Jacob and His Decisions: an Analysis of Water for Elephants Using Moral Criticism
Evan Dauphinais
Mrs. Burns
Contemporary Literature ACP
29 September 2012
Jacob and His Decisions: An Analysis of Water for Elephants using Moral Criticism
When writers focus on morality, they try to write with a sense of moral so they do not corrupt the audience of the book. The main focus is to keep corruption away from society. In the novel, Water for Elephants written by Sara Gruen, the protagonist, Jacob Jankowski, makes many moral judgments and faces multiple moral dilemmas that force him to decide what is right and what is wrong.
Jacob struggles with the conflicts and possible consequences of taking in his friend Camel and hiding him. Camel is one of the first people Jacob meets at the circus. He is one of the first to be kind to him and if it were not for Camel, Jacob would not have made it on board as a circus worker at all. Camels’ good deed pays off when Jacob looks out for him when he starts to get sick. Jacob pays a doctor with his fathers watch so Camel can get medical care. Him and his roommate Walter then hide Camel in their stable car to take care of him and protect him from being red lighted. In chapter twenty-two, Walter talks back to a disappointed Camel by saying, “And you should be grateful we do, because what the hell do you think would happen to you if we took off right now?” (Gruen 293). Jacob and Walter risk their jobs and their lives by putting Camel before themselves. These selfless actions put Jacob in a bad place once Uncle Al reveals that he knows where Camel is and that he would have him red lighted if Jacob does not help him, but these actions also show how Jacob has strong values and morals. Uncle Al knows Jacob has a secret affair with Marlena and wants to extinguish any problems on the train so his circus runs smoothly.
Jacob struggles with having an affair with Marlena because he knows it’s the wrong thing to do but he also knows that it is wrong and harmful for her to stay with August. Jacob believes it is his
Mrs. Burns
Contemporary Literature ACP
29 September 2012
Jacob and His Decisions: An Analysis of Water for Elephants using Moral Criticism
When writers focus on morality, they try to write with a sense of moral so they do not corrupt the audience of the book. The main focus is to keep corruption away from society. In the novel, Water for Elephants written by Sara Gruen, the protagonist, Jacob Jankowski, makes many moral judgments and faces multiple moral dilemmas that force him to decide what is right and what is wrong.
Jacob struggles with the conflicts and possible consequences of taking in his friend Camel and hiding him. Camel is one of the first people Jacob meets at the circus. He is one of the first to be kind to him and if it were not for Camel, Jacob would not have made it on board as a circus worker at all. Camels’ good deed pays off when Jacob looks out for him when he starts to get sick. Jacob pays a doctor with his fathers watch so Camel can get medical care. Him and his roommate Walter then hide Camel in their stable car to take care of him and protect him from being red lighted. In chapter twenty-two, Walter talks back to a disappointed Camel by saying, “And you should be grateful we do, because what the hell do you think would happen to you if we took off right now?” (Gruen 293). Jacob and Walter risk their jobs and their lives by putting Camel before themselves. These selfless actions put Jacob in a bad place once Uncle Al reveals that he knows where Camel is and that he would have him red lighted if Jacob does not help him, but these actions also show how Jacob has strong values and morals. Uncle Al knows Jacob has a secret affair with Marlena and wants to extinguish any problems on the train so his circus runs smoothly.
Jacob struggles with having an affair with Marlena because he knows it’s the wrong thing to do but he also knows that it is wrong and harmful for her to stay with August. Jacob believes it is his
Cited: Gruen, Sara. Water for Elephants. Toronto: HarperCollins Publisher Ltd Chapel Hill, 2006.