Alenation (Essay Sample)

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Alienation has an impact on different characters depending on the how much it pushes people from their comfort zone and the manner in which they cope to it. At times, the surroundings around the people affect who they are. The different journeys that they undergo also affect the lives. This paper looks at the concept of alienation. People live around factors that constantly try to change them. The paper looks at how two main characters in The Lost World by Michael Crichton and A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving fight to define themselves despite the many factors that seeks to change them.
One way of looking at alienation in the books is emotional isolation. This includes dissociation from people. In the Lost World, Malcolm is the main character. Malcolm tries to deny any prior knowledge concerning knowledge of Jurassic park. However, he allows one of his colleagues, Levine, to draw him into plans go back and explore what remained of the dinosaur project. Alienation or separation from the society causes these people to act in a manner that could result in a negative impact. The characters in this book experience alienation physically in that they are in a new environment. In many occasions, Malcolm finds himself way out of his comfort zone by the decisions that the people around him make.
One such example is when Malcolm instructs Eddie to kill the baby rexes, after suspecting it would not survive the injury that it had. In many instances in the book, Malcolm seems to fall into the pressure of people around him. He allows the surrounding to change his perception. In most cases, he has to modify his decisions based on the people around him. The journey that he goes on affects his character. Malcolm has knowledge from the first trip, which makes him more careful as compared to the group around him. However, he constantly lets them change his decisions and in the end, this affects the entire trip in a negative way.
Malcolm as a main character in this book is unable to stick to his principle. He is unable to ensure that his ideas follow through to the end. He tends to allow the environment and the people around him to dictate what happens. Alienation affects them to a level in which they have no further control of the environment around them. This book takes the characters through a journey that is unfamiliar to all of them. This is a contrast to the main character in A Prayer for Owen Meany.
In A Prayer for Owen, alienation occurs to the main character, Owen Meany. Owen has a physical disorder that makes him smaller than all the other people his age (Irving, 3). His voice also sounds a bit sharper than the rest. In addition, he happens to be quite short for his height. However, he does not let the notable differences that he has as compared to the people around him make him feel alienated. He feels that the unique qualities that he has help him further his purpose on earth. He fights to define himself by using his unique features to fulfill the destiny he has on earth. The factors that push him out of his comfort zone are his physical attributes.
As mentioned earlier, his height, his voice and his small stature put him at a different physical place as compared to other people around him. He is able to survive the environment that he is in because of the strong believe...