Conformity
The Price of Nonconformity
Defiance is a daring and bold resistance to authority or society. In any group, whether a neighborhood, team, or school, there is a certain ethical and moral code that people are expected to abide by, and therefore defiance is not welcome. However, every group has its individuals, people who break the mold and go against the grain. Actions made by individuals that shake the foundations of a society’s beliefs are seen in negative light, and as a result, the individual faces animosity. Nonconformity and defiance to a society’s customs lead to great implications for the individual.
In the novel The Chocolate War, Jerry’s friendship with Roland Goubert deteriorates in correlation with Jerry’s nonconformity. Popularly referred to as “The Goober,” Roland is Jerry’s only real ally in the novel. The Goober is a peaceful figure who hates strain and contention and gets along with Jerry who shares Goober’s mild behavior (Cormier 100). The chocolate sale, however, drives a wedge between the two’s easy friendship. Goober responds with fear and apprehension when Jerry relates his plan to refuse the chocolates. He entreats Jerry to appease the school and sell the chocolates, and Jerry’s empty response to Goober’s plea starts the division in their friendship. “Jerry's lone protest is partly inspired by a poster displayed in the back of his
Buda 2 locker. It shows a man walking alone on the beach, with a captioned quote from poet T. S. Eliot: ‘Do I dare disturb the universe?’ Beyond answering this challenge Jerry has no satisfactory explanation for his friend The Goober, or for himself, as to why he is still refusing to sell the chocolates” (Telgen). As a result, Goober refuses to participate on the football team, which greatly upsets Jerry and widens the fissure between them. After sharing their conflicting positions on the way to the bus stop one morning, the two feel separated. “They sat in sadness. Finally, they gathered their
Defiance is a daring and bold resistance to authority or society. In any group, whether a neighborhood, team, or school, there is a certain ethical and moral code that people are expected to abide by, and therefore defiance is not welcome. However, every group has its individuals, people who break the mold and go against the grain. Actions made by individuals that shake the foundations of a society’s beliefs are seen in negative light, and as a result, the individual faces animosity. Nonconformity and defiance to a society’s customs lead to great implications for the individual.
In the novel The Chocolate War, Jerry’s friendship with Roland Goubert deteriorates in correlation with Jerry’s nonconformity. Popularly referred to as “The Goober,” Roland is Jerry’s only real ally in the novel. The Goober is a peaceful figure who hates strain and contention and gets along with Jerry who shares Goober’s mild behavior (Cormier 100). The chocolate sale, however, drives a wedge between the two’s easy friendship. Goober responds with fear and apprehension when Jerry relates his plan to refuse the chocolates. He entreats Jerry to appease the school and sell the chocolates, and Jerry’s empty response to Goober’s plea starts the division in their friendship. “Jerry's lone protest is partly inspired by a poster displayed in the back of his
Buda 2 locker. It shows a man walking alone on the beach, with a captioned quote from poet T. S. Eliot: ‘Do I dare disturb the universe?’ Beyond answering this challenge Jerry has no satisfactory explanation for his friend The Goober, or for himself, as to why he is still refusing to sell the chocolates” (Telgen). As a result, Goober refuses to participate on the football team, which greatly upsets Jerry and widens the fissure between them. After sharing their conflicting positions on the way to the bus stop one morning, the two feel separated. “They sat in sadness. Finally, they gathered their