Symbolism In Peace Like A River

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Peace like a river Final Essay
Throughout the book Peace Like A River, there are several mentions to landscape and setting. I believe that the landscape is a analogy for the main character, Jeremiah’s, health. Throughout the book there are obvious analogies such as the badlands and winter. But those can be talked about later. In the start of the book they are at August Shultz’s farm hunting geese. He describes the landscape as “soaked swaths with a december smelling wind” (Page7) from this we can say for certain that Jeremiah is in good health.This could also mean a fresh start. This setting comes into play a few times and can mean different things contextually. Throughout the second chapter, through chapter 10, the landscape does not play a huge …show more content…

When They're driving, they go through the badlands. You could say their life is pretty rocky. The landscape at this point is a representative of how jerimiah can be up or down. With the threat of andreeson. They stop for gas in a small town and when they see cops they have to hide.the owner of this gas station name’s roxanna, Jeremiah's love interest. Roxanna offers the Land’s shelter and helps them find Davy. During this event the barn is right next to a hill. This means that finally Jeremiah's health is better. While they're staying with roxanna, she takes them on a picnic. Roxanna takes them to a coal fire site. This is reminiscent of a biblical scene of hell. This relates to Jeremiah's mental health. He knows he's close to Davy but cannot find him. The last significant scene is where Davy is lodged. When Davy fins Rueben, Rueben blackmails him to show him where he's lobbing. He's residing in a small house in a flatland. He lives there with jape waltzer and his so called daughter Sara. In the final scene, the landscape is a beautifully hidden gem. Waltzer shoots Jeremiah and because it's a flat land it describes him as flatlining. In conclusion the landscape is a analogy for Jeremiahs

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