A Prayer For Owen Meany Fate Analysis

We as humans, believe that we are responsible for all the choices we make in life. Some might call it free will but many others might say our lives are determined completely by fate. Free will implies that we the people can do whatever we please and that we are free and uncontrolled. Fate is the idea that no matter what a person chooses to do, something in their lives is already inevitably about to happen. In A Prayer for Owen Meany, written by John Irving, the theme of fate is clearly evident. There are many incidents in the book where fate is portrayed onto. Fate is clearly portrayed through the life of Owen Meany while Free Will is shown through the life of Johnny Wheelwright. Throughout the book Owen was very dependent on God while Johnny just went with the flow of life. Owen believes that every single person has a destiny and that their lives are already predetermined by God. An example of fate found in the book would be the death of Tabitha (Tabby), John’s mother. This was absolutely a predetermined event. There was nothing that was going to stop Owen from hitting a foul ball. It was inevitable. Of course Owen, being John’s best friend, felt guilty for the whole thing but years later he stated to John that he was an “Instrument of God.” …show more content…
He believes that because he disturbed the angel, he interfered with its plan of death. This would become an example of fate because after Tabby dies Owen later refers to this moment as the time where he disturbed the Angel of Death from his work of fate. “God has taken your mother, my hands were the instrument. God has taken my hands. I am God’s Instrument.” As stated earlier, by disrupting The Angel of Death Owen believes that God destined him to hit that ball. That he was God’s tool in life. By believing he was the instrument he gained self assurance and accepted the fact that his life is lead by fate, meaning that he is guided by