Crow Lake- Education

Education. A word that resonates differently with everyone, but resonates deeply nonetheless. To some it is seen as a means to maintain their current, comfortable lifestyle where to others it is seen as nothing more than a waste of time and yet to others still it opens the door to numerous opportunities for a better life. On the most part though, our society as a whole seems to agree that education is the pathway to success. Not coincidentally, this is also the stance taken by most authors in modern day literature. This theme of education is clearly presented within two completely different texts: Mary Lawson’s Crow Lake, and David Auburn’s Proof, though not necessarily in the most traditional sense of the word. The characters in both texts are greatly influenced by education, both formal and informal, which in turn, becomes a key element in their overall success. Formal education takes a powerful position in both Crow Lake as well as in Proof, and is part of the reason the characters In both find themselves becoming successful. Crow Lake

From the very begging of the novel, Kate Morrison, the main protagonist, informs the readers of how much her family truly valued education, starting with great-grand mother Morrison who “fixed a bookrest to her spinning wheel so she could read while spinning” (Lawson ). Because great-grand mother Morrison realized the value of education, she instilled the same value in her family, which was then passed down from generation to generation. Finally, one child was able to complete his education- Kate’s father. Kate’s father went on to become the most successful Morrison- the first Morrison to get a job in the city and escape the tough farming life (Lawson ). In the same way Kate was the only one of the four Morrison children to go on to post-secondary education and as a result, achieved a high level of success, from her job as a professor to her having escaped Crow Lake and moving to Toronto (Lawson ).