Peekay In Bryce Courtenay's The Power Of One
A few words of zeal can possess egregious impact on a child, against the thousands uttered in spite of them. This belief remains intact for the protagonist of Bryce Courtenay’s novel, The Power of One, as Peekay’s hardships rattle him endlessly until he encounters Hoppie Groenewald; a mentor who creates the basis for Peekay’s newly found hope, strength and self-worth. Although their time together is only a smidgen compared to the length of the young boy’s continuing journey, Hoppie’s lessons, masking themselves as overly kind gestures in Peekay’s perspective, abide as long-lasting morals with which his life is guided. These lessons commence with the behavior the mentor demonstrates towards Peekay. Endearment is an action that Peekay experiences
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Upon the discovery of Peekay being of English descent, Hoppie does not place the boy’s ethnic origin against him and instead teaches Peekay that having a certain identity that is discriminated against by certain people makes him no less of a fighter than them. The same encouragement is made by Hoppie when Peekay ponders as to how those smaller in size have the ability to win: it is a matter of how one uses their assets to their advantage, rather having their introspection clouded by the disadvantages kept in mind. Furthermore, what Peekay believes to be wrong, such as his perspectives, habits, etc., is proven right by Hoppie. For example, when Peekay allows himself to cry in the presence of Hoppie, the mentor encourages the behaviour and makes a statement along the lines of crying being a healthy behaviour, as nurturing one’s emotional health is of equal importance as the nurturing of one’s physical and mental health. Discriminatory beliefs such as the definition of masculinity being a lack of emotional sensitivity, racism, shown when Peekay was attacked for his ethnic background, etc. induce their eradication from Peekay’s idea of how to be the ideal person. This remains due to the positive mindset of Hoppie bearing a strong influence on Peekay, as the young boy stays very vulnerable at the time due to his previous traumatic experiences. Moreover, the cause of Hoppie's positive perspective is due to his participation in boxing, as he addresses the boxing gloves as the "equalizers": the eliminators of
Upon the discovery of Peekay being of English descent, Hoppie does not place the boy’s ethnic origin against him and instead teaches Peekay that having a certain identity that is discriminated against by certain people makes him no less of a fighter than them. The same encouragement is made by Hoppie when Peekay ponders as to how those smaller in size have the ability to win: it is a matter of how one uses their assets to their advantage, rather having their introspection clouded by the disadvantages kept in mind. Furthermore, what Peekay believes to be wrong, such as his perspectives, habits, etc., is proven right by Hoppie. For example, when Peekay allows himself to cry in the presence of Hoppie, the mentor encourages the behaviour and makes a statement along the lines of crying being a healthy behaviour, as nurturing one’s emotional health is of equal importance as the nurturing of one’s physical and mental health. Discriminatory beliefs such as the definition of masculinity being a lack of emotional sensitivity, racism, shown when Peekay was attacked for his ethnic background, etc. induce their eradication from Peekay’s idea of how to be the ideal person. This remains due to the positive mindset of Hoppie bearing a strong influence on Peekay, as the young boy stays very vulnerable at the time due to his previous traumatic experiences. Moreover, the cause of Hoppie's positive perspective is due to his participation in boxing, as he addresses the boxing gloves as the "equalizers": the eliminators of