Shame is defined as a painful feeling that arises from the consciousness of any sinful action. It is known as the most painful feeling there is, given that it is registered within the brain as if it were a strong physical pain. As demonstrated within the book, The Shack, the main character, Mack seems to experience this emotion more than once in his life. Thus, referring back to the foreword, the storyteller, Willie, explains Mack’s grief over his conviction of the period at which Mack confessed that he hadn’t done anything to help his mother when his drunken father had beaten her till unconscious. Mack ran towards religion when he made that confession to a church leader after reluctantly baring his soul at a youth revival. In the midst of …show more content…
In the text, it becomes increasingly evident that Mack blames himself for the absence of his daughter, Missy. It defines Mack’s Great Sadness as an emotion that “tightens around his chest and heart like the crushing coils of a constrictor. Although he frantically tried to scream warnings to her, he was always too late to save her (Young, 27).” This quote makes evident his vulnerability, pain and anger in the loss of his child. It is clear that what Mack feels internally, is not what the rest of his family struggles with as a daily routine. Thus, this explains the severity of his depression with regards to his missing daughter. Therefore, when Mack receives the message saying, “Mack, it’s been a while. I’ve missed you. I’ll be at the shack next weekend if you want to get together-Papa,” this seems to represent God reaching out to Mack to accomplish a relationship. God offers Mack the opportunity to strengthen the relationship that seemed to be there before, once again. It seems as if after this Great Sadness had draped itself around Mack’s shoulders, his faith in God had grown to become weak. His friend, Willie refers to his relationship with God as a love/hate relationship. He also says that Mack sometimes suspects that “God is brooding, distant and aloof.” It becomes obvious that Mack begins to question God’s existence in the midst of his dilemma. The absence of his daughter seems to drive him away