Revelation

Chapter three was an extremely crucial part for the development of the story, because it is when Tommy finally lets his father know what he is feeling. Bellow describes a specific moment in the following way, “… “What do you want from me? What do you expect?” “What do I expect?” said Wilhelm. He felt as though he were unable to recover something. Like a ball in the surf, washed beyond reach, his self control was going out. “I expect help!” The words escaped him in a loud, wild, frantic cry and startled the old man, and two or three breakfasters within hearing glanced their way.”(pg. 50). In the beginning of the quotation, Dr. Alder asks the question that Wilhelm was waiting for him to ask for years, “What do you want from me?” It was Tommy`s chance to finally let it all out. Bellow describes this feeling with a ball being washed away in the beach, “beyond reach”. That ball represented the power he had over every frustrated thought or feeling, which were always kept to himself. The reader can practically feel this resentment finally reaching its limit, and how it all explodes in one single phrase, “I expect help!” The tone of these three words is strongly felt, mostly because of the exclamation mark, and the italicizing the word “help”. It was so sudden and out of place, that you could feel the awkward silence in the instant that followed. This was probably just the first step in Tommy`s evolution, or regeneration process.