1. What seems to be the author’s central argument or thesis?
The thesis of the story is that time will pass and we must learn to forgive ourselves and live on, despite something painful happening in the past. Each character is scared with his/her own damage and the story encompasses the feelings of grief, loss, and emotional strain.
2. How does the writer develop and support that argument?
The main character, 9 year old boy Oskar, is traumatized by his father’s death in the 9/11 incident and he’s constantly unhappy with himself, even to the point of self-harm. Oskar’s father left him a key in an envelope titled “Black” after he died. Oskar’s mission is to find the lock and to do this, Oskar goes on an adventure around NYC to find every person with the last name …show more content…
He speaks of the bombing in Dresden and how he lost his entire family. At a young age, he fell in love with grandma’s younger sister, Anna, but she also died along with their unborn child. Unable to withstand his pain, grandpa withdraws from talking and he communicates only through gestures and writing notes. He even tattooed “no” on his right hand and “yes” on his left hand to answer others quickly. He constantly addresses his letters to his unborn child, which could be the one with Anna or Oskar’s father, who he has never even seen. He is full of grief and melancholy and regrets that he couldn’t do something right in his life.
At the end of the story, grandma and grandpa reunite at the airport and decides to stay there. They don’t know how exactly to move forward so they just remain the way things are. On the other hand, Oskar learns to not remain in the past but to move on and appreciate the present. He was able to transcend grief and break away from the chains that tied him down. He grows to discover that people can be happier if they accept the value of feelings and love given to them from the ones they care about, and vice
The thesis of the story is that time will pass and we must learn to forgive ourselves and live on, despite something painful happening in the past. Each character is scared with his/her own damage and the story encompasses the feelings of grief, loss, and emotional strain.
2. How does the writer develop and support that argument?
The main character, 9 year old boy Oskar, is traumatized by his father’s death in the 9/11 incident and he’s constantly unhappy with himself, even to the point of self-harm. Oskar’s father left him a key in an envelope titled “Black” after he died. Oskar’s mission is to find the lock and to do this, Oskar goes on an adventure around NYC to find every person with the last name …show more content…
He speaks of the bombing in Dresden and how he lost his entire family. At a young age, he fell in love with grandma’s younger sister, Anna, but she also died along with their unborn child. Unable to withstand his pain, grandpa withdraws from talking and he communicates only through gestures and writing notes. He even tattooed “no” on his right hand and “yes” on his left hand to answer others quickly. He constantly addresses his letters to his unborn child, which could be the one with Anna or Oskar’s father, who he has never even seen. He is full of grief and melancholy and regrets that he couldn’t do something right in his life.
At the end of the story, grandma and grandpa reunite at the airport and decides to stay there. They don’t know how exactly to move forward so they just remain the way things are. On the other hand, Oskar learns to not remain in the past but to move on and appreciate the present. He was able to transcend grief and break away from the chains that tied him down. He grows to discover that people can be happier if they accept the value of feelings and love given to them from the ones they care about, and vice