Preview

Greasy Lake Paragraph

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
578 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Greasy Lake Paragraph
Tiffany Caldwell

Exploring the thematic link between the epigraph and the “Greasy Lake”

The ''Greasy Lake" seems to be influence by Bruce Springsteen ''Spirit in the Night". It is like used an epigraph from his song even though its not about the characters of the story. The characters and actions are completely made up. The ''Greasy Lake'' seemed to just imitate the song and take on its a free spirit. The "Bad boy" image in the "Greasy Lake" was admired and planned as the boys days continued, it was not original. We can just think about when the "Greasy Lake" was set not only the epigraph but also the title of the story was inspired by Bruce Springsteen ''Spirit in the Night". Think about it, are these boys really "bad"? No,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    The Chevy owner is a tough muscular character. The biker, whom is regarded as a bad older character, is said to be dangerous. The vehicles are a representation of the individuals who drive them. Another symbol of danger the young men face is Greasy Lake itself. The lake is described as being "fetid and murky, the mud banks glittering with broken glass and strewn with beer cans" (Boyle 189). It is a sign that nothing good lies within. Several times throughout the story, Boyle refers to not only the main characters as being greasy, but also describes a variety of other people in the same way. This ties the lake and the greasy characters together. It is ironic that not only is the lake named Greasy Lake, but the individuals who hang out there are also referred to as being greasy characters as well. This led to violent subsequent events later on in the story, as the narrator gets chased and beaten up, and during these events, the narrator realizes he was indeed a bad kid, but learns through the tough way that there are even worse people in this…

    • 1350 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    It can easily be seen that Digdy was scared out of his wit and wanted nothing more to do with the Greasy Lake. Just as soon as they were getting in the car, a mustang appeared and two girls stepped out of the car. Digdy now was even more in a hurry to leave when he said “Come on…Let’s get out of here (Boyle 10).” This is the second time he suggested to his friend that he no longer wanted to be there and when he said, he wanted to leave this time, to me it seemed that he was even more terrified then when he said he wanted the leave the first time. They did not leave in time so they would miss the girls, so one of them come up to the car and said “hi (Boyle 10)”, and the narrator described the faces as “We looked at her like zombies (Boyle 11).” This part describes just how scared they were and to see more people at the lake did not make them feel better or safer. To me it seemed that this scared them even more and they did not really know what these girls wanted nor did they want to stay and find out and Digdy was the first one to mention so. Then they all left. Digdy and his friends were all terrified and they could never grasp a bad character vive after what they had just been…

    • 1063 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greasy Lake Setting

    • 196 Words
    • 1 Page

    In “Greasy Lake” the story begins with “…when it was good to be bad…”pg. (189) lines (2-3) then the story goes on to describe what classifies them as “dangerous characters” line(4) the paragraph ends with “At night, we went up to “Greasy Lake” lines (13-14). Usually in stories night symbolizes something bad, sinister, or something generally accepted…

    • 196 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greasy Lake by T. Coraghesan Boyle’s is the story of a group of adolescents, searching for the one situation that will proclaim them as bad boys and how their minds change. The greasy lake is a short story which the narrator uses details, imagination and language to describe and represent the moral condition of each character. Also, during the story the narrator shows us how each character becomes closer to maturity after facing a crazy and unexpected night in a local lake, where we are all witness to and extreme change in their lives causes by immature action.…

    • 930 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Okefenokee Swamp Analysis

    • 474 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Although both authors write about the Okefenokee Swamp, they seem to express different attitudes and ideas toward the Okefenokee through their use of imagery and other literary devices, such as personification and colloquialism.…

    • 474 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The short story “Greasy Lake" by Thomas Coraghessan Boyle reveals a moment of enlightened transformation in three young men as they go through a series of mistakes, consequences, and reaffirmation. Greasy Lake is a short story that traces the events leading up to the young men’s revelatory moments. This short story can easily be applied to similar stories of young men all over the world as a well-remembered turning point on the road to the maturity. For the characters of this story, one mistake follows another, revealing potential and actual consequences leading up to their revelatory moment. The young men in the story see themselves as tough characters: The narrator even explains how they wore torn-up leather jackets, slouched around with…

    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lake Minnetonka Essay

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Nestled within western Hennepin County and Carver County, Minnesota, Lake Minnetonka holds unique meaning for different people. The retreating Wisconsin Glacier of the last Ice Age that produced melted blocks of ice, gave life and form to this island lake. It was Alexander Ramsey, Minnesota’s territorial governor in 1852, who gave Lake Minnetonka its name. The lake is also commonly known as the Big Waters, deriving that nickname from the Sioux language in which “Minne” means water and “Tonka” means big or great. As the ninth largest lake in Minnesota, Lake Minnetonka features several islands, a series of interconnecting bays including Haltsed Bay and Grays Bay, and it covers 22.2 square miles of water, boasting roughly 110 miles of beautiful…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Island Lake Essay

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages

    We are a community of 26 private dwellings, with 62 individuals living in these residences. We are an isolated community, accessible only by air and or ice roads in the winter, we are 297 kilometres from Thompson, Manitoba and 300 kilometers north of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Our community is serviced by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and we have a huge problem and the RCMP have stepped up in a huge way. Yes, we are a First Nations community, by the name of, Island lake.…

    • 629 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greasy Lake Analysis

    • 271 Words
    • 2 Pages

    “Greasy Lake” is a story about catastrophic mistakes that affect young adult lives. The story is about three boys who think highly of themselves. The narrator tells about how he and his friends, Digby and Jeff, drink, smoke, and stay out late. It is obvious that the narrator and his friends are immature and simply do not care about the consequences of their actions. The boys find themselves in a brawl with some men at the lake. The narrator separates from his friends to order to protect himself. Trying to hide, the narrator has no choice but to plunge into the murky water. While hiding underwater, he bumps into a corpse. Scared and upset, the narrator gets out of the lake just in time to watch his mother’s car being destroyed. This is when…

    • 271 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The unnamed narrator and protagonist from the short story, “Greasy Lake,” by T.C. Boyle makes a shocking display of immaturity in youth. The protagonist is introduced as an upper-middle class male with lower class intentions. In pursuit of some late-night fun at the local hangout, he and his two comrades encounter a little more mischief than they were hoping for. Quickly, his rebellion against society leaves him in a dangerous and unforgiving position that causes him to rethink his outlook on life.…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greasy Lake Symbolism

    • 1653 Words
    • 7 Pages

    T.C Boyle's, "Greasy Lake," focuses on the conflicts of three 19-year olds, set in the 1960s, between their perceived self-image and the true self within. The story tells the tale of three young kids, fueled with cheap lemon-flavored gin, a lingering high, and a hunger for danger. Bored on during their third night of summer vacation, the boys decide to go to the local…

    • 1653 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Greasy Lake Symbolism

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Greasy lakes is an excellent yet outrageous story, due to the descriptions and comparisons that Tom Coraghessan Boyle throws at his readers. Its these mysterious descriptions and comparisons, that hold the key in identifying the hidden symbols in this story. Three major symbols are the name Greasy, the narrator gives the lake, the lake itself and how the narrator‘s filth reflects on the lake , and the mislaid car keys. These symbols played an immense part in the revelation of the narrorator “bad character”.…

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Greasy Lake

    • 571 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Greasy lake The boys are seeking to gain the respect and honor that man hood has for them. They thought that bad was good of course in that time it was the cool thing to do, they went cruising around the strip sixty seven times trying to look like bad boys. Then all of a sudden Digby (one of the narrator’s friends) fought for the wheel because he saw his friend’s car at greasy lake so they thought to play a prank on him they flashed their lights and honk the horn to look like the police. But they didn’t see their friend tom when they got close to the car they saw a dead body in the water they then screamed and ran for their lives in that mucky water while they were running in terror a lady screamed out and pointed to them and said “Its them they tried to raped me”(Greasy lake 134) and a greasy fellow came up to them and said “I’m going to kill you”(134) so they try to run which isn’t manly at all they don’t get to far eventually the greasy man catches up to them and starts beating them up. The boys take on the stronger man because it’s like a right of passage like when the Indians would go hunting with their sons they would leave as boys and come back men. Well if all three of them can some how beat this man up they will be manly and no one would mess with them, they try to punch him and kick him but it seemed like nothing would work some one even tried some karate moves on him but he just got slammed on the ground and the greasy man started to kick him. The greasy man then started to mess up the narrators mothers car then all of a sudden “whack” digby hit him in the ear with the tire iron, it was silent and everyone was scared because they thought they killed him and like little boys they run away for the car only to find out that they cant start it, “We were bad characters and we were scared and hot and three steps over the line anything could happen.”(132) The boys realize about them selves and the world is that they should not try to be something that their…

    • 571 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Deserted Island Paragraph

    • 275 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In a deserted Island scenario, it’s best to have a government that is ruled by the people. There are three main reasons why rule of law would benefit everyone on a deserted island. Firstly, the people have the right to elect anyone that best represents them. Therefore, the leader of the island will be majority of the people’s favorite. This way, the leader(s) will attempt to bring what is best for the people in order remain in power. Secondly, the people would have freedom to express their opinion. In a deserted island, everyone must be taken care. And if basic needs are not met, people should be able to express their concerns without having any fear. If the island establishes rule of force, people would be scared to express their concerns and they will continue to live without certain needs and this could slow down the progress of their society and create big gap between rich and the poor or. Therefore, establishing rule of law almost guarantees that the citizens will receive their needs to survive on the island. Third, behind every rule of force, there is bloodshed. Most of the countries perusing rule of force such as China, North Korea, Cuba, Libya, Syria and etc are well known for having violent history and some of them still continue oppress their citizens. Therefore the best choice is rule of law. The people can elect who they want; express their opinion and they can live in a much safer environment. These are the reasons why rule of law would best suit on a deserted island…

    • 275 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    III.Some might ask what defines a bad boy. Bad boys typically are males who live life on their own terms.They come in many variations and degrees. There are seriously bad apples who have regular run-ins with the law, habitually use drugs and get arrested for violent acts. Then there's the milder variety mischief makers who enjoy breaking the rules just because they are there.Other guys adopt a bad boy image because it gives them an identity, acceptance, in their peer group, or attention from people.The reason why guys like this appeal to most women revolves around the bad boys physical appearance, unpredictable adventure and excitement this type of male brings, and the drive the woman has to rehabilitate or save the bad boy.…

    • 636 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics