Deb's Three Boats In High School

Three Boats encompasses Deb’s true coming of age story. In this segment of the story the true morals of Deb’s revolution come out. I think the line, “Two bad boat tales must be balanced by one good boat tale, so say sailors. (Do sailors say that? I don’t know. I’ve never known a sailor.)” is emblematic of her journey to discover herself (182). In particular, the imagery of her boat trip which forced her to endure several storms, even a hurricane, and hardships along the way perfectly encapsulates Deb’s conundrum. Like the boat trip was her only way home, the only path to her awakening was her journey with George. That was what “snagged” her and caused her to feel trapped. However, she slowly learned “small understanding built on small understanding, until one day I thought: It’s time to go home”. Deb grew from, “I can’t go back into the past and start over”, to “What am I doing here?” (183). I think that Deb’s feeling of getting snagged is one that every college student can relate to. In High School we were …show more content…
This piece seems to have one purpose, making sense of the whirlwind life she has lived. Even at the very end of the story, Deb still seems uncertain of the life she will lead. Just as life was hard during the revolutions, life back home in the United States presented a new set of challenges. This book serves as a way for her to process a truly impactful time in her life, one which she still has question about. At the end of the story, Deb contemplates hiring a private eye to find George. Clearly torn about the decision herself, she asks the audience. If I was in Deb’s shoes I would hire the private eye. My curiosity would be too great to pass up the opportunity to see what had become of George, the man I almost married, whose ideologies I adopted, and who had played a tremendous role in shaping the human being I would