Wide Reading #3

Level 1 Wide Reading Log:

Text Title – My Father’s Hands

Author – Calvin R. Worthington

Text Type – Short Story

Date Read – Term 2

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Brief Plot Overview(3 sentences)

My Father’s Hands by Calvin R. Worthington, is a short story about a Father who never learnt to read or write. In this short story the Father’s son is the one telling the story. It was all told from the son’s point of view. From a young age his Father never understood simple learning needs. This then affected him through the rest of his life. Even to the ends of his life.

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Characters You Find Interesting And Why

The character that I found the most interesting in My Father’s Hands was the Father. I found the Father the most interesting character because even with him being illiterate he still worked hard and provided for his family just like he felt he needed to do.”The man that doesn’t provide for his family is worse than a thief and an infidel and will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” For me this sentence in the text was outlined because the Father did provide for his family even with his handicap. He worked hard everyday. I think that being illiterate shaped him into the hard working person he was because he didn’t want to be useless. That maybe he didn’t want illiteracy to overpower him. In everyday life we have a choice to wake up and then to actually move on with what we have to do during that day. Everything is a choice, in this short story the Father chooses to work hard and not let his handicap get the best of him, he chooses to work through the tough situations making them great in the end. I respect him for this because his decisions to some might be motivational. 

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Messages You Took From The Text And Why

A message I took from the story was to never let anything get in the way of what you want to do. His Father never stopped trying to work hard. When one job failed to last he went to the next and then the next. He didn’t let being illiterate throw him down. I felt that he knew what his strengths and weaknesses were and worked around them. Knowing what he could do to a certain level of understanding. I feel like in societies today people see a fault or something wrong and think they can not continue on going without help from others. Sure people would help if needed and sure it would be a disadvantage but I still think with certain things and the right mindset you can keep on living through it. When I first read this short story I felt that the decisions he took into making a job and family of his life was a great achievement. If I was in his shoes being illiterate would probably hold me down from finding a job. It would also make me feel like I wouldn’t be able to achieve a career throughout my life. 

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Challenges That Characters Had To Deal With And Your Response To These

A major challenge the Father had to face was the Mill shutting down and losing his job. This meant he had to go out to find a new one but “They just don’t want anybody who can’t take their tests.” His Father found it really hard to find another job because he could not take the tests for certain jobs. This is a challenge that the main character had to deal with because he could not find another job because of his handicap. He could not provide for his family which he believed in very much, as he was a very hard working person. When I read this certain bit in the story I felt like the shop owners were being unreasonable with their choices of not hiring the father. The Father could have been great at the job but was just not able to take the test. In societies today this would happen a lot less because of the privileges we have with education and there are many different ways people with handicaps can take tests. Back in older generations there would have been a lot more illiterate people, this is why I think that the tests were unjust. 

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Discussion About The Title Of The Text And Why It Was Appropriate

In my opinion My Father’s Hands is an appropriate title for this text because the son is writing from his point of view. My Father’s Hands as the title outlines that the story is going to be from someone else’s point of view. The title outlines this because of the word ‘My’. I think the author has specifically defined the word ‘my’ to show that the story is going to be another person’s point of view, but not just anyone’s point of view, the Father’s son. It also shows in the ‘Fathers Hands’ it will be about his father’s hands and what they were like. Because the Father is illiterate this fits perfectly for the short story title. 

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Who Would You Recommend This Story To And Why 

I would recommend this short story to be read to illiterate people. In my opinion I think that if illiterate people heard this short story they would rethink learning reading and writing again. I also think that in societies today reading and writing is extremely important. If you want to go to university or any type of school you will need to be able to read and write. If you want to sell your house or buy a house, anything, you will need to read something or write something. 

“Finally, one night when he thought no one saw, he slipped away with his son’s second grade reader and labored over the words, until they became too difficult”. This part in My Father’s Hands makes me think that if he kept on reading and trying to learn how to read and write he would have learnt some starters. This also makes me think that if illiterate people heard this they would rethink their past choices.