Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach is basically about the story of an adventurous seagull's life. It looks like a book for a grade school reading level. After you scratch beneath the surface, however, I found the book is filled with things many fourth graders probably wouldn't grasp. Such as the use of use of personification, symbolism, and didactic themes.
             The story starts as a we are introduced to a young gull named Jonathan Livingston Seagull. He finds he is being oppressed by society because he finds the life of a typical seagull is disconcerting in it's inane and tedious nature. In a rebellious move he begins to teach himself to fly at very high speeds, which would be a crime the equivalent of a felony in human society.
             One day while Jonathan is flying he loses control while trying to change direction and flies straight through the flock and the tyrannical elders. After many failed attempts, he is able to control himself. He begins back to the flock filled with glee and thinking, "We can lift ourselves of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill. We can learn to be free! We can learn to fly!" (Bach 30). What Bach is trying to say is that being persistent pays off.
             Back to the plot, when returning to the flock to show off his discovery, the heartless elders await him. They banish him for endangering the lives of his brothers by his careless behavior. After being banished, he lives on the cliffs at the far end of the shore and practices his flying daily. In time he finds that he is better off without the oppression from the flock, he is now free to practice whenever he feels.
             One night while practicing, two seagulls, who have a bright glow about them, start to fly with Jonathan with more skill than Jonathan. Jonathan follows them to a place he thinks is heaven. He inquires about this and his instructor, who answers, "Most of us came along ever so slowly. We w...