Rule #18: If She Comes Up, It’s Baptism
December 8, 2016 How To Read Lit 1 comment ndesrosiers17
When an author includes near death experiences with water it usually is a symbol of rebirth.
- Usually after a near death experience with water the character changes. This can either be the character now is a good guy or the character is a bad guy. The roles will usually switch.
In It’s a Wonderful Life, the main character George Bailey has a very tough life. All his life he has given to other people even if it means he gives up his own dreams. He wanted to go to college and get out of his home town but gave up his college fund so his brother could get an education. The past couple of years he had been somewhat of a grouch. All of this leads him to wish he had never been born and tries to drown himself. This leads him to change his outlook on life and completely change in character. Almost drowning was his form of rebirth.
Photo credit: James P. Mann via Foter.com / CC BY
1 Comment
You explained the rule well, but maybe you could add that near death experiences, or even just the act of being submerged in water, can have spiritual significance. This is not necessarily true of all “baptisms” though, as some rebirths just signify a new start.
An example of rebirth by nearly drowning is found within the book Hatchet. A young boy named Brian almost dies when his pilot has a heart attack and his plane crashes into a lake. Brian manages to escape from the plane and swim to the land. Before the crash Brian was leading a pretty normal life, but after the crash he became someone that had to fight for survival and live off the land. After his rebirth, Brian is disconnected from the rest of humanity and must support himself. Brian’s near death experience works to represent his rebirth as his life had changed immediately after the crash and he was no longer the same person.