Social responsibility is a challenge all people handle, and is the question of whether or not to look out for other people, even strangers. The novel The Five People You Meet in Heaven, by Mitch Albom, tells the story of Eddie and his journey into the afterlife. Before his death, Eddie worked as a maintenance manager at Ruby Pier, the same place his father had worked all his life. Unfortunately he didn’t have a son or daughter to pass his job to, because his wife, Marguerite, and him couldn’t afford to adopt after failing to conceive. Eddie’s wife tragically passes away from a brain tumor at fifty six, leaving Eddie completely alone to run maintenance. His death occurs after attempting to save a girl from being smashed by a falling cart
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When Eddie was younger he had served in the army, only suffering a leg wound when he returned home. Eddie realized his location when he heard shooting in the distance, seeking refuge up a tree with his former captain. The Captain then confessed that he was the one who shot Eddie in the leg in order to save him from running into a burning tent to save someone who was crawling in. Eddie didn’t understand at the time, but the Captain was only trying to protect him, because he knew Eddie would have died. Eddie forgave the Captain after realizing his intentions, but was still unaware of how the Captain was killed. It turns out, that wasn’t the only experience that saved Eddie's life. The Captain said, “I didn’t die for nothing, either. That night we might have all driven over that land mine, then the four of us would have been gone (Albom 93).” On their escape, the Captain had stepped out of the vehicle to make sure the path was safe for the other passengers, when he tragically stepped on a landmine, blowing him up into a tree. The Captain explained how sacrifice was a part of life, and shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of or regretted, how his sacrifice saved the other three soldiers in the car, because if he had never inspected the grounds, all four of them may have driven over the landmine and been killed. The Captain explains that by shooting Eddie he kept his promise by not leaving him behind and giving Eddie his life. The Captain didn’t lose his life, but passed on lives to his soldiers instead, fulfilling his social responsibility, and being the brothers keeper of Eddie and the
When Eddie was younger he had served in the army, only suffering a leg wound when he returned home. Eddie realized his location when he heard shooting in the distance, seeking refuge up a tree with his former captain. The Captain then confessed that he was the one who shot Eddie in the leg in order to save him from running into a burning tent to save someone who was crawling in. Eddie didn’t understand at the time, but the Captain was only trying to protect him, because he knew Eddie would have died. Eddie forgave the Captain after realizing his intentions, but was still unaware of how the Captain was killed. It turns out, that wasn’t the only experience that saved Eddie's life. The Captain said, “I didn’t die for nothing, either. That night we might have all driven over that land mine, then the four of us would have been gone (Albom 93).” On their escape, the Captain had stepped out of the vehicle to make sure the path was safe for the other passengers, when he tragically stepped on a landmine, blowing him up into a tree. The Captain explained how sacrifice was a part of life, and shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of or regretted, how his sacrifice saved the other three soldiers in the car, because if he had never inspected the grounds, all four of them may have driven over the landmine and been killed. The Captain explains that by shooting Eddie he kept his promise by not leaving him behind and giving Eddie his life. The Captain didn’t lose his life, but passed on lives to his soldiers instead, fulfilling his social responsibility, and being the brothers keeper of Eddie and the