Different Behavior in Life
People have different behavior in life. Artists crate characters with various character traits in order to expose their themes. The difference in behavior is what creates uniqueness in every individual. However, some people have similar character traits which make them behave the same way though in different situations. Literature is the mirror of the society. It is used to show how people behave in real life. Doctor Roger Mee is the main character in Ruhlman’s “Walk on Water.” He is a qualified surgeon who deals with children’s hear problems. Dr. Roger Mee is one of the best pediatric heart surgeons in the world who have saved thousands of lives. Flood Curt is a sports man who is the hero in “A well-paid Slave” by Brad Synder. Flood is the man who changed the baseball to what it is today. In “The Shadow of the Moon” Roger Chaffee narrates the journey to the moon. He passes through different life stages with courage and emerged victorious. The three characters have similar persona which apply in their different plots.
American Astronauts
Twelve American astronauts were selected to visit the moon and come with a full report about space. This was in the 20th century, between 1968 and 1972. Up to date, these are the only men who have ever landed in moon land. They were the first, and may be the last people from earth to visit the moon and come back to narrate the story with their own mouths. This journey is referred to as the Apollo mission. The Shadow of the Moon allows these astronauts to tell the story and the experience they had at the moon. They used nine spacecrafts for the to and fro journey. Roger Chaffee is one the lucky human beings who managed to visit the moon and came back to the earth. He was selected in October 1963 to be a member in the third group of NASA astronauts. He participated in the training as well as the training program. He controlled the communication system in the plane. Instrumentation systems and translation and attitude control systems were also under his care. Chaffee was selected one of the qualified pilots who could fly to the moon during the AS-204 operation. He was among the three men who flew to the moon during the first Apollo Flight. Unfortunately, Roger Chaffee encountered his death during the 1967 Apollo fire flash at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. There are many documentaries regarding visiting the moon, but ‘The Shadows of the Moon’ expose the characters in the most comprehensive way.
Roger Chaffee
Roger Chaffee is ambitious. He was given various responsibilities during the NASA mission and fulfilled them successfully. It took hard work and commitment from him to achieve all that was ahead of him. He worked hard to see the goals of the mission were accomplished successfully. The president had confidence in him as he knew that he would not let him down at any in time. Chaffee was given various assignments. He participated in training program to train his colleagues during the mission. Rogers worked extensively on A3D photo inspection on the plane. He comprehended functioning of the plane completely, and this is why he was permitted to fly it to the moon at his young age (BBC, part two). Similarly, Doctor Mee is as well ambitious. He does his best to save lives of desperate children; he works day and night to ensure survival of young children with heart problems (Ruhlman, 2006, p. 7). Flood is another character who is ambitious. He worked with different sport agencies and won. He made enough practice and ensured he was a hero.
Apart from his interest and hard work in job place, Rogers was compassionate. He was concerned about his family and sacrificed some of his time for his family. He was present when his wife gave birth to their first daughter. Unfortunately, he could not manage top witness the birth of their second born since he was in Africa on training. He then went back home and spent some time with his family before attending Safety and Reliability School in California. This shows that he respected his work as well as his family responsibilities. Additionally, Chaffee valued perfection as he was not ready to perform errors in his work. He encouraged his workmate to work for perfection as many have lost their lives through plane crashes. This shows concern for others and himself too. He was a man of the people who could not tell his juniors and workmates to do what he could not like to do himself (BBC, Part Four). This enhanced productivity and unity in the workplace. Doctor Rogers Mee was passionate too. He used a lot of his time advising parents on what to do. Even if, this was his field of experience, he considered their heartfelt and encouraged them whenever they lost hope. Other medical experts depended on him for advice. He was the senior person and worked with others considering their different expertise. This enhanced teamwork in the clinic which later bore fruits. Correspondingly, Curt Flood was also passionate. He sacrificed his time and money for the sake of all those who love baseball. He even went to court endangering his life for judgment which could result to jail (Synder, 2006, p. 17).
Roger Chaffee is confident. He faced the challenges in his life with great confidence irrespective of his young age. In January 1967, Chaffee found that the crew engrossed almost full time ith the last rial to the pre-flight testing. He had previously encountered several flying and technical tasks. However, his young age and boyish looks were the great obstacles. He was competing with experienced men who were famous in this filed. This did not hinder him from accomplishing his mission. His confidence made him be selected and achieved his goals. When the astronauts were competing for the three positions to join the first Apollo Earth-orbit operation, Roger was among the competitors who were trained. He had confidence that he would be chosen (BBC, Part Five). He emerged as the Commander of the mission as a result of his persistence and confidence. Chaffee never doubted his abilities. Whenever he was asked by other astronauts how he felt in the company of experienced spacemen, he claimed that he feels so secure, not because the experienced spacemen had flown before him, but because he is trained and he will be experienced as they are soon. The confidence which Doctor Rogers had in himself had saved many lives. At times, children patients were in critical conditions, which gave no hopes of survival. Doctor Mee did not give up as he had confidence in his skills. This is why even the author Michael Ruhlman declared that; Mee is the only man who could walk on water (Ruhlman, 2006, p. 23). Flood was a confident man who believed in what he would make a change in the baseball arena (Synder, 2006, p. 56).
Chaffee is appreciative. When he was named among the pilots to fly during the first Apollo Mission, he was excited and appreciated those who had selected him. He exclaimed with joy that he was extremely pleased to be named among the pilots. During 1966, Christmas, Roger had a plan to reward his wife for her continuous support. In fact, he gave her a special gift for taking care of their children and supporting him throughout his plans (BBC, Part Seven). Gus Grission is the person who encouraged Chaffee in his field. Roger did his best but could not have done it without the help of an experienced pilot and engineer. Grission was interested in what the young boy was doing and noted how hardworking and talented he was. He proclaimed that Roger was the smartest boy he had ever seen. In return, Chaffee appreciated this man and emulated him. He obeyed him and later adopted his body language and mannerism. This pleased the old man. He started using colorful words which Grission used in his communication. This made Grission feel honored and respected. Doctor Mee appreciated the work done by other medical experts in his absentia. When baby Connor was almost dying, he acknowledged Mac who operated the heart and Lori who prevented excess bleeding. Flood kept on appreciating his supporters and gave them hope that he would succeed (Synder, 2006, p. 34)
The three characters, Roger Chaffee, Roger Mee and Flood Curt contributed to their workplace. It was through the efforts of Roger Chaffee that the astronauts worked together in harmony. Despite the fact that he was young, he knew how to solve conflicts and encouraged his colleagues to keep moving. He was humorous which eased seriousness in tough times. This gave the colleagues a good chance to relax and think of the issue at hand. Rogers Mee led his colleagues in heart surgery. He emphasized on saving life. His workmates loved him and considered him the most important part of saving life (Ruhlman, 2004, P. 161). Flood Curt worked hand in hand with his supporters until the journey ended. He was focused on changing the game rules. He explained to his followers the aim of his struggled, and they all walked together.
In conclusion, every person has a different personality. Even identical twins behave differently in different situations. This is why every human being is unique. However, some people have similar character traits which they apply in different situations. The three authors portray different characters with similar character traits. They are confident, passionate, hardworking and appreciative. Roger Chaffee ends up an astronaut’s hero, Rogers Mee as a hero surgeon and Flood Curt as a hero sportsman. They all gained the heroism from their positive character traits. They are set in different plots, but their situations require similar traits. The characters work in different fields. They also have different goals to achieve in life. Roger Chaffee is a pilot and an astronaut. He was lucky to be one of the luckiest human beings who visited the moon. On the other hand, Rogers Mee is a surgeon. He specializes with children department. He is remembered for saving lives of innocent children born with heart problems. Flood Curt was a sportsman who failed in his game for the sake of the future players. He worked hard and ensured the rules and regulations of the game are changed. Players respect him as they can now play the game in their style. The character traits in these three characters show how people use their time, reasoning and money for the well being if others.
