In the wonderful passage "The Drummer Boy of Shiloh" by Ray Bradbury, the protagonist Joby is a fearful boy about to enter war. It also wasn't any war, it was one of the bloodiest battles of the civil war. In the middle of the passage or short story, Joby gets a motivational speech by the General of the army. He motivates him by telling him he is important. By the last part of the short story Joby is motivated and ready to go into war, and I think I know why. I think it was because sometimes it takes a person to give us a little boost on self-esteem or someone to motivate you.
In the beginning Joby is like any other boy. He has fear of something that he barely knows and is about to clash head on into it. Not only that but he is fourteen! I know I would be scared if I was going to war equipped with nothing but a drum and two drumsticks! Who wouldn't be? Joby of course has a right to be scared.
I think by the middle of the story while the general is giving the motivational is when Joby is actually starting to feel good about going into battle. The general made sure that he was not going to be afraid by saying things like, "You are the heart of the army" or "we need you." he also told him that if he beats the drum slow then the soldiers heartbeats will be slower and they will be calmer so they will be more focused.
I think by the end of The Drummer Boy of Shiloh, Joby was motivated. He was ready to go into into war because it says faces his drum upwards toward the sky like he was ready to play the next day.
I could compare this to life in a way. I could say that when you are feeling upset, mad or even scared, when you talk to somebody you could possibly feel better. If you are feeling upset you can talk and feel better, or someone can talk to you and help you feel a little better if not, a lot.
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