ipl-logo

Elements Of A Prayer For Owen Meany

930 Words4 Pages

Not all stories fit cleanly into a genre. John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany seem like it could fit into multiple genres, but it best fits into realistic fiction. The book has all the main characteristics of realistic fiction. It could almost be inspirational fiction, but it is missing one key part.
First, realistic fiction typically involves a story whose setting is real and whose events could happen in a real-world setting. A Prayer for Owen Meany takes place in the mid 1900s, and the major events of the time occur throughout the story. One of the main focuses throughout the story is the Vietnam War. The war lasted from 1954-1975, and it plays a large role in Owen’s life. Owen serves as a soldier and sacrifices himself in order to save …show more content…

This genre is usually a heartwarming story of a faithful person who is trying to live morally and overcome adversity. Owen lives with his voice and size his entire life. He does not let that get in his way of accomplishing what he thinks he needs to do. Owen Meany is described as an extremely faithful person to God and to Johnny. He is willing to do anything for either of them. Owen not only tries to do what he thinks it right, but also gives advice to the people around him. For example, he tells Johnny that “IF [HE] [CARES] ABOUT SOMETHING, [HE] [HAS] TO PROTECT IT—IF [HE’S] LUCKY ENOUGH TO FIND A WAY OF LIFE [HE] [LOVES], [HE] [HAS] TO FIND THE COURAGE TO LIVE IT” (511-512). Owen wants to encourage Johnny to do what he wants to, even if it will take courage. Owen doesn’t want Johnny to miss out on an opportunity because he was afraid. When Johnny says that he’s just a reader, Owen tells him, “DON’T SOUND SO ASHAMED” (511). Not only does Owen overcome adversity himself, he helps others through it too.
Another part of inspirational fiction, is the fact that religious terms are not blatantly stated, or in other words, does not preach. The purpose of A Prayer for Owen Meany, is not to convert people to Christianity, but to tell a story. It is told by Johnny, who at the end begs God by asking, “O God—please give him back” (627)! Johnny misses Owen so much, and the impact that he had was so great, that Johnny wrote his story. Any religious terms that he uses are because they are necessary to tell the

Show More
Related

A Prayer For Owen Meany

1868 Words | 8 Pages

Name: Sophie Gentle Study Guide Value; 120 points total Bibliographic Information: (10 pts.) Irving, John. A Prayer for Owen Meany. New York, New York: William Morrow, 1989.

Read More

Teamwork In Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes

575 Words | 3 Pages

Many times in history humans have come into conflict with each other trying to get their needs. The novel written by Ray Bradbury tries to argue that conflict is not the best way to resolve competition. He uses various messages throughout the story to prove his point. In the novel Something Wicked This Way Comes, Ray Bradbury shows how friendship through the use of teamwork are important by causing the two friends to assist each other in perilous situations, stay loyal to each other against self-judgement, and work together against greater evil.

Read More

The Vietnam War In Fallen Angels By Walter Dean Myers

847 Words | 4 Pages

War has always carried an amount of uncertainty. The harsh truths about war have often been looked at through rose colored glasses. However, the harsh, unromantic realities of war always seem to dominate . Writers, media, and organizations have portrayed soldiers in countless ways. However, the roles which these men and women have played in the defense of our country cannot be so easily summed up.

Read More

A Prayer For Owen Meany Fate Analysis

1462 Words | 6 Pages

One of the great questions that people have argued about since the beginning of time is fate vs freewill. It is a question that will never have a correct answer. Philosophers have gone back and forth about this debate for thousands of years but both sides have stayed even. It is one of the ultimate questions, so John Irving gave the world his opinion with one of his most famous books. In John Irving's, A Prayer for Owen Meany, he shows many things that he believes in throughout the book.

Read More

Flannery O Connor's Effect In Her Writing

2427 Words | 10 Pages

Flannery O’Connor’s Effect in Her Writing Flannery O’Connor is a well-known southern writer in American literature who died at the age of 39 from lupus, an illness she long fought for. Her style of writing is very unique as it focuses on the South. She is popular for writing stories concerning religion. She, being a Catholic, believes there is good and evil in this world and that faith is something everybody believes in, views that most of her characters do not share. When discussing her stories, O’Connor claims, “All my stories are about the action of grace on a character who is not very willing to support it, but most people think of these stories as hard, hopeless and brutal.”

Read More

What Does A Prayer For Owen Meany

382 Words | 2 Pages

By calling Owen a little doll, Irving demonstrates how Owen is treated differently because of his size. Owen is played with and even petted by people in the novel. This demeaning form of treatment shows how no one takes Owen seriously. This

Read More

Organized Religion In John Wheelwright's A Prayer For Owen Meany

813 Words | 4 Pages

Individuals experience a system of beliefs, whether it is through an organized religion, or a personal faith. Conspiracies arise between the two organizations, with regards to organized religion taking away from the true meaning of faith. Although many argue that the two are on different ends of a spectrum, it is also believed that personal faith is crucial in being apart of an organized religion. It is argued that the systematic format of organized religion is said to take away the freedom one experiences when following a personal faith. Throughout the novel, A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving, the two protagonists, John Wheelwright and Owen Meany, discuss how organized religion masks the essence of religious faith, how it prevents an

Read More

Human Development In John Irving's A Prayer For Owen Meany

1932 Words | 8 Pages

From this, it’s possible that Owen’s desire to fight in Vietnam was not only fueled by his desire to carry out his fate, but to also travel. It’s important to note that Owen pushed hard to go to Vietnam because he had envisioned his sacrifice to occur in a warm climate. While Vietnam was indeed a warm climate, Owen’s ultimate sacrifice came in Arizona, showing that his vision had come true, but not in the way he had expected. This only further demonstrates that fate can not be

Read More

Edwards Puritan Audience

467 Words | 2 Pages

Often in the sermons pastors persuade their audience to behave in a spiritual or more fashion. Such is the case in Jonathan Edwards “Sinners in the hands of an Angry God” where he sends sinners to hell, who do not repent. Edwards wanted to impact his audience by appealing to their fears, pity and vanity. Edwards had a powerful impact on his puritan audience because of his use of a cautionary tone, clear imagery and complex figurative language.

Read More

Fate And Destiny In Irving's A Prayer For Owen Meany

1973 Words | 8 Pages

The Fate and Destiny of one’s life is determined by the actions that are taken and the paths which are chosen. John Winslow Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, examines and deepens the meaning behind the Fate and Destiny of someone to shed light on what life’s true meaning is. In this story, John Wheelwright is a member of the hierarchy and wealthy of Gravesend and he finds true friendship in the most unlikely place; John meets the unsophisticated, yet assertive Owen Meany who comes from an unfortunate family. John’s mother, Tabby, interacts with Owen more so than Owen’s actual mother does and when the Angel of Death finally comes for Tabby, the deed to end her life is bestowed upon Owen because he had interrupted the Angel.

Read More

Langston Hughes Salvation

831 Words | 4 Pages

Writing about controversial subjects can often be difficult; however Hughes executed his story, Salvation, in an intriguing manner that is suitable to all audiences and religions. In this story, the writer retells an experience from his childhood describing his journey to Jesus Christ. Discussing the complications, the main character, Hughes, faced while trying to come to Jesus is what makes the story interesting to read. On many occasions, you will read a story or watch a movie that shows the main character coming to Jesus and having an immediate and obvious realization of their Savior. For this reason, I found this story to be unique and relatable in the way that it shows a journey that countless Christians face, but you are not often granted the opportunity to read about this type of experience.

Read More

Analysis Of How To Tell A True War Story By Tim O Brien

1504 Words | 7 Pages

The way we want to approach personal problems in front of others can have a great influence on our lives and actions. In “How to Tell a True War Story,” Tim O’Brien provides the nature of storytelling with the generalizations about war and the concept of truth. Through the act of storytelling, Daniel Gilbert’s “Immune to Reality,” reiterates how the psychological immune system acts as a barrier preventing us from experiencing unexpected and traumatic events. Both authors respectively combine the meaning behind a true war experience with the unconscious need to deny the painful experience in it to lessen the pain. Sometimes a story can transmit positivity to help find meaning in life during difficult times.

Read More

Character Analysis Owen Meany

1116 Words | 5 Pages

In the book A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving, my favorite character is Owen Meany. I admire the way he cares about his friends and is willing to do anything for them. He is concerned about John coming to Vietnam. To avoid this, Owen cuts off John’s finger so he cannot go into the war. This would be difficult, but he loves John and wants to protect him.

Read More

Figurative Language In Dulce Et Decorum Est

432 Words | 2 Pages

Owen uses strong diction to take a stab at those who encouraged young men to go die, and to convey the truth about war to normal people who don’t understand what war is. He talks about how the young men in war are innocent and lets you know he is talking directly to Pope instead of a random reader when he says “my friend”. Owen then calls the Latin saying of Dulce et

Read More

Analysis Of Disabled By Wilfred Owen

1321 Words | 6 Pages

Owen creates a stark contrast between the past and the present by emphasizing the deteriorated relationship between the veteran and women, as well as the veteran 's altered perspective of his surroundings. Owen also emphasizes the contrast through the use of literary techniques, such as irony, symbolism, and similes, and he also writes using a distinct structure. Women are used to highlight the way the soldier is treated before and after his disability. We are given an example in the second stanza when Owen writes "Now, he will never feel again how slim Girls ' waists are ... All of them touch him like some queer disease."

Read More

More about Elements Of A Prayer For Owen Meany

Related Topics

Open Document