Character Analysis: Boy's Life

Everyone has felt the pain and sorrow of losing a loved one, whether it may be their pet, their relative, or simply a very close friend. People also cope in different ways when a loved one has passed away. Their reaction can range from crying and getting over it for a few days or a 180-degree personality turn from a usually happy person to a depressing one. However, others will find the loss of a loved one a chance to grow and mature as an emotionally stronger person. In the novel Boy's Life, by Robert McCammon, Cory Mackenson experiences the deaths of Mrs. Neville, Rebel, and Davy Ray and uses their deaths as an opportunity to grow and mature as a stronger person, which shows that death can impact a person greatly.

The first death that Cory …show more content…
When people's loved ones die, they usually want them back alive and back to normal. However, they are not aware of the consequences that come along with it. Therefore, they are greedy with want they want and claim that they will do anything to get their loved ones back. But they don't know that letting that person go and moving on is a much better solution than to stay stuck on them. That's what happened with Cory when his dog was crashed by a truck and almost died. He prayed that his dog wouldn't die and even though his dog didn't, it wasn't back to normal. The dog was suffering with every step he took, and Cory eventually came into focus with his selfishness, "I began to tell my parents how much I regretted praying Death away from Rebel. I had done wrong, because Rebel had been so badly hurt he should've been allowed to die" (McCammon 361) Cory didn't realize how much he was making his dog's life a living hell until he saw that the little ghost boy would make a better owner for Rebel because then, Rebel would feel the relief of death and not have to suffer anymore. This made him realize how greedy and selfish he was when he prayed that Death wouldn't come to his dog. He didn't realize the consequences that came with it and let Rebel suffer every time it took a step. Eventually, he had to let it go and learned his lesson about selfishness. But, like others, Cory had a hard time "handing" over his dog to the ghost boy. When Cory and his dad visit Dr. Lezander's house to put Rebel to sleep, he spent alone time with rebel before his dad handed him the form and a pen to sign with. ""Dad?"I said. "He's my dog, isn't he?" My father understood. "Yes, he sure is," he answered and he gave the pen to me. We left the form that said Case #3432 with Dr. Lezander, my name signed on the dotted line. When we got home