From Confusion To Epiphany—An Analysis Of The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry From The Perspective Of Initiation Story

Rachel Joyce is a British playwright and novelist.Her debut novel The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry got great attention when it was published.The book tells a story about the protagonist,Harold Fry,who gets initiation from the process of his pilgrimage.His initial aim is to save his friend Queenie's life.But as time goes by,he gets his redemption and gains the comprehension of life.The novel is regarded to be a masterpiece about the return of love,self-discovery,beliefs in everyday life and the beauty of all things.The thesis aims to analyze the growth of Harold Fry from the perspective of initiation story.As initiation story claims,the protagonist experiences the formulated plot pattern which is confusion-temptation-escaping from home-ordeals-epiphany.The protagonist will experience all steps or some steps.Harold Fry experiences the growth pattern that is confusion-temptation-escaping from home-ordeals-epiphany.Then,the question about what is confusion,what is temptation and what is epiphany is explained in this thesis.Besides,initiation story emphasizes the importance of initiation guides.There are positive initiation guides,negative initiation guides and nature.Queenie and Maureen are positive initiation guides to the protagonist's growth.Meanwhile,initiation story also shows the growth of initiation companions.Queenie and Maureen,as the initiation companions,get maturity during the process of initiation.Eventually,the protagonist gets epiphany and self-exploration.Unlikely to other initiation stories,the thesis pays much attention to the growth of aging people both in physical and psychological aspects.