Fishing to some people may just be fishing. But fishing to the people who have read A River Runs through It some time in their life, is a gift. Whether fishermen use bait, worms, or George's flies it is that much sweeter to catch some trout with a brother under one arm and a father on the other.
The river and fishing made such a big impact on the Maclean family that it is the root of this book. The Macleans compared the river to life, went fishing to answer questions, and created a river that has a past full of memories. The river and fishing become metaphors for life by having a life of its own.
When the Macleans, especially Norman speaks of the river they are also referring to life, their lives, and themselves. When Norman couldn't catch any fish on the open river Paul declares,
"Brother," he said, "you can't catch trout in a bathtub.
"You like to fish in sunny, open water because you are a Scot and afraid to lose a fly if you cast into the bushes.
"But the fish are not taking sunbaths. They are under the bushes where it is cool and safe from fishermen like you" (Maclean 42).
Norman defends himself by saying he will lose flies if he cast near the bushes. Paul wonders why he cares about losing flies that cost him nothing. "Nobody, Paul states, "has put in a good day's fishing unless he leaves a couple of flies hanging on the bushes. You can't catch fish if you don't dare go where they are." That last sentence also applies to work, people, finding something or someone, and life itself. If people wait for good things to happen instead of going to where that thing is and doing something about it, they won't get anywhere. If people just sat around and waited for luck to come their way luck will pass on by. To pro...
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...offering him money or taking him fishing" (55). The memories of his brother and his whole family are in the river and every time he sees the river he sees his family. When the river splashes Paul is calling. When he casts into the open waters his father is watching. When he counts the four-count rhythm he hears his mother's metronome. And when he passes by a bush with flies around its leaves he'll remember a part, if not all, of his experiences.
The Macleans compared the river to life, went fishing to answer questions, and created a river that has a past full of memories. The river and fishing becomes a metaphor for life by having a life of its own. Sometimes there are fish for treasure, thoughts to keep, and lessons to learn. The river runs and runs and no one ever knows when or where it is going to stop. Then on an unfortunate day it will stop moving and dry out.
Barry defines the Mississippi’s unpredictability through an “uncoiling rope.” One cannot experience an act such as that of an uncoiling rope, in it’s smooth, but quick movements. Its destination cannot be anticipated and its course of action can only be speculated. By using a single phrase, like “uncoiling rope,” Barry guides his audience to a complete picture of the fascinating Mississippi. He gives life to the Mississippi by relating it to a snake. His snake-related diction, such as “roils” and “uncoiling” present the river with lifelike qualities that extend Barry’s purpose in saying that the incredible river can actually stand on it’s own. Furthermore, Barry describes the river in similes in order to compare the Mississippi to a snake, in a sense of both power and grace. The river “devours itself”, “sucking” at the surface around it, and “scouring out holes” in its depths. Barry’s combination of personifying diction and similes provide his audience with a relation in which one understands the Mississippi’s paradox of strength and unpredictability, and
Wetherell, W.D. "The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant." Responding to Literature: Stories, Poems, Plays, and Essays. Fourth Edition. Ed. Judith A. Stanford. Boston: McGrawHill, 2003. 191-196.
The characters in the movie and book are taken straight from Mclean’s life. From the hard working, soft centered, minister father, to the drunken, “down on his luck”, brother-in-law, Neil. The character of Paul appears the be the most true to life member of Norman’s family. The audience quickly becomes familiar with Paul and his quick-tempered, always ready for anything attitude. This is evident in the beginning of the story with Paul’s frequent phrase “...with a bet on the to make things interesting (Mclean 6).” “It was almost funny and sometimes not so funny to see a boy always wanting to bet on himself and almost sure to win (Mclean 5).” Unlike Norman who was rigorously home schooled every morning, while Paul seemed to escape this torment. The boys would spend their afternoons frolicking in the woods and fishing the Big Blackfoot River. The differences that developed between Paul’s and Norman’s fishing styles become evident in the published versions of Mclean’s life as well as his real life. Norman followed the traditional style taught by their preacher-father, ten and two in a four -count rhythm, like a metronome.
Throughout A River Runs Through It, Norman Maclean emphasizes the relationship between nature, art, and faith. The concise, simple sentence with which he chooses to open his story captures the essence of all one hundred pages: in his family, 'there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing' (1). Reverend Maclean believes that both fly fishing and spiritual belief are 'exact arts,' if such a term can exist without paradox. The Reverend holds the firm conviction that 'all good things ' trout as well as eternal salvation ' come by grace and grace comes by art and art does not come easy' (4). This belief system obviously espouses a view of the world as meticulous and well-ordered: nature is an intricate example of perfection, painstakingly created by God over half a billion years; art, including the art of fly fishing, is best taught with scrupulous attention to form and detail; faith is best deepened through study of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, regular church attendance, and carefully written and revised sermons.
The circle of life is an unfair and painful process of the world balancing itself. The river is used to keep this balance by taking lives and continuing the cycle. As it uses death to maintain this process, it also provides a direction and pieces hope for anyone who requires it. Growing up is a part of life and becoming a man is a struggle for any boy. It requires experience and knowledge, but even then manhood cannot mask all pain. Unfortunately, life doesn't take pity for the weak or young. All people are victims of the circle of life.
As a consequence of the narrator cutting the fishing line, he feels a "sick, nauseous feeling in [his] stomach" as he understood the grave mistake he has done. He can't comprehend that he had made the absurd decision to cut the line that released the fish he wanted to hook greatly. He treasures fishing significantly but his desire for Sheila took command. Throughout the rest of the date, he retained that tainted sensation in his stomach as that lost fish stays in his thought. As a result, after a month had relinquished "the spell [Sheila] cast over [him] was gone" due to it denoting superficial love and not true passion, but what adhered to him was his true love, the lost bass that haunted him all server and "haunts [him] still." The narrator discovers that the affection for Sheila was not authentic but what is genuine is his passion for fishing. He comes to terms with his disastrous error and grasps that judgments formulated on the premise of superficial values lead to sorrow and anguish. Ultimately, the narrator learns through Sheila that the judgment he made because of his shallow desire provokes pain and
The story describes the protagonist who is coming of age as torn between the two worlds which he loves equally, represented by his mother and his father. He is now mature and is reflecting on his life and the difficulty of his childhood as a fisherman. Despite becoming a university professor and achieving his father’s dream, he feels lonely and regretful since, “No one waits at the base of the stairs and no boat rides restlessly in the waters of the pier” (MacLeod 261). Like his father, the narrator thinks about what his life could have been like if he had chosen another path. Now, with the wisdom and experience that comes from aging and the passing of time, he is trying to make sense of his own life and accept that he could not please everyone. The turmoil in his mind makes the narrator say, “I wished that the two things I loved so dearly did not exclude each other in a manner that was so blunt and too clear” (MacLeod 273). Once a decision is made, it is sometimes better to leave the past and focus on the present and future. The memories of the narrator’s family, the boat and the rural community in which he spent the beginning of his life made the narrator the person who he is today, but it is just a part of him, and should not consume his present.
The wooden bucket enriches the flavor of water, and connects you to nature through taste. Hence, Darl has found a better way to satisfy his needs. William Faulkner overwhelms his audience with the visual perceptions that the characters experience, making the reader feel utterly attached to nature and using imagery how a human out of despair can make accusations. "If I jump off the porch I will be where the fish was, and it all cut up into a not-fish now. I can hear the bed and her face and them and I can feel the floor shaking when he walks on it that came and did it....
Symbolism is a recurring theme in this novel, the river and fish symbols both contribute to the overall growth to the protagonist, Lily, and to the storyline as a whole. “The river has done its best, I was sure, to give her a peaceful ride out of this life. You can die in a river, but maybe you could be reborn in it too” (Kidd 229). The river as a symbol represents life and death, Lily mentions how it brought May’s death but also brings life too, for example, a baptism is sometimes done in river with symbolizes rebirth. This influential symbol contributes to the organization of the storyline by partly helping Lily come to terms with May’s death, in turn, keeping Lily content and the story continuing. “They held me down on the bank and hooked
wants to learn from the river, he wants to listen to it; he wants to
Passage 3: “The butchers and fishermen are usually not Buddhist,” Walter said. “But even if they are, the approach their fishing with reverence. They scoop up the fish and bring them to shore. They say the are saving fish from drowning” (162).
“The Boat”, narrated by a Mid-western university professor, Alistar MacLeod, is a short story concerning a family and their different perspectives on freedom vs. tradition. The mother pushes the son to embrace more of a traditional lifestyle by taking over the fathers fishing business, while on the other hand the father pushes the son to live more autonomously in an unconstrained manner. “The Boat” focuses on the father and how his personality influences the son’s choice on how to live and how to make decisions that will ultimately affect his life. In Alistair MacLeod’s, “The Boat”, MacLeod suggest that although dreams and desires give people purpose, the nobility of accepting a life of discontentment out weighs the selfishness of following ones own true desires. In the story, the father is obligated to provide for his family as well as to continue the fishing tradition that was inherited from his own father. The mother emphasizes the boat and it’s significance when she consistently asked the father “ How did things go in the boat today” since tradition was paramount to the mother. H...
"Eventually the watcher joined the river, and there was only one of us. I believe it was the river." The river that Norman Maclean speaks of in A River Runs Through It works as a connection, a tie, holding together the relationships between Norman and his acquaintances in this remote society. Though "It" is never outwardly defined in the novella there is definite evidence "It" is the personality of the people and that the river is running through each individual personality acting as the simple thread connecting this diverse group of people.
Alistair Macleod’s “The Boat” is a tale of sacrifice, and of silent struggle. A parent’s sacrifice not only of their hopes and dreams, but of their life. The struggle of a marriage which sees two polar opposites raising a family during an era of reimagining. A husband embodying change and hope, while making great sacrifice; a wife gripped in fear of the unknown and battling with the idea of losing everything she has ever had. The passage cited above strongly presents these themes through its content
In “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”, the river stands as a symbol of endlessness, geographical awareness, and the epitome of the human soul. Hughes uses the literary elements of repetition and simile to paint the river as a symbol of timelessness. This is evident in the first two lines of the poem. Hughes introduces this timeless symbol, stating, “I've known rivers: I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins” (Hughes 1-2). These opening lines of the poem identifies that the rivers Hughes is speaking about are older than the existence of human life. This indicates the rivers’ qualities of knowledge, permanence, and the ability to endure all. Humans associate “age” with these traits and the longevity of a river makes it a force to be reckoned with. The use of a simile in the line of the poem is to prompt the audience that this is truly a contrast between that ancient wisdom, strength, and determination of the river and the same qualities that characterize a human being. The imagery portrayed in the poem of blood flowing through human veins like a river flows ...