In the fictional story Forrest Gump, Forrest Gump tells us about his adventurous life from his point of view. He tells us a story of a man who was born below average but still lives his best life. From having a back like a question mark to playing Highschool and college football, fighting in Vietnam and running his own shrimp business, Forrest Gump does not let anything stop him from what he wants to do. The purpose of this paper is to show you how to look on the bright side of any situation.
The story starts off by Forrest Gump waiting on a bus bench. A young lady sits down on the bench next to him and he started telling his story. Forrest Gump offers the lady a chocolate and quotes, ‘Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” that quote meaning, that you do not really know what a chocolate tastes like until you bite it, in the end you have tasted whether you liked it or not.
This applies the same for life, you do not really know what every day of your life is going to be until you live it. It may be great experience or can be worse, but you would not know it until you live it. While eating he took a look at the lady’s shoes and says “Momma always says there’s an awful alot you could tell about a person by their shoes. Where they’re going Where they’ve been.” If you see someone’s shoes and they’re dirty and all beat up, you can identify they have been through a lot.
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Forrest had to get special braces on his legs to straighten out his back. The doctor identified his back as crooked as a Politician. Forrest did not know how to feel about his new shoes. His mother always told him that they were his magic shoes. “Don’t ever let anybody tell you they are better than you, Forrest.” “If God intended everybody to be the same, he would’ve have given us all braces on our legs.” Says his mother. Forrest mom supported and loved him even though he was different,”
Forrest Gump and his mom owned a large home and rented it out for other people to stay in. One day, Forrest stumbled across a guest and Forrest was intrigued about his guitar. The man taught him how to swing his hips and dance. Later on, Forrest saw that man on tv and he went by the king (Elvis). His mother pulled him away saying “don’t pay attention to all that mess.”
The next day, Forrest gets on the school bus to go to school for his first day. He tried to find a place to sit but the kids rejected him besides one, Jenny. Jenny always left a sparkle in his eye. Jenny always felt safe when she was with Forrest. “Me and Jenny went together like peas and carrots,” Forrest says. They were both walking home one day, these little rascals stop them on bikes and started calling Forrest names. Forrest got bullied a lot because of how mentally slow he was.
When the boys were calling him names, he kept a smile on his face. Forrest may be mentally slow, but he is mentally strong. The boys later on throw rocks at Forrest. Jenny yelled at Forrest to run away. He ran so fast that his leg braces broke off and he ran like the wind. Years later, while they are in high school the same situation happened. Forrest and Jenny got stopped by the same hooligans and they threw rocks at him. Jenny tells Forrest to run and he ran faster than before. The guys chased him with their truck while driving.
Forrest ends up running across a football field. While running he got noticed by the football coaches. “Who is that?” said a coach, “Forrest Gump, just your local idiot,” replied another coach. Forrest started playing football for the University of Alabama as a kick returner. According to the head coach, “he may be stupid, but he is fast.” The football team became all American and Forrest met John F Kennedy. When JFK asked Forrest “how does it feel to be all American?” Forrest replied with, “I gotta pee.” when meeting the president, Forrest should have showed JFk more respect, but Forrest does not know any better. 5 years later he graduated college.
Forrest Gump got approached by a man in an army uniform asking him if he knew what he wanted to do with his future, while he handed him a brochure about the Army. Forrest takes the army into consideration and is later enlisted. When Forrest got on the bus, the other soldiers did not let him set next to them besides Bubba. Bubba and Forrest introduced themselves and became brothers at heart. Forrest outperforms everyone in his platoon in basic training. “Gump you must have an IQ of 180,” stated his drill Sargent. Forrest found Jenny later performing a song in a strip club and “saves her” from rude guests that were touching her inappropriately. Jenny and Forrest our outside the club and she keeps telling him that he can’t keep coming around trying to save her. Jenny stopped a random truck and asked for a ride, when she said goodbye to Forrest, he told her that he was going to Vietnam. Jenny told Forrest, “no matter what kind of situation you are in, if you’re in trouble, just run. Run as fast as you can and don’t look back.”
When Bubba and Forrest arrived in Vietnam they got approached by a man named Lieutenant Dan Taylor. Lieutentant Dan approaches them both as they were saluting him and angrily said,” woah get your damn hands down! Do not salute me, there are goddamn snipers who’d love to grease an officer.” Then, he proceeded to make fun off Bubbas bottom lip telling him, “you better tuck that thing in before it gets caught on hang wire.” Forrest revealed that he was lucky to have LT. Dan as a lieutenant. Later in a mission, gunfire broke out in Vietnam and Forrest ran away but forgot Bubba.
On his way to find Bubba he found soldiers from his platoon and took them to open land away from combat. Every time Forrest went into the woods he found more people to save. He eventually found Bubba and he took him to the other wounded soldiers. Forrest is really strong hearted, even after carrying all the other comrades he still goes back for Bubba. Bubba and Forrest were by the water with the other comrades and when Bubba was in Forrest’s arms he said, “I wanna go home” as he slowly dies. Forrest later said that Bubbas last words will always stick to him.
Forrest got put in the veteran hospital to heal and learned how to play ping pong. A fellow comrade that was in the room with him taught him how to play ping pong. When he was teaching him, he told him, “don’t take your eye off the ball.” Forrest Gump had become a local icon in the hospital because of how good he was. One day, Forrest was playing ping pong and a man of a higher rank told him he was awarded the medal of honor. Forrest met president Richard Nixon and talked about his award on national television.
Nixon asked, “where is the wound son?” Forrest replied with, “in the buttocks sir.” Nixon follows up with “man I would kind of like to see that.” Forrest turned around and showed his butt to Richard Nixon on television, Nixon walked away laughing. Forrest got admitted into the American ping pong team later and traveled the world. When he traveled the world playing ping pong he ended up in China. He played in the championship and won.
Once he came back home he fulfilled Bubbas dream of starting a shrimp business like he committed to. First, Forrest went to Bubba’s family and told them his proposition. “are you dumb or stupid?” says Bubbas mom. “Stupid is and stupid does,” Forrest replied. Second, Forrest bought a shrimp boat and all of his supplies and set sail to the bay. Forrest tried nonstop to catch shrimp but nothing was working out. Forrest tells us on how he misses Jenny and names his boat after her.
There is a scene after where after Jenny takes an injection of heroin and Jenny realized the way she was living was bad and almost jumped off a building. Forrest was cruising through the bayou one day and saw Lieutenant Dan. Years ago, lieutenant Dan told Forrest when he starts his shrimp boat business he would join him. They both set sail and try to bring in shrimp, but nothing was working. Lieutenant Dan sarcastically says, “why don’t you pray for shrimp?” A couple moments later it started raining and lightning while they were out on the water. Lieutenant Dan is screaming at God telling him to come here and take him.
Hurricane Carmen destroyed every boat in the bayou. Forrest’s boat was the only one that was left standing and that’s how Bubba Gump shrimp started. “So you’re telling me, you’re the owner of Bubba Gump shrimp?” asks a man. “yes sir” Forrest replies. The man got up from the bus bench and walked away saying how he sat next to a millionaire. Lieutenant Dan and Forrest were on a lunch break and received a call saying Forrest’s mom was sick.
Forrest jumped out of the boat, swam and ran home. When Forrest got home he could tell his momma was very ill. While in her deathbed she told Forrest how proud she is of him and that she will always miss him. “What am I supposed to do now?” asks Forrest, “life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get,” Said his mother. She died the next day.
Lieutenant Dan, found peace with god. Lieutenant Dan sent a letter to Forrest saying how he made an investment in a fruit company (apple) and Forrest does not have to worry about money ever again. Forrest gave money to local schools and hospitals. Forrest gave Bubbas mom Bubbas share. Forrest was really
productive during the day but he said at night there was nothing to do. He told us on how he missed Jenny. Jenny comes home. Forrest and Jenny walk by Jenny’s old house and she threw rocks while saying,” how could you do this?” talking to the house. After she was done throwing rocks she broke down and cried. Forrest proposed to Jenny that night and she replied with, “you don’t wanna marry me.” He responded with, “I know I am not a smart man, but I know what love is,” then he walks out. Jenny ran off while he was sleeping.
Forrest would spend his days siting around doing nothing and then one day, he just started running. He ran to the end of town and just kept going. He went from sea to sea. Over the course of him running, he gains nationwide attention. People would always ask him why he was running. Local news reporters ask, “are you running for woman’s rights?” he just responds with, “I just felt like running.” Along the journey of him running, a man in the bumper sticker business asks Forrest for help.
Forrest was running and the bumper sticker man says “woah man you just ran through a big pile of dog shit!” Forrest responds with, “it happens.” “what?” the man said. The man came up with a bumper sticker that says, “shit happens.” Forrest said, “I heard that he made a lot of money off of that.” Another man approaches Forrest while running asking for help with his t-shirt business. While talking Forrest runs through mud and get it all over his face. The t shirt man handed him a yellow shirt and Forrest wipes off the mud and it leaves a smiley face on the shirt.
You can say the message is that to be happy even through bad times. A perfect smiley face in mud. Momma always said,” that you should put the past behind you and keep moving on.” Forrest lived by that message while he was running. Over the years of running Forrest accumulated a parade of followers and one day he just stopped in the middle of the road. Forrest turned around says, “I’m pretty tired, I think I’ll go home now.”
Forrest got a letter from Jenny telling him to come see her. When he got to Jenny’s house, he met his son for the first time and he was in complete shock. He says, “he is the most beautiful thing.” He follows up with the question asking if he is smart. Jenny replied with, “he is really smart, he is the top of his class.” Forrest told Jenny that her and Forrest can come live with him. Jenny told Forrest he can marry her. Jenny walked out in her wedding dress and helps Forrest fix his tie and Lieutenant Dan and his fiancé show up.
Lieutenant Dan introduces his new fiancé and tells Forrest about his new legs. “titanium alloy, it’s what they put in the space shuttle,” lieutenant Dan says. Forrest replied with, “you got magic legs Lt.Dan.” Jenny and Forrest got married. Jenny passed away and Forrest buried her under their tree where they used to swing from when they were younger. Forrest cries at her grave and tells her how much he misses her. Forrest bulldozed down Jenny’s old house. Forrest was standing on her grave and talked about how good Forrest is at ping pong and how smart he is. It was Forrest Jr first day of school and Forrest told his son he loves him as he put him on the bus. The movie ended with a feather ascending from the ground just how like it was in the opening scene.
Work Cited
- Forrest Gump. Dir. Robert Zemeckis. By Eric Roth. Perf. Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Sally Field, and Mykelti Williamson. Paramou
