Long Walk To Forever Analysis

Words: 1027
Pages: 5

In Kurt Vonnegut’s Welcome to The Monkey House, burst of symbolism are sprinkled throughout the short-story “Long Walk to Forever”. Subliminal messages are hidden throughout the story in order to proved a deeper meaning to characters, objects, and words. Everything from a school-bell to the progression of repetitious words allows readers to hunt through the secret message Vonnegut lays before them. The short-story “Long Walk to Forever” is written with many critical approaches, Formalistic being the most dominate Vonnegut ties not only characters to deeper meanings but items and sounds as well.
With the story starting out prefacing Newt and Catherine growing up with each other the repeated phrase “one foot in front of the other – through leaves, over bridges” constantly comes about the story, Vonnegut makes is seem as if they used to recite those lines when out on a walk together as children (pg. 51). Three times the line is brought up and three times Newt is unable to fully finish. As the story line grows the love part of the relationship between Newt and Catherine grows as well.
Now when it comes to symbolisms of objects in “Long Walk to Forever”, a school for blind children, the sound of a bell ringing, and something as simple as a magazine about brides adds to the
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Newt is also an animal, one that is slimy and can fit into small places also having the ability to shed their skin. Newt, in the book, is just like the animal, he makes his way into Catherine’s heart, and sheading off each rejection she gives not allowing it any to faze him. Catherine’s character is compared to another in a more low key way. While talking Catherine and Newt bring up Scarlett O’Hara, both of these characters are blinded by their feelings and don’t really know what man they love. Catherine constantly has to reassure not only herself but Newt as well that she is committed to Henry, her fiancé, and fully intends on marrying