36 help. They believe that he will solve the problems justly. Further, Elijah does not
mind to help everyone in the City of Akbar, even the governor himself. The Israelite has comforted the sick, visited the imprisoned, and fed the
hungry. When anyone has a dispute to settle with his neighbor, he calls on him, and all accept his judgment, because they are just. The governor
is using him to increase his own standing among the people, but no one sees this 93
6. Young
Everything starts to go wrong when Elijah is still young. By his age, he lacks of life experience. Even, he has never fallen in love to a girl. Up to his age,
he feels a little upset because he seldom tastes the beauty of this world. It is what Little proposes that one characterization can be seen from the physical condition,
including his or her age. He remembered his childhood, the mornings and afternoons in Gilead, the
unfinished work he would leave in his carpentry shop. He thought of his mother and father, who had never desired their son to be a prophet. He
thought of Jezebel’s eyes and of King Ahab’ smile. He thought how stupid it was to die at twenty-three, without ever having known a woman’s love
16
7. Free
Return to the ruined city of Akbar, Elijah wants to fix something that runs unwell in the past. From now on, he will forget his old identity as a prophet
who would free Israel but fail to save even one city. According to Murphy, Elijah is characterized as a free person because of his own past. By using the direct
comments by the author and through his own thoughts, it seems obvious that now Elijah wants to be free.
The thought gave him a strange sense of euphoria. For the first time in his life he felt free, ready to do whatever he desired whenever he wished.
True, he would hear no more angels, but as compensation he was free to
37 return to Israel, to go back to work as a carpenter, to travel to Greece to
learn the thoughts of wise men, or to journey with the Phoenician navigators to the lands across the sea. 184-185
On the journey to the ruined city of Akbar, Elijah demands the silence. He
wants to clear his mind from everything that has already occurred in the past. Yet, he is ready when the fire from heaven strikes and kills him at a moment. His mind
is free from everything. He felt silent. He emptied his mind and waited for death. For a long time
he concentrated on nothing beyond the sound of his footsteps in the sand; he did not want to hear the voices of angels or threats from heaven. His
heart was free, and no longer did he fear what might befall him. 187
By the end of the story, Elijah would like to have a new name. It is a name that gives him a strong feeling about his mission of life. It is not something that is
given by his parents or any other people, but a new name that truly reflects the goal of his life. Further, he chooses Liberation as his new name. Also, he asks
people in Akbar to determine to what kind of name they will use to inspire their future life.
Each one has a name from birth but must learn to baptize his life with the word he has chosen to give meaning to that life. At that moment he
named his life Liberation. Elijah rose and prayed, “I fought Thee, Lord and I am not ashamed. And because of it I discovered that I am on my
path because such is my wish, not because it was imposed on me by my father and mother, by customs of my country, or even by Thee. 205-206
8. Depressed
