The Power of Unity: How We Are Stronger Together Than Alone
Together we are stronger (essay)
The two novels, Holding Up The Universe by Jennifer Niven, Wonder by R.J. Palacio, and the two films, Tama Tu by Taika Waititi, The Shawshank Redemption by Frank Darabont, are all connected by a central theme. "We can find strength through the unity of others, in times of hardship" meaning that when we are going through a tough time, we can find strength and support from others to help bear the load to make it through the struggle. This shows how pelple can be stronger together. In this essay, I chose these four texts because they were all about people who were facing challenges in their lives and needed to find a way to push through it to make the best of this time in their life.
The novel Holding up the Universe by Jennifer Niven is about two people who become friends for the most unlikely of reasons. Libby Strout has been given the title of "Americas fattest teen". Jack Masselin, however, is the popular one that everyone likes. He has one fault though, he can't remember anyone's face for more than a few minutes at a time. These two people become the best of friends and help each other through the tough time in their life. At one point in the novel, Libby and Jack get caught in the middle of a sad high school game that makes school life miserable for both of them. Jack and Libby both feel isolated and alone until they meet each other in a group counseling session. They begin to form a friendship that helps them both through high school. This was backed up when the text says "Because sometimes when you meet someone, it changes the world, theirs and yours" showing that if they hadn't have had each other, they would have really struggled and might not have made through their challenges on their own. The author wanted us to understand that there is always someone there for us in times when we are struggling. We can't feel responsible for everything. We have people who will support us so that we don't have to do it alone. If we unite together we can share some of the load and let others take some of the worries. If we understand this then our lives could be so much better because we wouldn't be facing everything alone. In our society where there is such a high rate of suicide, people seem to get into the notion that no one can help them, it is futile. If they could somehow see that the strength and support that they could get from the community is huge and that they are truly not alone in this world. There are people who will support them. From looking deeper into this text, I can see that this is very true and that the novel carry's a very important message that we could all learn from.
R.J. Palacio also uses the setting of a school to convey the idea that we can find strength through the unity of others in the novel Wonder. The novel wonder is about a kid named August (Auggie) Pullman. He is the same as every other boy his age. He loves the same things. Does the same things. He just has one difference that separates him from the rest. He has a facial deformity that he was born with. This prevents him from fitting in with anyone at his school. Everyone bullies him and treats him like an outcast. He has no friends until Jack and Summer come along. They are able to look past his deformity and see his kind, friendly personality. This friendship between them helps Auggie, Summer, and Jack all find the best in each other and survive school. Wonder shows that you don't have to conform to what others think you should be like. There is always someone out there who will stand by you even when they will have to be the odd one out to support you. At one point, Julian torments jack by teasing him about being paired with Auggie saying he doesn't have to be paired with "that freak". Jack stands up and punches him in the mouth for speaking that way about Auggie because he is his friend and knows how hard Auggie's life must be without all this bullying on top of it all. This shows that there will always be someone there who will help you just like Jack did with Auggie. The author wanted us to realize that we aren't alone in this world. We will always be better and stronger if we unite together to tackle a task or problem. If we understand how letting someone help can increase our ability to cope, then we will be able to achieve greater things and reach new heights. In our society today, there are people every day who are different for all sorts of reasons and try to fit in. When actually, they need to stand out. It's not their fault. They cannot change who they are, but everyone else can change how they seem them. Nobody was meant to be the same. We are all supposed to unique and that is what makes us special.
Unlike the other two texts, Tama Tu uses war to educate us on the idea that we are stronger together rather than alone. This links well to the central theme of, finding strength through the joining with others in times of hardship. Tama Tu is a short film about a group of young Maori battalion soldiers who are making their way towards the enemy line. As they travel there, the encounter periods of fighting and then hours of boredom while waiting for night to fall. Through these long periods, there is always the weight of the inevitable war raging outside. During these hours of boredom and struggle, they pass the time by uniting and occupying themselves through the use of laughter and humor. At one point they are all sitting down in a sort of semi-circle. One guy is asleep and they choose to pull a prank on him by pouring water on his pants to make it look like he has peed himself, so when he wakes up he is very embarrassed. This humor keeps them entertained and makes them forget about all the death and destruction outside. There is essentially no dialogue in the film except for the Karakia at the end. The use of little to no speech is significant because this group of young men must understand what each other is trying to say through the use of hand gestures and facial expressions. The fact that they can communicate without verbally saying anything, helps us to understand how strong the bond is between them. It conveys to the audience how they are able to cope and focus on the good things in life rather than the bad. The director wanted us to learn that we can survive troubled times in our lives by uniting and helping each other through it. In this instance, they used laughter to help pass time and keep everyone's mood Jovial instead of sombre. If we could do this in our life we could be a lot happier. I think this film shows us that if we could come together in hard times, our life could be a lot happier. Being united increases resilience when times are tough because it means we can draw skills and strength from others to add to own. This can allow us to stay focused and achieve more when life gets stressful. This short film also connects to the novel Holding up the Universe because in both texts, the main characters come together when they are both struggling with challenges in their life and draw strength from one another.
The Shawshank Redemption also has the central theme about how we can find strength in each other to endure the tough times in our lives. The Shawshank Redemption is about a guy named Andy Dufresne. He was wrongly accused of killing his wife and her lover. He was sent to Shawshank prison because the evidence was overwhelming. During his time there he is regularly beaten and raped. Through this miserable time in his life, he befriends Ellis "Red" Redding. Through this friendship, he is able to survive the physical and mental abuse and ultimately escape. Without this friendship between them, Andy would never have been able to escape. If Red hadn't supplied the tools, support, admiration, and friendship, Andy would never have succeeded in his plan to escape Shawshank prison by digging a hole through the wall and climbing out through a sewer. This bond between them helped both of them to survive and make it. Ellis Redding says, "Every man's got a breaking point" What I think he meant by this was that every person has a point where they just can't do it anymore; they can't beat the tough time they face. This tells us that we need the help of people us so that we don't reach this point. That's why if we unite together we can avoid this and achieve what needs to be done by drawing strength from one another. This film shows us that when all hope seems to be lost and we think that everything is lost, it may be the beginning of something good to come. If we feel like this is what is happening in our lives but try to see the obstacles that face us as exactly that – obstacles, not brick walls, and that the situation can and will get better with the support of others, we will be better able to cope and overcome the difficulties. I think the director wanted us to understand this and make us realize that even when all things seem lost, there is always hope and that someone will be there to help you. Not only will it make life easier, but enables you to stay focused and achieve more.
All four of these films/novels have shown the central theme that we are stronger together rather than alone when times are getting tough. They, however, achieve this in different ways. The authors/directors want us to realize through the fact that the main characters in these texts are in situations that they didn't choose to be in, they need help to make it through these tough times because they can't do it alone. For example, Auggie from Wonder. He didn't choose to have a facial deformity, but he must deal with it and it is easier when people help him because he can draw strength from them. When we see people today who are struggling, we should stop and help, because we are stronger together, and more likely to succeed if we unite because usually we turn a blind eye and don't help people who are in need when we really need to be there for the ones who need it.
