Greasy Lake

Greasy Lake

Personal response #2
Greasy Lake

T. Coraghessan Boyle
Gavin Harper
Fall 2010
“You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.” (Brian Tracy) Greasy lake has become one of my favorite short stories ever since I had the opportunity to read it for this class. I can really relate to how such a traumatic event that happens so spontaneously can change you for the rest of your life. Another point I gathered from the book is the theme about coming of age, which is no longer mimicking adults, but acting like an adult, a case which I can also very much relate to. Finally one more point I grabbed from the book was actions that you make in the heat of the moment, you can take actions that you could potentially make that you will regret. “We were nineteen. We were Bad.We Read André Gide and struck elaborate poses to show that we didn’t give a shit about anything.”(Boyle pg.143)

Firstly, The main point that I first drew from this story was that traumatic events that can happen so quick and without warning can change your life forever. Like the main protagonist of greasy lake, all in one night he is drawn into a fight, almost kills a man, rapes a woman, and finds a expired body floating in the lake. I think that everyone has an event like this occur in there life, but most likely not to the same degree that had happened in greasy lake. I can sort of relate this to one time while i was driving to one of my friends houses in layton, i was hit by a driver without there lights on. After getting into this accident i felt completely different, a lot of different thoughts went coursing through my mind. Ever since getting hit by that other car I drive completely different and I really thought differently about my priorities in life, especially if that car had hit me a few seconds earlier the results of that accident could have been...