Change In Forrester's Life

Many, like Jamal, are afraid of showing their true talent and need some type of change in their life to show it. Jamal began as a basketball player in a public school where he never did good in school work, but showed his intelligence through testing. He is given the chance to make something with his life when he is given the opportunity to transfer to a private school to play basketball and get a better education. He finds a way to improve his schoolwork after meeting William Forrester and it changes his view on how important it is to write; he learns how to express himself and his feeling in his writing. One of his teachers, Mr. Crawford, believes he is not truly doing his own work and finds that he had used one of William’s old drafts for
After Jamal begins to meet with William more and more, he sees the importance in writing and showing his feelings in writing. His change is shown through his school work, as it increasingly gets better from when he was in the public school. The relationship he creates with Forrester allows him to connect with someone on a deeper level that he never has before. He is able to finally express himself through his writing. “Under Forrester’s tutelage, Jamal injects new passion into his writing and dedicates himself more” (Movielocity, 2001, pg. 2). The relationship between Forrester and Jamal helps to change Jamal’s writing into more passionate work. The change allows him to show more interest in his school work and he is able to get the good grades he is expected to make with his test scores. William also received help in his problems of social anxiety through his relationship with Jamal. Through Jamal’s help and him caring about William’s past, William is able to see the importance of having a friend. Due to their relationship, he feels safe enough that he can finally leave his home and explore the world. Variety (2000) states, “An unlikely relationship begins. Jamal gradually becomes committed not only to his writing, but to cracking Forrester’s shell” (pg. 2). William needs Jamal’s support to get rid of his social anxiety and fear of leaving his home. To do so, he needs to adapt from his old
When William was brought to Yankee Stadium for the first time in years by Jamal, it changed something inside him. He had all his childhood memories of spending time with his brother flood back and it transformed him. He saw how much Jamal appreciated him and understood that people still cared for him, causing him to want to explore the world more and see what he had missed for so many years. The New York Times (2000) stated in their review, “In his haste to escape, Jamal loses his bag containing his notebook. Shortly after Jamal is down on the court when his backpack sails out of Forrester’s window. Opening it, he sees corrections and it isn’t long before he becomes the reclusive legend’s writing pupil (pg. 2). After breaking into William’s apartment, he leaves his notebook and when his bag is returned to him, he sees corrections and decides to go back and ask about them. As he continues to write for Forrester, he in turn helps to tutor Jamal and work on changing his mindset towards school. Jamal’s viewpoint on how he makes decisions was transformed at the state basketball game. He was told he needed to win state in order to clear his name in Crawford’s class. Instead of having someone else make the decision for him on how he should resolve his conflicts, he decides to do his own things and miss the free throws to win the game. He’s given the chance to do whatever he