The Messages in the Sword and the Stone
Jimmy McDunnah
Mr. Pfister
9/10/10
The Messages in The Sword in the Stone There are many messages in The Sword in the Stone. Each adventure that Merlin sends the Wart on isn’t just for the reader’s entertainment. If you look deeper into the story you will see that the Wart’s adventures have some important life lessons also. In the Wart’s first adventure as a perch in his castle’s moat, the Wart learns two lessons. The first lesson he learns is the value of compassion. The second moral of the adventure was the negative affects of having too much power. In the Wart’s second adventure in which Merlin turns him into a merlin, the Wart realizes how damaging war can be to society. The next adventure the Wart has is when Merlyn turns him into a snake. In this transformation, the Wart comes to the realization that judging people on the outside is not the right thing to do. In another adventure, this time as a badger, the Wart learns to never ask for more than you’re given. In the Wart’s first adventure, Merlyn turns him into a perch, and together, Merlyn and the Wart swim together disguised as fish in the castle’s moat. It is here that Merlyn and the Wart are approached by small fish that claim that their mother is sick. Although Merlyn thinks the mother is making her illness up, he cures her anyways and the fish are extremely grateful. This shows that people with compassion who genuinely care for others can accomplish many things in the world. After their encounter with those fish, Merlyn takes the Wart to see the ruler of the moat, a pike. It is here that he learns a much more valuable lesson. The pike tells the Wart the following: “Love is a trick played on us
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by the forces of evolution. Pleasure is the bait laid down by the same. There is only power. Power is of the individual mind, but the mind’s power alone is not enough. The power of strength decides everything in the end, and only Might is right.” After saying this, the pike then tries to eat the Wart,
Mr. Pfister
9/10/10
The Messages in The Sword in the Stone There are many messages in The Sword in the Stone. Each adventure that Merlin sends the Wart on isn’t just for the reader’s entertainment. If you look deeper into the story you will see that the Wart’s adventures have some important life lessons also. In the Wart’s first adventure as a perch in his castle’s moat, the Wart learns two lessons. The first lesson he learns is the value of compassion. The second moral of the adventure was the negative affects of having too much power. In the Wart’s second adventure in which Merlin turns him into a merlin, the Wart realizes how damaging war can be to society. The next adventure the Wart has is when Merlyn turns him into a snake. In this transformation, the Wart comes to the realization that judging people on the outside is not the right thing to do. In another adventure, this time as a badger, the Wart learns to never ask for more than you’re given. In the Wart’s first adventure, Merlyn turns him into a perch, and together, Merlyn and the Wart swim together disguised as fish in the castle’s moat. It is here that Merlyn and the Wart are approached by small fish that claim that their mother is sick. Although Merlyn thinks the mother is making her illness up, he cures her anyways and the fish are extremely grateful. This shows that people with compassion who genuinely care for others can accomplish many things in the world. After their encounter with those fish, Merlyn takes the Wart to see the ruler of the moat, a pike. It is here that he learns a much more valuable lesson. The pike tells the Wart the following: “Love is a trick played on us
2
by the forces of evolution. Pleasure is the bait laid down by the same. There is only power. Power is of the individual mind, but the mind’s power alone is not enough. The power of strength decides everything in the end, and only Might is right.” After saying this, the pike then tries to eat the Wart,