Analysis Of A Long Way Gone By Ishmael Beah

Throughout the world, people of all ages are greatly affected by war and violence. However, one of the key ways to overcome war and violence is to always have a sense of family and community. A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah shows how war can destroy families and how a young child finds different families who provide him the support and love that he needs to continue living life to his fullest. After Ishmael loses his true family as a result of the war, he finds the sense of community and family in his squad, Esther the nurse, his Uncle, and eventually Laura. As Ishmael dealt with great disaster and tragedy after losing his whole family, he keeps the urge and ability to form the much needed “family” relationship throughout …show more content…
The crave for the drugs that he was given by the army also played a large factor into his behavior and short temper. He felt as if he was in prison and they were being so mean to him and this was some form of punishment. As his time at the Benin home continued to slowly pass, he started to form a relationship with one of the nurses named Esther. She would try her hardest to become close with Ishmael by showing affection and using things that he loves to make him talk to her about his experiences. She would show this affection to him all the times and one time was when “She tickled us and sometimes put her arms around us. I resisted this affection, and she would put both her arms around Alhaji. I would look away and she would softly elbow me before putting her arms around me again” (Beah 161). As shown in this quote, Ishmael would not accept the affection from Esther. He would often become embarrassed or just sit there without showing any emotion. Esther used her affectionate and caring personality to become a mother/sister figure for Ishmael. She also used cassette tapes to get to know Ishmael and learn about the experiences he had been through. By doing so, she started to gain Ishmael’s trust. After all the time that Ishmael spent with Esther, he eventually started to show that he trusted her and felt comfortable around her by showing up at her office without being called and starting his own conversations. Just as Ishmael realized how significant of a person Esther was in his life, he had to either become a foster child or find a distant family member to live with. In the end, Esther not only helped Ishmael overcome his addiction to drugs and get him back to a healthy mental state, but also provided him the love, attention, and focus that he needed to deal with the terrible experiences of being in the

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