Crow Lake Essay

I have managed to learn nothing at all

After the tragic death of Kate Morrisons parents in the novel Crow Lake by Mary Lawson, she lives with her siblings where her older brothers take charge of the family. Her oldest brother Luke tries to find jobs and sacrifices his own education to support the family. During the time when he works in McLeans family store, he and their daughter Sally develop affection towards each other. Consequently, Sally tries to seduce Luke to have sex with her; however Luke rejects the offer for the sake of their family. Similar story happens to Kates other brother, Matt, but the way they handle are the opposite. One Sunday, Kate discovers Matt and Marie Pye sit together around the pond. By her observations, Kate finds out that Marie is pregnant and plausibly due to Matt. During this time, Kate made the assumption that It seems to me that you could define my brothers lives by one moment, and was the same moment for both of them (255).

The outcome of Morrison brothers lives are determined by one single event. This event is powerful enough to change the whole course of their life. This reminds me of the movie Titanic where the main female protagonist, Rose, tries to jump off from the ship and she is stopped by a man named Jack. Soon, they have developed love that is powerful enough to allow them to sacrifice their own lives for the survival of the other. This event changes Roses whole life. If Jack does not stop her from jumping off, she will not be able to start their story. This incident also marks the beginning of change for Rose as she slowly frees herself from the restraints of class with the help of Jack and realizes how to live as herself rather than her mother puppet. Her life is changed forever. Matt and Luke are just like Rose when they both face sexual temptation from women. Luke refuses to give in, and he is known as queer. For Matt, he cannot control himself with Marie, so he faces his consequence and have to give up his education to stay with Marie. All these characters lives are defined by one moment which changes everything.

The quote that Kate says really summarizes her brothers lives. Indeed, Luke and Matts life are changed forever, especially for Matt. Due to Matts actions towards Marie, he chooses to give up his chance to go to university, which could have gotten him out of impoverishment and give him the future where he can fully support his family. In Kates eyes, giving up this opportunity is a lifelong regret. However, she fails to realize that whether Matt is happy or not is what really matters. Matt now has a son, a good wife, and an ordinary life; he still has a good family life without going to university. In contrast with Kate, although she has good education and job, she doesnt have her own family and in fact, she says, I had never thought I would really love anyone. (89) From another perspective, she seems to be the one that is going to have a sad life. Similar with Luke, when he rejects Sally it is due to his responsibility as a caregiver. He is happy with his decision since it is for his family. If Matt chooses to go to university instead and leaves Marie, he will most likely lose his happiness and truly be an emotionless nerd and suffers like Kate who does not truly knows the meaning of love. In the end, no matter what kind of lifestyle it is, what truly matters is whether one can find their happiness.