Other Side of the Bridge - Violence and Avoidance

             In today's society, on a daily basis, everyone struggles with coping with adversity, no matter how big or small it is. While everyone deals with adversity, the way we deal with it makes us different as some deal with adversity by using positive approaches, while others use negative approaches. In the novel "The Other Side of the Bridge" by Mary Lawson, the protagonist Arthur Dunn strives to overcome the adversity he faces due to his family relationships. However by using the negative approaches of violence and avoiding his adversity, Arthur is unable to overcome his adversities effectively. .
             Arthur first uses negative approaches to cope with adversity when he uses violence. Arthur's initial act of violence is significant, as it has a harmful impact on himself as his violence only leads to guilt. The struggle Arthur faces is his relationship with his brother Jake, and their rivalry, in which Jake constantly tries to push Arthur over the edge. However Arthur never reacts, until this incident. When Arthur and Jake take two cows from their farm to the Luntez farm, they cross a bridge, on the bridge Jake begins to fool around by hanging on the bars under the bridge. When Jake can no longer hold on, Arthur, Jake and the narrator say, " 'Art!'- his voice a shriek - 'I'm going to fall!' 'Good,' Arthur said. A word that would haunt him for the rest of his life" (Mary Lawson, The Other Side of the Bridge, 90). While Arthur's violence was not physical, his verbal violence towards his brother had the same impact and intent. After all the adversity Jake had caused Arthur by putting him into sticky situations, he wanted him to feel pain, which is why he says "good." In addition, Arthur does not help Jake off the bridge, allowing him to fall off the bridge and injure himself. However, Arthur's verbal violence is ineffective in coping with adversity, because it greatly impacts him, making him feel guilty.