Jody :D

Swim through Adolescence

Through the Tunnel

     Many children desire to grow up faster, but the journey from childhood to adulthood may not be as smooth as they expected. In the story “Through the Tunnel” by Doris Lessing, the author goes to show the difficulties of the passage from childhood to adulthood by using symbolism. The author contrasts safe beach and wild beach to emphasize the differentiations between a safe childhood versus an adulthood that is full of challenges.

     During one’s childhood, the presence of a mother figure is always nearby. The safe beach symbolizes childhood and safety.  “A place for children, a place where his mother might lie safe in the sun,” shows readers that wherever the mother is, safety is present. Safety and a mother figure both tie in to form a childhood; that is the ideal example of a child’s first years. On the safe beach, there are little children playing, soft white sand and life guards. The soft white sand on the safe beach sharply contrasts the rocky, jagged bay. This represents the sharp contrast between one’s secure childhood and one’s jarring adulthood.

     The adulthood is filled with challenges and unexpected complications. The wild beach symbolizes adulthood has many unexpected surprises. “A warm sea where irregular cold currents from the deep water shocked his limbs,” shows readers that the wild beach is just like one’s adulthood the unexpected differences. In the ocean, there is warm water and cold water, just like life, it is ‘bipolar’, anything turns from negative to positive in a split second, and one doesn’t expect that to happen. From the passage, it shows that Jerry is still very childish, because he didn’t expect the unexpected water that shocked his limbs. Jerry has yet to become an adult because he has yet to cross that deep mysterious ‘tunnel’ through adolescence.

     Adolescence may be the hardest part of life. The journey to adulthood may seem easy, but one may be insecure of what is going to happen through the journey, the author uses the dark tunnel to symbolize the passage to adulthood. “Supposing he turned dizzy in the tunnel? Supposing he did there trapped?” symbolizes the insecurity an adolescent my feel on his way to adulthood. The tunnel itself is jagged on both sides and uneven, if one were to stray from one’s path, the consequences may be fatal. The same goes to an adolescent, if he were to make a mistake, it would scar him physically or emotionally.

     Essentially, “Through the Tunnel” describes to readers what a child may go through when he desires to grow up too early. I think, one should be well prepared before they grow up, because one would be more mature and realizes the hardships of this cruel world, and prevent the consequences of one’s mistake. From the safe beach, to the wild beach then through the tunnel, the journey from childhood to adulthood is represented. It starts up as smooth as the soft white beach, then goes through the bumpy journey just like the tunnel and gets to the rough adulthood just like the wild beach. Life, quintessentially, is as simple as a swim through a dark tunnel in a wild beach.