I am the Cheese By: Robert Cormier 1977 Lauren Peters

Synopsis  I am the Cheese is a novel about a 14 year old boy named Adam Farmer (later Paul Delmonte) who is now living in a mental institution trying to remember the horrendous events from his past. While doing so, he is traveling from Monument, Massachusetts to Rutterburg, Vermont in search of his father. Along the way, his whole life and all its hidden truth unfolds in front of him.

“ I am afraid of a thousand things, a million. Like is it possible to be claustrophobic and yet fear open spaces, too?” (12).  I too am afraid of many things in my life. Examples are not knowing what’s going to happen tomorrow, my family ( in particular my aunt who is suffering from breast cancer), as well as other significant people in my life. I also fear what my future is going to be like, though I also can’t wait for future life, in hopes it will be better.

“Amy Hertz had turned out to be the person with whom he was comfortable to share his dreams. He kept few secrets from her” (121).  There has always been that one person in my life who I tell everything to. I tell everything to my mom because she never shares anything I tell her not to, and does not judge anything I have to say. She’s only ever been the one person in the world I can trust with that.

“ I pedal smoothly, my arms and legs moving beautifully, coordinated, and it seems as if pedaling the bike is second nature now, part of my existence, something I was born to do” (211).  Something that I consider second nature to me is writing. Since I can remember, I have always been writing. I’ve been naturally good at it, and made 6’s on both of my writing assessments in 5 th and 8 th grade.

“ Elevators panic me. I stand in the upright coffin and my body oozes sweat and my heart pounds and the terrible feeling of suffocation threatens me and I wonder if the door will ever open” (12).  In one way I am connected to the protagonist of this story because I am terrified of elevators. I always think it will break and I will fall all the way down to the 1 st floor, and die. The small space also gets to me because just like Adam, I’m some what claustrophobic.

“I am not only afraid of dogs, but I’m also afraid of snakes and spiders” (31).  I happen to love dogs, but another way I relate to the protagonist is that I’m also afraid of snakes and spiders. I have the worst case of Arachnophobia and Ophidiophobia. I love animals, but bugs, the world can do without.

“ I opened the bottle of pills and turned it over and let the pills fall out. And I watched them fall out into the mouth of garbage disposal. I felt strong and resolute” (14).  Here, Adam is getting rid of medication he has to take due to his. But he wants to become independent, and show he can do things without the medicine. That’s how I am. I like to prove to people that I can do things without aid from others.

Theme  The theme of I am the Cheese is if you don’t know who you are, what your point and or purpose is in life, then all you have to do is reconcile your past to figure it out. Many times in the book, filling in the blanks of Adam’s past is mentioned. He does so by recalling his memories and life before his tragedy, and as time goes on, a confluence of his life finally takes place.

MLA Citation  Cormier, Robert. I am the Cheese. New York: New York, 1977.