As a plane crashes somewhere in northern Canada, two passengers have been left to survive on their own, but first, they must recognize and put aside their significant differences. In the short story “Walk Well My Brother” by Farley Mowat, Charlie, a white, male, airplane operator, and Konala, a young, indigenous, woman living in Yellowknife. Charlie has many differences from Konala. Charlie is ignorant while Konala is intelligent, Charlie is selfish while Konala is selfless, and Charlie is not good at dealing with stressful situations and Konala, on the other hand, is very good at dealing with stressful situations.
To begin, In the short story “Walk Well My Brother” the characters Charlie and Konala are different because Charlie is ignorant
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At this point in the story, the plane that Charlie was operating crashes in an isolated place in northern Canada. This trait of ignorance in Charlie is evident in the following quote just after the plane crash; “he began to climb the slope [...] Konala was squatting by a tiny fire seemingly unaware that he is deserting her” (Mowat 175). This quote shows that Charlie is ignorant because by deserting Konala he is very ignorant of the skills she possessed in the cold and unforgiving environment that they were in. Charlie thought that Konala would be of no help. Therefore he deserted her. The trait of intelligence in Konala is portrayed in various places in the story, but it is most evident after Konala saves Charlie from death after he deserted her. The trait of intelligence is seen in Konala when the author states, “Konala gave him the completed skin boots carefully lined with …show more content…
At this point in the story, Charlie and Konala are traveling for help while at the same time looking for food and new places to stay in the night. A bear is spotted by Konala in the field, and it is heading towards them Konala “swerved away, even though this brought her closer to the bear. [...] she was attempting to distract the beast”(Mowat 80). During this time in the story, Konala is taking care of, feeding, and giving Charlie all the means to live. This act of courage by Konala clearly shows the selflessness and kindness of herself to the extent that she distracted a bear to give Charlie a better chance of surviving. Charlie’s characteristic of selfishness is seen throughout the story but most of all during the beginning of the story when Charlie was in Yellowknife. A young Eskimo touched his arm and pointed to the tent, as he went over he said, “Theses huskies might have a few white fox pelts to trade” (Mowat 171). This quote shows that the only reason Charlie went into the tent was not to see if everything was okay but it was to see if there was anything he could get out of walking over to the tent, in turn being very selfish. At this point in the story Charlie is asked to fly Konala to a hospital, and at first, he says no, but one of the other men shows “two walrus tusks [...] of exceptional quality”(Mowat 172).
Charlie’s friendship with Jasper Jones, his parents, and witnessing the intolerance of Corrigan are the three biggest factors in Charlie's development from innocence to experience. Jasper Jones exposed him to fear and forced him to be brave and face his fears, the rampant intolerance in Corrigan, both racial and otherwise, exposed him to the injustices of the real world, and his relationship with his parents taught him to be diplomatic and control his
Have you ever become embarrassed because you were different? The author Lensey Namioka wrote about a girl who felt left out because her family was unique. Many authors use figurative language to develop themes. Shel Silverstein wrote about how everyone is the same ‘When we turn off the light.’ Lensey Namioka and Shel Silverstein are two examples. They use similes, metaphors, and hyperboles to develop the theme of tolerance in the short story “The All American Slurp,” by Lensey Namioka and the poem “No Difference” by Shel Silverstein.
In this story, Konola never once acts in a selfish manner towards Charles. She was very ill with tuberculosis and she still followed Charles across the arctic in order to save his life, even after he had left her to die. Charles began to respect this woman and he begins to realize that he was wrong. We know this when Charles is questioning himself; “Why had Konola not stayed in the relative safety of the aircraft or else traveled north to seek her own people? What had impelled her… to rescue a man of another race who had abandoned her?” I think that this is a very important line, because it shows how Charles still feels a separation from her because of race. He cannot see how she would follow a man of “another race”. Konola does not see this as important, and that is why she feels compelled to save him. He is very moved by her acts of kindness. She took care of him and nursed him back to health even though she herself was very ill. This amazed Charles and changed him from a greedy person to a more giving one. It changed his outlook on the native people and on how he treated others. In the end he begins to care for Konola because she is too ill to take care of herself and this is proof that he had changed because of their situation and the things that she had done for him.
The story “Flight Patterns” is a short story in which Sherman Alexie, the author, presents Native American literature which is new around this time in age. William Cline, the main character represents your stereotype native American. This story takes place post 9/11; therefore, the level of security has been increased greatly along with the amount of hostility towards darker skinned people. William describes how he feels out of place because he has all the traits of a native American but he feels likes he needs to try in order to keep up with his culture. He points out that his wife, Marie, is the one that lives up to the title and has no cares in the world. Her culture comes natural to her and she is not self-conscious about her appearance unlike her husband. Their daughter Grace, has a little bit of both parents. She has the carelessness of her mother and yet she strives to be like her dad as well. William’s family lives in Seattle and they are one of the first native American families to settle there; therefore, racism is a very touchy subject.
Many people see the world and others differently. Just like the two sisters in “Everyday Use”, the two sisters in “Two Ways to Belong in America”, and the father in the letter/short essay “An Indian Father's Plea”. All these people have different past and things they’re going through. The two sisters in “Two Ways To Belong In America” both have their different stories from their past, one likes America the other does not because they betrayed her. Next, the father from “An Indian Father’s Plea” sees America differently because the school was labeled his kid a “slow learner” which made him upset. In addition, the two sisters from “ Everyday Use” argue about a quilt in which they both view differently
In the short story “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, the two main characters, Maggie and Dee, are sisters who are very opposite to each other. Throughout the story, the girl’s differences become evident through their physical appearances, personalities, lifestyle decisions, and the way they feel about their heritage.
As Charlie's intelligence increases he thinks that he will be more liked the higher his intelligence climbs, but later Charlie discovers that whether you are of lower intelligence then most of the population or of higher intelligence you still will not quite fit in. "I've discovered that no one really cares for Charlie Gordon whether he is a moron or a genius. (Keyes 172) Charlie's relationship with Alice also shows how whether he is of extreme low extreme high intellect he still cannot communicate with her the way he needs to. " I'm just as far away from Alice with an I.Q of 185 then when I had an IQ of 70" (Keyes 88). In today's society if a persons thoughts slightly differ from those of the majority of the population then they will be scrutinized and shunned from the others. People are not willing to look at an idea through a different perspective and this is shown in Flowers For Algernon, when Charlie discovers the fault in Dr. Nemur's experiment and confronts him about it, Dr. Nemur treats him like the old Charlie who is to mentally challenged to be correct. It is repeated numerous times during the novel that Charlie was "created" by the experiment and was not a "human being" because of his below 100 IQ before the operation. "I'm a human being, a person- with parents and memories and a history- and I was before you ever wheeled me into that operating room." (Keyes 112). Society needs to learn that even those who are different then most of us still are humans and
Fear is inevitably tied to the common saying “I am watching you”. When one’s actions are constantly monitored and privacy being relentlessly invaded, the individual soon will possess a sort of fear. In the novel Little Brother by Cory Doctorow, the government uses surveillance as a tool for exploiting the privacy of the people which then engages their fear.
After the operation, in only a couple of months, Charlie starts showing signs of new intelligence. His grammar, improved, and he is able to reflect on what his does in the past something he wasn’t able to do before. He had finally gotten something use had always desired. Then, everything and everyone turned on him. In “PROGRESS REPORT 12” April 30th (pg. 60) Charlie writes: “now, they hate me for my knowledge and understanding. What in the name of god do they want of me? They’ve driven me out of the factory. Now I more alone than ever before…” Charlie got what he always wanted, and now he lost everything he had. It was a sacrifice it sounded like he didn’t want to make. I can tell just be the tone of his writing. This shows that we should embrace everything that we have. Charlie didn’t embrace everything, although he appreciated most of the thing he never became happy not being able to just enjoy life as it is.
Charlie wanted to be left alone because he is not a “guinea pig any more. I 've done enough. I want to be left alone now.” (Keyes 288). Charlie is fed up with how he has been treated by the doctors. He wants to be left alone, so he can do whatever he pleases. He “can’t afford to spend my time with anyone-there’s only enough left for myself” (Keyes 292). Charlie is beginning to shun his peers, and the people that love him. He has become devoured by his work, and is not able to give up any of his time to spend with loved ones. Charlie does not value the importance of having his loved ones around him, but prior to the operation, he had a strong motivation to have friends, and to be loved by his peers.
His mother had taught him to not look at girls, and after the operation when he started to develop more feelings, he had a hard time talking to Alice Kinnian because he had the thought that he liked her, and that he shouldn’t. Due to the hard nature of his mother, Charlie’s emotional life was not maturing with his new-found intelligence. Emotionally, he was still a little kid. “I knew she would give herself to me, and I wanted her, but what about Charlie?” Whenever he would get near Alice, he would start to panic because he felt that there was still a part of his old self within him, keeping him from taking his relationship further with
Be sure to include evidence from the text to support your answer (Answer, Prove, Explain).
In a world where assimilation is the easiest way to survive, it can be difficult to maintain two identities. The development of characters is the foundation in which people use to grow and become successful in their path of life. Oppression, cultural changes, and pressure to conform to the stereotypical image of success causes discontent among cultures. Many children have an ideal image of who they want to be, and often their parents have a conflicting view on who they would like to see their child become. In the story “Two Kinds” the Narrator has a rebellious attitude towards the aspirations of her mother. The amount of pressure placed on her and her lack of success causes sadness in the main character since she was not able to perform the way her mother wanted. Similarly, the main character from “The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven” experiences a feeling of inferiority from the racial discrimination and lack of financial success in his life.
After Charlie goes through the surgery to improve his intelligence, he begins to see the world as it truly is. Charlie is not very intelligent. He is aware of his mental deficit and wants to become smart. When asked about the reason he wants the surgery, Charlie states, “I told them becaus all my life I wantid to be smart and not dumb (Keyes 286). Charlie, “Cant wait to be smart like my best frends Joe Carp and Frank Reilly (Keyes 290).” Therefore, he was not satisfied with his life before the surgery. Furthermore, Charlie’s mental deficit makes him not very smart about his relationships with his coworkers. He is unaware that his coworkers make fun of him. At first, Charlie believes, “Their really my friends and they like me” (Keyes 289). Others, however, realize that the coworkers aren’t treating Charlie well. Referring to his kind teacher, Charlie says, “I said all my frends are smart people but there good. They like me and they never did anything that wasnt nice. Then she got something in her eye and she had to run out to the ladys room” (Keyes 291). After the surgery, Charlie comes to understand people more and to understand what is a true friend. Charlie later learns, “Now I know what it means when they say ‘to pull a Charlie Gordon.’ I'm ashamed” (Keyes 293). Charlie also sees his doctors in a new light when he says, “It was as if I'd
The book also focuses on Charlie’s home life. Charlie has two siblings that make him feel invisible. There’s a hidden resentment in the tone that is used by Charlie to explain his sister and brother. But by the end they have managed to form a certain bond that Charlie has always wanted.