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Moral Responsibility in Black Swan Green

  In Black Swan Green , one of the pivotal moments is Jason’s decision to return Ross’s wallet to him after finding it at the fair. Though Jason eventually comes to the right decision (in my opinion), his indecision and failure to hand back the wallet to Ross earlier leads to the chain of events that leads to Ross getting into an awful accident on a Suzuki bike. We discussed a lot in class what degree of responsibility Jason holds for Ross’s accident: in my opinion, he holds almost none. I think one of the central takeaways of Black Swan Green is lessons regarding personal responsibility. Jason should not feel guilty over Ross’s accident. Though he was part of the chain of events that led to the accident, it is not his fault. In life, every decision can be traced back to an earlier moment that began a chain of events culminating in the choice you decide upon (I don’t believe in free will although that is unrelated). Regardless, humans hold responsibility for the actions they eventuall
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The Role of Literary Interpretation in Fun Home

  Fun Home by Alison Bechdel is riddled with literary references, whether that be the chapter names, long discussions of different authors and their novels, or play performances. Throughout all of these examples, I found that escapism and idealization was pretty common among the Bechdel family in reading.  Bruce’s obsession with Fitzgerald seems to center around a desire to be like Fitzgerald’s characters in his real life. Alison describes her father as fascinated with Jay Gatsby’s dedication to illusion. A perfect image of this is Bruce’s library, on the surface a center of knowledge, but in reality a fitting encapsulation of Bruce’s fraudulence: he often uses the library to flirt with male students he was interested in all while maintaining the fake image of a straight family man. Additionally, the idea itself is taken from Gatsby’s library, filled with unread books that only serve as displays to signal that Gatsby is a knowledgeable man. Furthermore, Bruce’s early love letters
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Doreen in The Bell Jar

  In The Bell Jar , one of the most compelling characters to Esther is Doreen. In the novel, I view Doreen as an idea of what Esther aims to be through her rebellious spirit. In The Bell Jar , Esther is repeatedly crushed and confined by overbearing expectations: expectations she has placed on herself, outside pressures to succeed and not mess up her opportunities, and pressures placed upon her by society on what a woman should be.  At the beginning of the novel, we can see that it is Doreen that encourages Esther to neglect her work so she can go out. Despite Esther knowing better, she goes along with Doreen’s idea and momentarily escapes the expectations which weigh down on her by sacrificing her work for a bit of fun. When they do go out, Doreen is beautiful and confident in herself when talking with men, a contrast to Esther. Doreen is bold in her criticisms when they talk, making fun of men who go to Yale in conversation with Esther. Doreen’s behavior makes her feel liberated, and
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My New Outlook on Holden

  I first read The Catcher in the Rye in 8th grade for my Banned Book Project, and wasn’t the biggest fan. I felt the book was a bit overrated considering the reputation it had gotten as one of the quintessential American novels. But more importantly, I found Holden Caulfield to be obnoxious, bratty, and a bit “fake deep”: some of his criticisms and comments felt like they were trying too hard to be profound when they were surface level. I, of course, reread the book for English this semester. Having read The Catcher in the Rye at these two times felt perfect for judging how my own opinions have changed, since I first read the book right before the beginning of high school and the second time I read it was right at the end .To my utmost dismay, when I reread the novel this year for class, I found myself sympathizing and even identifying with Holden. Thinking about my perception now vs. my perception of Holden when I first read the book has created a sort of cognitive dissonance in me
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