If you liked Jhumpa Lahiri's "Sexy"....
then you might also enjoy ”Two Step” by Maile Meloy, ”Who’s Irish” by Gish Jen or "The Thing Around Your Neck” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. For Friday, read ONE of those stories and post a 4-5 sentence reflection/reader response here as a comment to this blog post. You also need to REPLY DIRECTLY to 2-3 of your classmates comments (think: Instagram/Facebook feed, but slightly more detailed than a series of emojis or five word responses!) as part of this assignment. There's no need to include actual textual evidence in either your original response or when you comment on classmates' work, but if you're having a hard time generating ideas, feel free to look back to the short story questions we used last term. I just want to get a sense of what you thought about the story you've chosen; there's no pressure, so have some fun and be creative!
Maddie Ford:
ReplyDeleteI chose to read "The Thing Around Your Neck" for this module. This was by far my favorite short story that I’ve ever read. I really enjoyed the descriptive yet straightforward writing style because it allowed me to fully focus on the significance of the story and its symbols rather than struggling to understand the literal meaning of a passage (cough cough As I Lay Dying). Additionally, I loved how candid the speaker’s narrations were. Her mixed emotions surrounding everything she encounters seem to speak to her own struggle with contradictions of her old and new life. There isn’t to room to go into detail here, but rich vs poor, relying on family vs others, success vs failure are some of the basic elements of her struggles. I loved reading the way she narrates because I think that it represents the intricacies of human nature and life that stories are rarely able to capture.
AJ Francois-
DeleteI thought what you said about the character's struggle with contradictions of her old and new life was interesting because it somewhat relates to a situation "two Step." One of the character's name Alice struggles with her husband cheating on her and the emotional conflicts it brings her, however she was this man's mistress in a prior relationship that ended his first marriage. So her past actions caught up with her new life as she lives through the troubles she put another family through. I also enjoyed how you see her emotions change and develop through this roller coaster and it seemed similar to your reading. Pretty cool.
Adichie is one of my favorite writers. You are both touching on her amazing narrative abilities to explain the often complex issue of cultural identity. If you're looking for a great book, you should read her Americanah (sorry for lack of italics--it won't let me us them!). We read it with juniors last year, and although it's long, it's fantastic!
DeleteMaddie, just by reading your paragraph I can see the enthusiasm you have towards this short story. I can see the passion and excitement. Your paragraph was very fun to read and you have many great points! Awesome Job!
DeleteAJ Francois-
ReplyDeleteThe short story I read for this first module was "Two Step" by Maile Meloy. At first, I thought this story was just going to develop into another narrative that expresses the complexities of love through a complicated situation. However as the story developed, I was intrigued by the perception of how love can ordain control and power to a specific being that receives love from others. The author used different titles and possessions of characters in relation to Alice's husband to display this concept, which to me was a very interesting way to carry out an idea. In addition, the twists and turns of the complicated love shared by all three characters continued to manifest in unexpected directions throughout the narrative in ways that kept me attentive the whole time. Overall I really enjoyed the story and how it captured certain characteristics of its meanings.
I thought the connection between love and control which you highlighted is interesting because it is also is an important idea in "Everything That Rises Must Converge". The power that Julian's mother has over him because of her love for him is an important part of their very complex relationship, which has to be understood in order to fully understand their relationship and the story.
DeleteMarshall Schechter-
ReplyDeleteI read "Who's Irish"by Gish Jen for this module. One thing that I liked about Jhumpa Lahiri's stories is how the characters are multicultural and venture out of the European "norms". This also goes for "Who's Irish". Something that really resonated with me was how the story was written in the perspective of an outsider looking in on Western culture, flipping the trope on it's head. Being able to see the things that I did as a child, things I grew up with, and things I thought were completely normal being scrutinized really put them into a new light for me. The grandmother's narration in broken English as she dissects everyday life, coupled with the clear distinctions that she places, such as Chinese age and the lack of words like creative or supportive, shows how odd life can seem to someone who has grown up in a completely different culture. The melancholy ending with the grandmother moving in with her son and law's Irish family, separated from her Chinese roots and ostracized by her daughter, is a commentary on how Western culture assimilates and gentrifies everything it intakes, making sure that they "aren't going anywhere".
I love your analysis, AJ! I was especially taken with your sentence "The grandmother's narration in broken English as she dissects everyday life, coupled with the clear distinctions that she places, such as Chinese age and the lack of words like creative or supportive, shows how odd life can seem to someone who has grown up in a completely different culture." Super smart!
DeleteMarshall, I like how detailed and deep your writing dives into the perspective of this story. Also the realization you had about your childhood in relation to this text was super cool to read. Good work!
Delete-AJ Francois
Yixuan Zhou-
ReplyDeleteI read "The Thing Around Your Neck". I like how the conflicts and difficulties for the main character is not based on outside forces but her internal struggles. The flow of storyline is very smooth and the use of second-person narrative is very interesting- it drags the reader into the main character's point of view. The story starts off with the female protagonist facing hopeless situation in a completely new and unfamiliar country, having all the burdens of her shoulder suffocating her. She embraced herself with protective shells, thus she refuses the approaching of the white guy because she does not hold any confidence in his return. She puts herself in self-denial. Later, she starts to open up her heart to the guy but nonnegligible differences still exist. The great distinction of both race and social status definitely serves as the most difficult boundary for the female protagonist to cross and accept her lover. The writer is great at depicting the change in mood of the characters. The decision the female protagonist made is a decison that cannot help. It is not that she doesn't love him enough to accept him, but it is her realization of the their differences that deprives her ability to love him.
You're right, Yixuan. I think differentiating between outside forces and internal struggle is a wonderful way of understanding the narrator's crisis and resolution.
DeleteYixuan, I love how detailed you are in your writing. I was able to follow and make connections throughout your paragraph. I especially loved the final sentence when you summed the storyline up. Great Job!
DeleteYixuan, I also thought it was cool how the author used the second-person narrative. For me it created a unique dynamic to the character's point of view on her life that really intrigued me. Great job!
Delete-AJ Francois
I also really connected with the second person persepctive and I loved your analysis of the weight on her shoulders suffocating her. To me, it makes me think of a noose and how, even though it is loosened, the prejudices still exist and it holds her back from taking that last step. I think you did a great job!
Delete-Marshall Schechter
I choose "Two Path" for the second module. I was fascinated by the author's careful depiction of the complex love relationships and the inner thoughts of the characters who suffer and struggle under the relationship. It seems like that nobody do anyone wrong when looking from their individual perspectives and moral values, while it seems each of the characters perform some wrong behaviors when viewing their stories as whole. The husband in a way does not do any wrong- he follows his heart and loves and pursues whoever he wants, especially he does not hide his thought. But for Alice, this is devastcatating for her life. Alice, at the same time, does not think herself anywrong when stealing other's husband but falls in panic and sorrow when someone is stealing hers. Naomi, though feeling guility for both her husband and Alice, cannot contro herself to keep thinking about and loving Alice's husband. Their struggles results from a love in self and a general like on other. When the emotion of like is free and presumptuous, the emotion of love is self-retsraining.
ReplyDelete--Yixuan Zhou
Delete---Yixuan Zhou
ReplyDeleteignore this plz ￣□￣｜｜
DeleteAJ Francois-
ReplyDeleteFor my second story I read "The Thing Around Your Neck" by by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. One thing I really appreciated about this story was how the author referred to the character using 'you' or 'your.' To me, this created a unique outside view on the story that still provided a personal and intimate relationship to the main character. This dynamic made this short story stand out from the other ones I read which was something I enjoyed. Another interesting part of the story was how as the story progressed and the relationship between the main character and her boyfriend deepened, the "thing" around her neck loosened up. Also how when the "thing" let go it somewhat mirrored the final scene where she was assuring her return to her boyfriend then again, let go. To me it showed a relation between the thing and the boyfriend tying around the main character. Overall I really enjoyed this story.
I like your idea of the connection between the thing around her neck and her relationship with her boyfriend and how it helps foreshadow the story. Seems like a very cool story. Great analysis!!!
DeleteAJ, I really liked your reading of the significance of the "thing around her neck." While I was reading this story, I noticed and thought about that detail a little bit, but it was cool to see someone else dig a little deeper. I hope you liked the story as much as I did!
ReplyDeleteMarshall Schechter-
ReplyDeleteFor the second module, I read "The Thing Around Your Neck". Aside from the entire story being written in second person which I actually enjoy a fair amount, this story is the second in a row that forced me to take a look at myself from an outsider's perspective. The struggles that the narrator's family faced in Lagos, their worth as humans not even amounting to a tire on a limo, as the father puts it, utterly trivialize the complaints of her boyfriend when he complains about his strained relationships with his parents. It is also very interesting to see the narrator's initial view of her boyfriend, as while I might have seen him as a cultured and worldly individual, the narrator sees him as self righteous, gawking at the lives of the poor and checking off things from his bucket list. It made me think about the times that I lamented my life and how entitled I was to lament a life like mine. I've loved all of the stories that I've read so far and they've all helped me take a better look at my life.