A “Real Catch” of a Man

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A “Real Catch” of a Man

Introduction

Although a normal relationship between a father and a son in most cases tends to be based on the critical principles of mentorship and mutual love, the author of the story under review presents a father as under-performing. In the story Powder, the author highlights the irregular relationship that exists between the father and son. The story is rooted on a broken home scenario that contributes significantly to the unhealthy relationship that the boy has with the father. In the entire plot, the boy is presented as being not only unhappy but also uncomfortable with the presence of the father. This has negative implications on the welfare of the boy during the first half of the story. He does not trust his father and makes persistent efforts to develop personal plans regarding the future. The negative feelings that he experiences makes him consider his father as being spontaneous; a feeling that was aggravated when they hit the road and realized that it was snowing heavily and therefore they could see neither the road nor the fail. Yet despite this ill representation that sees the father as unqualified from the son’s point of view, there are some indispensable rules to qualify a good father; a real man.

In the first half of the story, the father-son relationship is compounded by mistrust and heightened tension. The father shows some degree of irresponsibility and seems to be unaware of the risks that he takes in a bit to enjoy himself. To a great extent, the father is selfish and inconsiderate of the welfare of his son. An example in this respect pertains to the ski trip. At the sky resort, the boy seems resentful of his father. When skiing, the father enjoys the snow as well as the wind and the speed. In contrast, the boy defines the relative conditions as being bitter. He explains “snow whirled around us in bitter, blinding squalls, hissing like sand, and still we skied” (Wolff 20). When his father asks him to go for the very last turn, the boy is reluctant but follows him unwillingly. He asserts “there was no point in trying. I stuck on him like white on rice and did what he did and somehow made it to the bottom without sailing off the cliff” (Wolff 20). This is a clear indication that the boy does not enjoy the environment and arguably, he is being forced by his father to ski. When they hit the road and found out that it was closed, the boy is still resentful of his father and complains “we should have left before…Doctor” (Wolff 21). Apparently, the boy feels that the father does not care about his wellbeing. The uncaring feeling was further demonstrated when the father endangers their lives by crossing the barrier in to the fresh powder.

Regardless of these activities, the feeling of love for his son is apparent in the story. In this respect, it should be appreciated that since the author of the story is a male, he places undue emphasis on the fact that male figures need to be responsible in the society. The story begins with the boy’s flash about going to a club with his father without his mother’s permission. Considering that the father does not have custody of the boy, it is certain that the aim of the author is to portray the father as being reckless, irresponsible and unmindful of his son’s wellbeing. Alternatively, the father can be considered to be ignorant of the wellbeing of his son. This culminates in the son’s development of bitter feelings of resentment. The development of resentment also occurs when the father insists on the last run but they end up having numerous ‘last runs’. The feeling is so intense that the son starts thinking that “He (the father) was indifferent to my fretting” (Wol.............