Crow Lake personality conflicts
Personality Conflicts in Crow Lake
In the novel Crow Lake by Mary Lawson, the reader learns how personalities and habits can either tear families apart or keep them together. Luke the oldest brother and Mat the youngest both learn how to use their opposite personalities to run a successful household. Yet have advantages and disadvantages to their characters.
Luke being the oldest he feels that he is responsible for his siblings, but his habits clearly show that he cannot raise them on his own. He was still holding onto the fact that he was able to take care of them. First off, Luke has a laid back attitude. He thinks that everything is going to work itself out and that he does not have to worry about a thing. This kind of attitude has both advantages and disadvantages. One of the benefits was the time that he had to be with his two little sisters. This is evident as he stays home a lot and does not toss them between neighbors to be babysat. Luke’s personality also showed a very optimistic aspect. After Luke announced that he was not going to go away to teachers college and that he was going to stay home and get a job, Matt and Aunt Annie were trying to convince him not to make that decision he said; “I know I can do it. I know it wouldn’t be easy, but neighbors would help and everything. We’d work it out. I know I can do it” (77). Next Luke is very nonchalant about money and job opportunities. This is mainly how Matt and Luke collided. Their attitude about money and jobs were very different. Lawson writes about many fights the brothers have had over one being too stressed or the other not being apprehensive enough. For example, Lawson explains in Kate’s point of view,
“Luke losing his job, for instance; I know that worried mat a lot more than it did Luke. Not that
Luke wasn’t concerned, but ever since the day he’d decided to stay home and look after us, he seemed to have an unshakeable faith that
In the novel Crow Lake by Mary Lawson, the reader learns how personalities and habits can either tear families apart or keep them together. Luke the oldest brother and Mat the youngest both learn how to use their opposite personalities to run a successful household. Yet have advantages and disadvantages to their characters.
Luke being the oldest he feels that he is responsible for his siblings, but his habits clearly show that he cannot raise them on his own. He was still holding onto the fact that he was able to take care of them. First off, Luke has a laid back attitude. He thinks that everything is going to work itself out and that he does not have to worry about a thing. This kind of attitude has both advantages and disadvantages. One of the benefits was the time that he had to be with his two little sisters. This is evident as he stays home a lot and does not toss them between neighbors to be babysat. Luke’s personality also showed a very optimistic aspect. After Luke announced that he was not going to go away to teachers college and that he was going to stay home and get a job, Matt and Aunt Annie were trying to convince him not to make that decision he said; “I know I can do it. I know it wouldn’t be easy, but neighbors would help and everything. We’d work it out. I know I can do it” (77). Next Luke is very nonchalant about money and job opportunities. This is mainly how Matt and Luke collided. Their attitude about money and jobs were very different. Lawson writes about many fights the brothers have had over one being too stressed or the other not being apprehensive enough. For example, Lawson explains in Kate’s point of view,
“Luke losing his job, for instance; I know that worried mat a lot more than it did Luke. Not that
Luke wasn’t concerned, but ever since the day he’d decided to stay home and look after us, he seemed to have an unshakeable faith that