In the story “Buddha Boy” by Kathe Koja, Justin, a male teenager in Edward Rucher High School, was partnered with Buddha Boy for a group project. He appeared to be a freak at first glance, but after Justin went to Buddha Boy’s house and worked on the project, he realized that Buddha Boy wasn’t as weird as people thought he was, and that he was an exceptional artist. However, McManus, the lead bully in the school, targeted Jinsen with the help of Magnur, and everyone else in the school followed along with him. Eventually, Justin learns that Jinsen was once a bully, just like McManus, and that his confusing behavior was caused by this past experience. Near the end of the book, Jinsen showed the school his beautiful hand-drawn banner, and people
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At the start of the book, Justin is worried that he will become an outcast if he tries to be friends with Jinsen. However, later on in the book, Justin tells Magnur, “He [Buddha Boy] is my friend. So what?“ (Koja, 89) This quote shows that Justin is no longer afraid of the social order of the school, because he was brave enough to talk back to Magnur about Buddha Boy being his friend. So, in the beginning, Justin was scared of becoming an outcast by being friends with Jinsen, but he became braver and learned that friendship was more important than the social order of the …show more content…
At first glance, Jinsen seems like a freak; he begs for money, and he doesn’t defend himself against McManus. However, as the story progresses, Jinsen explains his religious beliefs to Justin, and he also says, “I understand McManus. Because I used to be him, kind of. A hungry ghost. With a god inside.“ (Koja, 85) This quote explains Jinsen’s weird behavior when being bullied by McManus, because he believed that McManus could become a nice person and stop bullying others if he didn’t fight back. Jinsen’s begging is also explained by his religious beliefs. Even though Jinsen seems like a weird person, the things that he does can be easily explained if you get to know him more instead of judging him
At the start of the book, Justin is worried that he will become an outcast if he tries to be friends with Jinsen. However, later on in the book, Justin tells Magnur, “He [Buddha Boy] is my friend. So what?“ (Koja, 89) This quote shows that Justin is no longer afraid of the social order of the school, because he was brave enough to talk back to Magnur about Buddha Boy being his friend. So, in the beginning, Justin was scared of becoming an outcast by being friends with Jinsen, but he became braver and learned that friendship was more important than the social order of the …show more content…
At first glance, Jinsen seems like a freak; he begs for money, and he doesn’t defend himself against McManus. However, as the story progresses, Jinsen explains his religious beliefs to Justin, and he also says, “I understand McManus. Because I used to be him, kind of. A hungry ghost. With a god inside.“ (Koja, 85) This quote explains Jinsen’s weird behavior when being bullied by McManus, because he believed that McManus could become a nice person and stop bullying others if he didn’t fight back. Jinsen’s begging is also explained by his religious beliefs. Even though Jinsen seems like a weird person, the things that he does can be easily explained if you get to know him more instead of judging him