In Marilynne Robinson's novel Housekeeping, two sisters are drawn and kept together through traumatic changes in their caregivers. They value the reliability and mutual benefits each offers. In David Guterson's The Other, two "blood brothers" come together over common interests and losses. They think two single people are better than one. However, on both counts, the couple does not stand the test of time. Similar beginnings lead to disjointed conclusions, with one member of each pair moving away, toward the ephemeral. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Ruth and Lucille in Robinson's story have difficult lives, and conflict often tends to bring people together. Following the untimely death of their mother, the two girls are regularly passed from caregiver to caregiver, neither of whom meets their needs. Without a reliable home life to offer support, this duo is driven to seek comfort and companionship only in each other. As the girls' ties to the outside world weaken, their dependence on each other must become stronger. At first, as they wander through their small town of Fingerbone, where it is "[their] custom to prowl at dawn on any important day", they absorb their surroundings and form opinions like s 'they were just one person (Robinson 49). These two interpret their experiences as a strongly bonded unit rather than as two individuals. With such a deep connection, it's strange that Ruth and Lucille end up striving for almost opposite paths: Ruth leads the wandering life of an itinerant while Lucille pursues conformity with her newfound knowledge from college. When did these two start breaking up? Does this separation happen gradually, or all at once? The same uncertainty exists in the relationship between John William and Neil in Guterson's story. Even though these two don't share an innate family bond, like Lucile and Ruth, they are nonetheless part of a family of sorts. The two young men lived their adolescence without their mother and had fathers who were little interested in their lives and their aspirations. This common point means that the two young men are regularly unsupervised and free to spend their time in each other's presence. Due to their familiarity with isolation and their surplus of free time, these two bond over long battles with wilderness and a shared desire "to fight against suffering itself" ( Guterson 5). Because John William is determined and strong-willed, Neil regularly finds himself “doing things that John William wants to do…and not giving up along the way” (Guterson 12). When the connection with John William brings him pleasure or fulfillment instead of harm and condemnation, Neil willingly stays by his side. However, as his friend becomes more entrenched in his harmful behaviors, Neil finds less appeal in getting involved because "in a friendship one is not so much changing the terms as observing the terms changing" (Guterson 112) . In this sense, the relationship in question in The Other is maintained more passively than the link between Lucille and Ruth. Regardless, both relationships begin to disintegrate as Lucille and John William accept that they are being drawn down paths that will take them away from their once-important comrades. Once again, it is unclear why these polarizations exist, and the question remains whether it is a spur to new action or simply a continuation of an existing trajectory. Maybethat a person's psychology is set in stone from an early age: progression in life can be predetermined and free from any external influence. On the other hand, significant life events could also be decisive in the inner functioning of an individual. With each a viable explanation, Ruth and Lucille's separation could be fate, or rather the culmination of many events. The sisters face many defining moments together, and although these moments are initially experienced as first, the novel's prose changes and their correspondence deteriorates. This gap between the two grows as they grow up, showing that the sisters are developing their own ideals. While it was once appropriate to view "Lucille and [Ruth] as one consciousness," this strong similarity gives way to each member's need to prove that they are not dependent on the traits of another (Robinson 98). One clear disagreement between the sisters concerns their assessment of their ultimate guardian, Sylvie. What begins as shared joy at the prospect of being raised by their mother's sister quickly turns into an irreconcilable disagreement between once inseparable parties. Sylvie's presence is not immediately disliked by any of the sisters, but Lucille is significantly less willing to put up with her aunt's abnormal antics than Ruth is. Lucille's lack of approval of Sylvie becomes clear to Ruth and, although she is not opposed to her new caretaker, she "finds...advantage in conforming [her] attitudes" to those of Lucille (Robinson 93 ). Ruth is unwilling to allow division in her one true relationship and submits her own ideals to maintain her sisterhood. This is only a temporary solution to an emerging divide, however, as her efforts are challenged by Lucille's tendency to "[see] in everything its potential for odious change" (Robinson 93). When the two begin to drift apart, inertia alone is able to keep the relationship somewhat stable. But this tendency to stick to habits is short-lived. The embodiment of each character, their respective interests prevail until Ruth sees that “Lucille’s loyalties [are] to the other world” (Robinson 95). A similar series of events also exists in The Other, when John William and Neil discover that the fruits of individuality triumph. on maintaining a weakened connection. As mentioned, Neil joins forces with John William with the idea that it will not remove him from other societal ties. He enjoys John's company, but will not compromise to keep it. After a week of isolation in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest, Neil feels aligned with John William's view that "the organized social world is a pathetic illusion" (Guterson 35). Neil identifying strongly with John William, he is momentarily withdrawn from the world. This proves to be a temporary prospect, however, and Neil overcomes this feeling of futility to pursue an education while increasing his involvement in other social functions, such as his budding relationship with Jamie. Neil values ​​conformity, but that doesn't completely erase the comfort he finds in isolation. Yes, both characters derive great comfort from isolation, but the reason this state of being grants gratification to Neil is very different from the reason it offers comfort to John William. Isolation is not a lasting solution for Neil, as he “tries to love [his] solitude” but considers it “a futile, self-conscious effort” (Guterson 145). What was once natural in his friendship turns into something that requires deliberate effort to recreate. John William does not leave..