My Daddy's A Diver

The story ‘My Daddy’s a Diver’, describes the inner journey that a man goes through in a short period of time. The beginning is fairly poignant and it gives the reader an insight into the man’s life by mentioning the death of his wife. By doing this, the story connects with the reader effectively. There are only two characters mentioned in the story, which makes it easy to focus on them and to get a better understanding of the story. The first part of the story is narrative and dialogue comes in towards the end. Short, choppy sentences help to set the mood and get across simple messages. “He finned upwards, heart thumping double-time. Cramp crimped one thigh”. This part of the story describes the man swimming through the ocean, struggling to catch a fish for his daughter. It puts the reader in the position of the man and how much he risks for the wellbeing of his daughter. “Wetsuit was old, perforated, retained scant body heat, but Lizzie had priority over a new suit. Right now her principal need was nutrition. He must get a table fish.” The love he has for her is undeniable in this sentence. This story mainly revolves around the idea of love and compassion between a father and his daughter. It gives the idea that everyone feels love at some stage of their life, even people who don’t seem to show their soft side. The climax of the story seems to be when the man catches the fish and feels guilt. But towards the end, the main climax is when the little girl is watching her father cut the fish and she asks him if fish cry. After this sentence, we start to see the soft side of the father instead of the tough and masculine side that was conveyed through him catching fish in the ocean. This story is mainly about the inner journey of the main character who goes on an inner and physical journey whilst he is out in the dangerous ocean, catching fish for his daughter. He observes his surroundings and realizes that animals, such as fish, are also capable of experiencing love. All in all, this story is effective in the sense that it grabs the reader’s attention from the beginning and touches the heart towards the end.