Discussion Question Blog Post #1

Discuss Jacob's motives for hating Joseph McGuinty in Water for Elephants and explain how Marlena relates to his hatred.

Young Jacob and Marlena

Elderly Jacob

Jacob despises Joseph McGuinty because he causes Jacob's painful memories of his circus days and lost love, Marlena, to resurface.  Joseph McGuinty is an old man in Jacob's nursing home for the elderly who lies to Jacob's friends about giving water to elephants when he was younger.  This sparks up feelings and memories deep inside Jacob that he has been repressing for years.  In his youth, Jacob was the Benzini Brothers Circus veterinarian.  His most cherished animal in the circus was Rosie the elephant, who he would give water to daily.  When McGuinty lies about giving water to elephants, Jacob becomes furious, but keeps his reasons a secret.  He desperately wants to talk with his friends about McGuinty's lies, but in doing so, he would reveal his troubled past with the circus.  At first, Jacob loved his job of working with the circus animals, but the situation changed dramatically. One evening, the circus exploded into a crazed panic. Exotic animals and fleeing civilians ran wildly about, trying to escape the pandemonium.  During the craze, Jacob finds the woman he loves, Marlena, in the act of murdering the circus' leader. "She lifted the stake high in the air and brought it down, splitting his head like a watermelon... So long ago. But it still haunts me. I don't talk much about those days... 'I used to carry water for elephants' says McGuinty. 'You did not.' I say" (Gruen 9).  That traumatic night was the culmination of months of love, hardship, and suffering, but Jacob will never be able to talk about it.  He would love nothing better than to set the record straight with McGuinty about circus life, however, as frustrating as it is, Jacob must continue to keep his beloved's past a secret.  The circus is where Jacob fell in love with animals, but more importantly, Marlena, the love of his life.  McGuinty's bragging lies about the circus offend Jacob, because the circus was such an important part of his life. It is where he became a man, where he became passionate about being a veterinarian, and where he found true love. Jacob's life experience in the circus defined his future, creating the man that he would later become with the woman he would always love. Those days are important, yet painful to him, so McGuinty's false circus stories belittled Jacobs past and insulted his memories.