Coping With Death Essay: Coping With Death

Coping with Death is Beneficial
For some, coping with death is the end of a journey, but to others, it is the beginning of change. The novel, The Hero's Walk, explores the meaning of this statement through the death of Maya. Because of her death, the people who are close to her, such as her father, Sripathi, begin to suffer. However, he eventually experiences a positive change after coping with her death. In Anita Rau Badami's novel, The Hero's Walk, Maya's death is a major turning point which affects the life of Sripathi; ultimately, this loss contributes to his major character development.
Through coping with the death of Maya, Sripathi is traditionally stubborn, but through coping with his daughter's death, feels the regret that comes with

Sripathi’s intolerance of spending money on anything but himself leads to the disgust of his wife. During the planning of Maya’s engagement, he worries about “how much that [would] cost” (102) and even calls his wife a “foolish woman” (102). This is significant because it shows that Sripathi cannot bear the thought of splurging on his daughter’s engagement. This shows that he does not care about pleasing other people who are invited to ceremony; rather, he cares about his own financial future. Through the exchange between him and his wife, Sripathi is portrayed as a selfish person who only cares about his own opinions. He even belittles his wife for not accepting his opinion as the best idea. However, after Maya’s death, Sripathi copes by becoming more empathetic. He recalls what he has done to Maya and wonders how he will be able to face his grandchild with the knowledge that he is responsible for her mother’s death (245). This is significant because Sripathi begins to reflect and consider how others feel. Through this personal thought, this reveals how much his character has changed since the death of Maya. He now understands that he will not be able to face his grandchild because of how disowning Maya contributed to her death. Sripathi now tries to atone for what he has done to Maya by attempting to get closer to Nandana. This helps him to

When he hears about the death of Maya, he prioritizes self-control above everything else. The only thing that occupies his mind is “control” (40) which leads him to believe that “control is everything” (173). When Nandana disappears, “again he ha[s] to control a desire to weep” (302). This is significant because it illustrates Sripathi's arrogance, as he believes that he can fully suppress his emotions without any consequences. Due to this, he focusses on self control to maintain his pride and honour which will be lost from shedding a tear. Without this arrogance, he will not be able to stay under the illusion that he is in “control”. However, it is revealed that his emotions are at their limit as “he [is] crying in front of every person who gives him a kind look” (302). After an entire night of searching for Nandana, Sripathi can no longer sustain that self-control. Sripathi allows himself to revisit an old memory of carrying his children home through a flood. On this journey, Maya wants to know whether or not Sripathi will always be there for her (306-307). This is important because Sripathi allows himself to reminisce about the past which breaks down his emotional barrier. This shows that coping with loss can lead to drastic change as Sripathi is able to overcome his arrogance through the realization that he cannot suppress his