Themes of "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon"

[mmurphylee]

I am writing a research paper regarding the themes of this novel. I have figured out some, but I want some input on this. I think this novel is portrayed as an initiation tale, of one going through harsh life experiences to become an adult. I also think this novel is about a little girl testing her mental and physical strength.

[hossenpepper]

I would say this is a story also about perseverance, the mysteries of the mind when dealing with trauma, the joy of triumph over adversity and on a metaphysical level, rebirth.

Great book. One of the few that have actually made me weep a little.

[mmurphylee]

That is a good point. I'm having a hard time finding sources for my paper, does anyone have any suggestions?

[mmurphylee]

I keep finding book reviews, and whether or not someone enjoyed the book. On the side, I really liked this novel. It's one of my favorite books, and I love the saying, "Go along, to get along." To me, that's probably the best way to deal the harsh realities of life. You don't want to attack the forces of nature, but coexist with it in order to survive. I might use this quote in my paper, and maybe link it to the theme of this story.

[randallFlaggfan1]

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is definitely a coming-of-age tale. IMO, Trisha McFarland's life will be forever changed by her experiences.

[GNTLGNT]

It's also a triumph of human spirit-it took quite the set of ovaries for her to overcome all the struggles layed before her, and at such a young age.

[wally wonder]

I keep finding book reviews, and whether or not someone enjoyed the book. On the side, I really liked this novel. It's one of my favorite books, and I love the saying, "Go along, to get along." To me, that's probably the best way to deal the harsh realities of life. You don't want to attack the forces of nature, but coexist with it in order to survive. I might use this quote in my paper, and maybe link it to the theme of this story.

have you read the dark tower series of seven? that idea, going along to get along, is expressed by ted, book seven maybe, concerning his life, the life of the breakers, and in that context, it has negative connotations, akin to the lyrics, likely completely unrelated, don't rock the boat...
....it could be that that same idea is expressed in words by other characters in sk stories....it is clearly expressed in action...like, maybe a town is that way, going along to get along....derry perhaps....haven....others?........coexsiting w/nature isn't always a clear winner...how many have been eaten by bears cause they thought they could commune w/them?

[mmurphylee]

Thanks for the info guys, my paper is due soon and I needed some ideas. :)

[mmurphylee]

Ok, so I finally figured out my thesis for my research paper. I couldn't really find any sources for just themes of The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, so I decided to compare the story to another that seemed to have similar themes. So, my thesis is "Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon has similar themes compared to Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The reasons why I chose this book is because I just read it not too long ago, and because it really does have similar themes. There is the theme of man vs. nature, which with Huck Finn it's he vs. man; he is an outcast from civilization, and seeks shelter with nature. Also, these two stories are both initiation tales; one going through harsh life experiences and becoming mature young adults. I also noticed that Trisha and Huck both go through character developments, and develop a close bond to another being, Tom Gordon and Jim. With Tom Gordon and Jim, these two share similar traits such as companionship to the main character, being a "father" figure, giving advice, and being trustworthy. I'm open to any comments for these ideas, but I think I'm going to stick with this thesis, and these ideas.