Rujian, Zhou
2/14/2016
True Strength
What is true strength? I think that the true strength is not just simple as a great power of people, but the ability to overcome ourselves and protect the people we love. Both of Lorenzo in Me And You and Hank Palmer in The Judge show their true strength in those ways. They change from antisocial and ruthless people to grown men who willing to help other; they learn that the true strength comes from firm mind in improving themselves, challenging themselves, as well as protect those people they love. The power of love is always the strongest that can help you overcome a lot of difficulties.
Even though there are many differences between a movie and a novel, the story and the main points of them can be the same. The novel Me And You and the movie The Judge have a lot common in their ideas.
Firstly, the novel Me And You is about an Italian boy Lorenzo who a very empathetic person who only thinking about himself. He thinks that people around him are “Others”, which “The others were anyone who wasn't my mum, my father and grandma Laura” (Ammaniti 24). So Lorenzo seldom think for other people because they are irrelevant of him. Furthermore, Lorenzo lied to his mother about he will go to a ski week with his classmate Alessia Roncato who is very popular in class. To continue this lie, Lorenzo makes a very detailed and thoughtful plan, he hides in the basement under for his “ski week”. He stores foods, water and PlayStation in the cellars, he treats his mother let him go to Alessia’ house alone, and finally he returns in the basement without anybody know. We can know that Lorenzo is a very talented boy, he has the ability to design the plan and succeed the plan. When he tries to trick his mother, he thinks “I had one last card to play” (Ammaniti, p17), he is a very deep and scheming thinking person. Even though Lorenzo has some great talents, he never thinks about other people.
After that, Lorenzo meets Olivia, who is his step sister and the person who makes him changes and let he know his value in the world. Olivia was a very beautiful girl when Lorenzo met her two years ago, Lorenzo thinks that “Instead she was incredibly beautiful, one of those girls that as soon as you look at them your face burns red and everybody knows you think she is beautiful” (Ammaniti 70). But she loses a lot weights and seems to have heavy illness now. Olivia is suffered by drugs, she is a heroin addict. Olivia seems to be the girl who also do not not how to deal with other people like Lorenzo. At the beginning, Lorenzo thinks Olivia is very annoyed, because she vomiting, scathing herself as well as she break his “perfect plan”. But after staying with Olivia in the cellar for a few days, Lorenzo feels pity to Olivia because Lorenzo finds out that he and Olivia shares many things in common. Such as they both have problem with their family, school and society. Olivia keeps in poor health and she is dying. Lorenzo sees Olivia like her grandmother Laura who is dying in hospital. Lorenzo feels helpless because he can not do anything for grandma Laura. So he decide to find medicine for Olivia to show his strength. This is the first time that Lorenzo thinks about others, he comes out from his little world in the basement and tried to save his sister’s life with the dangerous of expose his lie. Even though it is just a small event that Lorenzo goes finding medicine and saves Olivia, Lorenzo show his love towards Olivia. In addition, Lorenzo also shows his braves and intelligence in the process of finding medicines. Such as sneak into hospital and go back to basement without let Silver Monkey know. Lorenzo comes out from his comfort zone, and use his power to save the person he cares about. After he gets the medicine for Olivia, Olivia becomes much better. And Lorenzo feels very proud of himself and gains confidence. Lorenzo knows his value that he can save someone’s life, and he success in doing that. This is the beginning of Lorenzo’s changes.
10 years latter Lorenzo become more talkative and mature. When he meets with Olivia, he talks and treats to other people politely, like a gentleman. Lorenzo says to the waitress very politely, like “Thank you” (Ammaniti 5), as well as to the man at the last“Can I stay with her” (Ammaniti 152). In my opinion, he changes from the merciless wired boy to a responsible grown up man. Then he knows the true strength is not used to fool his mother but to take cave his family, the people who he loves. This changes not only comes from his regrets about his grandma Laura, but also his personal courage and passion on save the person he love. I think what Lorenzo shows in the story is the true strength, and it is very brave of him to save his sister.
