Survival. Humans have a strange way of persevering and overcoming seemingly impossible opposition. Some may associate it with Charles Darwin's "survival of the fittest" theory. Some may also associate it with the psychological term “fight or flight response.” However, survival depends solely on a perfectly blended amount of hope, drive, optimism, and overall perseverance to overcome and thrive. Hope can provide fuel to the body and push it to overcome strenuous and somewhat “hopeless” tasks. Some people, for example, have battles with their minds that prevent them from experiencing dreams. "I can't play basketball because I'm too short and there's no point in trying." The human mind constantly determines what you are capable of doing and what you are not capable of doing, but if that block is overcome, the personal limits and boundaries that once seemed pointless to try will no longer exist. With the right amount of hope and perseverance anything can become reality. Gary Paulsen, author of the award-winning novel “Hatchet,” highlights and defines many of the key terms discussed above. Using his main character Brian to show readers firsthand what perseverance and hope are, Paulsen sends a strong message to never give up and to always push beyond those boundaries that the mind has set for itself. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Brian's hope at the beginning of the novel was for an indestructible rock that would ultimately keep him alive. According to "Hatchet Theme of Perseverance" the constant thought of being saved was always in Brian's mind. It gave Brian the strength and stamina to continue fighting and pushing to stay alive until rescue. All this happened because of one thought, Paulsen brilliantly shows that the simplest thought can even keep you alive in a hopeless environment. Brian's first few days stranded in the wilds of northern Canada were harsh and tested his ability to survive without any prior knowledge of survival or immense isolation. Brian learned and adapted to his surroundings, he thought carefully about his decisions; when to use energy, when to rest, when to hunt, when to eat. Isolated and alone, Brian faced all the hardships; harsh environment, dangerous wildlife, limited resources and loneliness. Brian had built a little life for himself once he was stranded, he had shelter and warmth, and this kept Brian physically healthy, but what about Brian's mental health? Every day that Brian was exposed to isolation and loneliness, his mental health and hope worsened and burned, making it harder and harder for Brian to keep that optimism in his mind. According to "Hatchet Theme of Perseverance", once the rescue plane passes him and he is forced to give up that hope, Brian hits rock bottom. This quote illustrates how quickly you can lose hope, and sometimes it can be difficult to find it again. Brian, losing hope in the rescue, brought up the other key term mentioned earlier, perseverance. With hope of rescue long gone, Brian realized that instead of a short-term stay in the Canadian wilderness, he would face a long-fought battle to survive and withstand its many dangers. According to the "Brian Robeson Timeline and Summary" Brian was extremely depressed after his chance of being saved got out of hand, to the point that he even attempted to kill himself. Paulsen illustrates thisit's easy to fall into despair, hope can be there one moment and gone the next, once hope is lost, that downward spiral of depression is much more common and can easily affect you. This quote comes directly from the book and demonstrates how vividly Paulsen uses his words to describe Brian's feelings after not being saved. “Accept” He had settled into the deepening gray until finally, in the darkness, he had climbed onto the ridge, taken the ax and tried to end it by cutting himself. Folly. A hissing madness that took over his brain. The book also mentioned that Brian "longed for death, longed for an end, and just slept not slept." Brian was truly devastated by the feeling of failure, the feeling of a missed opportunity, the feeling of hopelessness and hopelessness starting to take over, and yet Brian wasn't ready to give up. Brian soon broke out of his depressive rage and according to “Hatchet Theme” of Perseverance” developed something called “tenacious hope”, a state of mind where if he could not be saved he would survive for himself and have faith in his own abilities, he would survive for his family, no matter what happened. This is where “survival of the fittest” really came into effect, Brian was a small fish in a big pond. Brian swore to himself that we would not behave weakly or give up because there was no chance of rescue. Brian's perseverance was put to the test after this, a tornado touched down in the same wilderness where Brian was stranded. This tornado was a blessing in disguise and ultimately led to Brian being able to discover a survival package in the plane he crashed. Paulsen illustrates once again how easy it is to gain and lose hope. Brian thought he had missed his chance of rescue and decided to do his best to survive, but inside that fateful survival backpack Brian found an emergency transmitter. Brian at first thought the transmitter was broken, with a few flicks of the switch and no response Brian faced his disappointment head on and didn't let it take control of him like it had before. However, soon Brian hears the sound of a plane, and the rescue he desperately wanted, that he had worked so hard for, that he had persevered and fought for, was finally his. He emerged victorious. The fight or flight response was used in Brian's daily life in the wilderness, he made his difficult decisions based on whether to retreat to fight another day, or to persevere and move forward for a reward that would aid Brian's survival. Gary Paulsen, using his advanced literary skill Brian's ability to describe his thoughts and feelings at all times is brilliant. Paulsen proved that hope can be achieved by anyone and everyone if you look in the right place and apply the right amount of energy. He uses Brian's ax as his first symbol within the novel. If Brian hadn't had his hatchet there would have been little chance of survival, he made tools with his hatchet, lit his first fire with his hatchet, cut wood and built a shelter all using his trustworthy accepts. Yet at the same time, Brian's original source of hope was used to almost kill himself later in the novel, losing all that hope and sense of accomplishment he once had. So, naturally, Brian's ax was a symbol of hope for him, a daily reminder of what he had accomplished, of how much he could do with just one tool. Yet, at the same time.