In The Sanctuary of Outcasts
By Neil White
purpose
Tree
The big tree outside the prison Neil White was in.
Ella
The Patient who Neil likes the most and spends the most time talking to.
Neil White
Neil White standing in a corridor of the prison he was in.
Summary
This book deals with a man's everyday life and events in a low security prison. The prison is unique from the fact that the prisoners are sharing the prison with patients of leprosy. During his stay in the prison he starts to see how society has thrown away these people who have golden personalities. Also he begins to understand his flaws and come to terms how they lead him to jail.
Author's Purpose
The purpose for writing this book is to show an interesting and changing part of his life. Also it shows the great personalities and problems of those who were pushed out of society due to their leprosy. with showing us this we see how one can learn from even those rejected from society. "Finally, in a sanctuary for outcasts, I understood the truth. Surrounded by men and women who could not hide their disfigurement, I could see my own" (169).
Three Concepts
A. looking at past actions with present eyes can help one see their mistakes and flaws.
B.Even though people say they only care about what they think they still care a lot about others opinions.
C.We tend to think of the bad rather than the good.
Impression Chapter
The chapter that left the biggest impression on me was chapter 40 when Neil White finally comes to feel the full weight of his crimes. In this section he has a sudden realization of who he was and how wrong he was. He finally sees his vanity and ill pride only when his wife files for divorce and talks about him losing his kids.
Score
I give this book a 3 out of 5. I give it this score because it is a good book that keeps you interested and entertained throughout the book but I felt it was hard sympathize and care for the character much. The characters best friend in this book is Ella who is a leprosy patient that has lived in the building/prison for 60+ years. The leprosy patients have their own community with little festivals and fun in the building. This lessened the feeling of their ostracism but was brought back now and then by what they lost to have their little fun.
Two passages
One passage on page 154 got my attention due to it talking about who Neil white was before he was arrested. This passage showed that he was vain and wanted to be perfect since he was 10 years old. Another passage on page 97 also shows this as when he was caught once and in debt he still spent more. This would hurt his previous magazine that he publishes and have his investors lose a lot of money. This is all due to him not learning from his mistakes due to how he felt felt "In a way, I did feel bulletproof."(97).
Addressed Issue
The main issue addressed in "In the sanctuary of outcasts" was that people who had contracted leprosy were shunned from society and had some of their liberties taken away from them. Neil Feels this is wrong especially due to him referring to the patients with leprosy having to share their home with convicts which to him shows how much society views them. In cases when he talks about the leprosy patients he becomes more sympathetic and is saddened at how their lives have been hurt. In some cases bounty hunters came to get the leprosy patients even though they did nothing wrong.