Tuesdays with Morrie

Tuesdays with Morrie

Written by Mitch Albom

Tuesdays with Morrie is about an elderly man named Morrie Shwartz diagnosed in his seventies with Lou Gehrig's disease. Morrie has always lived his life in his own fashion, taking his path less stressful. And continues to do so until his dying day. One of his former students sitting thousands of miles away in Michigan stumbled upon this episode of "Nightline" on the television by chance and most likely by fate. This student, Mitch Album, decides to pay a visit to his favorite tutor in quiet suburb of Boston. As he was a professor of Sociology for many years, Morrie begins again to educate Mitch Album, in, what he calls, his "final thesis." The old professor and the youthful student meet every Tuesday. As the disease progresses, Morrie shares his opinions on issues such as family, love, emotions, and aging. Although the cover of the book states "an old man, a young man, and life's greatest lesson," but the book actually provides numerous life lessons.

Morrie Schwartz -

Morrie is Mitch's favorite professor from Brandeis University, and the main focus of the book is Morrie, who now suffers from ALS, a weakening, incurable disease that destroys his body, but cruelly leaves him as intelligent as ever before. He had taught sociology at Brandeis, and continues to teach it to Mitch, enlightening him on "The Meaning of Life", and how to accept death and aging. After having a childhood with out much affection shown at all, he lives on physical contact, which is rather similar to a baby. He has a passion for dancing and music, and cries a lot, especially since the beginning of his disease. He doesn't hide his emotions, but he shares them openly with anyone, and stays in the same frame of thinking as he did before this fatal disease struck. Mitch Albom sees him as a man of absolute wisdom.

Janine -

She is Mitch's patient wife who kindly takes a phone call from Morrie, whom she has never met, and urges Mitch to let her join him on his next Tuesday visit. Although she usually does not sing in public or when someone requests, she does for Morrie, and makes him tear with her beautiful voice.

Mitch Albom -

Morrie's former student at Brandeis University, and the narrator of the book. After forgetting about his dreams of becoming a famous musician, he is disgusted by they way the he wants financial success and wealth, though neither actually make him happy at all. He has been working himself nearly to death, and suddenly finds that he doesn't have a job when the staff at the newspaper he works for decides to go on strike. Each Tuesday, he learns from Morrie, his that he needs to change his life and his thought process, and to value love more than money, and happiness more than success.

Peter -

Peter is Mitch's younger brother who lives in Spain. Peter flies to many European cities looking for treatment for his pancreatic cancer, but he refuses any help from his family, and by doing so he has made himself seem like a total stranger from lack of contact. He is "too busy" when Mitch first tries to remake a relationship with him, but eventually warms up.

Charlotte -

This is Morrie's caring wife, who, following Morrie's wishes keeps her job as a professor at M.I.T. throughout Morrie's illness.

This story of Mitch Albom and Morrie Schwartz illuminates many truths that are known throughout the world, including this law of nature. Morrie's illness and death gives Mitch a perspective that immediately changes his life. The success that caused him to neglect the most important things becomes the way to send Morrie's message to all the people who need reminders of what those things are. For example:

Happening: A newspaper strike takes Mitch out of his job as a writer and makes him question his ability to survive without something that he feels is his "lifeline...when I saw my stories in print each morning,