The Changes of Matt in The House of The Scorpion by Nancy Farmer

Have you ever wondered what would happen if cloning existed? The House of the Scorpion is about cloning and the many moral problems it would cause. In The House of the Scorpion, by Nancy Farmer throughout the story with the help of others, Matt changes greatly. Tam Lin changes Matt, Maria changes Matt, and El Patron changes Matt.

Maria makes matt kinder. It is after El Viejo’s funeral and Maria and matt are in the computer room. “‘So you have to promise to be good’ ‘okay,’ said Matt, who would have promised her anything at that point”. This is partially what made Matt feel more human. This is the first time Matt has really tried to be nice and it has a large impact on him later. Later in the story when El Patron is sick and is getting the piggyback heart transplant. “‘Saint Francis says it's good to give stuff away to the poor,’ Matt suggested”. This is caused by Maria causing him to think about the poor and other people in general. This is the effect of all the hard work Maria has put into changing matt for the better. This is the change that Maria has done to Matt and this is one of the big changes to Matt throughout the story.

Secondly, El Patron made Matt more cunning. In the story when Matt is picking a bodyguard to help and defend him El Patron says, “Always choose your bodyguards from another country, Matt. They find it harder to make alliances and betray you.” Matt references this many times in the book so it must have really stuck with him. Since he has no father figure El Patron is the closest thing to a father he has and that makes his advice more important. Another example of El Patron's advice is when the farm patrol had caught him in the wastelands near the eejit pens. He remembers EL Patron saying, “Act like your in control,’ he said, and nine times out of ten, you’ll get away with it”. Without this knowledge who knows what would have happened, he might have even been turned into an eejit. This is the start of shaping Matt into what he is at the end, cunning but kind. These are just some of the examples of what El Patron did the shape Matt into what he is at the end of the book.

Lastly, Tam Lin makes Matt self-confident. When Matt was caught sneaking out to the pond by Tam Lin he said, “Any rat in the sewer can lie. It's how rats are. It's what makes them rats. But a human doesn’t run and hide in dark places, because he’s something more”. Tam Lin believes Matt is a human and should be treated like a human, and his punishments should be the same as any humans punishments.Tam Lin believes in Matt even though he is disappointed in Matt he is the only one, everyone else thinks he is an animal and animals are stupid so he shouldn't be blamed. Another example is when everyone thought Matt had poisoned maria’s dog. “But Tam Lin had called Matt a human and expected much more from him”. This is the start of Matt being held accountable like a human instead of a dumb animal. Tam Lin treats Matt as a human and this is the first step to him feeling like a human. This is how Tam Lin raised Matt’s self-confidence, by making him feel more human.

In conclusion, my novel The House of the Scorpion, by Nancy Farmer is about how Matt changes with the help of others. Maria makes him kinder, Tam Lin makes him self-confident, and El Patron makes him cunning. Together these people change Matt for the better.