The short story, Harrison Bergeron, was more focused upon the theme than on the plot or the characters. There are many themes that are prominent to the reader while reading this story and others that are more below the surface. The different themes that surround this horrible distopia of a nation are all a reflection of the loss of individuality and uniqueness.
The background of the story, as we discussed in class, shows that the demand of perfect equality inhibits progress. People in the novel are not able to move past the era in which they live because nobody is allowed to be better or achieve more than any other person. In essence, this is the perfectly politically correct nation. From a modern perspective, this theme of perfect equality and limited competition is a step up from the extreme necessity of political correctness that our nation is pushing at this moment. This is crossing the line of the need to make everyone content with who they are and make the world one in which everyone fits snuggly. Because there is no competition and no one person is better than another due to the handicaps given to them, the world ceases to progress while every one believes they are happy with the correctness imposed upon them.
The theme of a relationship in this egalitarian setting is a theme that lies below the reader’s radar until the story is read multiple times. From what the readers know of George and Hazel, the couple is not actually suited for companionship. It seems as though Hazel has no brain of her own, to the point that she needs no handicap to keep her from over thinking a situation. George, on the other hand, has a severe handicap in order to keep him from thinking rationally because he is naturally highly intelligent. The government is keeping him from being an intellectual in this equal society and he is therefore as unintelligent as his wife. Without his handicap, he would realize that he is much more suited to an intellectual setting than to that of simplicity and forgetfulness. In this sense, everyone in the nation is suited for each other because, if they are all truly equal, no one person is a better match for another and anyone would be able to marry another person just as happily as if they had married their perfect mate. With the knowledge that everyone is the same then there is no hope in looking for a sole mate or need to succeed in life in order to live well. If every person would succeed or fail in the same way because competition is eliminated, the education, progress, and life purpose would cease to exist.
There is also the notion, brought forth by Hazel and Harrison, that people are able to cheat their handicaps and therefore, the seemingly equal society is not always as equal as the people seem to hope. While there is a fine and jail time for removing or not using your handicap, many people would most likely tire of wearing all of the debilitating devices and would often remove their restraints. If this were true, then many people would most likely cheat the system because people are naturally curious creatures who are competitive. While George imagines the prospect of taking off the handicap will bring the society back to a “dark age” where competition rules people, many people most likely attempt to show their true worth while they are in their homes. Therefore, the society is, in body equal, but in mind as unequal as society is meant to be.
Because this story is an explanation of the horrors of true equality, the modern reader can understand where competition is truly a good concept, even when I can harm others. This story was written in the early 1960’s and therefore written by a different generation than my own, but as a modern reader, I can understand the purpose that the themes in the story convey. Competition and inequality are what make a society, a family, and an individual unique. Progress, purpose, and life pondering stop when there is not drive to succeed or punishment for failure. Society needs competition in order to thrive (707).
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Indecent Pride
As the story "A&P" progresses, readers find themselves focusing on many different aspects of the scene. The primary aspect that is seen is of the girls in the supermarket, but as we read, our attentions is not on the girls, through they are the main focus, but rather on those surrounding the girls. The theme of monotonous settings and ordinary people--the "sheep" described by John Updike--rule our perspective and divert us from thinking thoroughly about the girls and their place in society. As a reader, I feel that more attention needs to be drawn to the girls themselves and their perspective on the situation in the supermarket.
The setting is the same for all of the characters in the story, but the plot seems to surround the girls in the mind of the narrator. Therefore, we must look at the incentive that the girls must have in entering the supermarket so promiscuously. Sammy comments that “Queenie” seems to be showing the girls how to flaunt themselves and to make themselves the centers of attention. In this way, Queenie is successful; the entire supermarket notices and brings attention to their presence. The prospect of being observed does not go unnoticed by Sammy, who understands that the supermarket is nearly five miles from the beach, and the girls, therefore, had plenty of time to properly dress themselves before entering the store. Also, the reader observes, at the end of the story that they circled the entire supermarket in order to find one item, herring snacks. While they could have been in the supermarket for only moments and made a brief appearance in the store, the girls chose to make a display of themselves and wander through the majority of the aisles in order to retrieve their purchase. The girls seem to enjoy being gawked at and act as though everyone staring at their almost-bare bodies is commonplace for girls such as these.
While this scene, to the modern reader, would seem almost common and uninteresting if the same situation had happened today, the outright disregard for proper dress is a very exciting prospect in this story. This may be because the story was set in the 1950’s and the girls in this time were supposed to be much more proper than these girls seemed to act. There is almost a blend of modernism that is mixed into the monotonous supermarket scene. The girls are not only wearing very little clothing in a public place, but they are wearing 2-piece bathing suits—which are seemingly offensive to Mr. Lengel and force him to confront the customers about their behavior. In this scene, we face the fine line between the modern ideas of the customer’s always being right, and of decency in public places. As a reader, I feel that Mr. Lengel had a right to ask his customers to practice common decency because he knows as well as Sammy does that between the super market and the beach, the girls had plenty of time to put on clothes and make themselves more publicly presentable. He seems to notice that rather than simply shopping as the rest of the sheep do, that the girls are purposefully flaunting their bodies and making themselves the “dynamite” in the store. Because of this obvious tension that the girls create among the employees and the customers, Mr. Lengel has a right to keep his store pure and respectable and to ask the girls to remain decent while in his supermarket.
The scene that the girls create in the supermarket is intriguing through the eyes of Sammy, and the attention of all involved are on this girls, but readers seem to focus more on the people surrounding the girls. Readers are more intrigued by the way that the “sheep” react to Queenie’s whit shoulders and the girls’ bare skin. While the story itself surrounds the girls, the commonality of the store and the setting create more intrigue for the reader than does the blunt indecency of the girls in the supermarket. This is an interesting prospect to see that the intrigue of the reader is different that that of the characters in the story. As readers, we are experiencing the way that Sammy feels toward the freedom the girls have to express them selves and the mundane feeling of the supermarket as a whole. The characters though, have a plot shaped by the unexpected appearance of the indecent girls. John Updike does a good job of creating a scene with almost different plots for the characters than for the reader (762).
The setting is the same for all of the characters in the story, but the plot seems to surround the girls in the mind of the narrator. Therefore, we must look at the incentive that the girls must have in entering the supermarket so promiscuously. Sammy comments that “Queenie” seems to be showing the girls how to flaunt themselves and to make themselves the centers of attention. In this way, Queenie is successful; the entire supermarket notices and brings attention to their presence. The prospect of being observed does not go unnoticed by Sammy, who understands that the supermarket is nearly five miles from the beach, and the girls, therefore, had plenty of time to properly dress themselves before entering the store. Also, the reader observes, at the end of the story that they circled the entire supermarket in order to find one item, herring snacks. While they could have been in the supermarket for only moments and made a brief appearance in the store, the girls chose to make a display of themselves and wander through the majority of the aisles in order to retrieve their purchase. The girls seem to enjoy being gawked at and act as though everyone staring at their almost-bare bodies is commonplace for girls such as these.
While this scene, to the modern reader, would seem almost common and uninteresting if the same situation had happened today, the outright disregard for proper dress is a very exciting prospect in this story. This may be because the story was set in the 1950’s and the girls in this time were supposed to be much more proper than these girls seemed to act. There is almost a blend of modernism that is mixed into the monotonous supermarket scene. The girls are not only wearing very little clothing in a public place, but they are wearing 2-piece bathing suits—which are seemingly offensive to Mr. Lengel and force him to confront the customers about their behavior. In this scene, we face the fine line between the modern ideas of the customer’s always being right, and of decency in public places. As a reader, I feel that Mr. Lengel had a right to ask his customers to practice common decency because he knows as well as Sammy does that between the super market and the beach, the girls had plenty of time to put on clothes and make themselves more publicly presentable. He seems to notice that rather than simply shopping as the rest of the sheep do, that the girls are purposefully flaunting their bodies and making themselves the “dynamite” in the store. Because of this obvious tension that the girls create among the employees and the customers, Mr. Lengel has a right to keep his store pure and respectable and to ask the girls to remain decent while in his supermarket.
The scene that the girls create in the supermarket is intriguing through the eyes of Sammy, and the attention of all involved are on this girls, but readers seem to focus more on the people surrounding the girls. Readers are more intrigued by the way that the “sheep” react to Queenie’s whit shoulders and the girls’ bare skin. While the story itself surrounds the girls, the commonality of the store and the setting create more intrigue for the reader than does the blunt indecency of the girls in the supermarket. This is an interesting prospect to see that the intrigue of the reader is different that that of the characters in the story. As readers, we are experiencing the way that Sammy feels toward the freedom the girls have to express them selves and the mundane feeling of the supermarket as a whole. The characters though, have a plot shaped by the unexpected appearance of the indecent girls. John Updike does a good job of creating a scene with almost different plots for the characters than for the reader (762).
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Teenage Wasteland
In Teenage Wasteland by Anne Tyler, the narrator shapes the story into a format so that we, as readers, can see the whole picture without fully understanding all of the author’s intentions. The limited omniscience of the narrator leads us to feel specific ways towards the individual characters in the story. Daisy is the only character with whom we have a total connection and, as a result, our perceptions of the story are shaped by her actions and thoughts.
Through the limited omniscience of the narrator we are able to comprehend every aspect of Daisy’s experience in relation to the suffering of her son, Donny. To the reader, Daisy is fully understood and her thoughts, actions, and feelings towards certain situations and people are completely clear to us, the readers. The narrator has a limited view, though, and forces us to miss certain portions of the story. We merely see the actions of the other characters in the story rather than emotions and thoughts as we experience from Daisy. Because of this one-sided view of the story, we are able to make certain judgments about the story as skewed by Daisy. As the story begins, we see Daisy speaking to the principle of the school about Donny’s grades slipping (4). We feel the power of her urge to help her son and to make things better. Her confusion about the way in which she raised her child brings us to pity her situation and to even want to help her, even though it seems Donny would be the one who needs the help. Even as it seems Daisy is growing more confident in her son, he falters again and her loss seems to be our loss as well (8). Because we can not see another person’s perspective on the mounting situation with Donny, we cannot seem to get a connection with the other characters in the book as we do with Daisy.
Even her perspectives on other characters in the story impose upon the perception that we, as readers, get of the characters that are presented. Through the story, Daisy has fluctuating feelings about the way that she feels about Cal. She, at first, is comfortable with placing her extra funs into the hands of an unknown person in order to save her son (33). But as Donny seems to get better in the eyes of his mother, the simple monetary loss is an evident gain to Daisy because she sees her son succeeding by raising confidence. The reader feels the roller coaster of emotions that Daisy feels through the situation with Donny. Since we never see any emotions of any other characters, we can understand where her fluctuations of confidence in the situation begin. Towards Cal, we feel as Daisy does; concerned with the welfare of her son, hopeful that confidence in Cal is confidence in her son, and fearful that she is relying too much on an outside source of which she has no control. Because we cannot see the occurrences in Cal’s house, we understand Daisy’s trepidation towards Cal’s methods and Donny’s advancement in his psychological help. Even when Donny begins to heighten his interest in Cal, we are aware of the origin of Daisy’s hesitation toward Cal’s methods because, just as she does, we have no control or awareness of the happenings or outcome. As the mother of Donny, Daisy feels compelled to stay out of the situation in order to help his self-confidence and inspire trust in her son, but as readers we feel as she does. We feel, through her emotions, the fear of letting a child make his own decisions. Once Donny gets expelled, it is logical to us that Daisy would blame Cal because, as it is to her, we cannot see what had been occurring during the lessons Donny attended. Our lack of ability to comprehend other character’s actions put us in the same situation as is Daisy. We, as readers, are seemingly uncomfortable with the situation that Donny goes through because we are part of Daisy’s mind and are unconnected with any other emotions in the story.
Anne Tyler presents us with a limited omniscient narrator in order to describe emotions rather than a setting. We are able to feel the story rather than simply read it. She gives us a means to feel sorry for and to comprehend Daisy’s actions and to misunderstand the actions and intentions of the other characters. Because the author told the story in such a way, it is closer to home for the reader and evokes emotions rather than simple intrigue, as an omniscient narrator would have. In this way, we are able to interpret the story from a single angle and feel as one of the specific characters feel. This would not have been as possible if the story had been told directly from Daisy because we would have been given room to mistrust her narration. Because the emotions were described by an overseeing narrator, we are able to trust that the feelings presented are the truth and that we are meant to feel as Daisy does throughout the story (857).
Through the limited omniscience of the narrator we are able to comprehend every aspect of Daisy’s experience in relation to the suffering of her son, Donny. To the reader, Daisy is fully understood and her thoughts, actions, and feelings towards certain situations and people are completely clear to us, the readers. The narrator has a limited view, though, and forces us to miss certain portions of the story. We merely see the actions of the other characters in the story rather than emotions and thoughts as we experience from Daisy. Because of this one-sided view of the story, we are able to make certain judgments about the story as skewed by Daisy. As the story begins, we see Daisy speaking to the principle of the school about Donny’s grades slipping (4). We feel the power of her urge to help her son and to make things better. Her confusion about the way in which she raised her child brings us to pity her situation and to even want to help her, even though it seems Donny would be the one who needs the help. Even as it seems Daisy is growing more confident in her son, he falters again and her loss seems to be our loss as well (8). Because we can not see another person’s perspective on the mounting situation with Donny, we cannot seem to get a connection with the other characters in the book as we do with Daisy.
Even her perspectives on other characters in the story impose upon the perception that we, as readers, get of the characters that are presented. Through the story, Daisy has fluctuating feelings about the way that she feels about Cal. She, at first, is comfortable with placing her extra funs into the hands of an unknown person in order to save her son (33). But as Donny seems to get better in the eyes of his mother, the simple monetary loss is an evident gain to Daisy because she sees her son succeeding by raising confidence. The reader feels the roller coaster of emotions that Daisy feels through the situation with Donny. Since we never see any emotions of any other characters, we can understand where her fluctuations of confidence in the situation begin. Towards Cal, we feel as Daisy does; concerned with the welfare of her son, hopeful that confidence in Cal is confidence in her son, and fearful that she is relying too much on an outside source of which she has no control. Because we cannot see the occurrences in Cal’s house, we understand Daisy’s trepidation towards Cal’s methods and Donny’s advancement in his psychological help. Even when Donny begins to heighten his interest in Cal, we are aware of the origin of Daisy’s hesitation toward Cal’s methods because, just as she does, we have no control or awareness of the happenings or outcome. As the mother of Donny, Daisy feels compelled to stay out of the situation in order to help his self-confidence and inspire trust in her son, but as readers we feel as she does. We feel, through her emotions, the fear of letting a child make his own decisions. Once Donny gets expelled, it is logical to us that Daisy would blame Cal because, as it is to her, we cannot see what had been occurring during the lessons Donny attended. Our lack of ability to comprehend other character’s actions put us in the same situation as is Daisy. We, as readers, are seemingly uncomfortable with the situation that Donny goes through because we are part of Daisy’s mind and are unconnected with any other emotions in the story.
Anne Tyler presents us with a limited omniscient narrator in order to describe emotions rather than a setting. We are able to feel the story rather than simply read it. She gives us a means to feel sorry for and to comprehend Daisy’s actions and to misunderstand the actions and intentions of the other characters. Because the author told the story in such a way, it is closer to home for the reader and evokes emotions rather than simple intrigue, as an omniscient narrator would have. In this way, we are able to interpret the story from a single angle and feel as one of the specific characters feel. This would not have been as possible if the story had been told directly from Daisy because we would have been given room to mistrust her narration. Because the emotions were described by an overseeing narrator, we are able to trust that the feelings presented are the truth and that we are meant to feel as Daisy does throughout the story (857).
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