If your book is set in a time period in history, it probably tells you a lot about that period. What might you do if you lived in that time period and faced a similar dilemma as the protagonist does?
So I was thinking about this question and realized that you often want to say 'I would have done exactly what the protagonist did and saved the day!' But would you really? I think that sitting here on my nice comfortable couch thinking about it, however much I want to say I would 'save the day' I think I wouldn't. But if I was actually in that situation I would probably pull through because, I mean, what other choice would I have.
In the book one character has this system that when he is walking across the desert he is thinking, just until that tree, or just until the end of this day, and this helps him get through all his troubles. I think that this was very effective for him and it served him well.
The other character in my book has a slightly less hard life but it is still tough. This is just her norm so she doesn't really know anything else and therefore she doesn't really think about how hard it is. I don't exactly know if this is a good thing or a bad thing but in the end things get better for her and that's good.
Wow--several good things here that made me stop. I had to tell myself to read through to the end of the post before clicking "comment." That's a good sign :-)
ReplyDeleteYou write, "But if I was actually in that situation I would probably pull through because, I mean, what other choice would I have."
Honestly, I don't know if I agree with you. Pulling through IS a choice and a very difficult one at that. I know a lot of people who have difficult lives and some of them kind of fall apart and let themselves be the kind of person maybe they don't want to be, but they feel they can't help it. Other people kind of pull it together and say (whether consciously or not), hey, I'm not going to let myself be anything other than what I would be proud of--even if my life stinks at the moment (or for many moments, as the case may be). I think this was especially true during the Holocaust. People who emotionally gave up and stopped caring usually died within a day or two. Living was a choice, and a very difficult one at that, because dying was much easier. That's a morbid example, but the clearest one I can think of. I do think you are the kind of person who would choose to deal with problems and not let them swirl around you. I think you should be proud of that.
You also wrote, "...she doesn't really know anything else and therefore she doesn't really think about how hard it is."
That's a really good point: is it better to have something to compare your situation to, and know how hard you've got it, or think that this is normal, and therefore never yearn for anything better? I don't know if there is really an answer, but it's one of those "shelf" questions that we let sit for a while and then pull down from the shelf when we think we're ready to consider it again... like a good book that we revisit when we're feeling nostalgic...