Neal Shusterman’s message in the unwind that relates to my life today

Neal Shusterman’s message in the unwind that relates to my life today

The story in the novel “Unwind” by Neal Shusterman talks about a war that is fought between pro-life and pro-choice movements. As a result of this war, there is a bill that is passed, and this bill proposes that no fetuses are supposed to be aborted. The parents can only abort the child after attaining 13 years of age by having him/her unwound. According to the book, unwinding is that process of harvesting all the organs in an individual and implanting them in a new host, thus allowing the donor to live through their body parts. Shusterman, in the book, talks about three kids who are sent to be unwound. In the novel, the parents and legal guardians can only have their children unwound when they are between 13 and 18 years. The three kids escape differently but their paths collide, and they are stuck together trying to survive. In their hideout, the three kids avoid being seen by anyone because if their hideout is found, they would be unwounded. Lev, one of the kids, saves the other kids, Risa and Connor several times from being caught. However, at the end of the book, lev was put away for having drugs in him while the other two Connor and Risa made in to the graveyard.

The message in the novel relates in my life today; it gives a projection to the future and something to think when you are a bad kid. There are a lot of kids who are indulging in bad behaviors despite being warned by their parents. I have a friend who is always warned by the parents to stop taking drugs, but she cannot listen. The book connects to the sense that if a parent loves the children, he or she cannot send them away. In the book, the parents unwind the children just because they are trouble makers. We even see Ariana parents saying that they always knew Connor “would be an unwind” (Shusterman, 5). This was because he was always a bad kid. The book, therefore, challenges the current naughty children such as my friend to get their discipline back and be grateful that they are not sent away. “You see, a conflict always begins with an issue—a difference of opinion, an argument.  By the time it turns into a war, the issue doesn’t matter anymore” (Shusterman, 222). The children should avoid conflicts with their parents. In the book we can see Connor is confused whether he should call his parents’ house home when he is about to be taken away from the people he loves. “evicted… from the hearts of those who are supposed to love him” (Shusterman, 5). The bad kids should know that in today’s world, there are no unwound but there are jails where one can be taken and separated from the ones, he/she loves. It is, therefore, advisable to live a good life that pleases your parents and society at large.

In conclusion, the war fought against abortion was an ideal war. The central message in the novel is the same on what society expects of us. We should understand what life is, and also know that life does not start at conception, but it begins after our consciousness develops. In the novel, it was wrong to kill a person before attaining the conscious age of 13 years. In this regard, it is the right time for kids to turn away from bad behaviors and adopt good practices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Work cited

Shusterman, N. (2009). Unwind. Simon and Schuster.