“The Maze Runner” Themes of Bravery and Friendship

Character Analysis of Thomas: Strengths and Flaws

I have selected Thomas as the main character because of his outstanding personal character traits. He is an interesting person with many strengths and also flaws that makes him very human. He is definitely brave, as we see him running in the Maze, although he is also terrified of being in there. He shows compassion and empathy, as we notice both traits in his relationship with Chuck and how he emphasizes Ben, although the other boy had tried to kill him.

Thomas also proves to be an intelligent person as he is the one who figured out the code for the Maze. He also shows how charismatic he is by being a natural leader. At the same time, he is an intuitive and determined person as he often senses when things are off or wrong, and his will to survive is noticeably unparalleled. As previously mentioned, he also has flaws as a human being, and his recklessness and/or impulsiveness come first as negative traits. The main reason why I say this is because he has a usual tendency to start things prior to seeking others' opinions. There are times that he should solicit ideas from the team to get their full alignment to be able to succeed, although he finally did this before setting off for the escape. Thomas is also an emotional and suspicious individual that puts himself in difficult situations from time to time. All in all, he is a decent person who stands out with unique characteristics.

The Maze Runner Theme: Identity and Leadership

In the novel called “The Maze Runner” by James Dashner, the protagonist Thomas, is a teenage boy who enters the Glade with no memories other than of his first name. Thomas comes to the Glade, which is the area in the center of the Maze that serves as a living place for the Gladers, fellow Glade residents. The Glade has four large Walls that encase it and separate it from the Maze. Each wall has an opening in its center, called The Doors, that closes every night and re-opens every morning. Outside the Glade lies the Maze with many twisting and turning paths that contain horrifying slug-like, spike-covered creatures called Grievers. Even though Thomas is scared and confused, he shows himself to be brave, resourceful, and strong-willed when he saves the lives of the Gladers Alby and Minho. Thomas also shares a telepathic connection with Teresa, who he may have known before arriving in the Glade. With her help, Thomas struggles to uncover his memories and discover the true nature of his identity. By the novel’s end, Thomas realizes that rather than his memories, it is his actions in the present that determine his identity.

Comparative Study: Leadership Traits of Thomas and George

In “Of Mice and Men,” the author Steinbeck idealizes male friendships, inferring that the two main characters in the book, George and Lennie, are the most sincere and convincing way to conquer the loneliness that surrounds the world. Hence, George and Lennie are two good buddies who started spending their entire time together. They moved to another city to work, and the story developed around the events that happened in that environment, mostly involving Lennie and his caretaker friend George. As the two converse, we discover that Lennie has a mild mental disability and is deeply devoted to George and dependent upon him for protection. George assumes a dominant role with Lennie, acting as a parent. Because Lennie tends to involve George in difficult predicaments, George must be responsible, level- headed and ready to deal with any tragedy that may arise. There are definitely similarities between Thomas’ and George‘s behavior as both took leadership in their respective positions. George assumes full responsibility for Lennie as he literally shields and guides him for every action he takes. “Don’t drink too much, you’ll be sick,” George shouted at Lennie as any good friend would warn his best companion in the case of danger.

Similarly, Thomas is the clear leader of the camp since he asserted himself as the person who could find a solution to escape from that “prison.” ”He couldn’t leave a friend to die, even this is someone as cranky as Alby. He reached down and grabbed both of Alby’s arms, then squatted into a sitting position and wrapped the arms around his neck from behind. He pulled the lifeless body onto his back and pushed with his legs, grunting with the effort.” Thus, the bravery Thomas shows not only makes us realize that he does not only assume the responsibility of getting his friends out of the Maze, but he also comes up with a plan that clearly saves the lives of these two guys. First of all, he entered that perilous hole which he didn’t have to, and besides, this action was not asked or expected by anyone in the Glade. Secondly, he led others to freedom while shunning the deadly Grievers with such a talent and shrewdness that only possessed by leaders.

George does all the talking in the face of difficulties to ensure people do not find out about Lennie’s mental incapabilities. Furthermore, Lennie has often gotten them into trouble. For instance, they were forced to flee their last job because Lennie tried to touch a woman’s dress and was accused of rape. At that time, George never thought of leaving Lennie behind, and both ran away together. Additionally, there are many other incidents in which George not only protected but also helped Lennie so that his disabilities were not understood by others. For example, “In a panic, Lennie looked at George for help. He can do anything you tell him, said George. He’s a good skinner. He can raise grain bags and drive a cultivator. He can do anything. Just give him a try. The boss turned on George. Then why don’t you let him answer? What you’re trying to put over?” 

This type of behavior plainly shows how protective and compassionate George is toward Lennie. Thomas also had similar personal traits when he confronted tough situations. He did never shy away from risking his own life to generously provide a helping hand when his friends were plagued by serious troubles. Thus, Thomas entered the Maze to help Minho and Alby, who had been stung by a Griever, and they were all locked up in a place where no one ever survived staying in there overnight. “Minho snorted. He shifted his body, wincing and groaning. I can’t believe it. Seriously. We made it through the whole night-never been done before.” Against all the rules and Minho‘s objection, Thomas decided to take this route to pull these people out of the fatal trouble.

Moral Dilemmas and Decisions: Consequences of Leadership

At the end of ‘Of Mice and Men,’ although it may seem difficult to explain the rationale behind killing someone, George had to shoot Lennie because he purely thought this was morally the right action to take. Otherwise, it would have been more painful and difficult for Lennie. “George stepped close. Couldn’t we maybe bring him in, and they’ll lock him up? He’s nuts Slim. He never did this to be mean. An’ s’pose they lock him up and strap him down and put him in a cage. That ain’t no good, George said Slim. I know, said George, I know.” Consequently, this situation was very tough on George, and it was a big loss for him as he had always wholeheartedly protected Lennie.

By shooting Lennie, he puts an end to the dream of a farm on his own with his dear friend Lennie. On the contrary, Thomas did not have to follow a terrible route like killing a friend; nevertheless, he, like George, was a brave and thoughtful person and also had good moral character traits a person could possess. He took a huge risk by the decision of getting stung to regain some of his memories, and finally, he also took the leadership to take the kids back to their homes while facing all kinds of difficulties. “All the same, Thomas now had a plan. As bad as it was, he had a plan. They needed more clues about the code. They needed memories. So he was going to get stung by a Griever. Go through the Changing. On purpose.” Therefore, he came up with a plan like a leader, regardless of how deadly it might be, and he was sure that would be the proper action expected from a decent person.

References:

1. Dashner, J. (2009). The Maze Runner. Delacorte Press.

2. Steinbeck, J. (1937). Of Mice and Men. Covici-Friede.

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