Friendship in Owean Meany
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Johnson 1
LaTonya
Professor Kinnaird
English 101, Section 11
30 September 2010
Friendship in A Prayer For Owen Meany
In John Irving’s novel, A Prayer For Owen Meany , the friendship between Owen and Johnny was refreshing. Throughout their lives, Owen and Johnny have to depend on each other for leadership, advice, and guidance on subjects ranging from religion to girls. They turned what could have been a forgettable friendship into a lasting relationship that shaped their entire lives. The two friends not only depend on each other, they seem to need each other as well. The friendship is not only special on the surface, as is the case with most friendships, it also has a deeper, more meaningful effect on each of the characters’ lives.
Owen and Johnny’s relationship has the basic elements of any common good friendship. These elements include honesty, trust, forgiveness, loyalty, and mutual enjoyment. From the very beginning, Owen showed that he had a loyal personality. When he kids in the Sunday school class would pick him up, and pass him around, he never gave in and told Mrs. Walker, never complained about being passed around by the other kids. Johnny also showed that he could be trusted in this same way. Johnny trusted Owen with his most prized possession, his armadillo. They played baseball together and rode their bikes. They played in the attic and had sleepovers.
Johnson 2
All of these things are the beginnings of friendship in most normal people’s lives. But Owen and Johnny’s relationship is different, it is extraordinary. Their extraordinary friendship can be summed up in one word: forgiveness. Owen viewed Johnny’s mother as a mother figure, perhaps more so than he viewed his own mother. Yet, he delivered the most heartbreaking moment of Johnny’s life, with the ill-fated hit of a baseball. Owen, rightfully, felt horrible, but was responsible for the death of his best friend’s mother, his own “adopted” mother. Most...
LaTonya
Professor Kinnaird
English 101, Section 11
30 September 2010
Friendship in A Prayer For Owen Meany
In John Irving’s novel, A Prayer For Owen Meany , the friendship between Owen and Johnny was refreshing. Throughout their lives, Owen and Johnny have to depend on each other for leadership, advice, and guidance on subjects ranging from religion to girls. They turned what could have been a forgettable friendship into a lasting relationship that shaped their entire lives. The two friends not only depend on each other, they seem to need each other as well. The friendship is not only special on the surface, as is the case with most friendships, it also has a deeper, more meaningful effect on each of the characters’ lives.
Owen and Johnny’s relationship has the basic elements of any common good friendship. These elements include honesty, trust, forgiveness, loyalty, and mutual enjoyment. From the very beginning, Owen showed that he had a loyal personality. When he kids in the Sunday school class would pick him up, and pass him around, he never gave in and told Mrs. Walker, never complained about being passed around by the other kids. Johnny also showed that he could be trusted in this same way. Johnny trusted Owen with his most prized possession, his armadillo. They played baseball together and rode their bikes. They played in the attic and had sleepovers.
Johnson 2
All of these things are the beginnings of friendship in most normal people’s lives. But Owen and Johnny’s relationship is different, it is extraordinary. Their extraordinary friendship can be summed up in one word: forgiveness. Owen viewed Johnny’s mother as a mother figure, perhaps more so than he viewed his own mother. Yet, he delivered the most heartbreaking moment of Johnny’s life, with the ill-fated hit of a baseball. Owen, rightfully, felt horrible, but was responsible for the death of his best friend’s mother, his own “adopted” mother. Most...