Jack (Tobias) is the main character in the memoir, This Boy’s Life by Tobias Wolff. The unrealistic fantasies Jack made up in his mind bring him away from the harsh realities of his life, and they made it hard for him to realize what’s real. He faced many struggles as he grew up, from abusive step-fathers to running all around the country, he had quite a rough upbringing.
Those around him in his childhood shaped how he acted and what he did, and they weren’t always the best influences. Jack’s dreams are far-fetched; however, it is evident to why he has them. People around Jack pushed him into having those delusions. Dwight, for example, was an overruling, abusive step-father that never let Jack have his way, and he forced Jack to want to…show more content…
He had ideas of a better life in every situation he was in, whether it was before or after he moved to Chinook. For example, Wolff used imagery to relay his message to the reader, and while watching The Mickey Mouse Club, he thought about his life and how all “[he] wanted [was] a place in this [greater] world. [He] wanted it with all the feverish, disabling hunger of love” (Wolff 43). He uses a lot of passion and vivid detail in his writing; the love he described correlates to what he wanted when he was a kid: not to be alone. The love Jack dreamed of took him away from the loneliness he felt, and the imagery used clarifies this by giving the reader a perfect picture of his thoughts and feelings. That longing for love wasn’t as much for love itself, but more for not wanting to be alone. He also mentioned a “greater world” (Wolff 43), which symbolized a place where Jack could be a higher being above the mortals, rather than what he was at that moment, a boy desperate for something real to look up to. This yearning for a different fate pulled him away from the reality of his loneliness and gave him a taste of a different life, which most likely isn’t the best thing for someone who doesn’t understand what’s reality and what isn’t. Ulrich 3 Also, Jack bases his unrealistic fantasies on the influences around him. Such as Annette from: The Mickey Mouse Club. Jack idolized Annette for “the greater world that she belonged to” (Wolff 43)
He had ideas of a better life in every situation he was in, whether it was before or after he moved to Chinook. For example, Wolff used imagery to relay his message to the reader, and while watching The Mickey Mouse Club, he thought about his life and how all “[he] wanted [was] a place in this [greater] world. [He] wanted it with all the feverish, disabling hunger of love” (Wolff 43). He uses a lot of passion and vivid detail in his writing; the love he described correlates to what he wanted when he was a kid: not to be alone. The love Jack dreamed of took him away from the loneliness he felt, and the imagery used clarifies this by giving the reader a perfect picture of his thoughts and feelings. That longing for love wasn’t as much for love itself, but more for not wanting to be alone. He also mentioned a “greater world” (Wolff 43), which symbolized a place where Jack could be a higher being above the mortals, rather than what he was at that moment, a boy desperate for something real to look up to. This yearning for a different fate pulled him away from the reality of his loneliness and gave him a taste of a different life, which most likely isn’t the best thing for someone who doesn’t understand what’s reality and what isn’t. Ulrich 3 Also, Jack bases his unrealistic fantasies on the influences around him. Such as Annette from: The Mickey Mouse Club. Jack idolized Annette for “the greater world that she belonged to” (Wolff 43)
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