One important lesson that everyone learns at some point in their life is “Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not.” And, I believe this to be the theme of W.D. Wetherell’s short story.
“There was a summer in my life when the only creature that seemed lovelier to me than a largemouth bass was Sheila Mant” (Wetherell 39). This is the first sentence in Wetherell’s The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant. This is a story of a love that is all but out of reach and the regret and rejection of two things the narrator, a fourteen year old boy, cares for most. These two things being: the tug of bass on his fishing line and Sheila Mant. Sheila Mant is a beautiful seventeen year old with a line of suitors approaching her when given the chance. Sheila is the narrator’s infatuation.
…show more content…
Reality that you shouldn’t pretend to be someone you’re not. That one must be themself. Upon the revealing of her dislike toward fishing, the narrator stated in his thoughts “...is that at that fragile moment in time I would have given anything not to appear dumb in Sheila’s severe and unforgiving eyes” (Wetherell 44). It’s at this moment that his feelings for her, betray his passion for bass. At this moment, he betrayed himself and became someone he’s not. When the narrator made this decision, when he became someone else, he regretted it immediately following their short excursion. He had cut the line and and let the bass go. This is something he anguished over, something he felt heartbroken about. And, it was all for Sheila.
Sheila who danced with him only a few times. Sheila who went home in Eric Caswell’s Corvette. Sheila who abhorred his intense enthusiasm for fishing. However, after that night, he began to see clearly. He then knew that he shouldn’t hide the things he