Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

Throughout the novel, Plain Truth, by Jodi Picoult, we as the reader are presented an inside look into the many boundaries that are placed on the main character, Katie Fisher. While one could argue that the majority of the boundaries were placed on her because of her religion there are also boundaries present that were placed on her because of her parents. Katie Fisher’s life pressures are much similar to those of a young student named Neil in the movie Dead Poets Society, where he endures daily pressures that turn into a problem he cannot overcome. The same situation of a family boundary is echoed in the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Picoult suggests that there are many different boundaries that can be placed on an individual, including a possible religion, their family, or maybe even themselves, but regardless of why the boundaries are there or who they may be from, having too many boundaries never leads to a desirable outcome. And depending on who controls the boundaries one follows ultimately determines how one decides to cope with undesirable situations.

In the novel, Plain Truth, author Jodi Picoult follows the life of a young girl, Katie Fisher who because of her religion is not able to many of the things girls her age are normally allowed to do. Katie has to work on her family’s farm and wear certain clothes. Because of her religion she is to marry an Amish man and continue to be faithful to her religion. If Katie were to ever cross this boundary she would be placed under a “bann” which meant she couldn’t eat with her family or many other things. (Picoult 20) When Katie ends up becoming pregnant with a baby whose father is not Amish, Katie forces herself to believe she is not pregnant and refuses to tell anyone. One may believe she was afraid of telling her family and church because of their disapproval they would have or the fact that she didn’t want to stick out like a black thread on a white quilt in the Amish community. But when she has her baby and the baby is found dead, everyone in the community is forced to believe she killed her child, and Katie is put into a position to now confront her community about having a child and prove that she did not kill her child. Katie’s situation with her family is very similar to that of Tula Portokalos in the movie, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Tula as well has grown up in a very religious Greek Orthodox family where she has religious boundaries to follow. Tula had to go to Greek school, work in her family restaurant, and marry a Greek man. Everyone in her family practices strong faith in their religion and all of her family members have married into another Greek family. When Tula meets a man who is not Greek she falls in love with him, she also starts a new job and goes to college. She does not tell her family about the man she has met and doesn’t plan to, until her cousin sees her and her boyfriend together. Tula is forced to tell her family about her boyfriend. At first they strongly disapprove but end up realizing that they love Tula for who she is and that is a stronger feeling than sticking to tradition. Tula ends up marrying her boyfriend and everyone is supportive of her decision. One may wonder if Katie would have told her family about Adam and the baby if they would have been supportive of her, but sometimes religion can get in the way of seeing what is really important. As one has seen in both stories two young girls are placed under family pressures of going by tradition. Tula ended up telling her family about her boyfriend but if she hadn’t she could have ended up in a position like Katie. So in essence this just goes to prove that not all boundaries are a good addition to anyone’s life, it can force one to hide the truth and end up getting one into an undesirable situation.

Some of the more common boundaries that are placed on individuals are those that are present because of one’s family. In Plain Truth, Katie fisher has to deal with the boundaries her very strict father has placed on her. Even though her faith would allow her to try different activities before being baptized in the church, her father would have never knowingly allow her to participate in said activities. This results in Katie having to lie to her father about going to visit her brother at college. One can begin to see that by placing too many boundaries on Katie resulted in her having to lie to preserve the said boundaries she crossed. Family pressures are also evident in the movie, Dead Poets Society, where one of the boys, Neil, is pushed and strived by his demanding father to pursue medical school and become a doctor. But