Project 2
Different POV of “Varsity”
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I had always been an outsider amongst my peers. I never seemed to fit in anywhere. I would say I felt like a spectator, but spectators don’t get beat up and bullied on a day-to-day basis. I don’t know if I wanted to be one of these sporty “popular” kids as much as I just wanted to prove that I could be like them. So, I decided that I was going to try out for the basketball team. I wish that I hadn’t done that though, as it only seemed to attract more of the wrong attention. They didn’t believe that I could play basketball so they continued to bully and belittle me. Every PE class, they just made fun of me and laughed at me. They came up with a nickname for me, “Varsity,” and called me that every time they wanted me to shoot a basket, or dunk one, or whatever else they wanted me to do. They tried to throw balls at my face, but I said nothing and continued to ignore them. I thought that the nightmare would end when the bell rang, but it only got worse afterward in the locker rooms. I thought that I would be safe in the shower where I was alone and they couldn’t mess with me. But when I got out of the shower, they all just stood there staring at me. They always took my clothes and I would race around in my towel to find them as they laughed at me. I was so tired and I just wanted them to leave me alone. I always had to have a guard up and I just wanted to exist in peace. To just not be tormented. I said nothing to them and would hold in my tears and pain. I thought that maybe if I continued to ignore them, they would stop and leave me alone. But there came a day when I stepped out of the shower, I was punched and knocked to the ground. Bloody and beaten, I was tired. I was fed up with how these people treated me, so I held up my fists and tried to protect myself. They continued to beat me to a pulp until they stopped. They perched me up against the corner of the shower and I curled into a ball. They kicked my clothes into a big puddle and then left the locker room. Although my clothes were soaking wet, I didn’t have to race around the locker room to find them. After the day ended, I went home and scurried up the stairs to my room. I tried to avoid my parents so they wouldn’t see my bruised and bloody face. I wasn’t able to hide my wounds for very long, and they demanded answers. I lied and said that I had slipped in the shower, but they didn’t believe me. My tear-filled eyes were telling a different story. I could feel my emotional scars being pried open every time they pestered me for answers. I couldn’t keep the pain bottled up inside of me anymore, so I gave in. I told them everything that happened. I never returned to that school.
I modified the short story “Varsity” because it stood out to me. After reading the story, I knew that I wanted to write it from the perspective of the kid that was bullied. I wrote about the same events that were recalled in the original point of view but modified the perspective. When I was writing from a different point of view, I found it a little challenging to portray the exact emotions and feelings of “Varsity.” I managed this challenge by stepping into his shoes to try to understand how he was feeling. Through this writing process, I was able to recognize how powerful POV and voice can be. I realized that changing the point of view of a story allows it to be seen in a completely different light.
