Summary on the Story “the Most Important Day”

Summary on the story “The most important day”

Every person has a particular day in life that considers as the most important one. Usually, things that affected or changed life occurred on that day. In short essay “The most important day” (“Models for writers”, Alfred Rosa & Paul Eschholz, Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2010, New York), author, Helen Keller, writes about her most important day. She shows that her most important day is when she met her teacher for the first time. Author uses description of past events to show the main idea of the essay. Moreover, she talks about significance of teacher, Ann Mansfield Sullivan, in her life. The essay may reveal letters separated by hyphen as a sign of words spelling. This minor detail that can be noticed without reading is saying a lot about the importance of the teacher for author.

The most important day in life of author is when her teacher came to her for the first time. In the beginning of the essay, author is giving information that she was deaf-blind and mute. When her teacher came to her for the first time, she felt from the behavior of her mother that something unusual is going on. She describes her position before education as a position of boat on the sea in a dense fog, which is without compass or sound line. She was not able to see anything around her and she was begging for light until her teacher came. While she was spreading the hands to her mum, her teacher took her and gave her a hug. The next morning she gave her a doll and let her play. She tried to explain her meaning of that object by spelling the word “doll” in her hands. She became interested in sign language at first because she considers it as a game and she was showing her mum what she learned. In the following days she learned many new words and she realized that everything is named.

Once, while she was playing with her doll and learning new words, author got impatient and she broke her doll. She did not feel anything because of the world that she lived in. In the world where she lived, as she said: “there was no strong sentiments and tenderness.” (Rosa & Moore, 78). The same day she felt pleasure when she was about to go out to the well-house with her teacher. The same day she felt water over her hands and she knew that it is water. Connection to the living word gave her new sense for life, light, hope and joy. When she was returning from the well-house, everything started to have sense and meaning. When she returned home, she remembered the broken doll and she tried to put together dolls pieces. She did not manage to do that and she felt bad because of it. In the end of that day, she compared herself with the happiest child waiting for new day to down.

Her teacher changed her life , and the day when she came into her life represents the most important day for author.

Bibliography:

Rosa, Alfred, & Eschholz, Paul. “The most important day.” Model for writers. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2010. 78. Print.