Analysis Of Fish Story By Rick Bass

This is a paper about the book Finding Fish: A Memoir, which was written by Antwone Fisher. By necessity given the nature of the book, the main character will be examined at length. Through careful examination of the main character a deeper understanding of the book can be reached. After the examination, a number of theoretical perspectives will be applied to the main character, as well as an explanation of how these perspectives can be used to evaluate Antwone in order to understand him better. The perspectives that will be used will be the strengths, systems, conflict, humanistic, and psychodynamic perspectives. Following the connection of the perspectives to Antwone, an explanation of why social workers use theories and

In the short story God is not a Fish Inspector by W.D. Valgardson, the protagonist Fusi Bergman is a man with a youthful heart who struggles to accept his failure to fish efficiently due to his aging body. As a result of the conflicts that dominate his life, Fusi gives in to his inevitable fate, and loses the one thing that sets him apart from his former friends and acquaintances. Fusi’s hostile relationship with his daughter, his opposition against the old folk’s home, and the deterioration of his body contribute to his ultimate defeat. To begin with, Fusi and his daughter Emma’s clashing views lead to Fusi’s loss of individuality. Emma feels fishing without a license is unethical, and suggests that “God will punish” Fusi.

Upon entering the circus, Edward spots a beautiful girl whom he vows to marry. However, she soon vanishes and he never learns her name. The ringmaster, Amos, agrees to provide Edward with clues about the girl each month that he works for him. He does everything Amos asks of him, which includes sticking his head in a lion’s mouth, washing an obese circus performer, cleaning up after the elephants, and being fired from a cannon. Edward completes every task with a smile knowing that he is one step closer to meeting his future wife.

“The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,” by W. D. Wetherell, is an initiation story in which the symbols of fishing and Sheila Mant illustrate how the character of the narrator transforms from youth and innocence to sophistication and maturity. At age fourteen, it is typical for a boy such as the narrator to be beginning this transformation. Being innocent and naïve in a sense, the fourteen year old narrator gets an enormous crush on a seventeen year old girl named Sheila Mant and comes to believe she is what he loves most in life. For him, Sheila is a symbol of the maturity and sophistication he will eventually become a

Man is a product of two worlds— the one he inhabits and the one he strives to create. The fisherman in Lawrence Sargent Hall’s “The Ledge” is caught somewhere between the two. A calloused, hardworking man who lives in a cold corner of the world, he is a father, a husband, and a man. Hall uses the perception of others, the actions of the protagonist, and direct narration to ultimately expose the real, imperfect humanity of the fisherman.

The short story “The Boat” by Alistair MacLeod is narrated by a man who comes from a fishing family. His mother’s side of the family has forever lived and worked by the sea and continues this tradition. The narrator’s father always wanted to be an academic, but worked on the boat to support his family. Through this passage it is evident that the parents’ characters clash in many aspects of their lives and are in constant conflict. MacLeod demonstrates this through the use of repetition, the contrast in other unrelated ideas, and through information that is withheld.

“The Swimmer,” a short fiction by John Cheever, presents a theme to the reader about the unavoidable changes of life. The story focuses on the round character by the name of Neddy Merrill who is in extreme denial about the reality of his life. He has lost his youth, wealth, and family yet only at the end of the story does he develop the most by experiencing a glimpse of realization on all that he has indeed lost. In the short story “The Swimmer,” John Cheever uses point of view, setting and symbolism to show the value of true relationships and the moments of life that are taken for granted.

While winning an arm wrestling match with his father, Manning feels the same thrill as hooking a giant fish. But he decides he would be happier if he “let him go, cut the line, keep the legend alive.” Reference of the father as a big fish stresses his physical and spiritual prominence. By referring to him as a “legend,” Manning clearly shows his awe and admiration for his father and his authorities as a guardian of the family. Though his father is growing weak, his former presence as a protective father will always remain as his legend. The reference to the big fish can also relate to Daniel Wallace’s Big Fish. The novel is similar with Manning’s story in that it is about a father-and-son relationship where Edward, the father, becomes a legendary big fish through his stories, just as Manning’s father is portrayed as a “Big Joe” for his significance in the family. Manning’s decision to free the fish reflects his desire not to destroy his father’s glory but preserve

Many people find hobbies that they enjoy; some people find hobbies that they love and make them lose track of time. What I have come to realize is that when you truly have a passion for something, whether it be good or bad, you tend to put it ahead of other things in life. You become so skilled in this one area because it is something you truly enjoy doing. But you can take what you have learned from this and apply it to the real world. What drives me is bass fishing, to the average person this just sounds like a lazy man's weekend activity. When I was young there wasn't much to it just put bait on a hook and wait but the possibility of potentially catching a giant has kept me hooked. As I have grown older I've learned how complicated what seems to be simple task

Antwone "Fish" Fisher is a complex individual who has been through a great deal of psychological and sociological conflicts in his short life. His mother was arrested and then abandons him, he was abused physically and emotional, and then lived on the streets. In short, nearly everything bad that can possible happen to a person has happened to young Antwone Fisher before he has reached adulthood. In his autobiographical book Finding Fish (2001), Fisher explains how the torment that he experienced in his youth shaped the man that he would become in adulthood. Although this story tells about one young man's difficulties in life and how he had to overcome obstacles in order to be a functional and positive member of society, it is really a story about the larger human condition and how every person becomes affected by their experiences.

“Homewaters of the Mind”, written by Holly Morris, is a personal narrative from an anthology named Another Wilderness. The narrator starts her story with details of an early morning and preparation for fishing. She then reveals a glimpse of her past, which explains her hobby, fishing, and a sense of disconnection from her father. Shifting back to present day, she struggles with fishing, prompting her to contemplate and admire the scenery. The narrative ends with the author wanting to reconnect with her father. The narrator masterfully utilizes this one fishing experience to illustrate the influence of nature and time on her mind.

Storytelling, in many ways, allows one to express their imagination through fanciful adventures and tales; thus, serving a purpose in terms of allowing an individual to cope with their tragedies, but also to entertain one another. In Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, and in Tim Burton’s Big Fish, the audience comes to realize that the conflict between fact and truth, combined with storytelling, are the central themes; it becomes clearer that facts have to be proven, whereas the truth is usually straightforward. These stories focus around the protagonists’ views, teaching the value, truth, and purpose of storytelling; in which, it is the pieces that collectively form the importance of storytelling. Storytelling allows the protagonists of both stories to cope with their struggles, and assists them in overcoming their adversities. It partly influences their decisions, and ideas; ultimately, changing their own perspectives in their struggles. Both show that stories can be incredibly meaningful and take on significant roles for the characters, which can be used to answer important questions about the truth.

“But the memory of that lost bass haunted me all summer and haunts me still.” In the story, The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant by W.D Wetherell is set mostly on the river. This story was told from the point of view of the main character, the narrator, who has a secluded crush on Sheila Mant but has an obvious crush on fishing. But what he does not see is who Sheila truly is under her skin until she agrees to go on a canoe ride with him. As they set out the narrator drifts a line in the water while when he sees new things about Sheila and her view on fishing. As he begins to carry on more of a conversation he gets a bite on his rod from what felt like the biggest bass of his life. Because of the narrator’s blind love for her, he let the fish go. In the Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant the author creates hesitation in the narrator’s decision between his true love and his blind love, through the use of conflict, Irony, and symbolism

I have been fishing my whole life, especially bass fish. I normally try to catch largemouth bass, which are very common where I am from. I was on my high school’s bass fishing team and we actually did pretty well for the most part, especially coming from such a small school. Largemouth bass are our prime target during these fishing tournaments. A largemouth bass is a white/green fish usually ranging from 1 pound to 6, they can also get up to 10 pounds as well. You can bass fish for fun or you can do it competitively such as tournaments. Tournaments usually go like every other tournament, you have two people and an adult captain that basically drives the boat and puts people in the best spots to catch bass. Every tournament usually starts at around 7 in the morning and goes through to 3 in the afternoon. After the time limit is reached, the boats then unload and get pulled up in the parking lot with the fish in them. The teams, then one by one go up to the weigh station and get a bag to put the

She questions how she could convey her excitement when it came to her turn to catching a fish and recalls it was the “white twisting fish” that hauled up onto the boat. By doing this, she paints a clear picture for the readers to vision themselves in the moment that was the peak of her passion. She was fond of the moment until her father opinionated that he “[doesn’t] like to see fish caught.” Instead of reasoning with her father, she realizes that it was simply a statement of his own feeling and ultimately it was her decision if to continue fishing. She claims her passion for fishing “slowly extinguished” from the words of her father.