Atonement and Sacrifice: Influences of Setting in A Prayer for Owen Meany
Mark Lawrence once said, “Anything that you cannot sacrifice pins you. Makes you predictable, makes you weak.” Should one believe that this quote reigns true, then surely Owen Meany from John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany was exceptionally strong. Owen’s environment influenced his ideology spuriously throughout the novel. Thus, the setting of A Prayer for Owen Meany has a profound effect upon the characters and their actions as it affects and is affected by personal development and beliefs, symbolism, and various religion themes that are present.
The setting (time, place, culture) affects the character development of various individuals presented throughout A Prayer …show more content…
On the integral setting, “The integral setting, on the other hand, exerts a great deal of influence upon the values, speech, and actions of characters, the movement of plot, and the presentation of theme and mood” (Watson, 638). This quote shows how an integral setting, one that deals with more than just background and foreground, can be an inspiration and driving force for almost all characters in the novel as a result of the culture of the 20th century. Expanding upon this idea, the setting of the novel also exposes characters’ …show more content…
For example, Owen Meany often prophesied events that have a magnificent impact on the story. When he was very young, Owen’s parents told him that he was a virgin birth - after this, he began seeing future events. He retold Johnny of how he saw his death and practiced for years on a move that would save a group of Vietnamese children from death. Owen is also found to prophesize who Johnny’s father is due to his finding the baseball that Reverend Merrell kept, and in his afterlife he relays the information to