Emily EnrightShort StoryPeriod March 13, 2014Initiation for Short ReadersInitiation is not just an urban myth or a lie to tell to misbehaving little children. Initiation is the act of starting something new and it comes in many different forms and experiences. Some people go through college initiation when they want to join a sorority or fraternity in order to engage in challenges and tasks that showcase their best abilities. Others go through initiation when it is time to make the right decision in difficult decisions. In each of the short stories we read in class last week, A&P, Initiation, and Taking a Life, each character faces a challenge in which they all rise and make the best decision based on the situation they find themselves in. In the stories, the main character Millicent participates in dares and embarrassing tasks just so she can be accepted into Lansing High School's elite social sorority. Millicent is just trying to fit into the normal high school hierarchy by accepting the social group's invitation. “Millicent had waited a long time to be accepted, longer than most” (Plath 3). It seems obvious that Millicent has always envied the more popular cool girls because they never accepted that they would accept her, and getting the invitation means she was finally good enough to even be considered. Throughout the story, you see Millicent struggle to find a balance between being true to herself and being popular. In the end, she realizes that it is more important to be true to who she really was than to conform to other standards. “The other victory would be much more difficult, but she knew it was what she wanted. It wasn't that she was noble or anything. It was just that she understood that there was a lot of paper...... in the middle, I saw them at the airport, where I then exploded with funny stories and details. I think it was my introduction to becoming my own person and becoming independent, which is what my parents trained me to do. In many cases of initiation, it is important for the protagonist to step back and examine themselves and their decisions. Each of the characters in each of the short stories is thinking about things, whether it's how they are treated, or how others are treated, or what other people feel. Each of the characters discovers new truths about life in their own way. Not only do the characters go through changes and make decisions that affect their futures, but we experience them with them. From the characters we read about on paper to the people we see on movie screens, we all go through life at our own pace and evolve into new people with our own approval..