A Long Way Gone By Ishmael Beah

"Some nights the sky wept stars that quickly floated and disappeared into the darkness before our wishes could meet them." (Beah 80). The way Ishmael Beah describes the stars describes how your outlook at life can cause you to believe the stars are yours or that they are unreachable. Shakespeare's play Othello tells the story of Othello, his recently married wife Desdemona, his soldier Iago, Iago's wife Emilia, and Othello's wife Desdemona. Comparably to Othello and Desdemona's new relationship, Ishmael Beah's memoir, A Long Way Gone, tells the story of an immature boy trying to survive in his new life alone as a refugee and later a soldier. A Long Way Gone describes Beah's life in Sierra Leone while rebels attack. He met different …show more content…
Shakespeare shows this theme many times. One of the most prominent examples of absence of hope inOthello is when Othello decides he must kill the women he loves. Othello gave in to the lies Iago told him and chosen to believe deceitful soldier instead of his loyal wife, Desdemona. "Let me not name it to you, the stars. It is the cause. Yet I'll not shed her blood, Nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow, And smooth as monumental alabaster. Yet she must die, else she'll betray more men. Put out the light, and then put out the light. " (Shakespeare.5.2.211.2.). Othello lost hope in Desdemona and believes their once beautiful relationship turned useless. Othello feels like there's no hope for his relationship with Desdemona. Similarly, Beah and his friends felt that their life became no longer worth continuing to risk. Ishmael's friend, Saidu, feels like his life became no longer worth the pain and sorrow.He feels he may never escape the rebels, so he might as well die to escape from the madness around him. "Every time people come at us with the intention of killing us, I close my eyes and wait for death. Even though I am still alive, I feel like each time I accept death. " ( Beah 70). Saidu describes the loss of any desire to continue to live when he says this. Soon after he says this Saidu gives up on his life. Young boys shouldn't come face to face with death as …show more content…
When Iago first tells his lies about Desdemona cheating Othello, Othello opposed Iago's accusations. At this point he still loves Desdemona and chooses to believe her instead of the deceitful soldier Iago. "By the world, I think my wife be honest and think she is not. I think thou art just and thou art not . I'll have some proof. " (Shakespeare.3.3.435). Othello decided to have an optimistic and hopeful perspective and believe that his loyal wife would never betray him. If Othello kept this mindset, he would have never murdered Desdemona. Comparatively to Othello's optimistic view of his hard situation with Iago, Beah handles his difficult situation of running away with similar optimism. Beah experiences many difficult times during the time period when he runs away alone. "When I was young, my father used to say, 'If you are alive, there is hope for a better day and something good to happen. If there is nothing good left in the destiny of a person, he or she will die.' I thought about these words during my journey, and they kept me moving even when I didn't know where I was going. Those words became the vehicle that drove my spirit forward and made it stay alive." (Beah 54). Beah goes from living dependent on his family and friends in a peaceful environment, to becoming personally responsible for his health and safety in a world that seems to be against him. These circumstances