The relationship between Mr. Pirzada and Lilia is an interesting one. Mr. Pirzada is very kind and affectionate towards Lilia. Lilia, on the other hand, has mixed feelings towards Mr. Pirzada during the beginning of the story, but comes to love him by the end. Candy plays in important role in their relationship.
At the beginning of the story, Lilia describes her first impressions of Mr. Pirzada, saying that she "was charmed by the presence of Mr. Pirzada's rotund elegance, and flattered by the faint theatricality of his attestations, yet unsettled by the superb ease of his gestures, which made [her] feel, for an instant, like a stranger in [her] own home" (29). Lilia seems to like Mr. Pirzada, but at the same time doesn't quite feel comfortable with him yet.
Mr. Pirzada is fond of Lilia right from the beginning of the story. He brings her the chocolate because he believes that she "incapable of spoiling" (29). The way I read it, he almost seems like an uncle, in some ways. He gives Lilia chocolate and expects nothing in return, not even a "thank you," he carves the jack-o'-lantern with her, and offers to watch over her while she goes trick-or-treating.
Mr. Pirzada's candies always have a special meaning to Lilia, as even before she learns about his family, she keeps the treats in a nice box and treats them like jewels. I think she realizes that Mr. Pirzada cares about her, so she should be thankful for his gifts.
After Lilia learns about Mr. Pirzada's family, the candies take on a deeper meaning. For the first time in her life, Lilia actually prays. After praying for the well-being of Mr. Pirzadah's family for a few nights, Lilia finally has the courage to comfort Mr. Pirzada in person and tells him not to worry. The candy helps her realize that she cares about him and his family.
Tuesday, May 3, 2016
Friday, April 22, 2016
Ysrael
"No Face" is one of my favorite stories in Drown. For one thing, I enjoy its comic book style, but my favorite part of this story is Ysrael, the main character.
I find Ysrael an admirable character because even though he has been through a lot, he is able to live without feeling self-pity. Ysrael definitely has a difficult life. Diaz writes that "So many wish [Ysrael] to fall. So many wish him gone" (p. 155), but Ysrael handles it well. In "No Face" Ysrael pretends that he is a superhero named No Face and that he uses his superpowers to deal with the people who try to harass him. He's like a superhero who saves himself from name calling, rock throwing, and fist fighting.
One of Ysrael's admirable characteristics is that even though many people don't treat him well, he faces them (get it?) without bitterness. In "Ysrael" when Rafa is teasing Ysrael and trying to make him take off his mask, Ysrael doesn't act aggressively. On the contrary, he seems pretty friendly and leads Rafa and Yunior to the grocery store. Even when Rafa is beating him up, Ysrael doesn't become violent; he simply tries to pick himself up. When a group of boys is trying to beat him up in "Ysrael" he doesn't fight back. He just gets up and runs away. Ysrael takes No Face, the name that people call him to annoy him, and uses it as his superhero name.
Another admirable quality about Ysrael is that he is mentally strong. In "Ysrael" Rafa discourages Ysrael by saying that the doctors probably won't know how to fix his face. Ysrael is able to ignore Rafa and refrain from hurting him. At the end of "No Face" Ysrael runs towards town "never slipping or stumbling" and "nobody's faster" (p. 160). While it's a bit ambiguous what this means, I thought it shows Ysrael's determination and patience while he is waiting to get his surgery.
I find Ysrael an admirable character because even though he has been through a lot, he is able to live without feeling self-pity. Ysrael definitely has a difficult life. Diaz writes that "So many wish [Ysrael] to fall. So many wish him gone" (p. 155), but Ysrael handles it well. In "No Face" Ysrael pretends that he is a superhero named No Face and that he uses his superpowers to deal with the people who try to harass him. He's like a superhero who saves himself from name calling, rock throwing, and fist fighting.
One of Ysrael's admirable characteristics is that even though many people don't treat him well, he faces them (get it?) without bitterness. In "Ysrael" when Rafa is teasing Ysrael and trying to make him take off his mask, Ysrael doesn't act aggressively. On the contrary, he seems pretty friendly and leads Rafa and Yunior to the grocery store. Even when Rafa is beating him up, Ysrael doesn't become violent; he simply tries to pick himself up. When a group of boys is trying to beat him up in "Ysrael" he doesn't fight back. He just gets up and runs away. Ysrael takes No Face, the name that people call him to annoy him, and uses it as his superhero name.
Another admirable quality about Ysrael is that he is mentally strong. In "Ysrael" Rafa discourages Ysrael by saying that the doctors probably won't know how to fix his face. Ysrael is able to ignore Rafa and refrain from hurting him. At the end of "No Face" Ysrael runs towards town "never slipping or stumbling" and "nobody's faster" (p. 160). While it's a bit ambiguous what this means, I thought it shows Ysrael's determination and patience while he is waiting to get his surgery.
Friday, April 1, 2016
Lorrie Moore
The stories in Self-Help are unlike many of the other stories we have read in this class. They are generally wittier and are written in a different style than the other stories. As we read Self-Help, I wondered what kind of person Lorrie Moore is. From her stories, she comes across as clever and creative. I read some interviews to learn more about her.
Many of the characters in Self-Help are artists of some type, so it is not surprising that Moore has had a life-long love of the arts, especially theater. In fact, when she was young, she liked the arts more than writing.
In "How to Become a Writer" Francie is constantly told that her plots aren't very exciting. Moore said in an interview that her life isn't very interesting (as in, not interesting enough to write a memoire).
In the same story, Francie also says that writers must be willing to spend large amounts of time alone, which Moore says she is able to do. Moore says that she was shy in her childhood and could express herself better by writing than by speaking. I found this kind of surprising, since none of the characters in Self-Help seem particularly shy.
Francie mentions that writers shouldn't expect to have glamorous lives, full of fame and fortune. Moore says that she has not wanted any fame, and that even the recognition she has gotten has made her a bit uncomfortable.
Francie's mom does not want to believe that Francie wants to become a writer. She would prefer her daughter to pursue a "more respectable" career such as law or child psychology. Francie is not discouraged by her mother's opinions and just wants to please herself. Unsurprisingly, Moore says that she also doesn't let others' opinions sway her easily.
Many of the characters in Self-Help are artists of some type, so it is not surprising that Moore has had a life-long love of the arts, especially theater. In fact, when she was young, she liked the arts more than writing.
In "How to Become a Writer" Francie is constantly told that her plots aren't very exciting. Moore said in an interview that her life isn't very interesting (as in, not interesting enough to write a memoire).
In the same story, Francie also says that writers must be willing to spend large amounts of time alone, which Moore says she is able to do. Moore says that she was shy in her childhood and could express herself better by writing than by speaking. I found this kind of surprising, since none of the characters in Self-Help seem particularly shy.
Francie mentions that writers shouldn't expect to have glamorous lives, full of fame and fortune. Moore says that she has not wanted any fame, and that even the recognition she has gotten has made her a bit uncomfortable.
Francie's mom does not want to believe that Francie wants to become a writer. She would prefer her daughter to pursue a "more respectable" career such as law or child psychology. Francie is not discouraged by her mother's opinions and just wants to please herself. Unsurprisingly, Moore says that she also doesn't let others' opinions sway her easily.
Friday, March 11, 2016
Sonny's Blues
The narrator seems to be quite disconnected from Sonny at the beginning of "Sonny's Blues." He doesn't even know that his brother has been arrested for taking (and possibly dealing) heroine until he reads the newspaper. When the narrator tells stories about Sonny's adolescence, he mentions that he was never particularly fond of Sonny's vision to become a jazz musician, and that seems to further support the observation that there is some distance between Sonny and the narrator.
The end of the story provides a completely different picture of their relationship. The narrator agrees to go to a nightclub with Sonny and watches him perform there with his friends. On page 136, he almost seems proud to be Sonny's brother:
"And it turned out that everyone at the bar knew Sonny, or almost everyone (...). I was introduced to them and they were all very polite to me. Here, I was in Sonny's world. Or, rather: his kingdom. Here, it was not even a question that his veins bore royal blood."
During the beginning and middle of the story, the narrator associates jazz with drugs because he thinks that some musicians have to be high in order to play. He does not consider performing jazz music as a respectable career and does not think that it will give Sonny a stable job. However, once the narrator gives him a chance, he realizes that other people respect Sonny and his jazz music. Perhaps this makes him reconsider his harsh judgement of Sonny's choice to become a musician.
Watching Sonny interact with the other musicians helps the narrator realize that Sonny is happy with those people. The joy that Sonny feels when he plays jazz music is contagious. After the performance, the narrator seems much happier. He thinks about his parents, uncle, and daughter and shows some emotion. He also seems to finally be accepting of the fact that his brother is a jazz musician.
The last scene of the story shows how jazz music bridges the gap between Sonny and the narrator even though in previous scenes, it seemed to help create the gap.
The end of the story provides a completely different picture of their relationship. The narrator agrees to go to a nightclub with Sonny and watches him perform there with his friends. On page 136, he almost seems proud to be Sonny's brother:
"And it turned out that everyone at the bar knew Sonny, or almost everyone (...). I was introduced to them and they were all very polite to me. Here, I was in Sonny's world. Or, rather: his kingdom. Here, it was not even a question that his veins bore royal blood."
During the beginning and middle of the story, the narrator associates jazz with drugs because he thinks that some musicians have to be high in order to play. He does not consider performing jazz music as a respectable career and does not think that it will give Sonny a stable job. However, once the narrator gives him a chance, he realizes that other people respect Sonny and his jazz music. Perhaps this makes him reconsider his harsh judgement of Sonny's choice to become a musician.
Watching Sonny interact with the other musicians helps the narrator realize that Sonny is happy with those people. The joy that Sonny feels when he plays jazz music is contagious. After the performance, the narrator seems much happier. He thinks about his parents, uncle, and daughter and shows some emotion. He also seems to finally be accepting of the fact that his brother is a jazz musician.
The last scene of the story shows how jazz music bridges the gap between Sonny and the narrator even though in previous scenes, it seemed to help create the gap.
Sunday, February 28, 2016
Apples to Bananas
There are many similarities between "Teddy" and "A Perfect Day for Bananafish," the last and first stories in Nine Stories. Both take place at lavish places on or near the ocean, for example. There are also lots of similarities between the main characters of these two stories, Teddy McArdle and Seymour Glass.
Teddy and Seymour are both wise characters who are stuck in the midst of some superficial, materialistic characters. Teddy's shallow parents always cut him off when he says his observations and philosophical ideas aloud. Muriel probably cares about Seymour, but she doesn't realize how much Seymour is struggling during the story. She is so oblivious that she sleeps while he commits suicide. This puts Teddy and Seymour in similar situations, and these two characters both deal with it by running away from the superficial characters. Teddy seems to go into in his own world and focus on spirituality by himself. Seymour escapes the materialism around him by spending time with young children who don't care much about wealth.
Another similarity between "Teddy" and "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is that Teddy and Seymour both die at the end of their stories, and both seem relatively calm about death. Teddy knows he is either going to die the day the story takes place or when he's 16, so his death doesn't really surprise him. Throughout the story, he's calm whenever he talks about death. This could be because he believes in reincarnation, so death just means moving on from one life and going to the next. Seymour commits suicide, and he also doesn't appear to be afraid of death. It seems like Seymour is disgusted with materialism and since it's all around him, he believes that death is the best option.
Perhaps the most interesting similarity between Teddy and Seymour is that their philosophical ideas seem to be related in some ways. Teddy believes that people need to "unlearn" things that they have already learned in order to achieve spiritual enlightenment; they have to "spit out the apple." Seymour thinks that people overindulge in material pursuits and this makes them superficial; they need to "stop eating so many bananas." Both characters think that people's brains are full of thoughts that they have to remove in order to improve themselves.
Teddy and Seymour are both wise characters who are stuck in the midst of some superficial, materialistic characters. Teddy's shallow parents always cut him off when he says his observations and philosophical ideas aloud. Muriel probably cares about Seymour, but she doesn't realize how much Seymour is struggling during the story. She is so oblivious that she sleeps while he commits suicide. This puts Teddy and Seymour in similar situations, and these two characters both deal with it by running away from the superficial characters. Teddy seems to go into in his own world and focus on spirituality by himself. Seymour escapes the materialism around him by spending time with young children who don't care much about wealth.
Another similarity between "Teddy" and "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is that Teddy and Seymour both die at the end of their stories, and both seem relatively calm about death. Teddy knows he is either going to die the day the story takes place or when he's 16, so his death doesn't really surprise him. Throughout the story, he's calm whenever he talks about death. This could be because he believes in reincarnation, so death just means moving on from one life and going to the next. Seymour commits suicide, and he also doesn't appear to be afraid of death. It seems like Seymour is disgusted with materialism and since it's all around him, he believes that death is the best option.
Perhaps the most interesting similarity between Teddy and Seymour is that their philosophical ideas seem to be related in some ways. Teddy believes that people need to "unlearn" things that they have already learned in order to achieve spiritual enlightenment; they have to "spit out the apple." Seymour thinks that people overindulge in material pursuits and this makes them superficial; they need to "stop eating so many bananas." Both characters think that people's brains are full of thoughts that they have to remove in order to improve themselves.
Friday, February 5, 2016
Bananafish
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is one of my favorite short stories that we've read so far, although it is also a confusing one. I had to read this story three times before I started to understand it.
I hadn't really thought much about the title until we discussed the story in class. I'm still not quite sure what the significance of the bananafish story is, but I have come up with two possible interpretations:
1. Bananafish are like soldiers before they go to war. Just like soldiers are "normal" people, bananafish are "normal" fish--until they enter war or a banana hole. Banana holes are like wars, because both are dangerous (grenades and mines are more dangerous than bananas, but Seymour probably had to pick something that wouldn't scare Sybil). After the bananafish go into the holes, they eat lots of bananas. This might be similar to soldiers experiencing the horrors of war. The bananafish then get banana fever, the ichthyoid equivalent of PTSD. The bananafish are so crippled by their illness that they are unable to come out of the banana holes, just as many soldiers are so affected by war that they are unable to completely return to society. Unfortunately, bananafish die from banana fever just like some soldiers who are not able to adjust to society end up committing suicide.
2. Bananafish are like "normal" people before they become materialistic. After bananafish enter banana holes, they gorge on fruit until they become so big and ill that they cannot squeeze out of the holes anymore and eventually die. This is similar to the way in which people might indulge themselves in materialistic things so much that they become shallow. Although people do not necessarily die from being too materialistic, this story makes it seem like the focus on wealth kills their personalities in some ways. Muriel, for example, is so caught up with material pursuits, as evidenced by the smells of calfskin luggage and nail-polish remover in her hotel room, that she brushes off her mother's concerns about Seymour and fails to realize that Seymour is struggling.
What do you think the bananafish story represents?
I hadn't really thought much about the title until we discussed the story in class. I'm still not quite sure what the significance of the bananafish story is, but I have come up with two possible interpretations:
1. Bananafish are like soldiers before they go to war. Just like soldiers are "normal" people, bananafish are "normal" fish--until they enter war or a banana hole. Banana holes are like wars, because both are dangerous (grenades and mines are more dangerous than bananas, but Seymour probably had to pick something that wouldn't scare Sybil). After the bananafish go into the holes, they eat lots of bananas. This might be similar to soldiers experiencing the horrors of war. The bananafish then get banana fever, the ichthyoid equivalent of PTSD. The bananafish are so crippled by their illness that they are unable to come out of the banana holes, just as many soldiers are so affected by war that they are unable to completely return to society. Unfortunately, bananafish die from banana fever just like some soldiers who are not able to adjust to society end up committing suicide.
2. Bananafish are like "normal" people before they become materialistic. After bananafish enter banana holes, they gorge on fruit until they become so big and ill that they cannot squeeze out of the holes anymore and eventually die. This is similar to the way in which people might indulge themselves in materialistic things so much that they become shallow. Although people do not necessarily die from being too materialistic, this story makes it seem like the focus on wealth kills their personalities in some ways. Muriel, for example, is so caught up with material pursuits, as evidenced by the smells of calfskin luggage and nail-polish remover in her hotel room, that she brushes off her mother's concerns about Seymour and fails to realize that Seymour is struggling.
What do you think the bananafish story represents?
Friday, January 22, 2016
Unbelievable
Many of O'Brien's stories seem to have some element of fiction to them, whether it's something as trivial as a made-up name or as significant as an imaginary daughter. It seems like O'Brien cares more about conveying feelings and emotions to the reader than giving accurate accounts of his experiences in Vietnam, even if this means mixing real events with imagined ones.
Sometimes in the middle or end of stories, O'Brien explicitly points out specific parts that he has fabricated. Although he doesn't do this in "The Ghost Soldiers" some events from this story seem unbelievable.
Tim wants revenge on Jorgensen so badly that he decides to scare Jorgensen with suspicious noises while he is on watch duty. Granted, he isn't on the front lines of battle when he does this, but making noise still seems quite risky. If Jorgensen had mistakenly thought that Azar and Tim were enemy soldiers, he could have killed them.
Throughout The Things They Carried, O'Brien seems to use made up stories to teach the readers about war. Most readers are probably not veterans and are not familiar with the psychological effects of war. An outside reader might not understand why a soldier would want to kill a comrade. Perhaps "The Ghost Soldiers" was written to show what could possibly cause a major conflict within a troop. Maybe O'Brien wants the readers to feel the pain that he experienced because of a new medic and to understand why he might have considered killing Jorgensen.
Sometimes in the middle or end of stories, O'Brien explicitly points out specific parts that he has fabricated. Although he doesn't do this in "The Ghost Soldiers" some events from this story seem unbelievable.
Tim wants revenge on Jorgensen so badly that he decides to scare Jorgensen with suspicious noises while he is on watch duty. Granted, he isn't on the front lines of battle when he does this, but making noise still seems quite risky. If Jorgensen had mistakenly thought that Azar and Tim were enemy soldiers, he could have killed them.
Throughout The Things They Carried, O'Brien seems to use made up stories to teach the readers about war. Most readers are probably not veterans and are not familiar with the psychological effects of war. An outside reader might not understand why a soldier would want to kill a comrade. Perhaps "The Ghost Soldiers" was written to show what could possibly cause a major conflict within a troop. Maybe O'Brien wants the readers to feel the pain that he experienced because of a new medic and to understand why he might have considered killing Jorgensen.
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