The Maze Runner Analysis

One of the first things that causes Tom to be disconsolate is when he is forced to leave the bear in the mountains. Blue Elk says, “If you do not tell the bear to go away, we will go back and leave him chained to that tree” and then after they get back to the school it says, “The boy did not talk, and he walked as though he was in a daze” (64). One of his teachers, Miss Ellis, says, “Thomas is an unhappy boy and hard to reach” (66)… Another thing that happens is when he tries to run away and finds that his lodge has been purposely burnt down. “He stood among the ashes and whispered his sorrow chant… For small griefs you shout, but for big griefs you whisper or say nothing. The big griefs must be borne alone, inside” (70). Then he heads back down the valley, and meets Benny Grayback at the foot of Horse Mountain. The only thing he says is, “I will go back” (71) and it is in English. The next thing that contributes to Tom being completely numb is when he has to make the bear go away a second time. Winter is over, and the bear is wandering the school grounds in the moonlight looking for him. At first, when Tom tries to tell the bear to go away he is screaming at him, but all of a sudden Tom puts an arm around its neck buries his face in its fur, and cries. Then he yells at the bear, “Go, or they will kill you. They do not need guns to kill…

At the onset of the book, Young Tom has just been released from prison and is interested in making up for lost time and enjoying himself. He is a strong family support during the journey but is among the first to begin reaching out to a larger family. At the end he has focused on the plight and abuse of all the homeless farmers and recognizes that they must

When I was reading the Maze Runner I made some connections. When Thomas went out into the maze, why would he do

Thomas seems to have a gift in his storytelling, they may seem like crazy stories he tells over and over but his stories may carry some kind of meaning. “We are all given one thing by which our lives are measured, one determination. Mine are the stories which can change or not change the world.” (Alexie P. 518) His stories about Victor’s father are why he went out of his way to help Victor. It took Victor a trip to Phoenix to see that Thomas was there for a reason, to help him because they were cousins.

Tom takes a big step forward in overcoming the adversities he’s faced with, showing that he’s maturing and making steady way through his journey of growing into the wider world.

In the beginning, the main character, Thomas, has his memory wiped so he doesn’t know anything. Over time though, he begins to accept where he is (the Glade) and that the people in the Glade have nothing but each other. Thomas also adapts to the Glade’s slang, and talks like a Glader. He also saves the lives of some Gladers who are his friends, such as Alby. At the end Thomas became a sort of leader, trying to make the best decisions when the rest of the Gladers didn’t know what to do. Thomas talks to the other Gladers like someone would talk to their friends or family, and Thomas does his best to help protect the Gladers. Thomas is hard and cold to the people from WICKED, as at the end one of their workers kills Chuck, one of Thomas’s

Thomas was a very naughty child. He used to always get into trouble for misbehaving such as the time when he set his father’s barn on fire. He was only six years old when this incident took place.

As the novel progresses, Tom transforms from this selfish nature to become a caring person. Several examples of this transformation are seen throughout various chapters. When the Joads are traveling west to California with the Wilson’s, Tom offers to help them when their car breaks down. “Tom said nervously, ‘Look Al. I done my time, an’ now it’s done… Let’s jus’ try an’ get a con-rod an’ the hell with the res’ of it.’” Tom is showing a little more care for other people’s problems, however, he still has a selfish side because he still does not regret killing a man. He knew he had to pay for it by going to prison, but he still believes he did nothing wrong by taking a man’s life. By offering to help out with the Wilson’s’ car, he is on his way to becoming a less selfish person. As the book draws to a close, Tom stumbles upon Jim Casy again, who is murdered in front of his own eyes. As a result, he is thrown into a silent rage and kills another man which causes him to hide in the forest. He realizes that he is a danger to his family, so he sacrifices his safety in order for his family to be safe. ‘“Ya can’t do that, Ma. I tell you I’m jus’ a danger to ya,”’ (391). There is a clear transition from Tom acting selfish at the beginning of the book to him acting completely selfless at the end. This selflessness also contributed to him being a figure committed to bettering the

He had friends, the squirrels and birds, he even had a brother, the grizzly cub. When he was forced into the new ways at the reservation school, he became destructive and got into fights. For instance on page 93, Tom was being teased because he made such good baskets and that was considered to be a job for a girl. So “Thomas hit Luther in the face with his fist, and the fight was on. He knocked Luther down, and another boy leaped on his back. He caught the boy by the hair and threw him to the floor.” That certainly wouldn’t have happened if he stayed in the mountains. When he was sad on the mountains, he chanted the songs of the old ways; there was one for sorrow, for mourning, for a new day, etc. He chants the sorrow and mourning songs on page 43. The text says, “The boy buried his mother there, in the old way, and he sang the old songs.” The songs of the old ways helps Tom stay more positive and violent on the mountain. The old ways were much better for Tom in every

Throughout the story, Thomas was always an optimist. His stories always had a positive ending. He seems to remind us that no matter what happens in life, everything will have a good turn out. The stories are everything that Thomas has. He relies on them to provide him his identity. Once everyone had turned their backs on him, his stories were the only thing that kept him going. They make him happy and they keep him alive. Thomas is as lonely on the reservation as the jackrabbit was on the desert in Nevada. According to Thomas, the jackrabbit was so lonely that he chose to give his life away under the wheels of their car. Thomas “build-the-fire” was a storyteller, and as long as he could tell his stories, he would live and the purpose of his life would be fulfilled. The stories always ending well represent Thomas’s unshakable belief in a better future, and him never giving up. Thomas’s kindness was never really reciprocated. Instead, the other Indian boys teased him. When he jumped off the roof and broke his arm as a child, his playmates started laughing at him and sang to him that he had broken his wings.(Sherman, 292) As the author would point out, “they hated Thomas for his courage.”(Sherman, 292) Once, Victor even beat him up for

"Thomas leaned back against the rough rock, overcome by disbelief at what he had just done. Filled with terror at what the consequences might be." (Dashner). He ran outside the Glades knowing he only had seconds to come back in until the thick, humongous walls closed shut for the night sealing the three Gladers outside. What is worse is this is at night, one extremely tired, one with an injured arm, and Thomas, an inexperienced Glader. They have no idea what they were going to expect. Thomas might have not know it, but he's crossing his very first threshold in the story.

Through the book tom has a lot of changes and the changes are for the better. Tom used to be lazy and not responsible and over all bad. But he changed and became a better person.

It seems like I was right about the plot thickening quickly. Already Thomas has made an enemy, a boy

He was also a pawn in Flagg’s plan to destroy the kingdom of Delain. Secondly, Thomas had a terrible secret that would ultimately be a part of the downfall of Flagg. On the evening Flagg offered the poisoned glass of wine to Roland, Thomas was there to witness the murder of his father.

seems to appreciate all the things Thomas has done for him it is not easy to accept him as a friend.