War is reality.

I felt that when hearing from Dr. O'Brien yesterday. It's messy and scary, but it's very very real and in some ways, a necessary condition of human existence, though an ugly one. I really liked how O'Brien explained that since man's sin nature is at a state of hatred toward one another so that, unless everyone becomes a Christian, there will always be war. It reminds me of Thomas Hobbes' description of the natural state of man. I found this quote: "Man is a wolf to other men." Though this truth is so ugly, it's so true. Hobbes argued that this is why we need government, in order to tame us. However, I believe that even in our civilized state, we still are willing to cheat and antagonize others if it means it'll benefit ourselves. This is why I agree with O'Brien and disagree with Hobbes, ultimately. Though we are at a state of war naturally, it's not just civilization and government that we need but Christ and His love that can transform us and allow us to love selflessly in return. It is obvious that O'Brien has been changed in this way, as evidenced by his humility coupled with gentle confidence. I really enjoyed hearing him speak, so thanks for inviting him. 

Like it more than I thought

I don't usually like books or even movies about war, but as it says the New York Times said about this book, "To call Going After Cacciato a novel about war is like calling Moby-Dick a novel about whales." The main character, Paul Berlin, is easy to relate to even as he is in situations I've never been in and probably never will be in. He is introspective and down-to-earth, and his commentary on situations is simple but vivid in detail and emotion at the same time. I also find it highly impressive when an author can switch between time frames from chapter to chapter and it still make sense. Tim O'Brien does a good job establishing the main story line and characters, alluding to other situations, then switching to those scenarios in present tense. His mix of reality and fantasy is seamless, and this shows the nature of war to produce a surreal environment at times. The way this novel is written really does make it, as the cliche goes, "a page-turner," and while we think we know what's going on at times, there are hidden surprises along the way that make us as the readers realize we can't have everything figured out yet. 

For one thing, I'm so off on my blogs! Sorry...

And another thing, I've thought longest about whether The Violent Bear It Away is a bildungsroman than most of the other novels. I've concluded it is, though it is vastly different than all of the others. The grotesqueness of the story forces readers to look beyond the surface level to see whether young Tarwater comes of age. Though I don't like the thing he becomes or the way he becomes it, he has changed remarkably. Because he returns to where the story begins, it could seem as though he has gone full circle. However, his return marks a change because he left not able to stand the place and with the desire to run far away from the things he experienced there. He thought he could go to Rayber, but then he was haunted by Old Tarwater all the more and strained by Rayber's efforts to change him. Though now more mentally ill than before, he has discovered that for him, he has no other place to go, no other thing to become than the prophet his great-uncle foretold. It is perhaps for the reader's benefit that the story stops where it is, for what Francis will become is frightening. On the other hand, maybe it would have been better for O'Connor to tell us: Our imaginations can only go to the extreme worst with the framework given. 

Natural Beauty in the Wilderness

While we talked about wilderness in class, I argued that there can still be some of the same aspects of adventure, risk, and feelings of smallness in the big city. This was my experience, as a Texas girl in New York City, this summer. I know there must be a difference. There is something different, a different side to us, that yearns for something beyond the city. I mulled over this later and decided natural beauty and lack of constraints are the biggest differences between city and wilderness. Natural beauty calls us to reflect and breathe deep, and this cannot really be found in cities formed by slabs of cement, no matter how many flowers and trees you plant. And while you can feel small in a city filled with millions of people and very tall buildings, it still does not compare to the insignificance experienced at the base of a mountain or at the edge of the ocean. To know these things were not created by man — and never could be — stirs awe and wonder, and a part of us comes alive at the thought of it, I believe.

Sexual power

I was quite taken aback at the suddenness and the strength of the scene in Faulkner's The Bear where Isaac's wife uses her body and sexual appeal to hold power over her husband. She is upset because he will not accept the inheritance and the farm that is rightfully his, so she undresses before him, lies down, gives him a taste of what she offers (to say it nicely) then says she will never do it again unless he takes the farm. He refuses. She turns over and laughs. 

This is powerful. It makes quite a statement about the seductive abilities of women. The wife acts very manipulatively, and yet, she doesn't get what she wants. It is almost scary to me, honestly. The part when she laughs brings up the biblical allusion to Sarah and Abraham again, since in the story she laughs at God's promise to her to have a child. What is the promise here? How will things go for this woman? We do not know, in the end, but it doesn't seem very hopeful.

A Little Different, but Yes

When considering whether Their Eyes Were Watching God (now one of my new favorite books, by the way) is a bildungsroman, I realize it's a little different from the other books we have read so far.  The others focus more on isolated time periods in the main character's life, especially the transition from childhood to adulthood. Their Eyes, however, chronicles all of Janie's life. It is not just a "coming of age" novel but a whole life story about maturity and growth, in the midst of hardship and varying circumstances. I like this about the book: it increases the classical nature of the book because so many people can relate to Janie (and even the other characters) because of the different periods of life she goes through. I still think this is a bildungsroman, but it is also so much more. This aspect emphasizes the fact that all of life is about growth; it's always a journey through life's obstacles and joys. We are never stagnant. 

Some defining moments for Janie include each of her different marriages as well as the times she or he leaves (leaving Logan's farm, Jody's death and Tea Cake's death). Outside of these obvious ones, I think her moment under the pear tree is an awakening of dreams inside her and the moment we looked at in class, when she realizes her inner self and her broken dreams, is also a major turning point for Janie. 

What's in a Title?

First of all, I want to say that my last blog was a little off, I think. In class we discussed that Zora Neale Hurston gives depth to all her characters, not just the main one, and I agree with that. I think she shows more depth in the men than I gave her credit for. For instance, she builds sympathy for Jody by showing his fear of getting older, and even though it creates pity more than love for him, we see his human nature and not just this chauvinistic man suppressing his wife. 

As to the title of the book, I love it. It's beautiful and unique. Before I'd read the book, I was drawn to it. It forces the questions, "Why were their eyes watching God?" and "What did they see as they watched God?" I even think, "How did they watch God, the powerful and Almighty in heaven?" 

We get a glimpse of what the title means when Janie and Tea Cake are fighting for their lives in the midst of the hurricane. The scene shows their vulnerability to forces beyond themselves; all they can do is hope that the God who is causing such a powerful stirring in nature will spare them. They watch to see what he will do because it's all they can do in the midst of their situation. The implication for the whole book, then, is that Janie and the others are living their lives with an awareness that so much of their stories are out of their control, yet there is a flow to them that must be caused by something bigger than themselves, which, perhaps, is God. It goes along with the context of the book, since African Americans are known for having rich spiritual heritages.