What Of This Goldfish Would You Wish Summary

The short story “What, of this goldfish, Would You Wish?’ is a emotive short story

Your Inner Fish is a book that explains evolutionary concepts from multiple different scientific viewpoints. It explains how fossils help us to understand where we started from, and how we evolved. It also explains how DNA can help us track where we came from and trace our ancestry.

The revelation of Dunstan’s secret causes the death of Boy, in one way or another. When Paul, Boy, and Dunstan are talking in Dunstan’s room Dunstan admits to Paul, “Staunton and I robbed your mother of her sanity” (Davies, 263). Dunstan’s admission and further explanation of the snowball accident leads to Boy’s death. If Paul is the one who kills Boy, it is Paul’s vengeance against Boy, for robbing his mother of her sanity, which Paul would not have known about if Dunstan had not revealed his secret. If Boy commits suicide, it is because Dunstan’s admission makes him realize that the past is not as buried as he has hoped. Thus Dunstan’s admission leads to Boy’s death, no matter how it occurs. Liesl, the voice of the Brazen Head during Paul’s Soirée of Illusions, also reveals that Dunstan’s admission about the snowball incident leads to Boy’s death. Liesl divulges Dunstan’s role in Boy’s death during the performance after one of the audience members asks about Boy’s death: “by the inevitable fifth, who was keeper of his conscience and keeper of the stone” (Davies, 266). It is Dunstan’s release of Boy’s conscience, by reminding Boy and telling Paul about the snowball incident, that is the final straw which leads to Boy’s death. This event also reinforces the theme that although Dunstan’s life seems insignificant, he plays a

Tolerance is the ability or willingness to tolerate the existence of opinions or behavior that one dislikes or disagrees with. In the short story What, of This Goldfish, Would You Wish? by Etgar Keret, a newspaper editorial: American Flag Stands for Tolerance by Ronald J. Allen, and Night by Elie Wiesel the characters in these passages had very little to no tolerance for at least one person or more. The quote “We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves.” by Barbara Jordan, was supposed to refer to the passages because they both have one word that can fit with both of them which is tolerance.

The story follows young Yonatan, as he tries to document people’s responses to a simple question. Along the way he meets a man named Sergei, and this is where acceptance comes up. Sergei is very irritated by the young and ecstatic boy when he shows up to his doorstep. Sergei being very weary of people who knock on his door, does not accept or tolerate Yonatan, and tries to get him to leave his home when Yonatan was showing respect to him and being very kind. When Yonatan enters his home without his permission, Sergei kills him on accident. Then Sergei's magical fish offers to revive Yonatan in exchange for being set free, this forced him to become tolerant of the young boy, and make a selfless decision.

(Keret, Pg 4). When Sergei is faced with the decision to save Yonatan or save his wish, stubbornness kicks

Accordingly the protagonist’s lack of maturity is shown in a lack of concern for the consequences of his actions combined with his belief that a bad reputation was all he needed .At the confrontation at

There is but one thing that no one can ever have enough of. Admittedly, there are various substitutions that can suffice as satisfactory for one’s happiness. Yet, there is an exception that creeps and remains ubiquitously unseen and incessantly yearned for. As Zora Neale Hurston, author of Their Eyes Were Watching God, puts it, there are “ships at a distance [that] have every man’s wish on board.” Indeed, these desires ride a boat which sails on, perhaps, the ocean of time. There are those who are fortunate and whose ships “come in with the tide,” relying on the chance that their aspirations come in miraculously from the vast ocean or window of opportunity. There are also those who are unfortunate and whose ships “sail forever on the

Greed is a sin of excess that every single human being has at least a little bit of. When someone has the opportunity to get as much of something as they possibly can, they will go to great lengths to get everything out of it. In the story “The Monkey’s Paw,” by W. W. Jacobs, the White family experiences a big test of greed, and they even tamper with their fate to get it. Before the Whites even knew about the paw, they were living a normal, but decent, lifestyle that got them by day-to-day without any troubles. Once they received this one idol in their life that could grant any three wishes that they could possibly think of, their mind set was altered and their greediness to change their fate kicked into play. Jacobs uses themes of

One of the emotional essentials of life is to be loved, and there are quite a few cases where material things can hinder receiving this much-needed love, the greatest culprit of all being money. D. H. Lawrence’s short story “The Rocking Horse Winner” tells of a boy, Paul, who desires love and affection from his mother, Hester, but she is so wrapped up in her concerns with money that she does not display any of this needed affection toward her son or any of her children. She has grown unloving and bitter due to her husband’s inability to meet her expectations, and she tells Paul his father is unlucky. Full of curiosity, Paul asks his mother what luck is, and she tells him, “‘It’s what causes you to have money. If you’re lucky you have money. That’s why it’s better to be born lucky than rich. If you’re rich, you may lose your money. But if you’re lucky, you will always get more money” (Lawrence, 2). Paul is quite intuitive and interprets that the only way he can finally obtain love from his mother is if he is lucky, much unlike his father. He proudly shares with his mother that he is lucky, but when she does not take his word seriously, he falls into a blinded rage as he madly rides his rocking horse, hoping it will take him to where the luck is, “‘Now take me to where there is luck!’” (3). By riding his rocking-horse, he knows which horse will win the derby. The association of love with money brings about the idea of a love for money, or greed, which is one of the seven

Acceptance is trusting, having confidence, and be welcoming of others. Being able to accept people with an open mind may be difficult at times but depending on our experience and the way we have come to be it can sometimes be very natural. In the three texts, “What, of This Goldfish Would You Wish”, “The Lottery”, and “American Flag Stands for Tolerance,” the author’s focus on the way we interact and relate with others. This quote, “We as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves” said by Barbara Jordan, demonstrates how everyone should be open and willing to accept those who are different and not to discriminate against others.

The story begins with the parents trying to decide upon a suitable birthday gift, a difficult task since he has "referential mania" (Nabokov, 1948), a mental condition that causes him to believe that inanimate objects conspire against him. "Man-made objects were to him either hives of evil, vibrant with a malignant activity that he alone could perceive, or gross comforts for which no use could be found in his abstract world" (Nabokov, 1948). To him, glass and pools are spies, coats are malicious, and clouds speak together about him, while storms and running water "are hysterical to the point of insanity" (Nabokov, 1948). From the son's point of view, we learn that he must be constantly vigilant of the objects interested in him, even if they are far away and beyond his vision. Indeed, his suicide attempts are his way of trying to "tear a hole in his world and escape" (Nabokov, 1948).

Before he arrived at this decision, Gorelick considered covering up the murder to keep the fish. He said,“ "Fixable... "I'll just mop up the blood... "When I'm fishing,...I'll tie the kid to a rock and dump him in the sea. Not a chance, not in a million years, will anyone ever find him."”( lines 164-171) His stubbornness started surfacing, obstructing his sound reasoning. Goralick tried to find excuses in order not to use his last wish. For example, he said that he was saving it for something important.Goralick was ambivalent.Whilst suggesting this, he forgot how scared he was to even touch Yonatan’s blood(lines 124-127). That along with his statement, “He can't be dead”(110-113) proves that had he chosen otherwise, Goralick would have suffered from guilt. In fact, even the goldfish asserted, “"You killed him, Sergei,"... but you're not a murderer."... "If, on this, you won't waste a wish, then tell me, Sergei, what is it good for?"” Though what immediately happened after this question was skipped, one can infer that Sergei thought thoroughly during that time. He rightfully chose to save Yonatan. His actions such the uses of his first two wishes reveal his character traits.

Be thankful for what you have. This theme shows up in the fable The Goose That Laid The Golden eggs, by Nicky Grischotti and in the fable The Frogs Who Wanted A King, by Rob John. Both of these characters show greed by wanting more then what they have.

We as humans find ourselves in a constant pursuit of a life stable enough to provide a certain degree of control and self-sufficiency while also remaining open to the possibility of circumstances which are not entirely under our control, such as love. To recognize the beauty of the mysteriousness and uniqueness associated with love, a force we cannot control, while also maintaining a certain degree of self-sufficiency may possibly allow us to live a good life with a love immune to tragedy. The idea of what constitutes the “good life” can be categorized in two contrasting perspectives: a life of goods or a life of self-sufficiency. A life of goods including wealth, reputation, and honor proves itself to be seriously vulnerable to circumstances beyond the control of the agent. For example, the agent cannot control the social or economic class they are born into. Similarly, they cannot control the way others view them. Although one may seek the approval of others, they have no control over whether or not they actually receive it. On the other hand, a self-sufficient life revolves around wisdom, truth, and the best possible state of one’s soul. The self-sufficient “concern [themselves] with the pleasures of learning, and adorn [their] soul(s)… with its own ornaments, namely, moderation, righteousness, courage, freedom, and trust” (Phaedo, 114e-155a). Whichever version of a good life one chooses to live by, love undoubtedly serves as a component of the flourishing life. The