Contents
1. Introduction
2. Mitch Albom’s biography
3. Mitch Albom’s main works
4. Conclusion
5. Bibliography
Introduction
The process of writing is very complicated and it is always interesting to know
what make people write, what inspire them and what influence their writing.
Obviously, a good writer is very dependable on his/her inspiration but this
notion seems to be quite abstract and often it is possible to trace the impact
of much more trivial things influencing a writer’s work. As a rule a writer’s
life is the main source for inspiration and probably the most influential factor
which defines literary his/her works. In fact, in many cases it is possible
to say that literary work of a writer is the reflection of his/her life and
events that occurred in it which produced a significant impact on the writer’s
personality, his views and beliefs as it happened to Mitch Albom, an outstanding
contemporary writer, whose life experience is reflected in such works of his
as “The Five People You Meet in Heaven”, “Tuesdays with Morrie”,
“Fab Five”.
Mitch Albom’s biography
Mitch Albom is a contemporary American writer, who is also well known as a gifted
sport reporter. He was born in New Jersey in 1958 but he was raised in Philadelphia
where he spend most of his youth. In 1979 he graduated from Brandeis University
where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree and where he got acquainted with
his professor Morrie Sachwartz, the main character of “Tuesdays with Morrie”,
one of the main works of the writer. Later he graduated from Columbia University
and earned the Master degrees in Journalism and Business Administration.
However, “before entering the world of journalism, he was an amateur boxer
and nightclub singer and pianist” (Blackburn 2001:139). For over 10 years
he has been one of the most respected sportswriters and commentators. As a sport
journalist he wrote articles for such newspapers as the Philadelphia Inquirer
and the Detroit Free Press where he worked since 1985 “until his reunion
with Morrie in 1995” (Blackburn 2001:191). Albom also has his own nationally
syndicated radio show, Monday Sports Albom. The author has won many awards,
among which may be named awards from AP, UPI, Headliners Club, and the National
Sportswriters and Broadcasters Association (Blackburn). His works has appeared
in numerous national and international publications.
As for his literary career, it should be said that he is the author of eight
books, including “Live Albom I” (1987), “Live Albom II”
(1990), “Live Albom III” (1992), “Live Albom IV” (1995),
“Bo”, the autobiography of Bo Schembechler co-written with Schembechler,
“Fab Five”. But the work that has made him really popular is “Tuesdays
with Morrie” that “propelled Albom to literary superstardom”
(Stewart 2000:215) as well as his latest work “The Five People You Meet
in Heaven”, which is to a significant extent autobiographical. At the
same time, it should be pointed out practically all of his works are based on
his own life experience and depicts the life of the author and his thoughts
as well as of those people he new well and respected a lot.
Mitch Albom’s main works
Speaking about works written by Mitch Albom, it is necessary to say that though
they are not very numerous they are still quite interesting and noteworthy because
they are closely related to the real life and author’s personal experience
and feelings. In fact they make a reader feel as if the author involves him/her
in his own life and reveals his feelings and thoughts that disturb his as well
as he raises problems he is particularly concerned about.
Probably, it would be better to start with a work that has brought him nationwide
fame, “Tusedays with Morrie”, which is as tragic and complicated
as the real life only can be. In this work the author recalls how the political
controversies of 1970s affected his and Morries years at Brandeis University.
Following the national withdrawal from the Vietnam War in 1973, and former president
Nixon resignation from office in 1974, the Brandeis campus, as many other college
campuses nationwide, was “a hot bed for political debate and protest”
(Bokenkamp 1999:304). Continuing the thread of racial tension in “Tuesdays
with Morrie” is a story Morrie tells about an incident in which he had
acted as a “negotiator between the university president and a group of
black students who felt that they were being oppressed by the school administration”
(Bokenkamp 1999:311).
In fact the book is based on the conversations of the author with his of Lou
Gehrig’s disease. The novel is an emotional portrait of a life lived and
a guide to how the life should be lived. Within the book Mitch Albom realizes
that he lived his life in vain and he looks for meaning of life in conversations
with his professor, Morrie Schwartz, which being extremely close to death he
teaches the author what is the meaning of life. Morrie teaches him “to
reject the corrupt mores endorsed by popular culture in favor of personal, ethical
system of values” (Baye 2002:284). In such a way Morrie rebels against
popular cultural norms and appeals to higher moral values.
To a certain extent similar to Morrie, is Albom’s brother, Peter, who
suffers from cancer and, being separated from the rest of the family does not
want to re-establish normal relations with Mitch and other members of the family.
But Mitch has learned the Morrie’s principle: “love or perish”
and “despite his fierce independence and refusal of help, Peter also needs
the love of friends and family to survive his cancer” (Bokenkamp 1999:335).
In such a way the author indicates what an influence his acquaintance with Morrie
Schwartz has produced on his entire life, his views and moral values. At this
respect the book seems to be a kind of confession which tends to teach other
people what their life should be on the basis of his own life experience.
The latest novel “The Five People You Meet in Heaven” is also based
on Albom’s life experience and is significantly influenced by the circumstances
of his life and its political and social trends. The book centres on an 83-year-old
wounded war veteran who is killed in a tragic accident. He soon discovers that
heaven “isn’t merely a destination but a place where five people
help the deceased understand the significance and value of their life on earth”
(Baye 2002:399). The main character of the book, Eddie also looks for the meaning
of life for he feels trapped in a meaningless life of fixing rides at a seaside
amusement park. Quite symbolically he sacrifice his life for the sake of a girl’s
life which he attempts to save from a falling cart. On the heaven he meets five
people that have changed his life forever and who explain his life for him.
One by one, Eddie’s five people “illuminate the unseen connections
of his earthly life” (Baye 2002:317). Gradually he learns about the interrelationship
of all lives, about sacrifice, the everlasting value of love, the poisonness
of lingering anger and, finally, how his daily routine had in fact fulfilled
his life’s intended purpose of keeping Ruby Pier’s rides safe, and
a source of joy, for generations of children.
Obviously the main point of the story is to assist those like Eddie in the book
and Albom’s real-life uncle, also named Eddie (to whom the book is dedicated),
who feel their life unimportant, to realize that their lives really have an
importance. It can be said that “the value of his fable-like story is
the insights it imparts about life and the meaning of sacrifice” (Baye
2002:356) especially, concerning the people who came through a war as Eddie,
both fictional and real uncle, did.
As four “Fab Five”, it should be said that to a certain extent the
book is less moralistic as the two discussed above, nonetheless it is not less
influenced by the author life experience. The book was written earlier than
the two analysed above and basically it is about Michigan University basketball
team known as fab five. The fab five were “a group of players that were
completely dominant players who played in 1992-93 season” (Stewart 2000:381).
Actually it is quite natural that Albom, having a great experience as a sportswriter
and journalist turns to this team story.
Conclusion
Thus, taking into consideration all above mentioned, it is possible to conclude
that Mitch Albom, as any other writer, used his life experience in his literary
works. Moreover, his books were based on his own life experience and some of
them, such as “Tuesdays with Morrie”, are to a certain extent autobiographical.
On analysing some of his works, it is possible to say that all of them reflect
the author’s life, its political and social reality and views and beliefs
of the writer shaped under the influence of the whole society and some special
people in particular, like Morrie. This is why, it is obvious that willingly
or not, or probably consciously or unconsciously, writers’ literary work
is shaped by their life experience.
Bibliography:
1. Baye, H. (2002). Mitch Albom’s works. New York: Touchstone.
2. Blackburn, R. (2001). Mitch Albom: Biography. LA: Routledge.
3. Bokenkamp, S.R. (1999). Contemporary American Writers. Berkley: University
of California Press.
4. Stewart, L. (2000). Mitch Albom. New York: McGraw Hill.
