Essay on the Short Story "The Boat"

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The Effect of Macbeth’s Characteristics upon the Development of the Play
The way we lead our lives are filled with morals and ethics; we feel that no matter what happens in our life, we must follow these ethics. When we follow these rules for a while, it begins to turn into a theme. These rules begin to define what we do and more importantly, who we are. This concept is shown clearly by Alistair MacLeod in “The Boat”. The family, especially the mother and father, clearly shows the themes of love versus hate, dedication, and tradition.

Love versus hate is a strong theme shown by the family. The mother loves that she has a husband who is a fisherman, but the father hates being a fisherman. The father loves doing new things such as making friends with out of town people, but the mother hates out of town people and wishes that they never came to their town in the first place. The father loves the idea of educating his children and sending them to school so they would not have to be fishermen, or wives of fishermen, but the mother hates the idea of education to the point that she even hates reading. She hates education because it will tear her family apart. The theme of sacrifice is seen when the theme of love versus hate is present. The father does not even know how to swim let alone feel comfortable in the water, but still he gets up every day to go fishing so his family can continue on. Eventually this he will sacrifice his life for his family. The father rarely speaks to people who come from out of town because his wife hates those people even though he loves meeting theme and learning about them. The father would love to be educated but he does not for his wife so she will be happy. The theme of dedication is shown primarily by the father. The father dedicates his entire life in spite of his interests to ensure the happiness of his family. The father wants his children to leave town, to leave behind a life of redundancy, and to acquire an education. The...
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