Characters: Dragon, Boy, St. George, Townspeople, Boy’s parents
Settings: Downs, Dragon’s cave, Battlefield, Boy’s house
Plot: When a boy meets a dragon in a cave, a big adventure awaits— from an exploration to a fight with St. George.
Genre: Fantasy fiction
The Reluctant Dragon is a book about a boy meeting a dragon in a cave, arousing a big adventure. His father saw a dragon in a cave, and it was a dragon that covered in shiny blue scales and claws. The boy went there and talked with the dragon about poetry, history and many other interesting stories. However, since the dragon is gigantic, he cannot hide himself from the public. The townspeople soon discovered him and were afraid, naturally, as dragons often go about in an evil way, and don’t get along nicely with humans. Therefore, they arranged a fight between the dragon and St. George, determined to vanquish the beast. Through the cooperation and plan of the dragon, St. George and the boy, the fight ended pretty well, and the towns people was happy, only because there was a fight. St. George and the dragon understood each other better, and they became friends, and so does the boy.
Don’t just believe everything you hear without independent thinking. Sometimes things that seemed to be realistic might actually just be rumors and false gossip. St. George’s fight with the dragon was driven by rumors about the dragon that are all bad. The dragon in the story wasn’t evil, but they told stories based on their hearing of dragons and everyone believe there should be a fight. People may deceive us into believing something that isn’t true unintentionally. So, don’t merely believe rumors and gossip. Give the hearing a deep thought before accepting it. Also, do your own research and look for reliable sources of information. Seek the truth, not just what's convenient and don't be swayed by the opinions of others.
Sometimes things are not just as we see through our eyes, and we need to assess the reliability. The townspeople thought the dragon was violent and thought it would be a fight full of terror and bloodshed. Therefore, after the negotiation, the dragon and St. George agreed that there will be a fight that will not hurt anyone, but will be a fantastic performance. Finally, everything go as expected and satisfied everyone at the end. It's important to keep an open mind and look beyond what appear in front of our eyes. We all have our own experiences and beliefs, but it's still important to look beyond the scene and understand our backgrounds. It's only then that we can form our own conclusions and not be fooled.
To judge something as either good or bad is a vague idea and we need to understand that opinions can vary and that there is no absolute truth. Everyone has a subjective opinion base on their past experience which is fine, but it is important to take others’ opinion into account before making judgments and list both the good and bad sides. The townspeople just said that dragons are bad, but they never talked with the dragon, or met a dragon before. But they just accepted the rumor “dragons are bad” and a fight can solve the problem. The townspeople should not be too quick to judge others based on our experience. Every time we will encounter something new, and that we cannot just judge based on our past experiences but we need to learn about that new thing. Listening to each other's views and understanding why they think a certain way is essential in fostering a positive and productive environment.
In conclusion, The Reluctant Dragon is a sarcastic book about problem of gossip, unfairness of eye judgment, and the limitation of experience. The story may sound a bit silly and nonsensical, but it has a serious origin and tried to bring out messages in a sarcastic way. The book is a highlight on not believing everything we hear, the misleading nature of seeing, and not making a quick judgment only by past experience. We should take the time to properly assess a situation, and look at all dimensions of an issue before making a decision. The Reluctant Dragon also teaches us to be more open-minded and to look beyond the surface level before making a judgment.
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