The Bass the River and Sheila Mant
There are many times when you find yourself faced with a challenge or a hampering situation. However, a decision has to be made and each obstacle must be overcome. In the short story The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant by W. D. Wetherell, the obstacle was the main characters’ situation in being able to talk to his crush, Sheila Mant. He is initially drawn to Sheila because of the large parties her family threw at the lake cottage next to his, during this fateful summer, and his curious nature. His curiosity grew stronger with his development of understanding her disposition from a distance as she lay on the float. As the summer neared to an end, he found himself having more confidence and overcame his fear. This story provides a direct example of how teenagers are able to overcome their obstacles and nerves.
Sheila and her family rented out the lake cottage next to that of the narrator’s, the summer the narrator was 14. Prior to their arrival, his primary goal was to catch the large mouth bass, but this came as a distraction from his goal as “… the only creature that seemed lovelier to me than a largemouth bass was Sheila Mant”(41). Of course, in the life of most young boys, this temptation does not come as a disappointment but yet an opportunity. Her families multiple parties, though bothersome to his family, because they were “’Too noisy by half’ [his] mother quickly decided” (41). He longed to be apart of the parties over the hedge, so he would sneak through the hedge to stare at “the candlelit swirl of white dress and bright, paisley skirts” (41). This reaction is generally the reaction one might see from a person who suddenly has the potential opportunity of being a part of something larger than ever offered up to.
The narrator’s curiosity grew stronger with his development of understanding as she would lie on a float and he would practically study her moves miraculous day she was, [he] climbed the diving board and did my best tuck and a half for her and
Sheila and her family rented out the lake cottage next to that of the narrator’s, the summer the narrator was 14. Prior to their arrival, his primary goal was to catch the large mouth bass, but this came as a distraction from his goal as “… the only creature that seemed lovelier to me than a largemouth bass was Sheila Mant”(41). Of course, in the life of most young boys, this temptation does not come as a disappointment but yet an opportunity. Her families multiple parties, though bothersome to his family, because they were “’Too noisy by half’ [his] mother quickly decided” (41). He longed to be apart of the parties over the hedge, so he would sneak through the hedge to stare at “the candlelit swirl of white dress and bright, paisley skirts” (41). This reaction is generally the reaction one might see from a person who suddenly has the potential opportunity of being a part of something larger than ever offered up to.
The narrator’s curiosity grew stronger with his development of understanding as she would lie on a float and he would practically study her moves miraculous day she was, [he] climbed the diving board and did my best tuck and a half for her and