preview

Love with Courage in Sara Gruen´s Water for Elephants Essay

Better Essays

Love is a very powerful emotion which is achieved by overcoming many hurdles and acting with courage. This bravery can be shown towards anything and anyone, including humans and animals. In Sara Gruen’s Water For Elephants, courage is a key aspect for characters that portray their love for other individuals and the animals. The characters, Jacob and Marlena love each other bravely, despite knowing the consequences for their actions. Not only does Marlena love Jacob, she also portrays affection for her horses as she protects them heroically. However, she is not the only one that admires the animals. Jacob is also fond of the animals in the circus and portrays it with valour. Throughout the book, Gruen portrays that Jacob and Marlena have …show more content…

He does not know if she feels the same way but tells her anyway. This takes a lot of courage to admit, which is what Jacob shows to obtain his love. He doesn’t care about August and his cruel ways, he just wants to be with Marlena and he’ll audaciously find a way to make it happen. This clearly portrays that Jacob is bold enough to fight for and obtain his love. Furthermore, following the moment when Jacob tells Marlena he loves her, she stands there anxiously, facing the floor. She slowly looks up teary eyed and says, “I think I’ve loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you. But don’t you see? I’m married to August” (Gruen. 274). Marlena has been in love with Jacob ever since they saw each other in the menagerie. However, she has just gathered enough courage to show and admit to it today. Although she knows that she is married to August and could be punished for doing so, she still tells Jacob about the feelings she has towards him. This takes a lot of bravery and portrays that Marlena is strong enough to confess the truth about her feelings. Finally, during the novel, Jacob shows his love for Marlena through his bold feelings and actions. In their review, Publishers Weekly states, “He also falls in love with Marlena, one of the show's star performers--a romance complicated by Marlena's husband, the unbalanced, sadistic

Get Access