The Motorcycle Diaries Summary

Through discovery, we are changed, no matter the size and extremity. Our discoveries shape our values and beliefs. This changes the way we view people and the emotions we feel towards them. It also changes the significance that places have on us and what they represent to us. Through reading The Motorcycle Diaries by Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara and The Big World by Tim Winton we are able to observe this change. In Che’s case, it shapes his entire life

Through discoveries, we are able to connect with people feeling similar emotions. In the Motorcycle Diaries, we see how Che learns to understand the needs of people. From his middle-class background he has never struggled but upon his journey through North America, he constantly realises how not everyone is as fortunate as him. In one entry he recounts his meeting with a lady that has severe Asthma, “The poor …show more content…
In the Big World, the Narrator realises how people find security in others and this causes him to reflect on who he is. During the story, the narrator reveals how he becomes agitated with Biggie's demeanour towards Meg yet he sees himself being the same, “The way he’s enjoying being brighter than her... secure in himself. It’s me all over. It’s how I am with him and it’s not pretty.” Throughout the story, the narrator keeps explaining how Biggie is holding him back yet he feels obligated to remain loyal to him. He says “I suppose we’re all wrong for each other” and then, “Friendship I suppose comes at a price”. The narrator explains through inner thoughts how he truly feels about Biggie. We then see part of the reason for his commitment to Biggie, “For five years I worked my arse off... Out of loyalty, yeah, but also out of sheer vanity.” The narrator directly tells the audience how helping Biggie gives him a sense of pride and achievement and through this, we can observe that he gains a sense of security through Biggie’s stupidity, the exact way Biggie is with