Faith and Reason

“The real and the unreal. The natural and the supernatural. The present and the past. The scientific and the fantastic” (Ihimaera 116). This quote from the novel The Whale Rider by Witi Ihimaera presents a contrasting theme that can also be found in the poetry of Robert Frost, Yusef Komunyakaa, and Judith Ortiz Cofer. It is a theme that makes a connection between reality and myth. Do these contrasting ideas always have to be held separate, or can they go hand-in-hand?
In “Mending Wall” by Robert Frost, the theme of the real and the unreal is clearly seen. After a wall is destroyed by hunters, the narrator and his neighbor come together to rebuild it. During the process, the narrator begins to question his actions by asking what exactly is he “walling in or walling out” (line 33). The reality of the situation is that the wall is being between the two characters. However, it is more than just that. The unreal and underlying part of the situation is they are also building a social barrier between each other. They would like to think that this wall will make good neighbors, but really for the fear of being offended, they are offending each other by building emotional barriers.
In “Slam, Dunk, & Hook” by Yusef Komunyakaa, the connection between reality and myth is present. The myth of this poem can be found in the diction that the writer uses. Words such as Mercury, angels, and storybook sea monsters make an automatic connection to the mythological universe. By doing this, the writer turns a couple of boys’ love for the game of basketball into something that it is “beautiful and dangerous” (line 40). The boys were “on swivels of bone & faith,” or in other words, the real and the unreal.
In “The Game” by Judith Ortiz Cofer, the common theme of fantasy and reality is once again present. The poem is about a girl with a humpback, which brings shame to the girl’s family. Not only does the family play pretend to avoid bringing up the girls’ situation, but also the girl falls into a fantasy of her own. The narrator and the girl would play a pretend “family” game in the backyard. This is the only time the girl could escape an unfortunate harsh reality.
As seen in the The Whale Rider and in these poems, the decision between faith and reason does not always have to be made. Since myth is based on reality, it is necessary for the two to go together. It can be seen when the myth of the whale rider comes to reality when Kahu fulfills her destiny of actually being whale rider at the end of the novel. Without reality, the myth would not be the same.