Hatchet, by Gary Paulsen is a survival realistic fiction book about a thirteen year old boy named Brian whose plane crashes in Canada where he becomes stranded, forced to learn how to survive when he is use to his urban life in New York. Brian's parents have recently divorced and he knows a "secret" that his mother is/was having an affair. Brian does not know how to deal with these changes in his life and isn't quite to the place in his life where he is ready to become an adult, though he feels like the divorce of his parents is making him try to be.
I can see how a lot of students would enjoy this book because they are able to relate to it. Unfortunately, divorce is something that many of our students are faced with and it can take the best and strongest of kids and turn their world upside down, making them a different child. The idea of divorce and the way that Brian feels as though he is forced to grow up and no longer has the identity of his family to fall back on, is definitely a relatable subject that causes readers who have been in similar situations make an automatic connection with Brian.
I believe that another key part of the book that keeps people interested is simply the survival part; the conflict of man versus nature. There were so many instances in the book where I couldn't help but think of some of my students-- our students these days are so reliant upon video games and don't play outside as much as I can remember when I was a child, and I think that many of them would be in many of the same situations as Brian if this ever happened to them. Throughout the entire book Brian finds himself having run ins with different forms of nature; a porcupine getting into his tent and pricking him, a tornado destroying the home he had build, the berries making him such, and being sprayed by a skunk are just a few of them! In the beginning of the book Brian is frustrated because of all of the problems that he has with nature, but as the book goes on you see his frustration and confusion begin turning into amazement. The tornado that destroys Brian's house he sees as both beautiful and terrible; he also decides getting rid of the rifle that he finds in the plane's survival kit because he feels as though it does not fit into the natural order of things, he would rather use the skills that he has acquired.
Symbolism is a big component of this book. The book is named Hatchet, and a hatchet is a symbol in this book. Brian's mother gives him the hatchet before leaving for Canada so that he can use it in the woods while he is visiting. At first Brian only puts the hatchet on his belt to please his mother, but the hatchet actually turns into the thing that helps keep him alive. The hatchet is the only thing that Brian has during his time in the woods. I believe that hatchet shows just how Brian grew during this time; in the beginning he had no idea how to exactly use the hatchet but as the story went on he used it to get food and it ultimately is what helped him get the survival kit from the plane and lead to his rescue.
Big Question:
What would you do if you were in a situation like Brian? Do you think that you would be able to survive on your own?
No comments:
Post a Comment