Fishing Rhetorical Analysis

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When Paul and Norman take Neal fishing, Neal leaves their care and chooses to spend the afternoon with his lady friend. In the same episode, the two brothers have an incredibly important dialogue in which Paul tells Norman, “I thought we were supposed to help him…. By taking him fishing…. Well, maybe what he likes is somebody trying to help him.” Norman is so concerned with the shortcomings of others that he fails to recognize his own weakness. Norman’s task was to entertain Neal and make him feel more at home, but he neglects his task and loses track of Neal while he was in a vulnerable, drunken state. He abandons his duty which leads to more trouble for both Neal and Norman later on—Neal being extremely sunburned and Jesse being upset with Norman. This same scenario repeats itself when Norman and Paul go to the gambling house. Paul is in desperate need of help and guidance but tells Norman off, saying that he can live his own life and that he can take care of himself. Succumbing to …show more content…
Paralleling Neal’s refusal to accept help and to fish, Paul desperately needs help and finds consolation in fishing. The act of fishing is very symbolic. The river itself alludes to the passage of time and of life. The fish that the brothers seek are symbolic of the soul. Thus, the act of fishing is the act of searching for one’s soul. Because they fish Montana’s mountain streams, fly fishing is required. Fly fishing takes years of practice to become proficient but is a skill that is continuously being refined. Similarly, finding oneself takes a long time but is also an ongoing process. Paul and Norman are expert fly fishermen, indicating their discovery and knowledge of self. Neal, on the other hand, brings worms in a tin can to the river, referring to his lack of self-knowledge. This imagery is seen in the Holy Bible, when Jesus calls Simon Peter to join his apostles because he was a