Cutting For Stone Analysis

Tortoise or the Stone: Challenging Hardships It is integral to human nature to understand that hardship is coexisting with every aspect of life, whether it be simplistic, medial, or difficult there is a capacity for challenge. Oftentimes within novelization characters fall into deep woven plot lines wherein they are challenged profusely to conquer their inner most fears and adversaries. A prime example of this assertion is within Abraham Verghese’s novel Cutting For Stone, alongside Jessica Grant’s novel Come, Thou Tortoise, where multiple characters are impacted by catastrophe and are forced to adopt coping strategies to overcome their internal problems. Either novel concentrates on their characters overcoming tense family struggles, the …show more content…
Early on Audrey and her uncle Thoby exchange an amusing moment where Audrey reminisces about a bracelet her father used to wear, “I have a question, I say. Are you ready. (…) Remember the bracelet” (Grant 41). This quote stands as a testament to the strong will of the family, despite her father dying Audrey is remembering all the moments she shared with him and her uncle. Moreover, Grant’s novel follows a story adverse of Verghese’s masterpiece, as although the plot falters on the line of dark and dismal, it elects to strive in a more comical and positive manner. As the novel progresses, it becomes clear that Audrey has virtuous intentions, her caring nature coupled with her determination allows for the family to be brought back together and once again live in harmony. This is pristinely exemplified when Winnifred [tortoise] sees the precautions that Audrey made for him to bring them back together again, “She was still thinking of your safety” (Grant 361) this moment sets the grief of the entire antic aside for Winnifred as he realizes how much Audrey truly cared for him. In extension, this goes to show how the acts of Audrey, despite endless hardship and loss have persevered to re-establish a family who was torn apart by an unexpected turn of events. In the final act of the novel, Thoby departs to England to visit his mother, who had apparently been in a coma coincidentally after her son was not weeks earlier. It turns out that he lied as she had fallen down the stairs and merely suffered a broken arm. Thoby fled to escape the wake that followed his brother’s passing, however Audrey departed Newfoundland in search of him, despite an irrational fear of flying, to once again preserve what was left of a shattered family. She convinces him to come home and the