Religion, and Oneself Reality often differs from expectations. Namely, John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany demonstrates this theme when the narrator, John Wheelwright, recalls and ruminates about his camaraderie with Owen Meany. Owen, depicted as a Christ-figure throughout the novel, believes that he is God’s instrument. John, on the other hand, is unsure of his religious faith, but his experiences with Owen notably change his beliefs. As John comes of age, he learns more about himself and society
always black and white. Similarly, in the Bible and A Prayer For Owen
A short statured child with the voice of a mouse proves to be the one God chooses. A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving, is about the lifetime of two friends, Owen Meany and Johnny Wheelwright, who go on a journey containing pre-destination, fate, and God. Owen and Johnny are finding themselves through the book and where they belong in God’s eyes. “Nothing bears out in practice what it promises incipiently,” is a quote that exemplifies a motif that reoccurs throughout the novel, specifically during
John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany, follows the unlikely companionship between two boys, John Wheelwright and Paul Owen Meany, as they grow up and come of age. John and Owen deal with a great amount of pressing life circumstances and matters at a very young age together, which aids to the strong bond between them. This bond connects the two through high school and into adulthood where they encounter newfound political awareness, the draft, and ultimately, the Vietnam War. Regardless of the situation