Problems can be common among people of different ages and eras, but the way they cope with them and learn from them may vary. In Prairie Ostrich by Tamai Kobayashi, the theme of isolation is explored through the experiences of an eight year-old girl named Egg. After the tragic death of her elder brother Albert, the Murakami family falls apart and end up isolated from one another physically as well as mentally. Egg’s family has various personal issues, such as her mother’s alcoholism and the fact that her father always stays in the ostrich barn. Furthermore, the family lives in Bittercreek, Alberta, a town where they are the only Japanese family and own an ostrich farm. While her family unravels, Egg must find her place in her confusing world
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As a result of learning to actively control her own decisions, Egg from Prairie Ostrich comes out of her isolation and becomes more independent and understanding, bringing a more positive outlook to her life, as well as the lives of those around her. Through her many gruelling experiences, Egg becomes a more independent individual and less reliant on others around her, most notably her older sister Kathy. Due to the death of her brother, Egg’s mother and father become lost in their grief, and neglect their attention for her, leaving Kathy as Egg’s main caretaker and protector. However, due to Egg being the complete opposite of her sister, she feels isolated from everyone. This results in her being bullied by a boy named Martin Fisken, and her isolation is described as “dark” and “like forever” (Kobayashi 71). However, the roles …show more content…
Initially, she feels alone and overwhelmed when she contemplates her situation of being isolated from her family members as well as her community, which also makes her unable to communicate her issues. The fact that she is unable to understand others causes her to feel this way, but she learns that everyone faces problems when she thinks that “every one of us has a plastic bubble but it is invisible” and that “we can’t go inside eachother; we don’t know what someone else is thinking” (125). As a result of coming out of her isolation, Egg learns to understand the issues of others and empathize with them based on her own experiences. She expresses that everyone faces problems, so she conquers her own issues step-by-step in a manner that is logical and orderly, allowing her to take the best course of action required for her to be successful in her goals. The fact that she becomes more understanding helps her perceive situations and people in different manners, and allows her to change the atmosphere of her surrounding environment. Regarding her impact on the environment, Egg declares that “Albert is gone gone gone but Papa’s back in the house, fixing up the ostrich barn with Jack Henry, and Mama has poured all her whiskey down the drain” (195) at the end of Prairie Ostrich. This shows that due to the culmination of Egg’s work from coming out of
As a result of learning to actively control her own decisions, Egg from Prairie Ostrich comes out of her isolation and becomes more independent and understanding, bringing a more positive outlook to her life, as well as the lives of those around her. Through her many gruelling experiences, Egg becomes a more independent individual and less reliant on others around her, most notably her older sister Kathy. Due to the death of her brother, Egg’s mother and father become lost in their grief, and neglect their attention for her, leaving Kathy as Egg’s main caretaker and protector. However, due to Egg being the complete opposite of her sister, she feels isolated from everyone. This results in her being bullied by a boy named Martin Fisken, and her isolation is described as “dark” and “like forever” (Kobayashi 71). However, the roles …show more content…
Initially, she feels alone and overwhelmed when she contemplates her situation of being isolated from her family members as well as her community, which also makes her unable to communicate her issues. The fact that she is unable to understand others causes her to feel this way, but she learns that everyone faces problems when she thinks that “every one of us has a plastic bubble but it is invisible” and that “we can’t go inside eachother; we don’t know what someone else is thinking” (125). As a result of coming out of her isolation, Egg learns to understand the issues of others and empathize with them based on her own experiences. She expresses that everyone faces problems, so she conquers her own issues step-by-step in a manner that is logical and orderly, allowing her to take the best course of action required for her to be successful in her goals. The fact that she becomes more understanding helps her perceive situations and people in different manners, and allows her to change the atmosphere of her surrounding environment. Regarding her impact on the environment, Egg declares that “Albert is gone gone gone but Papa’s back in the house, fixing up the ostrich barn with Jack Henry, and Mama has poured all her whiskey down the drain” (195) at the end of Prairie Ostrich. This shows that due to the culmination of Egg’s work from coming out of