Forrest Gump–Chapter 10

 

No matter where I am, no matter what I have done, there is always somebody in the deep place of my heart. The same is Forrest. After so many amazing or terrible experiences, the people he wanted to see immediately were his mother and Jenny, especially Jenny. But he had no address for Jenny except the place’s name where Jenny had said she and her hand played there. It was near the Harvard University. After taking train, getting lost, taking taxi, finally Forrest found the pub called Hodaddy Club. It seemed Jenny and her band played here from 9 o’clock, so Forrest waited there. The performance began on time, but it was too loud! The people in the club all wore shinning, except Forrest—he was still in his uniform… Finally, Jenny came out and began to sing and dance. She was shinning, fashion and a little punk. She was dancing all around the stage. But Forrest was not very like that, because it was too loud to bear, he could not hear what she was singing. Forrest wanted to see Jenny in backstage, but the person did not allow him to go there. So Forrest had to wait at the back door of the club. He found the songs are not as bad as he thought when he was in. He could follow the tone, and then he began to play his harmonica following the band in it. He always could do this very well. When Jenny had a break, she heard the sound of harmonica, she opened the back door, finding Forrest outside, and then throwing herself into Forrest’s arms.

What an amazing and romantic scene…

Jenny did not live a happy life after Forrest had gone. She was thrown out of school because she was found living in a guy’s room one night. Then she changed several places and several boyfriends, she even had been a married man’s girlfriend, but she was tired of her life. Now she played in the band to earn money and dated with a guy studied in Harvard University. The guy’s name was Rudolph. Forrest had no place to live, so he went back with Jenny and lived in Jenny and Rudolph’s home. He slept on the floor.

Next morning, Jenny took Forrest on a tour of Cambridge; they met the married professor who Jenny had dated with in Harvard University. Jenny and he were good friends after broke out. The professor would begin a new course named “Role of the Idiot in World Literature”. Forrest was interested in this class and began to hear that class the next day, he thought it was interesting.

Meantime, Jenny recommended Forrest to play in her band, they found Forrest played well, so Forrest joined their band and played together for Jenny’s song. A person from New York heard their song and wanted to make a tape for their band—Cracked Eggs. Everybody in the band was exciting to hear that. The person said the band would be famous and they would earn money. So the band practiced everyday. Forrest was not only play his harmonica, he began to learn all other things—the keyboard, the drum and so on. Forrest liked this life.

One afternoon, Jenny broke up with Rudolph, she found no matter what had happened, Forrest was always around her. So Jenny and Forrest lived together, slept together, and acted together. Forrest thought himself was the happiest person in the world.

Forrest Gump–Chapter 9

As I said last week, in this chapter, after halfway around the world again, Forrest came to Peking, China. Forrest thought Chinese were clean and polite. He was happy that the other people in the ping-pong team and the Chinese were very nice, except Mister Wilkins. Mister Wilkins was the man told them how to behave around the Chinese, he always found something wrong about Forrest, so Forrest did not like him. Forrest did not know how to use chopsticks so he always made his clothes dirty after he had a meal.  The Chinese played the ping-pong well, and treat the American team well too. One day, they should go to the restaurant called Peking Duck to have the dinner, but Mister Wilkins thought Forrest’s shirt was dirty and let him to change one, before that, Wilkins gave Forrest the name of the restaurant on a note, told him to go here after changing shirt by himself.  But Forrest forget the note in his dirty shirt after he got in the cab, he could not make the driver understand himself. He started to flap his arms like the ducks wings. The driver took Forrest have some sight then stopped at the airport. Finally he misunderstood Forrest. They had to go back. When they passed a restaurant Forrest let the driver stop and gave him some money, because Forrest wanted to have his dinner. After he had a big nice meal, he found he could not find the way to go back, until somebody picked him up. But later Forrest found himself in the jail, they guessed him was a spy. At last Mister Wilkins came and made Forrest out. Then he tied a big balloon on Forrest’s shirt button to find him anytime.

One day they came out by bus, and then they got to a big river. There were a lot of people; they all waited to see Chairman Mao to swim in the river. Chairman Mao was eighty year old, but he still could swim in the river. Chairman Mao started swimming in the river; he also waved to the people on the shore. But after he waved for a third time, he was drowning.  A lot of Chinese on the shore jumped in the river to find Chairman Mao, but at last, Forrest jumped and survived Chairman Mao. All the Chinese thought Forrest was a hero, but Mister Wilkins thought the idiot lost a good chance.

Forrest went on join the ping-pong games, and because he had survived Chairman Mao, he became a national hero, and then the Chinese start to discuss reopening foreign relations with the American. The Chinese wanted to give Forrest a big parade at downtown of Peking. Two days later, the parade was held, a billion Chinamen along the streets, and Forrest had the lunch sitting next to the Chairman Mao. Chairman knew Forrest had joined the war of Vietnam, so he asked Forrest’s feeling of the war, Forrest still said “I think it’s a bunch of shit.” It made Chairman smiled for a long time.

When Forrest and the team went back America, out of the hotel, a big crowd came to see them off. Forrest found a little boy in the crowd, he seemed an idiot. Forrest came to give the little boy some gift, the boy smiled—it was the first time for the boy to smile, but then he used the ping pong ball to throw Forrest. It was a little thing, Forrest and the team finally got on the plane and flied back.

Forrest was let out of the Army after he came back. He was given some money for going back home. Forrest wanted to see his mama, and also he wanted to go to see Jenny. So he got to the train station, prepared to buy the ticket, and then began his new life.

Forrset Gump–Chapter 8

Leaving the hospital, leaving his best friend—Dan, Forrest followed Colonel Gooch to go back the US to get his medal. On the plane, Gooch told Forrest that after he came back, the people would treat him as a hero. But the fact was not in that way, after they came off the plane, a lot of people who were waiting there began to chase them. No flower, no brass band, just chasing and shouting. A tomato was thrown in Gooch’ face, Forrest was scared, so he chose to run and hide, as the things he had done when he was very little. 

After hidden in the toilet for nearly an hour, the people had gone, so Gooch and Forrest could get on the plane to
Washington. The people whom they met on the way and in the hotel were all not friendly with them. But finally Forrest got into the White House to see the President. The President pinned the medal on Forrest’s chest. But Forrest did not care about that, he just wanted to have his breakfast. When the photographer took photos of President and Forrest, the President wanted Forrest to show his wounded, but it was on his ass! So Forrest pulled down his pant and showed that to everybody. Gooch was angry with those photos with the President and Forrest’s ass. But Forrest just did the things the President wanted him to do. 

After that thing happed, Forrest was given a chance to go on the recruitment tour and Gooch wanted Forrest could make a speech, said something just like “serving the country in the Armed Forces is honorable”. That was the true feeling of Forrest, so he finished the speech and answered to the questions, he said: “The war is a bunch of shit.” It was not the things the Army wanted him to say, so Gooch went to stop Forrest’s word, but the reporters had written that sentence. The day after that speech, Forrest got to know his tour had been cancel because of his speech.  

Forrest was assigned to the Steam Heat Company, and he did some work there. One day next spring he found a notice that there would be a ping-pong tournament and the winner would get to go to Washington to play for the All Army championship, so Forrest signed himself up for that tournament and won all the games. Then he was sent to Washington for the tournament. The tournament was in Walter Reed Hospital so the wounded could watch the play. Forrest won the first and second round easily, but he nearly lost the third round. At that time, he found Dan in the people watching the game, so during the break, Forrest had a talk with Dan. Dan’s face was burnt and he got no legs, but Dan still encouraged Forrest, so Forrest won all the games and won the whole tournament. 

Forrest and Dan spent three days together, Forrest played harmonica for Dan as before, and they talked something interesting, then Forrest was chosen as a member of the United States Ping-Pong Team to go to China and play the ping-pong with Chinese. It was the first thing between the USA and China in 25 years, so Forrest was honor. So in next chapter, Forrest would in China.

Forrest Gump–Chapter 7

After getting hurt in the war, Forrest was sent to a hospital to recover himself. There were a lot of people who had been badly hurt in that hospital, so Forrest was a lucky one. In the hospital, Forrest met another best friend in his life, whose name was Dan.  Dan was a teacher of history but just because the war, he was forced to join the army. He was all burnt and had tubes going in and out of him everyplace. But he was not like the other people crying all night, he was quiet, and he liked to talk with Forrest. He thought Forrest was not an idiot; he thought Forrest just had his own way to do a lot of things. Forrest learnt a lot from Dan, he had learnt the philosophy of life. So he went to accompany Dan every afternoon, played the harmonica for him. 

After several weeks, Forrest felt better; he could go around the hospital to take in the sights. One day he found another guy feed shrimp in a little place with water, the shrimp makes Forrest missed Bubba, their shrimp boat and then he wanted to go back home to feed shrimp by himself, leaving with his mother. In his spare time, Forrest began to play ping-pong; he found he can play it very well after a few days.  

One day, Forrest was informed that he was been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for extreme heroism, he should go back to the US for the award.  He wanted to tell Dan this good news, but Dan was sent back to the US for better care.  There is also some news from Forrest’s home. His mother wrote to him that their home was ruined by the fire and they had no insurance so his mother had to find other place to live. Another letter came from Jenny, she said she was worried about Forrest; she was playing in a musical band near the Harvard University to earn money. Forrest wanted to go back to see his mother and her.  Before he left the hospital, Forrest received the letter from Dan, the letter told that he also missed Forrest, and encouraged Forrest never gave up. After read the letter, Forrest began to go back the US for the award.

Fossest Gump–Chapter 6

War is not a game to everyone, including Forrest. So this Chapter, our Forrest met the biggest difficulty in his life.  Forrest and other guys were on one ridge, they should move the machine gun under a big tree to hide the gun. So Forrest , Bones—the machine gunner and  Doyle—another ammo bearer and two other guys started moving, the adversaries began to shoot them, but fortunately, they found a place to put the gun and stayed there till it got dark. They need help, but at the same their adversary just came to them. They were very dangerous; the shooting was coming from in front of them.  More and more adversaries came, they had to fight…But Bones was shot, the other two guys were shot… They were all dead, only left Doyle who was badly hurt and Forrest. Forrest had no choice; he threw Doyle over his shoulder and began to run, just like he was in the football game. The adversaries were everywhere, but Forrest just ran, he was also shot in the ass but he ran back to their own Charlie Company just like he had made a touchdown. Forrest survived Doyle and himself, the commander came to told him that he was a good man, but when Forrest answered the commander’s word, he still said “I go to pee”, as he was at school before.  

That night Forrest and his friend Bubba stayed together, Forrest get out his harmonica and they began to play songs. Because the other people all badly hurt or died, Forrest had to be the machine gunner and his friend Bubba had to carry the stuff because the sergeant permitted him to transfer to Forrest’s company, then Forrest and Bubba were together just like they were in the university. 

The days came slowly, Forrest kept in touch with his mother by letter, he also wrote a letter to Jenny to ask her to take care of his mother, but she did not write back. Forrest and Bubba wanted to back home, so they wanted to use a shrimp boat. But before they made a boat, when they moved thought a rice paddy, they got attacked, Bubba was been hit twice in the chest, Forrest wanted to survive his best friend, but it was useless. So Forrest played “Way down upon theSwanee River” over and over again for his friend, then Bubba died. At last, the helicopter came to get them back, our lucky Forrest just got shot on his ass, but his friend lost their lives.

Fossest Gump–Chapter 5

After the Orange Bowl, Forrest did not only lose the football game, but also lose his chance to go on studying in the university. He got A in the difficult class—Intermediate Light, but just got F in the physical class. Nobody knew the reason, but the conclusion was he had to quit the university. He got the chance to attend the university by playing football, and he lost the chance to go on study in the university by playing football. Forrest did not want to go out, he wanted to stay with Jenny and his football team, his friend, but he had to move his stuff out of the basement and went back home. His entire friend went out to say goodbye to Forrest, they all did not want Forrest to go, but nobody could change it, it was the life of Forrest. 

When Forrest was backing home, his mother was crying in her room because the Army knew Forrest quitted from the university, so he had to join the Army. His mother did not want her silly son to join the Army and maybe lose his life in the war. But she had on choice, the Army needed any guy, both Einstein and idiot. 

So Forrest went on the way to the Army, as everybody watched in the movie, maybe it was the right way for Forrest. Forrest began to find that the Army was not better than the football team, everybody should do the same things everyday and they were never happy. One day, Forrest made an accident when he was cooking for hundreds of guys in the Army, he used the steam boiler to cook and put everything which was can be eaten into it. It was hard to cook so many things, so Forrest turned the boiler up and up again and at last the boiler blew up… After that accident, Forrest had no weekends; he had gone to the quarters every weekend. So he had no time to watch the game which was between his formal university’s team and another team. This time his team did not have the same fault again, they won the game!! Forrest was happy; he missed everything in his university, especially Jenny. 

After a year, Forrest with a group of army came to join the Vietnam War, Forrest did not know what war was, but he saw his friend died and they should hide themselves in the hole. He did not like that, but he met his best friend Bubba, who had quitted the football team and university because of his broken foot. He told Forrest that Jenny also had quitted school and gone off with a bunch of war protesters or something. From today, Forrest began his life in the war…

Forrest Gump–Chapter 4

In Chapter 4, our Forrest was not as lucky as last chapter. Some parts of his life were good. In his football team, he was trained as a “secret weapon”—running out and catching passes. He lost his weight and practiced to run more and more quickly. He did it hardly, but he tried his best. Also he could play the harmonica better and better, Bubba became his good friend, he played the harmonica together to spend spare time. He thought Forrest played better than himself. Amazing… Then some day, Forrest caught a chance, when Jenny’s band played on the stage, he joined in the music with his harmonica, everybody thought Forrest was wonderful and then Forrest joined Jenny’s band.

But his English class was not as good as before. His teacher wanted him to write something seriously, not being amusing any more. But that was all the things Forrest could write, all the things he could think. He was different from normal people. Meantime, Forrest was brought to have some tests, and being taken to a medical class as a model and playing his harmonica, because he was an “idiot savant”, he could not do the things every normal people could do, but he could solve the hard advanced mathematical equations and studied to play harmonica well and quickly. I think Forrest felt nothing about this class. He only thought about his mother and his Jenny. But Jenny did not think in this way. She just treated Forrest as one of her friend. Forrest realized this until he interrupted Jenny and the banjo player date. He made Jenny feel angry again! And also Forrest could not join Jenny’s any more.

Forrest felt upset, but he had to go to the football game in Miami. It was a good thing for him; he could keep busy playing football all day instead of thinking of Jenny. His team was undefeated the entire season, so they went to Miami to attend the National Championship at the Orange Bowl. They wanted to win, but at halftime, they fell behind 7 to 28. In the break, the coach told Forrest it was the time to use him as the “secret weapon”. It was really useful, but at the end, they lost the game with the points 24 to 28. They felt upset, but the coach just told them there was always next year. Our Forrest was not the hero for his team again, he could not always fortune. But it is the life, no matter want you want.

Forrest Gump–Chapter 3

In Chapter 3, Forrest Gump became a undergraduate student, he was enrolled in the university as a member of football team. As most of us, Forrest came to the university in August, which is the hottest month in
Alabama. He met his new coach in the university and moved into his new dorm. I think he hate his dorm a lot so he described his dorm as a toilet. He has a new roommate, whose name is Curtis, other people all thought both of them could get on fine, because both of might be idiot. But they were wrong, Forrest and Curtis were not getting along so hot, Forrest felt lonely, and as I said last week, when he met difficulties, he missed his mother very much again. But it was useless; he should meet his life by himself. One day, because of some little thing, Forrest and Curtis quarreled and then their relationship ruined. Forrest did not want to live in the dorm any more. So he found another place in the basement, he moved there with an electric light bulb.

 

Forrest was in a university, so he at least needed to take some classes. Fortunately, he was in the athletic department, he could take some easy classes such as Physical Education, but he should take one English class and one science class. Some teachers could give a football player a sort of break, so he took the class “Intermediate Light”, but it was for graduate physics major. God bless Forrest…

 

But Forrest did better than everybody thought in class. In English class, every student needed to write autobiography as homework. Forrest wrote his amazing experiences, and his teacher thought he originally a novel or something, then appreciated him a lot. What a lucky dog… Also in Intermediate Light class, Forrest found he could understand the hard equations and solved the problems. Wonderful!

 

Forrest began to train in the football team in the hot summer. His coach had sent him some plays to teach him how to play the football, Forrest did not know all the rules because he just run and grasped the ball when he was in high school. He did not study the plays either. So in the first game, Forrest just run, but he run so good that and made his team win.

 

After the game, everybody went to have a party except Forrest. He met Bubba, who broke his foot and have a break in the dorm. Bubba taught how to play mouth organ, but Forrest is a talent to study that, he practiced to play the mouth organ when he had time. And Sunday afternoon, Jenny came to see him; chatted with him as she had forgiven him the thing happened in the cinema. Lucky Forrest!

Forrest Gump–Chapter 2

In Chapter 2, Forrest has become a young guy, not a kid any more. He was fortunately, because he was the team member of the team which won in the ALL STATE HIGHSCHOOL FOOTBALL GAME. And he attended the banquet of the winner to get the prize. It was a big prize for any young guy, but unfortunately, in the banquet, some little accident happened on Forrest… He drunk too much water before but when he went to toilet, there was something wrong with the zipper of his pants so that he could not unzip his pants. His coach could not help him and let him bear till the activity finish. Forrest did not want that, he missed his mother—I guess he always want to find his mother when he has some trouble, as most teenager—but this time, his mother could not help him. If the thing just stopped here, it was ok. But when he got the prize on the stage, instead of “Thank you”, he said “I got to pee”.

That is the special Forrest Gump!

After that, people all round the country got to know that an idiot got himself on the ALL STATE FOOTBALL team and won a prize and said something interesting on the banquet. Forrest might be a little famous and his mother collected all his news in a scrapbook. Especially the New York Yankees baseball team sent him a baseball with all the members’ signatures. I had to say he was a lucky guy.

When Forrest was older enough to go to college, a man from the college came to test him whether he could join the football team in college. After asking some questions, the man found that he was an idiot. It ended his college football prospects. So he should join the United States Army after he got a special diploma from high school. Without trouble, it could not be Forrest Gump, so when he and other guys were checked their bodies by the Army, Forrest thought they tricked him as he was a kid, so he treated the guys in the army as he was kid—he knocked them and run away. His mother felt upset but told the guys of the Army the things about her son, then another test made Forrest not join the Army now—they also thought his was an idiot.

 After some new experience with Miss French, Forrest wanted to date Jenny—the girl he liked since long before. His mother helped him to prepare the date, but he destroyed the date again. When they watched the movie in the cinema, Forrest wanted to lift Jenny from the seat, but he broke her dress. The policemen came and put him into a room. Always his mother came to survive him—no exception this time. But he needed a place to be trained. And the university wanted to accept him if he joined the football team. So at the last of this chapter—Forrest got on the bus to the university and left his mother.

Forrest Gump—Chapter 1

I begin to read the book <<Forrest Gump>>, by Winston Groom. Maybe it is not a very famous novel, but this book has been adapted to a film with the same name. The film is so moving and inspiring that give me a deep impression. The film is a big success of Paramount in 1994, not only earned $677 million worldwide during its theatrical run, and also won six Academy Award Prizes. 

I saw the film long time ago, this time; I choose to read the novel, hoping I can get something I need from this novel again. 

During this week, I have read the Chapter 1. The book is written as a man recall all his life. He begins the story from he was a little boy, an informal boy who had low IQ. Low IQ meant nothing, but the people around him treat him as an idiot. They laughed him, used him do a lot of things and treated him unfair, but Forrest did not say anything. He did not know how to support himself and felt afraid. Fortunately he had a good mother. Although his father had dead in an accident, he never felt lonely because of his fine and kindhearted mother. 

When Forrest began to go to school, his mother sent him to a public school, in order to keeping him the same with the others. But he could not keep up with what the teacher told and no kids wanted to play with him, expect for a pretty girl Jenny. So the poor Forrest was sent to another school which is for the children with poor IQ. But Forrest was not that kind guy; he was just a little reacting slow. In the new school, he just learnt something basic for a person’s life, like tying up shoes and reading street sign. He wasted some years there.

When Forrest got to be sixteen, he grew tall and strong. And in a chance, he was found by a guy and was taken to a new school. At there, he began to learn how to play football. At first, he still had nobody to play with and was afraid of the others. Only Jenny talked to him. But someday, he found he can run fast and play well in his football team, and after he beat a guy who wanted to humiliate him, Forrest began to become popular in his school and nobody humiliated him again.