Cole When He Went Away Analysis

Cole was a bad kid. He broke into places, hurt people, he only cared about himself. His dad was no better and he would hurt his own son all the time. Cole was raised to not be obedient. I picked the song, “Hello Goodbye” by the Beatles because Cole always did the opposite of what he was told to do. As it says in the song, “You say yes, I say no” and this is exactly what Cole does. He never listens. He also lied quite a bit. For example, The police might not have caught him, but after a week passed, he bragged about the break-in at school. When someone ratted on him, the police questioned Cole. He denied the break-in, of course, and then he beat up the boy who had turned him in (7). Cole was sent to Circle Justice where they decided what his fate was going to be. Garvey, his parole officer,

‘Why?’

‘If someone is treated as if his life is worthless, he begins to believe it.’

‘But his life isn’t worthless,’ Cole argued (201).

This shows that Cole cared about Peter. Before the island, he probably would have said that Peter should’ve died, but at this point he showed appreciation. The climax of the story is when Peter starts beating Cole up. “’You’re not sorry for anything!’ Peter shouted. He kicked at the ground, pelting Cole with gravel and dirt” (235). I picked the song, “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten because this is the time that Peter shows how angry he is and how he fights. This is his fight and his song. It’s his turn to shine on how strong he is. After the fight, when Cole and Peter were talking, they see the Spirit Bear. “And that was when it appeared. Not twenty feet away, it stood watching them: the Spirit Bear” (237). Peter couldn’t believe his eyes. How could he? He didn’t believe it was there for so long and then it appeared right in front of him. I picked the song, “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa. I picked it again because Peter probably wants to see the bear again; he hopes people will believe he saw