On The Waterfront Terry Malloy as a “Hero???” When Terry Malloy was first introduced, he did not make any indications that he would strive for the respect that he gained throughout the s
Trang 1On The Waterfront
Terry Malloy as a “Hero???”
When Terry Malloy was first introduced, he did not make any indications that he would strive for the respect that he gained throughout the story His tough-guy behavior and compassionate attitude has made him what
he is: a hero He never revealed what he was truly made of or what he was capable of He always had low self-esteem about himself
—repeatedly calling himself a “bum.” Despite his stubbornness to
change and his ignorance to others, Malloy proves himself by doing what
he knows is right to be a true hero Throughout the whole film, Malloy displayed himself as a bum He rarely works, and he is a has-been boxer Others occasionally criticize him about his boxing career; explaining to him that he was no good Because a lot of the criticism got to Terry’s head, he was unable to associate with others This proves so with the relationship he has with Edie Doyle He is barely able to hold the
relationship with Edie, even though she is the one whom Terry loves so much Up to this point, Malloy does not display himself as a hero, or even close to being one
When Malloy put himself to the test, he rarely came out successful This all changed when he saw the death of his brother, Charlie the Gent Malloy decided to stand up for what he knew was right and went to speak with Johnny Friendly face to face As the scene unfolded, the depiction of Malloy being a hero was relevant He stood up for his
brother, and his girlfriend He knew what the outcome would be if he confronted the “hoods,” yet he did what he had to do for the people on the dock, and above all, for the people he cared about the most; and for this, he gained the respect and loyalty that he deserved
As the film progressed, Malloy’s character seemed to have changed He became more sensitive towards Edie, and he stuck with his wits and testified against his own former friends, “the hoods.” But with every good thing, there must be something bad that comes out of it When Malloy lost the respect of his co-workers and friends by testifying against the hoods, he became a target for blame that the people of the town needed to show that they were still behind the hoods Yet when Malloy went on the dock and professed what he truly thought of Friendly and the others, the people of the town realized that what Terry was saying is correct, and they eventually regained there respect for Terry What he did
in that last scene proves him to be a hero He was the only one that stood
up against the hoods and he was willing to accept the consequence of his actions All the people needed was someone they could look up to, someone to lead them one their way; that is the definition of a hero, and Terry Malloy expressed himself as one