“Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice, and is never the result of selfishness” (Napoleon Hill). In the short story “The Boat” by Alistair MacLeod the narrator comes to the realization that “it was very much braver to spend a life doing what you really do not want rather than selfishly following forever your own dreams and inclinations”. The father guides his son to come to this conclusion through the great sacrifices that he makes for his family throughout his life including the downfall of his marriage, the waste of his potential, and the inevitable acceptance of a life of isolation. The father places a higher priority on the future of his children than the well being of his marriage, the father overlooks the selfish demands and expectations that the mother has placed upon the children, and encourages them to follow their hearts. Furthermore the father looks past his unrealized aspirations and accepts that he may never recognize his true potential, and finally, the father sacrifices any chance for true personal happiness or a genuine sense of accomplishment and as a result must assimilate to a life of solitude, in which he finds true joy only in literature. Throughout the story the narrator is made aware of the fact that there is much conflict and disagreement between the mother and the father as to how their children are to be raised. The mother believes that their children should be brought up according to the tradition and duty of her people. The mother sees the children’s futures to be no different than her own and is quite satisfied. The mother believes that the father is setting the worst example possible for their children. She believes that the father is wasting his time in literature and becomes furious at the idea of passing his ideals on to the children. The father disapproves of the mother allowing the daughters to play by the wharf, the father believes that the daughters should live up to their potential and that as parents...