Alyssia Menezes
Compare and Contrast Essay
The Sign of The Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
In The Sign of The Beaver, Elizabeth George Speare weaves a fascinating tale about two unique boys, Matt and Attean. Matt is a 12 year old white boy who is finishing a cabin that he and his father had built in the Maine wilderness. He will have to survive on his own for many months until his father returns with his family who are still in Massachusetts. Attean is a prideful 14 year old Indian boy who does not like white people because of a past experience. Because of a stupid mistake on Matt's part, the two are paired up much to Matt's shock and Attean´s scorn. In this amazing adventure you learn how both of these boys each take their own perilous rite of passage to become men and find their ¨manitou¨
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He proved that he could take on the responsibilities of a man by completing all the tasks that is father left him to undertake, and more! He showed that he could take responsibility of his own life and survive by himself. Matt chose the right, but hard decision over the easy one. Even though he had no proof that they would even come, Matt gathered enough food to provide for his family of five through the long, harsh Maine winter. Matt, although oblivious, created and completed his own rite of passage. Even though they were both heading for the same objective( to become men ), Matt and Attean´s paths towards manhood were very different. Attean´s rite of passage was a requirement in the Beaver Tribe and he knew the specific tasks that he needed to complete. Meanwhile, Matt did not have a scripted path, and he did not even know what he was doing and accomplishing. Also, before Matt went through his rite of passage he was already taking on a man's responsibility, but Attean was only able to do a man's job after he completed his rite of