The story begins with a Fisherman that does fishing for a living. He suddenly caught a Flounder with a speech ability. After the flounder plead for its life, the benevolent fisherman freed the flounder back into the water. Afterwards he informed his wife of the situation; however, his wife was displeased as she advises him that the fish has the ability to grant wishes and sent her husband back to wish for a better place to live. The water as well as the surroundings changes each time the desirous wife forces the fisherman to go back and forth to the flounder, craving a bigger living space as well as power, but each wish results in the water growing darker and the environment turning grim. The wife eventually reached the peak of her greedy desires …show more content…
In the first version of the story, the fisherman catches a large flounder from the bottom of the clear water. The flounder implored the fisher to release him implying that he does not “taste good.” Feeling sympathy, the fisherman released him; however, when once he returned to the fisher spot suggested by his wife, the water changed to two different colors: yellow and green. The fisherman summoned the flounder caught earlier with the following chant: “Mandje! Mandje! Timpe Te! Flounder, flounder, in the sea! My wife, my wife Ilsebill, Wants not, wants not, what I will.” For each wish, the water changes to different colors and conditions: Purple & dark-blue as well as gray and dense, dark-grey and becoming violent with a “foul smell,” black and dense with a strong wind, red sky with little blue in the middle including roaring water occupied by tossing ships with distress signals and lightning, and a pitch-black sky with dark waves as hell as a mounting. In the second translation, the fisher uses a different chant to summon a large flounder: "Flounder, flounder in the sea, Come, I pray thee, here to me. For my wife, good ilsabil, Wills not as I'd have her will." The difference from the previous version is that the water produces bubbles as it roars when the fisherman came back to the flounder wishing for the wife to be an emperor and ships were shooting guns as well as leaves falling during the fisherman’s trip to the water to wish the wife to be a pope. In the video adaptation version of the story, the fisherman made a chant that differs from the previous versions: Flounder, flounder in the sea, come I pray thee here to me, for my good wife, Penelope, wishes what she should not be.” In this adaptation, the flounder has gold and silver scales. The sea became green and thick which “boils from bellow” as the fisherman began wishing for his wife to
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.
The story describes the protagonist who is coming of age as torn between the two worlds which he loves equally, represented by his mother and his father. He is now mature and is reflecting on his life and the difficulty of his childhood as a fisherman. Despite
The theme of “what do fish have to do with anything?” is that unhappiness can sometimes cause someone to be blind and ignorant towards others needs. For instance, Willie’s mom does not want him looking or talking to the homeless man on the streets. She tells her son this because she is unhappy so she does not see what the man is going through and instead says “He is sick do not look at him.” Another example is that Willie’s mother does not like answering Willie’s questions concerning others needs. She does not answer willie’s questions because she could honestly care less about a problem that is not hers. She could care less about other peoples problems because of her unhappiness. To illustrate, at the end of the story the mother has the
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 by the sea to support his family. The parents’ characters seem to clash in many aspect of their lives and this is very evident in the passage.
The short story “What, of this goldfish, Would You Wish?’ is a emotive short story
The boat represents the only way of life for the family due to the tradition of it being passed down the family. But the boat can cause disruption throughout the family because it is the center of attention for the family. The author was introduced to the fisherman lifestyle when he was a kid, “when I was very small he took me for my first ride,” (224) which can symbolize the family trying to get the author ready for the future. The mother (whose family passed down the boat) had a strong connection due to growing up with the boat being in her life. The mother put a lot of pressure on the family to stay in the family business and not go elsewhere. When she found out about the daughters leaving, the author said, “she was worried about herself and about her family and her life,” indicating her devotion towards the boat. The daughters were able to find a different path and move away from the boat and so did the son but it wasn't as easy for him. He felt the most pressure being the youngest and the only male in the family next to his father saying, “I would remain with him as long as he lived and we would fish the sea together,” (234) putting the father in a tough spot since he wanted his son to
The imagery used to describe how lovely the mermaid is portrays what the prince wanted as a wife. When the prince found her on the shore and took her in as one of his own people, he took care of and adored her, but he would not marry her because she could not
“The Boat” written by Alistair MacLeod tells a story about a father’s life and how he lived as a fisherman. The narrator is an adult man who looks back on his life of when his father was still living because even though he got a university education, he now wants the life his father had. He expresses how his father always wanted him to become something bigger and better then what he became. The author, Alistair MacLeod, used many different writing techniques within this short story. The symbolism of “The Boat” expresses inevitability through the little hobbies the father/husband does through his boring routine life, obligation through the father/husband’s commitment as a fisherman to provide for his family, and imprisonment through his
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.
“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
Seas (line 18 and 19): is also appearing twice. Life is often symbolized as water. Therefore she accepts to be judged by life because she decided of someone else’s right to live. ‘Sea’ in
Next, the speaker talks about the fish’s eyes, larger, shallower, and yellower than hers. The different pieces of fishing line caught in his jaw shows how many times he either escaped or was let go by the other fishers. Then the description of the rented boat, the parts of the boat that all turned into a rainbow.
Smitten with love, the male goldfish makes plans involving “tak[ing] her to the ocean”(line 13). These first three stanzas are dedicated to the male’s hopes of wining her affection. He “wishes she would sing”(line 4) and “he would take her to the ocean”(line13) so they “could count the waves” (line 14)while they “would share their deepest secrets” (line 16).
Ignorance is bliss as said by many people. As defined in the dictionary it is,”lack of knowledge or information”(google). It could be a blessing or a curse. In this case, humans being ignorant is a curse. Our thoughts have been so conditioned that our curiosity has been stolen from us. We no longer have her own unique thoughts, we just go with what we are told. In How The Water Feels To The Fishes by Dave Eggers, he writes how ignorant humans can be to everyday things like, air.