The Bass And Sheila Mant Summary

In the 1800s, one might give up after not being elected for the Illinois General Assembly, and the same person might give up after continuing to lose a race for the U.S. congress, two races for the U.S. senate, and one movement to be nominated as a vice-president (10 Facts 1). However, Abraham Lincoln never gave up, and now he is widely considered one of the best presidents to ever live. The story, “The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant”, by W. D. Wetherell, is a story about a boy who takes the girl on, what is supposed to be, a romantic date, but is shocked when she says she hates fishing, which he loves. Because of her disdain to fishing, he gives up on the catch of a lifetime for a chance with the girl, Sheila Mant. The story ends with the girl going home with another guy, and him not catching the bass or getting the girl. The story, “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant”, by W.D. Wetherell, teaches the reader the theme, “one should not give up” through the imagery, setting, and symbolism, of the story.
Wetherell first pushes the theme “one should not give up” using the imagery of the text. The text displays the theme through the sentence, “I pulled a penknife from my pocket and cut the line in half. With a sick, nauseous feeling in my stomach, I …show more content…
Wetherell also uses setting to prove the theme of “The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant.” To illustrate, after the narrator pulls up in his canoe, Sheila says, “I can get Dad’s car” (2) The characters are in conflict with the setting here as the narrator has to convince her to take the canoe because he does not want to give up a romantic date. Furthermore, the characters are in conflict with the setting when they are going backwards because of the bass, “It’s just the current”, the narrator lies (4). Here, the narrator is giving up on catching the bass because of Sheila. Truly, Wetherell uses setting with vital importance in this