Can an experience change a person’s outlook on life? One might think that are the toughest person, but eventually they will realize they are not the only one. The exact same idea is shown in T. Coraghessan Boyle’s short story “Greasy Lake.” The short story “Greasy Lake” is about three friends, the narrator, Digby and Jeff. One night the narrator and his friends go to Greasy Lake in the narrator’s mother’s car. Later, they encounter a man they refer to as a bad character and his girlfriend. The narrator knocks out the bad character and sexually assault the girlfriend. After, they see people coming towards them. They begin to hide. The narrator jumps in Greasy Lake and finds a dead body. In the short story “Greasy Lake” the narrator’s Thoughts, …show more content…
When the narrator is describing him and his friends, the narrator mentions that “We were all dangerous characters then. We wore torn-up leather jackets, slouched around with toothpicks in our mouths, sniffed glue and what somebody claimed was cocaine” (687). So, the narrator’s idea of a tough person is dressing like rebels and doing drugs. Latter, the narrator also mentions that “We drank gin and grape juice, Tango, Thunder-bird, and Bali Hai. We were nineteen. We were Bad” then “At night, we went up to the Greasy Lake” (684). The narrator is considering themselves as bad people because they are nineteen and drink alcohol. Also, the narrator’s thoughts reveal that to him he and his friends are the toughest …show more content…
While the group of people are chasing him, the narrator jumps in Greasy lake to hide. Then, in Greasy lake the narrator screams, “AAAAArrrgh! I shot from the water like a torpedo, the dead man rotating to expose a mossy beard and eyes cold as the moon” (691). The narrator is not expecting to find a dead body in Greasy Lake. Therefore, the narrator is terrified and is starting to realize he could get in huge trouble. Then, the narrator starts to think about the consequences of his actions. He says that “Perhaps other possibilities occurred to them a well—police, jail cells, justice of the peace, …” (693). The narrator now knows that he is not tough because he is now afraid of going to jail for sexually assaulting a girl and attacking the bad
In the short story The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant, by W.D. Wetherell, dramatic irony and flashback are utilized to communicate that one should never change themselves for the sake of another. Set during a summer in New Hampshire, Wetherell’s work is from the perspective of a young boy who becomes infatuated with a girl by the name of Sheila Mant. As as result, the narrator sacrifices the opportunity of a lifetime on his fruitless endeavor to win the heart of the girl. To begin, an excellent example of the effect of the irony and flashback is present at the end of the story when the narrator reflects upon his decisions and says, “ There would be other Sheila Mants in my life, other fish, and though I came close once or twice, it was these
In the short story “Greasy Lake” by T. Coraghessan Boyle, three boys embark on a journey to the greasy lake, where kids would go to perform illegal activities. At the time it was good to be bad, it was cool to drink and smoke. The unnamed narrator, Jeff, and Digby think that going to the greasy lake will make them look cool to society. The trouble begins when the boys pull a prank on a guy who they think is their friend but turned out to be a “bad greasy character.” The narrator thought he killed the bad character, but really he was just unconscious.
The other man stands on a lake wearing the death mask. On the following page, 8-Deer goes to the Mountain of the Temple to make an offering of chocolate. In front of 8-Deer, a jaguar and an eagle are fighting
In the story “Greasy Lake” by T.C. Boyle, the author utilizes the physical setting of Greasy Lake to reflect on the nuances and effects of American culture at the time. He accomplishes this by using the lake to represent the group’s (narrator, Digby, Jeff) shift in character throughout the story while also using the environment as social commentary on the state of America. The effects of these methods are exuberant and successful in what type of story Boyle is trying to convey. The lake itself is vividly described as disgusting and ruined by the likes of previous party-goers/ visitors but used to be pristine and beautiful, hence its less-used name “Wakan”.
He shows that teenagers are thought to seek out trouble to get into. He makes the reader assess his or her own character. He makes the reader think of the things they have done in the past. Boyle made me look at myself to see if I was like the Jeff, Digby, and the Narrator. Boyle strategically used imagery to give the reader a detailed template of what the Greasy Lake was like.
He went further into telling stories of him with his friend and the violence situations that wen on through his life but the writher never had a sense of violence. The writher mentioned the land going bad, everything
The protagonist of In the Lake of the Woods, John Wade can attribute most of his traits to his experiences and choices that he has made in his life. Specifically, his childhood and fighting in Vietnam affected John immensely, in which shaped him into the secretive and murderous man he is today. While the events of his childhood laid the original framework for this instability, it was truly the war that ingrained it within John. The secretive and distrusting nature of John originates from his own father's secretiveness he witnessed as a child.
First, the history of Devils Lake starts in prehistoric times. According to OnMilwaukee, an online news system, historians believe that during prehistoric times Devils Lake is now what it is because of glacial activity. Years ago, Devils Lake was surrounded in huge mountain ranges but through weathering and erosion has created the breathtaking bluffs and the large body of water there is today. One popular theory scientist have about Devils Lake is that years ago the Wisconsin River flowed through the gorge but the water became trapped between the glaciers. Over time the water trapped between the two glaciers became the well known lake.
Any obstacle or disadvantage may be turned into something good if you really want to change what the situation is. In the book “The Glass Castle” Jeannette Walls went through a plethora of obstacles and disadvantages in her life that caused dilemmas for her, yet they never stopped her. In the book “ The Outsider” just by the fact of being born a greaser was already a disadvantage and there was still more obstacles to come, but that didn’t stop Ponyboy from trying to change his situation for better. Some people say that usually when you’re in a difficult situation where there are many obstacles and disadvantages in your way, you should either give up or just move to somewhere else where the situation is easier. I’ve heard this from more people than I can count and there are still many more with different ideas, but that lead to the same conclusion as said above.
He applies the logic of facts to the situation to make the reader agree with his viewpoint because it is hard to argue with facts. He also clarifies saying, “Most men will never turn violent. Most men will turn out fine. Most will learn to navigate the deep waters of their feelings without ever engaging in any form of destruction. Most will grow up to be kind.
In his short story collection We Live in Water, Jess Walter echoes the theme that people are products of their environment, despite any effort to escape the adversities that hold them back. This theme clearly appears in the opening story, “Anything Helps,” where a widowed and homeless man, Bit, tries to recover from the death of his wife by making amends with his estranged son. This devastating yet heartwarming story shows how one man goes to great lengths in an attempt to change his life. Walter also exposes the theme in the most prominent piece of the collection. The story “We Live in Water” provides a flashback and flash-forward structure by following Oren Dessens, a man who cheats on his wife and has conflict with the worst man in town and describing the journey of Michael, a lawyer returning to his hometown expecting to find his absent father, but instead, ends up learning more about himself
Frightened by a mentally ill man in the nearby “yellow house,” the narrator turns this neighbor into a character, the Hairy Man, a figure that is “wooly-headed and bearded.” The narrator finds peace in her Dad’s assertion that the Hairy Man only comes at dark. The narrator’s unconditional trust and belief in her father’s words also displays her innocence. As a fifth-grader, she still takes what her cherished parents say to heart. She often interjects with the repeated words “my mother said’ or “my father said.”
In the Lake of the Woods is a book about a man who comes back from the war in Vietnam and moves into a cabin in a town called In the Lake of the woods, but shortly thereafter his wife goes missing and he tries to find her while battling other things. Tim O’Brien is an American author from Austin, Minnesota. He was born on October 1st, 1946. He enrolled and studied at Malcalester College. He graduated from the in 1968 with a BA in political science and also a draft notice.
Throughout the story, three major details of the narrator’s psyche are confirmed. First, we learned of the narrator’s deceitfulness. Every morning he lies to the old man with the least bit of guilt. The next continues to prove the madness as the narrator feels utter joy from the terror of another. Lastly, the narrator fabricates that the old man is simply not home to assure the officers.
The narrator begins to change as Robert taught him to see beyond the surface of looking. The narrator feels enlightened and opens up to a new world of vision and imagination. This brief experience has a long lasting effect on the narrator. Being able to shut out everything around us allows an individual the ability to become focused on their relationships, intrapersonal well-being, and