Summary Of The Dogs Could Teach Me By Gary Paulsen

Between the three stories, “The Dogs Could Teach Me,” by Gary Paulsen, “The Flowers,” by Alice Walker, and “The Sniper,” by Liam O’Flaherty, the one that most efficiently demonstrates description is “The Dogs Could Teach Me,” by Gary Paulsen. Paulsen’s excellent word choice allows the reader to really feel the pain that the main character experiences, to the point where many readers shudder, and he also describes the main character’s surroundings perfectly so that the reader can effortlessly visualize the setting. A major part of this story is when the main character, who is referred to as I since it is written in 1st person, loses control of the dog sled and fell down the edge of the gully that his dogs were racing on. The text states that

One piece of evidence that supports this is stated at the very beginning of the story, “There was a point where an old logging trail went through a small, sharp-sided gully - a tiny canyon. The trail came down one wall of the gully - a drop of fifty or so feet - then scooted across a frozen stream and up the other side.” And as the story develops the word “ice” is used multiple times to emphasize the idea that he is in a cold climate. Like previously stated, immediately planting the image of the setting in the reader’s head allowed Paulsen to get to the climax quicker, and having the reader aware of the climate made the main event even more of a big deal, since it was cold and icy. In, “The Dogs Could Teach Me,” by Gary Paulsen, the author did an excellent job of describing not only the events that occurred, allowing the reader to experience the pain that was felt by the main character, but also the setting. Paulsen allows his readers to really feel the emotions of the characters, which then gives readers the ability to put themselves in the character’s