Monday, August 31, 2009
Question #2
Maxwell quotes the Spanish philosopher, José Ortega y Gasset, as saying that life is "in itself and forever shipwreck" (p. 22). What does this mean? (I admit that I looked this up online and tried to read about the existentialist philosophy and it hurt my sleep deprived head. So any help would be appreciated.) How do the narrator's and Cletus's life illustrate this idea?
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So funny to read that quote now since, when I read the book, I never noticed the reference to the philosopher. I was caught up in the notion of "shipwreck".
ReplyDeleteIsn't it so true? Tragedy can be such a huge part of a person's life. People feel shipwrecked all the time.
I loved, loved, love the book and can't believe I'd never even heard of it. It still hasn't left me.
OK, I don't know what the existentialists would say... But when I think of a shipwreck, I think of how the elements are in control, not man. And then the man, subject to the outcome of the storm that displaced him, is found to be in a new, possibly unwelcoming place, likely ill-equipped, and left to fend for himself entirely.
ReplyDelete(Patti and I were writing our comments at the same time. I've been laboring too much over mine... and I'm basically echoing what she has already more succinctly said. Nevertheless, I press on subjecting you to my rambling thoughts...!)
Neither boy is in control. They are tossed by both nature (influenza) and their parents' choices (remarriage, affairs). And neither is equipped to deal with where they've landed. And there are few reliable rules. One of the hardest scenes for me is when Cletus tries to talk to his father about not pushing Fern's buttons. Cletus' voice of reason is met with a violent reaction from Clarence. Cletus has chosen a tool to help him navigate his own shipwreck (reason)... and it is useless. Where does a kid go from there? It was such a hard scene.
I agree about that scene. It almost made my face sting.
ReplyDeleteAnd that scene when he goes to the farm and hugged his dog. The description of him kissing and hugging that dog. I was in tears reading that.
Shipwrecked...
I might be bawling right now.
Deep stuff, ladies. Very nice. This analogy of being shipwrecked is really thought-provoking and I appreciate your insights, especially relating to this book. It makes me think of my niece and nephews being effected by things out of their control and how their lives are in a horrible shipwreck ... what can be done?
ReplyDeleteMy dad after he was bishop said, "If you treat everyone you meet as if they were dealing with something extremely difficult, you would be right most of the time." Most people's lives are not what we thought they would be.
ReplyDelete"The accusing look and the missing front tooth were things he had not bargained for when he stood up before the minister. Or she either, he thought sadly." (p. 88)
I am with Patti in that I can't believe I haven't heard of this book, written in 1980! I absolutely loved the book and the way in which it was written. I am going to read several more of Maxwell's books.
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