Humans are born with goals: some seek fame, some seek money, some seek achievement in professional fields, and some just want their lives to be happy . If one wants to be content with life, one must change one's old ways of living and adopt new things. In both The Prospector's Trail by Cathy Jewison and The Singing Silence by Eva Lis Wuorio, the main characters were dissatisfied with life. In search of true happiness, they begin to try things they have never experienced before. In the end, both protagonists discover that their new activities can bring them happiness and begin to live satisfying lives. First of all, the protagonists of both stories started out dissatisfied with life. In The Prospector's Trail, Norman's life was full of stress and misery. He and his girlfriend Jennifer, who was bright and competent both at university and at work, obtained their tourism studies certificate at the same university and "[he] found a decent job soon after graduation, but he was disconcerted by the formality and high expectations. of the office” (Jewison 25). He had a job for which he was neither suited nor competent; his girlfriend and his boss expected him to perform well, but he failed to meet their expectations. Pressure was constantly put on him and because of this he was unhappy with his life. In The Singing Silence, the main character Vicente lived on the island of Formentera when he was young. Vicente was poor, but he wanted to achieve something greater, like money or fame: “60 years ago he was an ambitious boy… there wasn't much for a Spaniard to do in his country, Spain” (Wuorio 158). He was not satisfied with his living conditions and he ardently wanted...... middle of paper ...... the protagonists finally arrive at a life of satisfaction after trying new activities. the experiences of the main characters, Norman and Vicente, respectively from The Prospector's Trail by Cathy Jewison and The Singing Silence by Eva Lis Wuorio, prove that in order to achieve a fulfilled and satisfied life, one must be open to new things and try a new way of living. At the beginning, the main characters are both dissatisfied with their old lives; as the stories progress, they attempt to adopt new ways of living; finally, by experiencing what they have never done before, the main characters find their true interest and become content with life. Both stories convey the idea that one should not be afraid to try new things, because these attempts can help one find one's true interest and lead a happy life..