Through The Tunnel

Jerry was afraid to go through the tunnel, afraid to leave his childhood, because he did not know what would happen if he did. As scared as Jerry is, he knows that he has to go through this process now, he believes that he has matured enough and is prepared for the obstacles ahead. “...this was the moment when he would try. If he didn’t do it now, he never would” (Lessing 363). At last, Jerry puts his childhood behind him and he becomes independent. He changed his mind because he believed that he was both mentally and physically strong enough to overcome life’s obstacles in his adolescent years. Jerry’s feeling represent his maturity level and whether he is ready for such a change or not. The imagery used helped depict the idea of hardships when growing up and the obstacles that are not easy to overcome, but very possible.

Jerry’s job is a helicopter pilot that looks for news and stories for the television. While Jerry has been looking for stories for his news feed, he has saved many lives along the way. When someone saves a person, they are bringing others closer together. By saving lives, Jerry has brought others together in seeing how easy it is to get lost or lose your life in dangerous landforms or adverse conditions.

This illustrates how Jerry is the cause for the whole imbalance in the school hierarchy, essentially ruining the power dynamics in the school. This is able to express the idea that the whole "universe" is disturbed due to Jerry's resistance to the manipulation and unfair power

He tries out to be the quarterback, but he is knocked down again and again. He questions whether or not he should even come back to practice the second day because he was hit so hard. While he hated being beaten up so bad, he was determined to make the football team. This attitude shows throughout the entire story. Jerry is not a quitter, and he is determined to achieve his goals.

Jerry, the main character in Through the Tunnel, was very dependent on others in the beginning of the story. He was dependent on his mother, not wanting to leave her behind to go explore the rocky beach. He was a follower instead of a leader.QUOTE He follows what the other boys are doing when he finds them, mimicking how they act, such as what they do when they go underwater. And whenever Jerry can’t recreate what

Jerry, despite his relative decency, is victimized by the power structure of the school as well as his peers (Bagnall). “Choosing to disturb the universe means that Jerry himself is thrown into chaos” (Junko). His refusal to conform makes him the prime target of both the Vigils and the school officials, despite admiration from his peers. Cormier makes it clear that moral individuals can not survive unaided in a corrupt, oppressive system (Harris et al.). Jerry, while standing up for what he believes is right, is constantly torn down and abused by Archie’s goons. No one, not even his best friend Goober, came to his rescue to combat his oppressors. Arguably, “the reason Jerry was not saved was because he stood alone” (Harris et al.). Jerry stood alone in refusing to take the chocolates, his abuse by the Vigils, and his eventual physical and mental destruction by Janza. In fact, his destruction makes him into a martyr. His surrender in the end makes him an even more realistic hero and shows that it takes more people to fight powerful figures (Peck). Cormier challenges the perception of the modern “Superman” figure and replaces him with an “Average Joe”: a jack of all trades but master at none. Despite his defeat, Jerry’s legacy will live beyond him, whether publicly celebrated or privately discussed by Trinity students (Siegler). Jerry’s battle could have been won if his peers acted against the power structures as

Jerry loses nothing if he fails this task while if Temas and Medoto might be seen as people who are weak and cannot to harder tasks. Medoto and Temas have nobody to help them accomplish this task but themselves, while Jerry has himself and his mother. Jerry’s mother is the one who brought him to the beach and let him wander off and bought him goggles to see through the tunnel because he cannot see because there is too much salt in the ocean. “”I want some swimming goggles,” He panted, defiant and beseeching. She gave him a patient, inquisitive look as she casually said, “well of course darling.” but now now! He must have them at this minute and no other time. He nagged and pestered until she had bought the goggles (Lessing PG. 379)”. This quotation clearly shows that his mother bought the goggles for him to support him in his quest. Temas and medoto have a small knife,a spear, and a shield to help them with this quest. They had to pass this rite of passage in order to

He has been through alot in his life like his mother died of cancer which has him isolated. He is always engaged in a battle with himself and with the outside world. He looks up to his father who is a pharmacist thinks his father has a dull and boring life but admires him. A strength jerry has is he does not complain about the crap he has gone through in his life and at school and it pays off at the end, his biggest weakness is he can’t win the battle with himself and the outside world.

He works on his goal none stop doing everything he can to improve his chances of going through the tunnel. He asks his mother to buy him goggles to see the tunnel. He holds his breath under the water for long periods of time strengthening his lungs to get ready for the real thing. Jerry also starts working out so he can be stronger and faster in the water increasing his odds of making it through because it will be shorter time and it will be less time on his lungs. Jerry is now ready not only mentally but physically to swim through the

The characterization of Jerry illustrates the stages of maturing and becoming independent. In the beginning of the story, Jerry is depicted as young and immature. The immaturity of Jerry is shown when he is trying to capture the older boys’ attention. In order to capture their attention, “he began splashing and kicking in the water like a foolish dog.” This action conveys that Jerry is still immature, and wants to join the older kids. After seeing the boys pass through the tunnel, Jerry also wants to pass through in order to be a part of their group. In order

Jerry tries to act older so that he can fit in with the boys. When

They both hear The Call in their lives and risk death to answer it. Although the Call comes from incredibly different sources, they both seem to be unable to do anything but answer it. Big Boy had the choice between leaving home or dying, but in Jerry’s situation it seems as though he could have very easily decided to ignore the tunnel’s challenge and remain with his mother. However, Through the Tunnel makes it clear that besting the tunnel was such a compulsion and obsession for him that stopping my not have been a possibility.

In life, one must overcome their fears in order to achieve or successfully attain a certain goal in their mind. The short story “Through the Tunnel”, by Doris Lessing tells us about how Jerry builds confidence and maturity throughout the story, by overcoming his fear of going through the dark and scary tunnel underneath the water. The author portrays the idea of overcoming one’s fear to achieve a goal through Jerry, who was once a childish and isolated character, had begun his risky adventure of going through the tunnel to prove his worth to a group of boys and along the way discovers what he truly wants. Over time he becomes more mature and in the end, gain self-acceptance.

“Yet, walking down the path with her, he blurted out, ‘I’d like to go and have a look at those rocks down there,’’ (Lessing 1). During the short story, “Through the Tunnel,” Lessing shows that Jerry has an interest in breaking away from his mother early on in the story. He shows a passion for wanting to go to the wild bay, instead of staying with his mother at the safe beach for their vacation. Jerry’s transformation from boy to a young man is revealed in the settings of the safe beach, wild bay, and the journey through the tunnel.

All people must face change and growth in their life. If one does not then they do not mature and do not learn the abilities needed to cope with life. Doris Lessing shows this theme in the short story Through the Tunnel in which the main character Jerry faces his test in order to grow up. The story begins with him finally breaking away from his mother to swim in a rocky bay in contrast to their normal beach. Older foreign boys come to this bay and he watches as they find a pass through some rocks and swim through.