being aged 8 at his arrival in New York, he was placed into the 1st grade at his local elementary school; the very next year, he was boosted to the fourth grade, where he continued to impress with both his intelligence and his work ethic. Over time, his parents settled into steady (though low-paying) employment, and despite the cost of raising his two younger brothers, eventually settled the family, renting a small condo all their own. It is the proudest moment of their lives. In high school, Martin displayed an unrelenting tenacity as a pitcher during High School, completing a no-hitter in which he threw over 140 pitches, refusing to be taken out of the game at his coaches’ insistence. He gained the respect and admiration of his peers, in addition to a reputation of being a bit too serious for his own good. His friends, largely from the neighborhood he grew up in, hold him to a higher standard than they hold themselves; many are the cheerful, good-natured type, and they lack the opportunities Martin has earned for himself. He is incredibly loyal to them, and to his family, and believes that everything he does is for them. Martin earned a scholarship to prestigious Columbia University, where he studies law in the hopes of becoming a successful attorney in New York City. By all accounts, he is a one-in-a-million type of person.
2 (Concrete goal)
Martin’s goal is to provide the best life possible for himself and his family, bringing them out of the so-called “poverty trap” faced by many immigrants and eliminating the precariousness and drudgery from their daily lives.
3. (Demonstrative action) Martin rises just before dawn, smartly dressed, making his way through the seedy, unkempt streets of his neighborhood to the subway that will transport him to Columbia for an early workout followed by morning classes.
4. (Antagonist)
Mikey O’Brien, 54. O’Brien was born and raised in Long Island, accustomed to trips to Yankee Stadium, Central Park, and other New York establishments with his father, a prominent Wall St. banker. A gregarious, outgoing person, Mike O’Brien seemed to glide smoothly through life, rarely facing consequences for any of his youthful misdeeds and oversight. An indifferent student, more prone to going to the city to goof off with buddies, he attended Hofstra University in Nassau county in the late 70s, studying Economics in anticipation of following in his father’s footsteps. Mikey certainly doesn’t like