Zeitoun Analysis

Marcellus Lopez Mr. Buckley Honors American Literature September 20, 2011 Abdulrah spell Zeitoun, Not Clark Kent Zeitoun, a fantastic novel by author Dave Eggers is a tremendous tale of faith and courage set during Hurricane Katrina of August 2005, in New Orleans, lanthanum. The hardy protagonist of the chronicle is Abdulrahman Zeitoun, a Syrian man, living in Louisiana with his wife, Kathy, and his three daughters and stepson. Zeitoun, a former sailor, used to storms and seas, at the time of the hurricane owned a contracting business, building, repairing, and painting.Zeitouns heroism and bravery have made very swooning to me that being a hero is well, really damned stupid. If not that, then at the very least, being a hero is inadvisable and unwise. Zeitoun went far by of his way to help others in a whirlwind of charity and self-assurance. In doing so, he caused great damage to himself and those closest to him. Zeitoun went above and beyond what was asked of him to assist membe rs of his community, ignoring the one topic asked of him by his worried wife, who demanded he evacuate with her and the family.Just as he had gotten into the momentum of routinely feeding some dogs abandoned by their owners daily, Zeitoun was arrested under false charges, make him unable to contact Kathy. His absence left his family distressed and disoriented. Kathy panicked hour by hour, praying to hear from her husband, with no such luck until much later. While Abdulrahman was missing, his family afield was just as worried almost him. His brother would call Kathy, personally urged to bend the truth about her husbands whereabouts. While Zeitoun was imprisoned, his family scrambled to get but a word from, him, not to mention the dogs died.I would stop and think at times in the story, does Zeitoun take the time to assess whether the possible consequences are worth the undecomposed he is trying to do? His time in prison shows him reflecting on the good hed done, as well as prayin g for a better situation, but I do not recall one time at which he says to himself that he definitely should have left New Orleans. Did he not express at all that in all the paranoia of a critical hurricane in a post-9/11 society that a Middle Eastern Muslim man would be a target for bigotry and used as a scapegoat?Although, his imprisonment was completely unwarranted, along with the charges brought against him and accusations made against him, nothing should have been a surprise to Zeitoun. Zeitoun was either unequipped with the knowledge that this countrys ideals of justice are far from perfect and that the executive branch of our government is very prone to quick, harsh decisions and quick, unambiguous judgments or just not very thoughtful. The results of Zeitouns poor decision to stay in New Orleans stuck to Kathy for the rest of what we read of her life in Zeitoun.Kathys noetic healthy was sacrificed all because Zeitoun foolishly remained in the city, with knowledge that a p articularly dangerous storm was approaching. By the end of the story, I couldnt help but acknowledge how much Abdulrahmans courage and faith resemble naivete. He stayed in New Orleans to ride out Katrina because he was obstinate and over-confident. Its fair to say that having been a sailor, he was rugged enough to handle a hurricane, but with a family and the understanding that many other people get mixed up in the spiraling torrent of a natural disaster, it is also fair to say that he could not have been prepared enough.Zeitoun tells that he felt called by theology to help people in the storm, but this, I deduce, was no more than a rush he felt from completing a successful rescue. Everyone wants to be a hero. The sensation of doing good for others does more good for the good-doer than should be done. One of my favorite lyrics says, When you help others, you cant help helping yourself. For a man to be so complacent with an unpredictable force of nature that he would be willing to let it come and see what happens is indubitably foolish.Abdulrahman refusing to evacuate with his wife very close resembles a child on a playground, shouting to his mother, No, Mommy I dont wanna go Zeitoun, an informative novel by author Dave Eggers is a tale about how faith and courage can really screw things up. The foolhardy protagonist of the chronicle, Abdulrahman Zeitoun, shows us how being over-confident and letting ourselves become too comfortable can lastingly repercuss on the lives of our wife and family. Zeitouns over-confidence and naivete have made it absolutely clear that trying to be a hero is really damned stupid.