Hemingway\u2019s \u201cThe Good Lion\u201d and Sendak\u2019s \u201cWhere the Wild Things Are\u201d both incorporate themes of wildness in their stories, but they engage with this theme very differently to reveal messages antithetical to each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In \u201cThe Good Lion,\u201d Hemingway quickly establishes a sharp contrast between The Good Lion and the other lions in Africa. The main character is described as \u201cgood,\u201d eating \u201conly pasta and scampi\u201d while the other lions are \u201cbad,\u201d eating \u201cSwahilis, Umbulus and Wandorobos and they especially liked to eat Hindu Traders.\u201d Hemingway emphasizes the wildness of the lions from Africa, and how they are much more wicked and violent than the civilized Good Lion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In \u201cWhere the Wild Things Are,\u201d Sendak focuses especially on wildness in children, as Max screams \u201cI\u2019LL EAT YOU UP\u201d to his mother. This tantrum is met with Max not receiving dinner, which shows how a child misbehaving and engaging in their wild side will ultimately backfire for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Both stories treat \u201cwildness\u201d as a largely negative concept, as Hemingway highlights how violent the lions from Africa are, and Sendak illustrates how acting wildly will backfire and result in consequences. However, the moral of \u201cThe Good Lion\u201d is almost the exact opposite of the moral of \u201cWhere the Wild Things Are.\u201d The Good Lion orders a \u201cHindu Trader sandwich\u201d when he gets back home, despite avoiding the food when he was in Africa. This is surprising because eating Hindu Traders was heavily associated with wildness, as the wickedest lions would have \u201cthe blood of Hindu Traders\u201d on their whiskers. This drives home the message that even a being as tame as the Good Lion will inevitably return to their wild roots. Conversely, Sendak ends his story with Max returning home from the land of the wild because \u201che smelled good things to eat.\u201d Max is smelling his mother\u2019s supper, which he decides to leave the Wild Things for. Sendak is highlighting how one may occasionally indulge in their wild side, but they will inevitably become tame often due to strong bonds of affection with their loved ones. Thus, the messages of Hemingway and Sendak\u2019s stories are fundamentally opposed to each other despite their initially similar interpretations of \u201cwild.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
-Avinash K<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hemingway\u2019s \u201cThe Good Lion\u201d and Sendak\u2019s \u201cWhere the Wild Things Are\u201d both incorporate themes of wildness in their stories, but they engage with this theme very differently to reveal messages antithetical to each other. In \u201cThe Good Lion,\u201d Hemingway quickly … Continue reading