Sheila Mant The Bass Quotes

Throughout the short story “The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant” the boy must decide between the bass and Sheila. The boy will pick the bass for several reasons. The first reason he will chose the bass is he has a long history with bass. This quote proves this, “The bass was slanting towards the rocks on the New Hampshire side by the ruins of Donaldson’s boat house. It had to be an old bass-a young one probably wouldn’t have known the rocks were there. I brought the canoe back into the middle of the river, hoping to head it off” (Wetherell 3). This demonstrates that he knows the river and the bass well in order to know that only an old bass would know the rocks are there. Another reason he will pick the bass is he has a strong passion for
First off Sheila can be self centered. One reason she is self centered is she talks about herself often. When Sheila and the boy are moving down the river she talks and talks about herself, and the boy never has much of a chance to talk to her about himself. She can also be considered self centered, because she did not want to get in the canoe with the boy. This quote helps explain this, “ ‘Look,’ she said. ‘I can get Dad’s car.’ ‘It’s faster this way,’ I lied. ‘Parking’s tense up there. Hey, it’s safe. I won’t tip it or anything.’ She let herself down reluctantly into the bow” (Wetherall 2). This demonstrates that she is looking for a way to travel how she wants, because she “reluctantly” (Wetherell 2) lets herself down into the boat. Another time she is self centered is the way she acts. While she is on a float she has several body positions, and each one means a certain thing. These positions are, “If she lay flat on the diving board with her had training idly in the water… that her various suitors found the courage to come near” (Wetherell 1). This shows that she is self centered by acting, only some of you can come near me, or do not disturb me. Sheila can also be considered rude. At one point in the story she claims that “fishing’s dumb,’ she said making a face. ‘I mean, it’s boring and all. Definitely dumb’ “ (Wetherell 3). She acts rude when not considering others feelings who might enjoy the activity. Another time she acts rude is when she goes into the canoe. In the canoe there are two paddles, and the boy had one. The other paddle was lying in the boat and Sheila did not pick it up and help paddle. Instead she sat in the canoe as if paddling was not good enough of a task for her to do. The last rude action Sheila performs is at the end of the story when she leaves the show and goes home with someone else. This is the quote, “all I really