Kyle Kennedy
Nordsiek
Honors American Literature
12 October 2015
Expectations Versus Reality in A Prayer for Owen Meany
Throughout A Prayer for Owen Meany, events often do not play out as the characters originally intended or predicted. This motif – that “nothing bears out in practice what it promises incipiently” – is one of the most important motifs in the novel, and it is realized through several major events. Three components of the book are significant examples of this motif: Johnny’s search for identity, Johnny’s search for faith, and America’s search for values, leadership, and truth. Johnny’s search for his identity is one of the most demonstrative instances of the motif that “nothing bears out in practice what it promises incipiently.” …show more content…
During the Cold War, America was plagued by controversies involving its presidents, and several of those controversies are spelled out in A Prayer for Owen Meany. The first of these controversies that appears in the novel was the scandal surrounding President John F. Kennedy’s alleged affair with Marilyn Monroe. Johnny becomes frustrated with the moral controversy created by the rumors of the affair, because he thinks Americans should be more concerned about the true political issues than with the scandalous nature of the affair. According to Johnny, “[Americans] don't want their presidents to deceive their wives but they don't mind if their presidents deceive Congress- lie to the people and violate the people's constitution!” (Irving 311) Another Cold War controversy that Johnny experiences in the book is the Iran-Contra scandal of the Reagan era. The Iran-Contra scandal involved Reagan indirectly funding the Contras (Nicaraguan rebels) without Congressional approval. Again, Johnny is frustrated because he thinks people should focus more on the issues than on the scandalous nature of them, as is shown when he said, “I don’t think most American’s care.” (Irving 324) This supports the motif because the American people do not react to these events in the way that Johnny
Nordsiek
Honors American Literature
12 October 2015
Expectations Versus Reality in A Prayer for Owen Meany
Throughout A Prayer for Owen Meany, events often do not play out as the characters originally intended or predicted. This motif – that “nothing bears out in practice what it promises incipiently” – is one of the most important motifs in the novel, and it is realized through several major events. Three components of the book are significant examples of this motif: Johnny’s search for identity, Johnny’s search for faith, and America’s search for values, leadership, and truth. Johnny’s search for his identity is one of the most demonstrative instances of the motif that “nothing bears out in practice what it promises incipiently.” …show more content…
During the Cold War, America was plagued by controversies involving its presidents, and several of those controversies are spelled out in A Prayer for Owen Meany. The first of these controversies that appears in the novel was the scandal surrounding President John F. Kennedy’s alleged affair with Marilyn Monroe. Johnny becomes frustrated with the moral controversy created by the rumors of the affair, because he thinks Americans should be more concerned about the true political issues than with the scandalous nature of the affair. According to Johnny, “[Americans] don't want their presidents to deceive their wives but they don't mind if their presidents deceive Congress- lie to the people and violate the people's constitution!” (Irving 311) Another Cold War controversy that Johnny experiences in the book is the Iran-Contra scandal of the Reagan era. The Iran-Contra scandal involved Reagan indirectly funding the Contras (Nicaraguan rebels) without Congressional approval. Again, Johnny is frustrated because he thinks people should focus more on the issues than on the scandalous nature of them, as is shown when he said, “I don’t think most American’s care.” (Irving 324) This supports the motif because the American people do not react to these events in the way that Johnny