Banishment Essay: Cole Matthews

Banishment Essay

Cole Matthews is a 15 year old innocent looking boy that was always getting involved with trouble. In his past he had to a detention island where he had to stay there for a whole year. Cole had only made it through a couple of days before a traumatic incident happened, a bear attack. Not only a bear, but a spirit bear. Now people are questioning if banishment failed Cole or if Cole failed himself. I am taking the side that states Cole failed himself. I honestly feel that all of his life Cole has failed himself because he is always negative toward everything. There are other people to blame for certain things but Cole is mainly the one to take the blame for the past, and some other people also did put a little too much trust in Cole. Cole should be sent back to the detention camp to finish his punishment because he might learn more things.

Cole has been through a lot of trouble through his life, and the is mainly his fault. Cole has beaten a kid up, almost to death, and he has found a fare share of crimes to commit, but there is also another two specific people to take blame for a good portion of his actions, his parents. Cole sees things that his parents do and takes after it. A good

example of how Cole sort of takes after his parents in ways is when Cole is getting beaten by his dad. “You drink until you can’t stand up, and you’re gone all the time. A devoted parent doesn’t whip his kid until a shirt can’t hide all of the bruises!” (46) When Cole is getting beaten by his dad, he pleads for him to stop. But now if you think about when Cole was beating up that kid, Peter, he was pleading for Cole to stop as Cole was smashing his head into the sidewalk and spitting on him. Cole learned from his dad that beating people is not that bad. On page 9 it tells you about how Cole’s mom is like a “scared Barbie doll”, she never stands up to people but she always looks good. A mother plays a big role in parenting, as in standing up for your child, taking care of your child, loving your child, but Cole didn’t seem to get that from her. But most of all, Cole had himself to blame, he had to stop blaming everything on other people when they were really his problems, It reads on page 9 “Cole couldn’t believe his parents were letting this happen to him. What jerks!” Cole does have problems and it is safe to say that pretty much everyone knows that. But Cole needs to stop blaming everyone else but himself for his problems.
Cole wasn’t a very trusting person, or trustworthy. There is only person that somehow did have trust in him, and that’s Garvey. I feel that Garvey did the right thing to put all of that trusting him because he needs to learn. It even tells you on page 3-4, “He didn’t trust anyone who wasn’t afraid of him.” To me, this connects to Garvey putting trust in Cole because it comes right out and says that Cole doesn’t trust certain people, so I believe that Garvey is trying to put as much trust in Cole that he can because Cole needs to learn to gain trust so other people can trust him. Also on page 19, Cole is questioning Garvey on why he trusts Cole for taking care of the at.‘oow. Garvey is “putting trust” in Cole even though he already knows he won’t take care of the at.‘oow, so maybe after something happens to the at.‘oow Cole will learn that he needs to actually listen to people and gain some trust. I also think that Garvey was right to send Cole to the detention camp. “Some juvenile delinquents become our most successful citizens, while others crowd our prisons.” (49) Garey made a good point on most that page how some people can fix their lives and others couldn’t. Garvey felt that bringing Cole to jail wouldn’t fix his problems that he had going on. So since Garvey has been in Cole’s shoes before, he sent him to the detention camp.
Now after everything that Cole has been through as in smashing Peter’s head into the sidewalk, a bear smashing his head into the ground and breaking half of the bones in his body, I believe that he should be sent back to the detention camp.

Cole has been through Hell and back, but so have the people that he hasn’t just physically hurt, but mentally and verbally hurt too. “I ever see you again, you’re dead.” (45) “Cole jumped on him again and started smashing hid head against the sidewalk.” (7) “Are the walls getting the best of you fights?” (23) These examples tell you about the times that Cole was hurting other people, and even hurting himself, and let me assure you that there are plenty more of them. But the past was then, and now is now. He can always be

forgiven.
All of these things that were just talked come together to explain that Cole did to fail himself. He blamed other people instead of himself, he had no trust, his only feeling was anger. Yes, Cole has had his times of being stupid, but there is always room for forgiveness. Now that cole has had the first part of his journey, and he got a taste of his own medicine, it is time to finish the last of the journey.