Hatchet By Gary Paulsen Character Analysis

Imagine the feeling of being alone, where no one can see or hear your cries for help, where no one can begin to understand your pain, and where your once perfect and marvelous life is suddenly crumb down. Welcome to Brian’s world, a thirteen year old boy who’s parents are going through a bad divorce that ultimately causes him to resent his mother for being deceitful to his own father. The story “Hatchet” by Gary Paulsen is about a young teenage boy that is always feeling the pressure and hurt from his parents divorce. Brian’s mother sends Brian to his dads house for the summer by a small plane. The plane crashes on the way to the airport in a dense forest. Brian is forced to survive in the wilderness using only at hatchet that his mother gave him. Alone, lost, and afraid, Brian tries to go into survival mode, desperate to stay alive in the forest. I feel that I can relate to Brian because I too have felt scared and alone during

I’m alive. It could have been different”. The pilot had passed away but he didn’t so consider himself lucky. “I could have been done” . Brian keeps a practical state of mind to keep his hope alive. He does not know much about his situation but by acknowledging that he is alive he is able to look at his time in the wild in a more optimistic way. In addition, Brian understands that he needs to keep himself atleast safe until help arrives when he realizes just how much potential danger he is in by taking action and building a shelter, “ I need to get motivated, he thought… Right now I’m all I’ve got. I have to do something”. Brian uses positive thinking while working on his shelter to stay safe in the wilderness. He realizes the situation that he’s in and uses his hopeful attitude to help motivate him to stay alive. Because of his positive state of mind, Brian is able to stay strong and survive in the