Last_Night_I_Sang_to_a_Monster

Name Tutor Task Date LAST NIGHT I SANG TO THE MONSTER by Alire Benjamin Introduction Alire’s work when writing the book was interested with the describing the kind of frustrations that face people after realizing that something has gone wrong. The main character in the story is a young man by the name Zach. Zach found himself taking drugs while he was in high school. The drugs had affected him to the extent that he became an addict. On realizing that all was not well, Zach tried to imagine the monster who had led him to the situation. The author has employed different writing styles to indicate the psychological problems that drug addicts undergo. The aim of this people is to describe the psychological complications associated with young drug addicts Plot summary The story is set in an environment most men are alcoholic. The main character, Zach let his home for so that he could not be infected with the alcoholic behaviors. The main character’s father was alcoholic and this situation depressed his mother so much. Zach was a brilliant young man and he could therefore understand the problems that her mother went through. Another person who had contributed to Zach’s problems was his abusive brother. However, instead of getting rid of alcoholic life, Zach found himself as an alcohol addict only at the age of eighteen. It was for this reason that he found himself in the hospital undergoing a rehabilitation program. In the hospital he was always comforted by Rafael, his brotherly father and Adam, a therapist. Themes The author has employed suffering as a theme for the case of drug addicts who undergo rehabilitation programs. Zach experience trauma mental problems everyday he imagined of his situation. It was unbelievable that he landed in a hospital for reasons that he had tried to avoid so much earlier. The major reason for he to experience trauma was because he believed that he was supposed to be in class with his fellow students. However, his current situation could not allow. His addiction to alcohol came about as a result of the problems he was undergoing when he thought about his family. The author used first person narration style to describe Zach’s feelings. His lips were trembling; salty tears would come out of his eyes. In order to avoid the tears from dropping out of his eyes, he tried to fold his fists hard (Alire, 45). He tried to unclench his fists or take a deep breath but all these could not be solutions to his problems. The author used first person narration style to describe this scene in order to illustrate the psychological problems that Zach was undergoing. Whenever a person is encountered by a problem that he or she would have avoided, the consequences are regrets as for what reason led to the problems (Jung, 78). Such a person feel betrayed, cursed and like the world is against him or her. The outcome of this reasoning is trauma and it can even lead a person suffering for psychological diseases. The author employed the style of determination by the way Zach was interested to know the monster who had introduced him to the form of life that he had. Zach could not imagine that despite having avoided alcohol, he turned to be in a rehab. Zach believed that God determined what someone would be in future. This was done by God writing what one would be in his or her heart. For this perspective, Zach believed that God had written something hard about him. Alire introduced determination in the monologues that Zach had when trying to imagine about the monster that made him turn to be in a rehab. All this determination by Zach was meant for him to realize the solutions to all the mental problems he was facing. Alcoholics who realize that they should stop drinking are determined to quit drinking by all means (Anderson, 34). Alire used religion as a theme in the novel by the way Zach imagined that it was God who had written a bad wish on his heart. Zach thought that God is responsible of any good and bad happenings that befall someone. He attributed the success as a blessing from God. In the case of success, it is God who writes the success on the person’s life (Alire, 67). By mentioning God in the novel, the author wished to indicate that the character who mentions God is religious. Even in everyday life, success and failures in life are attributed to the works of God. Those people, who succeed in all that they day, must have prayed God and are rewarded with success. However, there are other groups of people who recognize God but they do not do what He expects them to do. The outcome of this is suffering which they attribute it to have come from God. Zach therefore considered himself as having sinned against God for failing to live as he was expected. Characters Zach Zach is the main character in the novel. The novel has employed first person style of narration where Zack gives an account of his life. This character found him in a rehab after being addicted with alcohol. He could not imagine of the reason that led him into the rehab despite him having avoided alcohol for a long time. These thoughts disturbed him so much that he suffered from trauma and other mental complications Rafael Rafael was Zack’s roommate in school. However, he was far much older than Zack, a fact that made Zack consider him as his father. Rafael understood the problems that Zach went through and therefore wished that he could help him overcome. Rafael was determined to see that Zack was back to his senses. This he made sure by offering all the help he could have and sacrificing his time to support Zach. Adam He was a therapist in charge of the people who had alcohol addiction. He viewed Zach as a brilliant young man who ought to be in school like he friends. He was therefore determined to see that Zach would recover soon and be a worthy young man. Conclusion Last Night I Sang to the Monster is an interesting and persuasive novel that is worth reading. It provides a descriptive analysis of a high school student who recovers that something wrong must have happened in his life. In the process of meditation, he suffered from trauma and other mental complications. However, he still believed that there was someone responsible of his situation. The novel can be very useful to high school students because reading it can make them learn what errors they should not make. Works Cited Alire, Benjamin. Last Night I Sang to the Monster. New York: Cinco Puntos Press, 2009. Anderson, Norman. Encyclopedia of Health and Behavior. New York: Sage Publication. Jung, John. Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Behavior: Psychological Research Perspectives. New York: Sage Publication.