Where
the Nagaumsett River and the Devon River diverge represents Gene’s future. When
Gene is walking to the boathouse he stops by the footbridge. He can either choose
to enlist in the army or stay at Devon.
The Nagaumsett River represents the path leading to the army. He
describes, “It was ugly, saline, fringed with marsh, mud and seaweed. A few
miles away it was joined to the ocean”(Knowles 76). War is deadly, dirty, and scary. In the
reading when it mentions, “joined to the ocean” means that you don’t know where
the war is going to take you (Knowles 76). When Brinker told Gene that he was
going to enlist in the army and fight in the war Gene wants to go too, but he
is waiting for someone to say it before him, “I think I had been waiting for a long
time for someone to say this so that I could entertain these decisive words
myself”(Knowles 100). The Devon River is a fresh water river and calm. The
Devon River represents Gene staying at Devon. He would be safe and not have to
worry about losing his life. Gene has to make decisions that will permanently change
his life. He can choose to go to war and escape from Finny or stay at Devon and
continue to pretend to be friends with him. The Nagaumsett River symbolizes war
and the ugly uncertain characteristics of it.
Is Gene's decision going to change after Finny has arrived at Devon?
The rivers are not the only physical representations of the choice that all the students at Devon must make. The beaver dam which Leper Lepellier set out to find is another important symbol of the choice the students face. Leper says that Gene and the others need to slow down, that in America people focus to much on the quick thrill and not enough on the process, which represents his desire to live life slowly and well. Leper complains, "They're ruining skiing in this country... you never get to really look at the trees, at a tree." (Knowles 95). By this Leper is contending that in America the boys are taking things too fast, wanting to grow up before their time and take their place in the world of adults before they're ready. The way Leper talks about going off to find the beaver dam and about the behavior of the beavers, when he says "It's interesting to see the ways the beavers adapt to the winter." (Knowles 95). This is a clear analogy to the war, where the beaver is Leper, and the winter is the war, in that Leper wants to find some way to adapt and keep living life as it has always been. The rejection of Gene and the other boys to come with Leper, which is implied in the fact that they are doing some other work, fits into the analogy that they are the rest of America, the part that wants to whiz down the ski slope and go into the adult world before they're ready.
ReplyDeleteI think that Gene's decision to leave for the war will change after Finny's arrival. After Brinker decides to leave, Gene thinks that he wants to do it too and says "I owed it to myself to meet this crisis in my life when I chose" (Knowles 102). Gene thinks that he owes nothing to anyone until he is reminded by Finny's return that that is not true. Gene still feels guilty about Finny's injury and has promised that he will play sports in his friend's honor, and the only thing that can get him to go to war now is Finny himself.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Oakes, however I'm not sure if he will change is mind willingly. I think that Finny will come and use his persistence capabilities to change Gene's mind. However, there is a possibility that Finny may figure out the truth about the tree, which would then cause Gene to need to get away and then he will go to war.
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