The Reading Report of The Body

Last period, I read the book The Body. The Body wrote by an American writer Stephen King, and originally published in his 1982 collection Different Seasons and in 1986 adapted into the film stand by me. Stephen Edwin King who was born in September 21, 1947 was an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy. His books had sold more than 350 million copies and had been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books. King had published 50 novels, including seven under the pen-name of Richard Bachman, and five non-fiction books. He had written nearly two hundred short stories, most of which had been collected in nine collections of short fiction. Many of his stories were set in his home state of Maine.

The story took place during the summer of 1960 in the fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine. Ray Brower, who was a boy from Chamberlain where was a town 40 miles or so east of Castle Rock. He went out to pick blueberries with one of his mother's pails. But he was unfortunately missing and was presumed dead. Vern Tessio(friend) informed his three friends that he had overheard his older brother Billy talking with his friend Charlie Hogan, about the location of the corpse of Ray Brower, where was a town 40 miles or so east of Castle Rock. Then Gordie Lachance and his three friends, Chris Chambers, Teddy Duchamp and Vern Tessio set out to find his body after telling their parents they will be camping out. The four friends decided that they will find it so as to be famous. During the course of their journey, the boys, who all came from abusive, dysfunctional families, came to grips with some of the harsh truths of growing up in a small factory town that did not seem to offer them much in the way of a future.

The boys walked along the railroad tracks toward the presumed location of the corpse. Along the way, they trespassed at the town dump and they were chased by trash-man Milo Pressman's dog "Chopper". Milo insult Teddy's father, which caused Teddy to unleash his anger on Milo. Gordie and Vern were nearly run over by a train while crossing a bridge. While at a resting point, Chris predicted that Gordie will grow up to become a famous writer – perhaps he will even write about his friends one day.

When they finally found the spot where the body lied, a gang of bullies arrived just after they did. The gang wss composed of Vern's older brother Billy, Charlie Hogan, Chris's older brother Richard "Eyeball" Chambers, Norman "Fuzzy" Bracowicz, John "Ace" Merrill, and two others. The older boys were upset to see the four friends, and during an argument, Chris pulled a gun belonging to his father from his bag back, that he took from his home and fired into the air and then threatened Ace, the leader of the gang. After a brief standoff Ace realized that Chris was serious, and the teenagers leaved. Having seen the body, the boys realized that there was nothing else to be done with it, and returned home without further incident.

The older boys ultimately decided to phone in the location of the body as an "anonymous tip" and it is eventually found by the authorities as a result. Some days after the confrontation, Ace and Fuzzy broke Gordie's nose and fingers and kicked him in the testicles, and they were on the verge of harming him more seriously when they were run off by Gordie's neighbor, Aunt Evvie Chalmers. Chris's brother breaks his arm and "leaves his face looking like a Canadian sunrise". Teddy and Vern got less severe beatings. The boys refused to identify their assailants to the authorities, and there were no further repercussions.

The narration then went into fast-forward. Gordon described the next year or so briefly, stating that Teddy and Vern drifted off, befriending some younger boys. In high school, just as Chris predicted, Gordie began taking college-preparation courses. Unexpectedly, so did Chris. In spite of abuse from his father, taunts from his classmates and distrusted from teachers and school counselors, he managed to be successful with help from Gordie.

In comparison to King's prior works, the narrative of The Body was complicated in that it was told in first person point of view by the now forty-something novelist Gordon Lachance. Most of the story was a straight retrospective of what happened, but comments, or entered chapters that related to the present time, are interspersed throughout.

Although he was only 12 at the time of the story, Gordie's favorite diversion was writing and storytelling. Three times during the narrative, he told stories to his friends, and two stories were presented in the text as short stories by Gordon Lachance, completed with attribution to the magazines in which they were published.

The final two chapters described the fate of Gordie's three friends, none of whom survived past young adulthood. Vern is killed in a house fire after a party. Teddy, while under the influence of alcohol and drugs, crashed his car and his passengers were killed. Chris, who became an outstanding high school and college student and was in his second year of law school, was stabbed to death after trying to stop an argument in a fast-food restaurant. Gordon, the only survivor, continued to write stories through college, and published a number of them in small literary journals and men's magazines. His first novel became a best-seller, and a successful film. At the time of writing about the events in 1960, he had written seven novels about the supernatural. Gordon had a wife and three children. Gordon was also revealed to be a veteran of the Vietnam War and the counter-culture of the 1960s, occasionally referred to in the flash-forward narratives during the main story.

From this story we can see that everybody can not escape the fate, except Gordon. Many people believe that they are fated, or destined to a certain life. For example, if they are very poor or very ill, they say that is because they are born to be poor or ill and there is nothing they can do about it. But in my opinion, people have more control than that over their lives. Maybe they did not work hard enough to make money or did not take proper care of themselves. By blaming their condition on fate, they are avoiding responsibility for their behaviors. I think that most part of each person makes his own fate.

In addition, I know that friendship is a kind of human relations. It is a human instinct to make friends. When in trouble, we need friends to offer us help, support and encouragement. With success achieved, we also need friends to share our joys. Friendship is also one of the greatest pleasures that we can enjoy. It implies loyalty, cordiality, sympathy, affection and readiness to help. No man can make the most of his life without carefully and conscientiously striving to win the right kind of friends as he goes along.

 

第二篇：读后感The sun also rises

The sun also rises

Before reading this novel, I thought it would tell about a young man fighting against trouble. But it just might be the other way around. The story centres around the European war , take France and Spain as the background, and described some scenes of Americans vividly. They are mostly bourgeoisies participating in at least one world war. Some because of their fiances died in the war, fool around with numerous men, some linger on the coffee house or bar all day, some even make homosexuality. To a certain extent the writter wants to show that the war brings the misery to people and express the disgust and condemnation of the war. Jake Barnes, the narrator of the novel, who is a newspaper reporter, wounded in the groin in World War II, is the typical representatives of Lost Generation, hopeless and nagative. When he lives in Paris, it is truly flawed. Relationships on every level are out of order. And one thing I found that Jake dislikes of Cohn. When Jake tells him the truth about Brett, his code of behavior demands that a man confront his own weaknesses and stand up to them with strength and courage. The cowering Cohn is usually an anathema to Jake, but he, for some reason , is unwilling to dismiss Cohn, just as he cannot dismiss Brett. Instead, Jake keeps Cohn at arm's length, acting pleasantly distant.

He goes out of Paris to Burguete, Spain, where he gets back in touch with the earth and the order he finds in fishing. The fishing vocation with

Bill is peaceful and relaxing. It serves as an interlude in the novel and as an escape for Jake, a time to commune with nature, to concentrate on fishing, and to be away from women and problems, and to be totally free from the constraints of time. Things are much calmer in the small village of Burquete, with only Jake and Bill present. Human relationships are much simpler as well. People are able to get along and be at ease with one other.

And the part of the bullfight reflects Jake has a true passion for the sport. And the part of the attraction of the spectacle of bullfight is the ritual facing of the fear of death, a fear that Jake must have faced when he was injured during the war, and which he must face daily since he cannot become symbolically immortal by having children. The success of the bullfight depends on how one controls the encounter with death.

After this, things may have turned back, Jake began to drink too much and allowed into his mind again. Since he cannot sleep, his thoughts are narrated in a smooth flow. He first thinks about Brett, and is once again pained that he cannot have her. At the end of the novel Jake remains lost because he remains attached to a woman.

The plot is just like a circle. Like a sun also rises.

09级7班

崔悦

090440731