The Old Country: The Duvitch Family

Freedom is the ability to live your life however you want, wherever you want without being deprived of essential needs such as the ability to think, speak and act in any which of way you please. There comes an extent to this ability in terms of how people treat others, for as though someone cannot expect to harm another and consider it freedom. Everyone deserves to have this right available to them, be treated with respect and live without experiencing danger brought upon by other human beings. This story shows the Duvitch family’s journey to seek freedom. The freedom is accomplished by leaving the ‘Old Country’, moving to a town in America and being treated poorly. Afterwards, the end of their journey arrives and they are accepted in America.
They lived in the farmhouse for a long time, except eventually they were unable to live there because of horrid conditions. They moved to Syringa Street which was in a fancy neighbourhood; “Coming to our obscure part of the state a year before, they had moved into a rotting old farmhouse two miles north of town, long abandoned” (1) The people whom lived in the neighbourhood found the Duvitch family peculiar because they kept to themselves, they did not attempt at all to fit in or develop friendships. The Duvitch family’s beloved mother failed to ever show her face. ‘The women started in on Mrs. Duvitch because she “never showed her face.”’ (3) This resulted in rude commentary and rumours. They were the first immigrants to move into that neighbourhood, which caused some difficulty with the people. The family was treated with disrespect and judged simply because of their nationality and way of living. “But the Duvitches were marked people. They were the one struggling family in a prosperous community—and poverty, amid prosperity, is often embarrassing and irritating to the prosperous. They were considered unattractive physically. They were so meek! The Duvitches never fought back.” (3) In this timeframe in America such things were exceedingly common. The Duvitch’s freedom filled journey had improved, except it was not yet complete. They were able to
Until one day the extraordinary happened. Tom, Andy and there father went out to Durston’s Pond and had seen all the boys in the Duvitch family there. The Duvitch family had spent the day fishing and had caught 12 bass, 61 fish in total. Tom’s father was exceedingly proud of the family and continued to strike conversation with them. Tom’s parents had always appreciated and been kind towards the Duvitch’s. After Tom and Andy had played a ‘practical joke’ which resulted in poisoning all 61 of the Duvitch’s fish, they had repaid the family with the exact number of fish. They did so because there father punished them. Overall, this gesture was the turning point in the Duvitch’s lives. This action enabled the family to realize that not everyone in the town is full of hatred and acts rudely simply because they are different. Mrs.Duvitch finally left her property and visited Tom’s family, was extraordinary because this was her first time leaving in years. The Duvitch’s opened up after this gesture and invited Tom’s family inside their house for supper. Afterwards the Duvitch’s shared an aspect of their culture. The gesture of kindness performed by Tom’s father resulted in the entire neighbourhood beginning to accept the Duvitch