CANOE

OCEAN

SCARE

CARES

FEEL

FLEE

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ENTER NEW WORD HERE

Will explains what an anagram is by using canoe and ocean as an example. He says “same letters, different words, somehow still make sense together, like brothers”.

Canoe to ocean is also a fitting pair to compare to brothers, as a canoe helps one stay afloat in the turbulent waters just like a brother's love and support helps one stay afloat in life.

Will scribbled on his wall in pencil (in case his mother made him erase it) the anagram: SCARE = CARES in the room that he shared with Shawn.

Shawn had been going out at night and Will and his mother were worried about him. The anagram represents Will's love for his brother mixed up with his fear and anxiety over what he might be up to. He knows that Shawn jammed his middle drawer shut so that nobody could go in it, the drawer that hid his gun. The anagram is a fitting paradox of what one feels for family and friends - love mixed with the anxiety that they might get hurt.

When Will explains how he felt after Dani was killed, he says that at first, he cried all night. The next morning, Shawn explained "The Rules" and Will learned that he shouldn't cry.His feelings were building to the point where he felt them eating him up inside.He comes up with the anagram: FEEL - FLEE because he had to escape from those feelings and push them down deep.

It isn’t until Will sees his brother crying at the end of the story that he feels "allowed" to express emotion for the grief he feels. In this way, the anagram takes on a new meaning. Can Will flee or escape from the cycle of violence by being able to acknowledge and cope with his grief in a way that does not lead to more destruction?

Describe how the words are related

Describe the meaning behind the anagram

ANAGRAMS in LONG WAY DOWN:

ORIGINAL WORD

NEW WORD