A Bridge To Wisemans Cove (draft essay)
Molly Johnson (8ENGW)
Life, full of challenges and difficulties, but also shapes us to who we are today. In the novel A Bridge To Wiseman’s Cove (ABTWC) we see the story in the eyes of Carl Matt, a young fifteen year old with low self esteem, who finds himself in a bildungsroman style novel. James Maloney explores themes of love, belonging and family to convey the life of his character Carl.
From early existence, humans have always had the inherrent need to belong. In ABTWC, we follow our protagonist Carl who tries to fit in at Wattle Beach. Due to the reputation of the Matt’s he struggles to do so. “One word stood out. “Different.” She used it a number of times, pleading.” In this quote Joy Duncan
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In Carl Matt's eyes though, it's just a name. Throughout ABTWC we get a glimpse of the dysfunctional home of the Matts Consisting of Kerry Their mum, Sarah Their oldest sister, Our protagonist Carl, and Harley the youngest. After the events of Kerry and Sarah leaving them, Harley and Carl get stranded at wattle beach. Because of how they were brought up, Carl has no real understanding of what a family should be like. When Carl arrives at Wattle Beach he gets stuck in a crowd of tourists. “Carl floated in a sea of families where everyone, it seemed, walked, spoke and laughed with at least one other – a daughter, a father, a mate.” Even though Carl never knew what a family was like he was just subconsciously aware of it, that everyone had one all of the time. When they got to aunt Beryl’s house, it wasn’t much better. “... who’s going to love you if your own mother doesn’t? '' This one sentence haunts Carl's mind all through the novel. Moloneys choice of words in these quotes suggest that Carl is looking for a family, one he can feel safe in and feel a part of. Carl is looking for the other half of his family, he just wants to be loved in a family. Because a person without a family's love will never be completely happy in their