Death Be Not Proud

565 Words3 Pages
One can gain happiness can come from any situation, positive or tragic. It is the values of life people live by that determine what one can gain from any situation. Choosing to never loose hope and always shoot for the best are both values in life that help to reveal the positive outcome in any situation. In the memoir, Death Be Not Proud, by John Gunthers, these life values are practiced and lived by throughout Johnny’s journey of his sickness. They helped Johnny live his short life the best he could, and give his family something positive to remember him by. Johnny’s journey reveals how a person in rough times should never lose hope. Throughout his battle with a brain tumor, he was continually hopeful and optimistic that he would win the fight with cancer. Although many different complications arose over the course of his fifteen-month battle, he only showed fear and uncertainty a handful of times. This is a brave and courageous feat for such a young person to accomplish. Although the chances of Johnny recovering and being able to live a normal life were slim, he continually was hopeful that he would be able to return to Deerfield Academy and proceed to go to his dream school, Harvard. Although this was never a possibility, he was still able to catch up with his schoolwork and attend his graduation ceremony with his classmates. Johnny’s life style also revealed how striving to succeed is one way to find the positive in a situation. Johnny never wanted anything but the best for himself and his family. Even through his sickness, he was encouraging his mother and father to keep up with their work as if they were still leading their normal lives. When Johnny's father finished the book he was writing, and read it to him, Johnny grinned and said, "it'll sell a million copies." Johnny also says, "I have so much to do! And there's so little time!" This shows Johnny's

More about Death Be Not Proud

Open Document