Prejudice and Overcoming It in Theodore Taylor's Novel The Cay Essay

How can you overcome prejudice? How can you live when you are blind? How can you trust a complete stranger with your life? Theodore Taylor does a great job of incorporating detail and suspense into the book The Cay. Here all your questions will be answered. The Cay is an action-packed and adventurous novel. It is about a boy named Phillip who lived in Willemstand, which is found on the island of Curacao. Phillip was forced to leave the island because the German submariners were invading Willemstand. Phillip and his mother left on a steamboat that took them to the United States, but the Germans sunk the ship before it was out of site. Phillip survived the shipwreck and was stranded on an island with a Western Indian named Timothy. When the ship sunk, Phillip hit his head on a board. Later he is on a raft in the middle of the sea. Next to him are stew, the cat, and an old West Indian, Timothy. When Phillip was with Timothy he became blind. This story is about the hardships of being blind and the help that friends can give. In this novel it is very hard at first for Phillip to get to know and interact with Timothy. This starts our because his mother forewarned him about black people, she said, "They are different and they live differently." In his struggle for survival timothy helped him a great deal, he even went as far as saving his life. It is at this point that Phillip starts to understand that the difference in race does not matter. Also that people of different races can work together and thrive together. Being blind is a great detriment to life. After forty-eight hours Phillip goes completely blind as a result of the blow to his head. Phillip's blindness is a key point in the story because not only does it highlight his complete dependence on old Timothy, but...

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