Naina Soni - Shane Discussion

It is evident that early in the novel, Bob is awed by and idolizes the dangerous, cool, mysterious Shane. In fact, in chapter two, Bob describes Shane by calling him a "man like father in whom a boy could believe in the simple knowing that what was beyond comprehension was still clean and solid and right" (p. 91). He treats Shane like a role model, or a father-figure, who is good, just, and sincere. Hence, it is easy to understand why Bob tries so hard to stop Shane from leaving his family after Shane has killed both Fletcher and Wilson.
In the midst of the conversation, Shane questions his manhood since he has taken away the lives of others. To Shane, a man does not take away something from another (perhaps a reason why he never acted on the bond he shared with Marian). He also describes Joe as a "real man," telling Bob, "A man is what he is, Bob, and there's no breaking the mold. I tried that and I've lost. But I reckon it was in the cards from the moment I saw a freckled kid on a rail up the road there and a real man behind him, the kind that could back him for the chance another kid never had" (p. 263). He tells Bob to not mourn Shane's leaving, but to rather appreciate his father for what he is; even though Shane, Bob's hero, is leaving, Bob has another hero to look up to - his father.