2.a) Prove that although the narrator loves his father, he does not idealize him or his way of life. Explain how the narrator's relationship to his father reflects the central conflict in his life.
Answer: The central conflict that the character faces is that he is the only son in the family and is obligated to provide for the family when the only other male, his father, gets ill and cannot care for them.
The relationship between the narrator and his father is very vague up until the point where the father becomes dependent on his son to help him provide for the family. They don't really interact much when the boy is younger, but when he grows older, along with the father, they start to communicate more because the boy now understands why is father acted the way he did in earlier years.
These two reflect upon each other because the son although loves his family he doesn't really feel a great connection with his hometown or memories he created with his parents. So because he does not feel connected with his surrounding he doesn't feel a yearning to stay and help his father.
3a) In literature, a boat is often a symbol for the journey through life. How, in this story, has the symbolism of the boat been transformed?
Answer: The symbolism of a boat has been transformed in this story because it has been reversed, the boat now represents the fathers obligation to the family. He is stuck with his life because of the people in it that rely on him as a provider. When he married his wife, and she got pregnant for the first time he realized that he was forever stuck with his life, due to the life choices he made along the way. No matter how unhappy his life made him he would always have the same obligations every day.
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