- Published: August 5, 2022
- Updated: August 5, 2022
- University / College: Indiana University Bloomington
- Language: English
- Downloads: 5
The manner in which an individual reacts to the hardships and problems in his/her life defines his/her character and attitude towards life. The protagonist in the novel “ Holes” by Louis Sachar goes through the hardship of his life in a manner which aids him to transform himself from a frightened soul languishing in learned helplessness and nihilism to a magnanimous soul full of self-reliance, hope, and, redemption. Stanley Yelants, an obese teenage boy was a source of ridicule for his classmates and teachers. His bad luck always brought him misfortunate, which was the result of a curse brought upon his family by his great-great grandfather.
Owing to this bad luck, Stanley ends up at the Camp Green Lake to serve his punishment for a crime which was not done by him. At the Camp Green Lake, Stanley and the other convicts are ordered to dig holes, which should measure five feet in depth and width, in extreme weather conditions. The hardships endured by Stanley at the Camp Green Lake turn him into a confident and self-reliant person, as he is aided by his qualities of perseverance, commitment and helping tendency, and his intuition. Perseverance Stanley Yelants was facing bad luck and misfortune in his life but he never gave up his determination.
In spite of not doing anything wrong, Stanley had to accept his punishment and leave for the Camp Green Lake. His bad luck had put him in a situation where he had to agree to serve punishment for a crime not committed by him. “ Stanley was not a bad kid. He was innocent of the crime which for which he was convicted. He’d just been in the wrong place and the wrong time. ” (Sachar 7). At the Camp Green Lake, he was made to dig holes in extremely hot weather conditions in a desert but he persisted in his determination to complete his term of punishment.
The convicts at the Camp were made to dig holes, for the warden thought that digging holes would lead to character building. Some people also supported this notion of warden, as they thought that digging holes would make a bad boy to give up his bad manners. “ If you take a bad boy and make him dig a hole everyday in the hot sun, it will turn him into a good boy. ” (Sachar 5). Stanley never thinks of escaping from his hardship. His quality of perseverance provides him with the strength to carry out the arduous work of digging holes.
As he digs holes, he realizes his physical strength and comes to regard himself as a strong boy who has the courage to bear the hardships of his punishment. In the face of hardship, Stanley rises up to the situation and carries out the work assigned to him. The determination with which he goes through his punishment helps him in discovering his physical as well as mental strength. Commitment Another quality of Stanley that abets him in realizing his true potential is his commitment in his work or duties. His commitment towards his duties is evident in his fulfillment of the promise made to his mother and friend, Zero.
He had promised his mother that he will write letters to her during his stay at the Camp. Even though he is tired after digging holes throughout the day, he writes letters to his mother. Similarly, he teaches Zero to read and fulfills his promise. “ For example, even though Stanley is exhausted from digging holes, he fulfills his promise to his mother to write her letters and he fulfills his promise to help Zero learn to read. His actions reveal his character, which is based on loyalty, commitment, and fortitude. ” (Breakthrough Writer).
His acts of commitment lead him to his redemption, as he succeeds in breaking free from the curse, which was bringing misfortune to him and his family. Helping Tendency Stanley befriends a boy named Zero at the Camp and teaches him to read and write. In exchange of Stanley’s help, Zero dug a part of hole which Stanley was supposed to dig. But the warden discovers about this and insults Zero for his inability to tell the correct spelling of a word. After being insulted by the warden, Zero flees away from the Camp Green Lake.
Stanley is concerned about Zero and desires to save him, so he escapes from the camp and sets out in search of Zero. Not only Stanley succeeds in finding Zero but also carries him to a mountain so that he can drink water from a spring there and feel better as he was suffering from vomiting. The helping tendency of Stanley breaks the curse of his family, for by taking Zero, great, great- great grandson of Madame Zeroni, to the spring and feeding its water to him Stanley fulfills the promise made by his great-great grandfather to Madame Zeroni. The breaking of the curse brings fortune to Stanley and his family.
Stanley discovers his magnanimity as he liberates his family from the curse. Intuition Although Stanley works hard and digs holes according to the order of the warden, his intuition makes him to suspect the intention of warden. Later, he discovers the real reason behind the warden’s order for digging holes. “ Day after day, as Stanley digs, he begins to wonder if in fact there isn’t something buried in the sand. When Stanley does discover the truth, he unknowingly sets into motion a series of events that will fulfill his destiny, bringing the past and present together. Greene 52). His intuition aids Stanley in bringing fortune to him and his family.
As Stanley comes to know about the real intention of the warden in making the boys to dig holes, he decides to look for the treasure in the hole where he earlier found a lipstick tube. He refrains from telling the warden about his plan and searches the hole with the aid of Zero. An old suitcase filled with valuables is found by Stanley and Zero in the hole. As the suitcase bore the name of Stanley Yelnats on it, the suitcase was handed over to Stanley.
After acquiring the wealth and breaking the curse of his family, Stanley turns into a confident, self-reliant and magnanimous person. Conclusion Before his stay at the Camp Green Lake, Stanley was a frightened soul languishing in learned helplessness and nihilism but his qualities of perseverance, commitment, helping tendency and his intuition turn him into a magnanimous soul full of self- reliance, hope, and, redemption. He faces his hardships at the Camp in a manner which aid him in breaking the curse of his family.
Stanley remained determined throughout his term of punishment, and displayed commitment in his work and duties. He also took efforts to help his friend, Zero and while helping Zero he succeeded in breaking the curse of his family. The intuition that the warden was looking for something buried in the sand lead Stanley to the discovery of a treasure in a hole dug by him. The success achieved by Stanley in breaking the curse and bringing fortune to his family transforms him into a self-assured and self-reliant person.
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