Corrigan, secondly, is a character who demonstrates the theme of courage in many ways throughout the novel Let The Great World Spin. For example, Corrigan is not intimidated by his own poverty. He stands up to other's poor opinions of him, and he has the courage to be proud of what he has done for his friends and society. As an Irish monk, Corrigan believes in helping others, whatever the cost, and he does this by offering refuge to the prostitutes that reside in the alleys of Manhattan. By being courageous, and not letting the stereotypes cloud his good judgement, Corrigan made many life-long alliances and gained the respect of the girls, and the families of the girls, who are forced into this unfortunate profession. One of his best friends, Jazzlyn, trusts Corrigan and respects his courage. She has two young children whom she cannot support without Corrigan's support and assistance. Similarly, Corrigan also has the courage to stand up for his beliefs, especially as a young boy. When he lived in Ireland, up until he was 18, Corrigan helped those who no one else would. Eventually, they took advantage of him, but he continued anyway, knowing that he was making their lives the slightest bit better. He would buy alcohol for the scrubs sitting on the side of the road, or offer rides to the bums in the alleys. Many times he got caught in trouble; however, he knew that his deeds were justified. Corrigan was open to everyone. He was courageous when it came to his emotions and his beliefs. HIs brother said, “He might have been naive, but he didn't care; he said he's rather die with his heart on his sleeve than end up another cynic.” (McCann 21). Corrigan's courage was blind at times; he helped people who may not have deserved it, he put the good of others ahead of his own good. McCann's character, Corrigan, certainly illustrated the theme of courage in Let The Great World Spin.
|
Big IdeasFirstly, the big idea of "power of the individual" is demonstrated by one of McCann's characters, Lara. Lara, for example, has the individual power to take a life, and to control how this impacts her. Lara is a young artist who lives in the south of Manhattan. She has made numerous poor decisions, but none impacted her quite as much as when she accidentally killed someone. At a busy intersection, her '27 Pontiac was rear-ended, causing it to propel forward and hit a young girl. Lara sees her face now, everywhere her and Blaine go. It is in her power to control her feelings towards the accident. Blaine, her husband, tells her not to worry, that it wasn't her fault, but this doesn't satisfy Lara. She doesn't control her individual power, it controls her. She becomes paranoid; everything relates to that girl, everyone saw what happened. Only when she picks up the belongings of another man involved in the crash, does she learn who the girl was. Upon learning her identity, Lara focuses her power towards making it right. She attends her funeral, and speaks to the brother of the other victim in the crash. Before the accident occurred, Lara had better control of herself. She used her individual power to change Blaine and her life for the better. They went from drugs, drinking, and crime to a quite, isolated cabin in the woods. They completely separated themselves from society, even from electricity. They lived like this for months, and Lara was proud of the power she had over her own life, until that power took someone else's. In Let The Great World Spin, Lara embodies the big idea of the power of an individual.
Lastly, Claire shows how the big idea of dreams can impact one's life and how dwelling on past dreams can lead to depression and mental instability. For instance, Claire is constantly stuck in the dream that her son will return from Vietnam alive. This dream drives her to social outcast. When meeting with a group of women who have gone through similar pain, Claire constantly worries about details: should she get them a glass of water? Should she give them a tour? Will they like her? Will they think she's weird? Every word that comes out of Claire's mouth seems like a mistake to her. She is stuck in the dream that her son will come home, although she knows that this is impossible. Somehow, she hopes, a miracle will happen, and her son will walk through the entryway just as he had before he was shipped across the world. Also, Claire has dreams of the past. She becomes so absorbed in how things used to be that she can't function in the present. She thinks, "It was there in the mansion that Joshua learned to play the piano. Five years old. He sat on the wooden stool, slid his fingers up and down the keys" (McCann 80). Claire becomes so involved in her memories that she forgets to live in the present. She forgets where she is. She forgets her own identity. This is an example of how dreams can negatively impact the individual. Whether negative or positive, the big idea of dreams is clearly seen in the character Claire, in the novel Let The Great World Spin.
|