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God's Optimism In A Prayer For Owen Meany

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God's Optimism In A Prayer For Owen Meany
Be Positive; Optimism Shown in Characters You and your best friend live a normal life in Gravesend, New Hampshire, although your best friend has a squeakier voice than you and is much shorter.Your favorite sport is baseball, until one day you are at your baseball game as your best friend is up to bat, who rarely ever gets on base, hits the ball so strong. Your mother, who is not paying attention to what seemed to be a foul ball, does not know that the ball is heading towards her and it strikes her right in her left temple. Tragically, she is instantly killed and your life seems to be turned upside down. In A Prayer for Owen Meany, Owen Meany makes the statement to all that he meets, that he is God’s instrument which he feels is demonstrated …show more content…
During the Vietnam War, Owen chose to save everyone even to putting his own life at risk. He feels that he was put on Earth to save lives and make a difference in the world. Owen felt that his purpose in life was to be a hero no matter who he was saving. Major Rawls, Owen’s military contact in Phoenix tells Owen that not everyone is worth saving especially when there is a war occurring. Owen responds saying, “IT’S NOT UP TO YOU OR ME, SIR-IT’S NOT UP TO US: WHO’S BEYOND SAVING” (Irving 611). Major Rawls realizes that Owen was too good for this world, he is too nice to live in the cruel world we live in. Owen’s existence changed many people’s lives for the better. One of the most influential would be the impact he had on his best friend, Johnny. Owen told Johnny that God would tell him when the time was right who was his father. When Owen heard who his father was, it was alarming to him when it was through the voice of Owen Meany. While reading the first page of the story, Johnny Wheelwright said “he is the reason I believe in God; I am a Christian because of Owen Meany” (Irving 1). Johnny and Owen had a close friendship as they both valued each other. When the boys were ready to start the college process, Owen did not want to leave Johnny. Owen earned scholarships from Yale and Harvard, but he chose the attend the University of New Hampshire. In the novel, Owen said “BESIDES I WANT TO GO TO THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE- I WANT TO STICK WITH YOU, I WANT TO GO WHERE YOU GO” (Irving 417). Owen had always helped Johnny complete school work and kept him motivated. He was not ready to stop doing that when they went to
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