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Archetypes In The Scar Boys

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When we read a piece of literature, we can get so impressed by a story that we do not pull the valuable life lessons from the book. We can use literary theory to pull out those life lessons to use them in our daily lives. For example, when reading the Scar Boys, we see the overarching theme of how loneliness can cause us to seek validation in places we should not. The outcast and the mentor character archetypes, the symbolic storm archetype, and the journey situational archetype evolve the theme of loneliness in the novel.

`In The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos, published in 2014, we see a young adult fiction novel focusing on loneliness and coming of age. Harry is a physically deformed child by a lightning strike. Harry meets a strong-willed, …show more content…

From the first time he meets him, he defends Harry from a bully, saying, "don't mind him. He's harmless" (Vlahos 24). Johnny was Harry's protector but also brought Harry out of his shell when he introduced Harry to Gabrielle Privat on Halloween—forcing Harry to become his "wittiest, funniest, most charming self" (Vlahos 37). Harry's loneliness pushes him to follow Johnny everywhere; even Harry's dad believes "Harry's the lucky one here" (Vlahos …show more content…

Jonny initially opposed the tour because he was "offered a track and field scholarship to Syracuse, and I accepted it. They are paying half my tuition" (Vlahos 79). This frightened Harry and isolated him from the group because he thought "we were nothing without him" (Vlahos 80). In the middle of the tour, Harry feels alone and betrayed when he finds Johnny "on top of Cheyenne" (Vlahos 138). Finally, at the end of the tour, when Johnny is home and injured, Harry does not visit for a long time. We see how lonely Johnny has been yelling at Harry, "you were supposed to call" (Vlahos 230).

Lastly, the symbolic archetype of storms shows the theme of loneliness because of all the emotional turmoil related to storms (Master Class). Harry becomes who he is the moment when "a new spear of lighting found me" (Vlahos 6). Being struck by lightning and the bullying afterward led to his isolation. The storms also foreshadow future loneliness and turmoil when "the panic started to overwhelm me" (Vlahos 131). Then just a few pages later, Harry finds Johnny "on top of Cheyenne" (Vlahos 138). They are again pushing him to further loneliness and

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