Brother Willy's Traveling Salvation Show
Romance / Human Nature / Mystical
Limited Adult Sexual Content
No Violence
The Story
Scott and Michelle have been friends since 7th grade but never managed to take their relationship to a romantic level. Their parents and others devise a plan to bring Scott and Michelle romantically together while believing the couple are actually in love with each other. Even during a time when things should be perfect for the couple, they each continue with their reservations about being anything other than friends. The "Ghost" in Beth's mind is determined Michelle and Scott will not be together. In the end, Scott must deal with the reality of Beth's Ghost.
Behind the Story
Scott and Michelle are two people lost in their past and unsure of their future. One of the key features to look for is the concept of “opportunity lost”. From a more psychological perspective, there is an implied message that suggests it is sometimes best to let nature take its natural course and avoid interference. While it is apparent that Scott and Michelle love each other, there is no certainty that they are “in love” with each other. Michelle begins to push Scott away for reasons she doesn’t understand, and Scott finds he is not sure he is actually ready to commit to their “new” relationship.
The Traveling Salvation Show is a group of social activist who seek to expose political wrong doing and to ensure that a U.S. Congressman is held to account for his actions. To this end, the Salvation Show members are able to accomplish their objective. The Salvation Show is somewhat like the moral compass.
The Traveling Salvation Show is a metaphor for the social forces that guide human behavior. The Salvation Show is also the force that defines the concept that actions have consequences and outcomes are not always predictable. A position made in the last chapter also explains the fact that as we seek to alter the actions of others for constructive purpose, we may also set into motion actions that are beyond our control.
To deal with his feeling of guilt, it becomes apparent that Scott almost has a compulsion to fix “all the broken girls”. His determination to ensure that no harm comes to Beth or Amie interferes with his ability to devote his full attention to Michelle.
The reader only discovers late in the novel why Scott is so focused on the welfare of Amie and Beth. His actions are driven by a never-ending sense of guilt, which leads him to place his relationship with Michelle on the line. This track of the story is used to define the distorted way in which we tend to view the world and our place within the world.
The Universal mind is a reader-defined term used in this novel as well as in other Mitchell novels. For some readers, the Universal mind reflects a religious interpretation and for others it is a metaphor for the natural order of things. The interplay between the activism of the Traveling Salvation Show versus the passive natural order of things is an idea you can watch develop as you move through the novel.
Scott and Michelle are two people lost in their past and unsure of their future. One of the key features to look for is the concept of “opportunity lost”. From a more psychological perspective, there is an implied message that suggests it is sometimes best to let nature take its natural course and avoid interference. While it is apparent that Scott and Michelle love each other, there is no certainty that they are “in love” with each other. Michelle begins to push Scott away for reasons she doesn’t understand, and Scott finds he is not sure he is actually ready to commit to their “new” relationship.
The Traveling Salvation Show is a group of social activist who seek to expose political wrong doing and to ensure that a U.S. Congressman is held to account for his actions. To this end, the Salvation Show members are able to accomplish their objective. The Salvation Show is somewhat like the moral compass.
The Traveling Salvation Show is a metaphor for the social forces that guide human behavior. The Salvation Show is also the force that defines the concept that actions have consequences and outcomes are not always predictable. A position made in the last chapter also explains the fact that as we seek to alter the actions of others for constructive purpose, we may also set into motion actions that are beyond our control.
To deal with his feeling of guilt, it becomes apparent that Scott almost has a compulsion to fix “all the broken girls”. His determination to ensure that no harm comes to Beth or Amie interferes with his ability to devote his full attention to Michelle.
The reader only discovers late in the novel why Scott is so focused on the welfare of Amie and Beth. His actions are driven by a never-ending sense of guilt, which leads him to place his relationship with Michelle on the line. This track of the story is used to define the distorted way in which we tend to view the world and our place within the world.
The Universal mind is a reader-defined term used in this novel as well as in other Mitchell novels. For some readers, the Universal mind reflects a religious interpretation and for others it is a metaphor for the natural order of things. The interplay between the activism of the Traveling Salvation Show versus the passive natural order of things is an idea you can watch develop as you move through the novel.