Experiences early in life enrich one’s wisdom. Wisdom is defined as the soundness of an action or decision based upon an experience. Jerry, the 11 year old protagonist from “Through the Tunnel” by Doris Lessing, gained wisdom when he completed his journey of going through the tunnel. He gained wisdom by realizing that he should not have been concerned about the thoughts or actions of others, by realizing that patience is needed to complete a task, and by realizing that some things in life are not worth the risks. At the beginning of the story, Jerry did not know these important lessons. He was an immature child who only wished to fit in and be recognized by a group of older boys. Jerry deeply cared about what these boys thought about him. Once the group realized that the immature child could not swim through the underwater tunnel, “they looked down gravely, frowning” (Lessing 3). Jerry only wished to be accepted, so he perceived the mindset that he had to complete his journey to be acknowledged. However, once he had completed the task, “he
…show more content…
“He was frightened. Supposing he turned dizzy in the tunnel? Supposing he died there, trapped?”(Lessing 5). Those were the possibilities that could have happened if Jerry did not learn to hold his breath for a period of three minutes. Nonetheless, “he would do it if it killed him”(Lessing 5). Jerry had been very foolish to risk his life so that he could be wanted by others. At the end of the story, he, himself, had changed and grew wiser. "It was no longer of the least importance to go to the bay”, said Jerry (Lessing 7). He understood by this point that going through the tunnel and wanting to be noticed were insignificant items that he should not have put his life on the line for. He went from being immature and nearly killing himself to becoming a wiser human being. For this to be done, he needed to gain
“He was frightened. Supposing he turned dizzy in the tunnel? Supposing he died there, trapped?”(Lessing 5). Those were the possibilities that could have happened if Jerry did not learn to hold his breath for a period of three minutes. Nonetheless, “he would do it if it killed him”(Lessing 5). Jerry had been very foolish to risk his life so that he could be wanted by others. At the end of the story, he, himself, had changed and grew wiser. "It was no longer of the least importance to go to the bay”, said Jerry (Lessing 7). He understood by this point that going through the tunnel and wanting to be noticed were insignificant items that he should not have put his life on the line for. He went from being immature and nearly killing himself to becoming a wiser human being. For this to be done, he needed to gain