There`s Always Laughter to Life

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Recommended: Narrative of teenage pregnancy

There`s always laughter to life

Understanding life and why things happen is impossible. Life is like a game, accepting the things that life throws at us is the challenge. For some, giving up is the key to life. For others it`s important to look at the bright side of life and live on. Nick Hornby tackles very serious issues in his novels Slam and A Long Way Down. However, he addresses the topics in a more comic manner which creates a more appealing and effective story.

In both novels, Hornby takes on serious issues in today`s society. Although lessons are to be learned about these issues, he takes a funny approach to telling the story. In Slam, several issues arise with a 16-year old boy. The first big issue he discusses is teen pregnancy, ``It happened that night, I know it. I never said anything to Alicia, but it was my fault`` (Hornby, Slam 61). Sam has made the same mistake his mother made at his age. Hornby is able to make the issue relatively calm and ironic for the reader: “Not so bad, right? It’s a mistake, that’s all.” (Hornby, Slam 62). Although it may have been a mistake; it is bad. Sam is portrayed by Hornby as a calm, but frustrated character. By having a frustrated character, he is able to merge humour into Sam’s frustration: “It seems to me that if you never wear a condom, then you should get triplets or quintuplets” (Hornby, Slam 62). Hornby uses understatement and humour

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to emphasize the point and make the reader realize the problem but make it as funny as possible. This issue leads to others in Sam’s life. Sam started to realize how scared he ...

... middle of paper ...

...t attracts the reader. His writing style is easily understandable and is not meant to preach, but to teach. Relating with characters from his novels will help an individual who may be

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experiencing these problems. Hornby is successful at attacking serious issues in a comic manner, which results in a appealing novel.

Works Cited

Hornby, Nick. A Long Way Down. New York: Riverhead Books, 2005. Print.

---. Slam. New York: Riverhead Books, 2007. Print.

Toscan, Richard. "The Serious Comedy & The Reverse." Serious Comedy. Richard Toscan,

2009. Web. 31 May. 2010.

.

Hansen, Liane and Nick Hornby. "Music Inspires 'High Fidelity' Author's New Novel." NPR. PBS, 2010.

Web. 24 May 2010.

.

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