Quote:
Originally Posted by issybird
I've been thinking about this since you posed your question and I think it works better this way. I'm not familiar with all the jargon that underlies the theory, but I think if this is to be a classic hero's journey, with the hero coming full circle, then the conditions at the end should replicate those at the beginning. Since Roy now must take the place of the aging player in his last test, I think it was necessary for him to have the same final task. And the Babe Ruth reference makes it entirely credible.
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If so, I wish Malamud had offered some reason for the change from pitching to hitting somewhere along the way. I've always felt a bit disgruntled by it; Roy ought to have some real motivation for the change beyond the author's wanting to make the arc of his story fit into a certain predetermined structure.