Symbolism In Touching Spirit Bear

Authors often show symbols to represent, or show something. In the book, "Touching Spirit Bear" by Ben Mikaelsen, Cole Mathews, a 15 year old kid who is a juvenile delinquent, was sent to an island and was mauled by the Spirit Bear. After the mauling, Cole used many symbols to change. The three best symbols that helped Cole change are, soaking in the pond, the ancestor rock and the Spirit Bear.

One symbol that helped Cole change is soaking in the pond. On page 145, the author says,"I came to this pond to get rid of my anger." This shows that Cole is going to the pond so he can try controling his anger. Also, on page 164, the author states,"His few thoughts seemed distant from his body." This shows that Cole is keeping himself more calm and

On page 156, the author says,"Go ahead, roll the rock down the hill. Roll away your anger." This clearly shows that when he rolls the rock down the hill, it means him rolling/throwing away his anger to be more happier. Also, on page 155, the author states," Pretend that rock is your ancestors....Climbing this hill is your life. With each step, you carry your ancestors with you, in your mind, in your heart, and in your soul." This shows that the ancestor rock is your ancestor when carried up the hill and is ment for you to be considerate of your ancestors/care about them. This is a change because Cole is respecting people now and their struggles are being tought of. This shows how the ancestor rock is clearly one symbol that helped Cole change, but there is another symbol that helped Cole change

On page 112, the author says," The hair was white....and tossed it into the water. Begining from today, I will only speak the truth." This shows thatthe fur Cole had was the Spirit Bear's fur and Cole tossed it into the water to only speak the truth.So if anyone askes him if he saw the Bear, the oly proof he will need will be his voice. Saying the truth is a large change for Cole because now people can actually trust him. Also, on page 95, the author states, " He felt the bear's breath and heartbeat....He felt another thing. He felt trust." This talks about how Cole felt when he touched the Spirit Bear. Him feeling trust is a big change because of his past experiences, Cole felt less trust. Since he felt less trust, he didn't trust anybody else and was meaner. So now he felt trust by the Spirit Bear, Cole will become more open and nicer by making people trust him and Cole trusting them. The last example to show why the Spirit Bear helped Cole change is the title of the book, "Touching Spirit Bear". The Spirit Bear is the main thing that got Cole to want to change. That is why the author gave this book that name. This is how the Spirit Bear helped Cole change