Mother of The Year
My first impressions after reading Mother of the Year by Paul Theroux was that Paul's mother screamed bipolar. Her actions were that of an abusive boyfriend or husband. Living in a large family meant there wasn't much room for outsiders to peak in. This left their mother in total control, a dictator in some respects. The way their mother leveraged her kids against one another seems cruel to an outsider. I can't help but ask what was the author's purpose for writing this story down. Being a writer gives one ultimate power, history. Paul Theroux, by writing this story has forever stored in history (thus his memory) how cruel and negative his mother was. Instead of having some what of a hindsight bias in the future this story will always be used as a reference for the way his mother not only treated himself, but the other children as well. Although I must noted that throughout the story I didn't feel as though Paul was searching for an empathetic response, rendering me somewhat confused.
Shooting Dad
I found this story, Shooting Dad by Sarah Vowell to be entertaining and relate-able. Just as Sarah's father is into guns and shooting my own father is equally passionate about English football(or soccer as they call it here in America.) His team happens to be Manchester United, a team he proudly tells people he followed when they were in the 2nd division before players like David Beckham or Chrisiano Ronaldo had even been born. My father wakes up during the regular season at 4:30am in order to make the live the kickoff time in England. As a young boy my dad used to take me to the pub to watch the games, although they were never for me. I was always into cars. As a little kid my dad signed me up for AYSO as player and he was the coach. For years and years I played and liked it quite a bit. My dad also returned the favor by learning about motorsports and eventually appreciating the whole process behind it. Today my dad and I watch both soccer and Formula 1 together.
Jimmy Corrigan
To be honest, I didn't quite understand this text. Why did Jimmy continue to pick up the phone if he knew it was his mother calling? Does Jimmy subconsciously like the extra attention given to him by his mother? Could you go as far as to say that Jimmy NEEDS the attention from his mother? I just don't understand the point of these texts. Also the title of these comics is ironic and confusing.
Good responses. I agree that Theroux's primary intention might not have been to get an empathetic response. His intention might have had to do with catharsis.
ReplyDeleteThe "Jimmy Corrigan" excerpt is probably the most challenging of these three readings. First, it's a graphic text; second, it's an excerpt (and third, it's presented in black and white, unlike the original text). These factors may add to one's difficulty with reading and responding to the text. Still, in class, some of the responses hit on themes/elements of the piece as a whole. (I might pass around my copy of the full text, time permitting.)
Have you seen "Green Street Hooligans"? It's a film (starring Elijah Wood) whose story revolves around a group of Manchester United fans.