It’s clear that George and Emily feel hopeless in this situation. They do not want to be marry, but they are being forced to. Universality is when something may apply to a large group of people, maybe even everyone, such as universal themes.
Emily and George’s reluctance shows this to many different types of groups. Smaller groups of people who are forced in to arranged marriages or pressured to marry a person they don’t love can greatly relate to this, as they feel trapped in a fate that they don’t like and don’t want to go through with.
However, on a bigger scale, it can also apply to everyone. Every single person on this planet has had moments where they’ve felt utterly trapped and hopeless when being forced to do something or witness something. It could be as small as being called on by the teacher when you don’t know the answer to the question, or as big as being forced to live with someone who you don’t like for the rest of your life.
This reluctance that Emily and George show in their following through with their marriage can be relatable to everybody, no matter on what scale that relatability can be found.
Ted Koppel seems to be quite an interesting character to develop a parallel plot to the one in the book. Koppel´s life as one of the most famous living television interviewers is a great source for a second plot. He and Morrie cross paths .Ted´s newly found friendship with Morrie affects his life and deconstructs his narcissistic television personality making him change directions in his life.
