Ancestry

In the last line of Angry Black White Boy, it says that Macon joins his ancestors. It never explains who these ancestors are, but there are a few explanations which make sense.

The first of these explanations is that the ancestors are referring to Macon's parents, grandparents, and Cap Ansen. The line would be saying that Macon is joining those before him who either actively participated in racism or ignored it. Macon views all of these people as really bad because even though they may recognize the problem, they don't do anything to fix it. Instead, they just go on with their lives accepting their white privilege and staying happy by remaining ignorant. At the end of the book Macon also wants to return to this state of mind. This interpretation would also make sense as Macon writes "cap" on the bus which shows how he thinks he is getting closer to both Cap Ansen and the Cap that was hated by every member of the graffiti community. Even though he was involved in graffiti culture, comparing himself to one of the most hated just shows how much Macon is struggling with himself right now.

Another interpretation is that the ancestors are referring to the other people like Macon, white people who found the problem of race in America disturbing and wanted to change it. Macon is sort of unique in his approach because he educates himself through hip-hop and takes a very militant viewpoint, but others have come before him. If we take ancestors to mean this, then when Macon fails he is being compared to all of the other whites who sympathized with the cause who also failed. There have been white people who supported the cause and were fairly successful, like the Jewish man in the book, but no one like Macon, who wants to change how white people evaluate racism in America, has ever really gotten anywhere. 

Macon's death makes us question why he is being killed. Is it because he is not identifying with his white ancestors, or is it because he is identifying with those who have tried to change the mindset of white people before him and failed. 

Hip-hop in Angry Black White Boy

This Hip-hop in Angry Black White Boy is somewhat foreign to us. Macon talks about groups like X-clan who are older than what we think the 90s rap scene is really like. This is probably what shaped more of his militant attitude towards race relations.

For me 90s rap is really categorized by Nas' first two albums which were released 1994 and 1996. But Macon is very skeptical of this type of rap scene. Even though it can argued that Nas has socially conscience songs on these albums, with songs like "NY state of mind" speaking about drug violence and even referencing Five Percent philosophy on "The World is Yours," Macon thinks that all of his songs are just bragging about his monetary wealth. Nas is interesting in this case because he intersperses his lyrics with both lines that glorify himself and lines that really talk about the real world and how things aren't all really that great. One example of this can be seen in "The Message" on the album It Was Written where he basically says that he can kill any one that tries to test him, but it has an underlying message of how drugs and gang warfare control the ghetto and controlled his life when he was growing up.

Macon seems to be very set in his ways with categorizing Hip-hop as having to be solely militant to get a point across, but that is not necessarily true. Again with Nas, the lyrical mixture proves a point that while boasting, one can really get at the foundation of what is causing the problems.

There is some substance to the militant views Macon does have. Groups like NWA whose album Straight Outta Compton was released in 1988 have songs like "Fuck Tha Police" which is very aggressive and wants to expose the stupidity and corruption in favor of the police.

Basically, Macon seems to be stuck in his ways concerning newer rap, thinking that it really doesn't show anything, and doesn't add to his ideology. Macon seems to be wrong in some aspects of this, but the progression of Hip-hop in the 90s favors brag raps more than socially and racially conscience songs. 

Scave

The concept of scave is interesting and tell us a lot about the hero's journey. I believe all heroes have to go through this and this is represented really well in Room. Jack's reluctance to do what he needs to do for him and Ma to escape is portrayed really well in the book.

In the chapter of the escape Jack very often switches back and forth between wanting to escape and being too afraid of all the new information and stimuli he is going to experience. We see this when he says that they should wait until he is six and that they cant do the plan tonight and when he learns that Nick is going to have to touch him, he goes into a state of completely denying any possibility of the plan going through. In addition, every time he learns about something new in the plan he seems to go back in the same scared state where he wouldn't really be able to function.

Jack is also undoubtedly very brave. Even when things go wrong in the escape plan such as missing the first stop light, or being knocked over when Nick takes a turn onto a different street, he is able to recover in some way any finally get help to his mother.  The most surprising form of this comes in his trying to get details to the police officer while still in shock from all the stimuli around him. He is able to get the information and remember things that Ma has told after being bitten by a dog that he didn't know could exist a few days ago and pretending to be dead. This level of bravery and being able to stay in some sort of calm state is amazing in any situation and even more amazing when you consider the fact that Jack has just turned 5 and his knowledge of the world consisted of Room.

Overall, the scave aspect of Jack journey is represented very well in the book and is something that can be recognized in pretty much all heroic narratives. 

The strange intelligence of Old Nick

One aspect of the first few chapters of Room that stood out to me was the sort of twisted smartness that Old Nick was described with. Although most criminals would be smart enough to trick someone unknowing into getting into their car. It seems sort of strange that he would be willing to go to such lengths just to kidnap someone. The two situations that this would be realistic in would be if it was just a plot device to make Jack have to be the one who helped get out, or if he took pride in planning everything out and being able to utilize all his tools.

In terms of why he is smart, we see this first in terms of his renovations to the shed. He puts basically a foot of soundproof padding in, along with all the necessities for daily life and some more including a tv. He seems to take into account that the mental health of the person he kidnaps has to be sort of stable or none of this would be worth it, but we don't really know his motivations. The garden shed also has the fence so that you couldn't cut your way out of it and other protections including the door lock.

In addition to the physical restrictions that Nick has placed on these people, he also has a strong mental grasp on Ma and many cards to play if they try to deceive him or revolt against their capture. He can starve them, cut off the electricity, and not bring them and food or other necessities. He is also much stronger physically than the undernourished victims as can be seen in how Ma's wrist gets broken after she tries to overpower him. With Jack in the equation, the threat of him getting hurt is also a card that Nick can play and something that Ma is very worried about. He never really has to play this card, but the fact that it is there is such a large factor in how he keeps them in check. Ma is in such a state that she basically needs Jack to stay mentally functioning, and although Nick probably doesn't want her in a suicidal state, shes want Jack to stay alive and with her more than she thinks about Nick objectives and the fact that Nick would probably not hurt Jack to a very severe extent.

All of these above factor coupled with Nick also trying to get favor with Jack in some ways, as with the jeep, paint a very complex picture of the victims relationship with their captor. Although Nick is definitely in the wrong, he seems to be able to think through enough that he doesn't get caught until Ma uses Jack to outsmart him. 

Thoughts on the ending of Memory of Running

Although there were mixed reactions to the ending of this book, I thought it was fairly good. One point that might be argued against it is the cheesiness of the ending, and the sort of perfectly fitting and almost creepy appearance of Norma when Smithy is with Bethany. I think that this ending works, with Smithy's incredibly bad luck it feels like something good should happen to him and Norma showing up seems to fill that hole.

I think the ending also resolves Bethany's narrative fairly well. Although I would have liked more explanation about what happened between when she left and her death, but her family doesn't know so it makes sense that we don't get the whole picture. In addition, Smithy is able to distance himself and move on from his sister's presence, and this is shown through his taking her advice and moving away from being fat as well as her disappearing into the clouds.

The Norma/"I love you" story line also finished up pretty well. We get the culmination of all the phone calls and near "love" drops, but the way the book ends really solidifies it and makes you certain that their relationship is progressing in some way. I enjoyed that there was something here that Smithy could look forward to in terms of someone who can understand where he comes from and support him after the has pretty much lost everything.

Overall, I like this ending because is shows us that Smithy has something good happen to him after everything that he has been through. It also gives us some understanding of what this journey gave him. 

Cash as a hero

In As I Lay Dying, Cash is arguably the most rational of the Bundren's and experiences a large amount of development over the course of the novel. He is one of the most Heroic characters in the novel throughout, in both his work and how he deals with the troubles that arise over the trip to town.

In the beginning of the book our impression of Cash is one of a very hardworking individual, the one with the best chance of being successful in life. We first get glimpses of his heroism when he builds Addie's coffin without stopping. Although it may seem like he is being insensitive, I believe that he is actually just trying to distract himself from the grief by working very hard, and that kind of release is pretty admirable.

Later in the book, Cash is heroic in his unwavering lack of notice that he puts towards his injury. Cash seems to know that complaining about his leg would make things worse for the whole family, so he endures that pain, saying that it doesn't hurt much, and makes them continue on the journey.

Cash also develops a lot during the journey. During the beginning he is wholly focused on building the coffin, but by the end of the book he turns into one of the most reliable narrators in the book. Cash manages to survive the whole journey, never complaining, and even questions some of the decisions of the other family members. One example of this is how he wonders if sending Darl away was really the correct choice to make.

Cash also is one of the members of the family who actually comes away with something, the "graphaphone". I think this suggests that he is more heroic because he did come out with something through a large amount of struggle and hard work, and because he lost a large amount of ability in one of his legs.

Overall, Cash is one of the most heroic characters in the novel and deserve the recognition that he gets by the end of the book as the main narrator. 

Addie and religion

In a society where religion is a very important part if everyday life, Addie seems to have some out of the ordinary viewpoints. What struck me most was when Addie said something along the lines of, to those whom sin was just a matter of words, salvation was just a matter of words too.

We get a picture of Addie that is very interesting, expressing ideas that she really had no other options in her life, but to go with this we find that she is a pretty smart woman and this is complimented by her views on religion. Addie doesn't seem religious, but she understands religion on a more  fundamental level than the other women in the society.

Instead of blindly following prayers, and praying for others as Cora does when she thinks people are blind to sin, Addie knows that religion isn't much more than fancy words just being thrown around. She understand that sin isn't something that can be described in words. There is something more fundamental there that can't be expressed if you are so focused on prayer, and to compliment this she thinks that salvation can't be that simple either.

I believe much of this is coming from her disillusionment with religion as she had an affair with the local religious authority, and this provides us with this woman who can be seen as even more distinct from the other farmer's wives. Not only because she has interesting views on child rearing, but because she doesn't blindly follow religion when many were illiterate and thought that  religion could make their lives much better. Addie doesn't turn to religion to make her life better. She puts it off as mostly words spoken by people with no real meaning.

I think that Addie has an interesting view on religion, but it would be cool to see the other character's views on it. We  know Anse can philosophize so his religious experience would be nice to look at. I think Cash would also be interesting to find more out about as we already know he is very rational. Overall, it would be interesting to find out this particular family's view on religion.

Anse as a Hero

In As I Lay Dying, the picture we get of Anse is not very heroic. I don't think Anse really represents a hero even though he is going through a journey. So far it hasn't really changed him or helped anyone other than him.

First off, Anse doesn't even take the lead in this journey that he proposed. He seems to be the only one who pushes for the journey, but during the travel he is often letting Jewel lead the wagon and the mules. If Anse took lead of the journey, I think that would make him more admirable, as it would lead you to believe that he could actually do something if he tried and would show that he has some sort of determination to do something even if he refuses to work.

To further push Anse into the role of not being a hero, his motives for making the journey to town are questionable. Throughout the book he keeps mentioning the teeth that he hasn't had for year and that if he goes to town he will be able to get them. Although all the other characters have their own reasons for going to town, Anse seems the most deliberate in stating the he is just fulfilling Addie's wishes when in fact the is also fulfilling his wishes. None of the kids say that they are helping Addie, they are just following what their father is telling them and they can get to town as a by-product of that.

Anse is also very stubborn about this trip when it is evidently a very bad idea. Both bridges are flooded, people get injured, everyone else is telling them not to go and they don't really have enough money to support the trip. In general, I think that the children are more heroic than Anse in this story, as they have to struggle through the same hardships as Anse, but they try to solve their own problems. This can especially be seen in how Vardaman is figuring out what death is when he just lost a mother and almost everything that can be going wrong is. 

Telemachus' dynamic character

Telemachus is one of the most dynamic characters we have seen in the whole book so far. His character not only starts out as fairly pathetic but gains a large amount of confidence and respectability by the point we have read up to now.

Telemachus starts out moping in his house contemplating whether his father will actually return home and not really doing anything substantive. The main good quality that we see he has at this point is the fact that he completely follows the laws of hospitality. He welcomes his guests without any qualms and doesn't even want to hear what he is there about until he has been welcomed.

We first see Telemachus' development with Athena prodding him to go and visit the other islands/states to learn more about where is father is. Although Athena helps him, Telemachus does a large amount of the work himself in terms if the talking and interacting with others.

We really see most of his development in the few chapters where he meets his father. First, he is able to come up with a plan with his dad and begins to put it into motion. There is no  hesitation in him helping his dad with the arms or him not telling his mother or any others what is happening. Telemachus also starts to stand up to the suitors. At one point he threatens to pull his sword out and go at them, but he is laughed at. Although he is laughed at, the fact that he still has the courage to say something like that shows a large amount of character  development.

Overall, Telemachus is one of the more developed characters and we can see this in many ways. It will be interesting to see how he develops in the remaining few chapters of the book.

Odysseus' Heroic Qualities

Odysseus doesn't seem to have many heroic qualities showcased in the first half of the story. He is unfaithful, shows off his power and strength, which ends up hurting him and his troops, and doesn't work that much to get what he wants, in the case of him sleeping during the whole trip from Scheria to Ithaca. One classic heroic trait that he does seem to have is ability to strategize and win battles.

We first see this in the fact that Odysseus basically won the Trojan War for the Greeks. His strategy that entailed acting like the Greeks had left and sending a giant horse into the city, which was designed to look like an offering to Poseidon, and then sack the city from the inside was pretty ingenious. Odysseus also is one of the more respected people during the war, further complimenting his strategic talent.

We can also see Odysseus' strategies taking effect when he has to escape from the cyclops' cave. Although being caught in the cave was his own fault and overconfidence at work, Odysseus is able to get out of the cave successfully by basically drugging the cyclops and then disguising him and his men as sheep.

Odysseus also is fairly strategic in his speech and what he says to people. One example of this is when he convinces Nausicaa to help him while convincing her with words and staying far away instead of trying to beg at her knees. He also is able to convince many others to help him, and this diplomatic skill can also be seen as heroic as he doesn't need to rely on force to get what he wants. His diplomatic skill can also be seen in how Telemachus has similar abilities, in addition to the other ways that he resembles Odysseus.

Overall, Odysseus is not heroic in many of his traits, but he is able to lead people to victory very successfully even with limited options, as with the cyclops. The scale of victories he is able to pull can be seen with his contribution to the Trojan War. His diplomatic skill can also be seen as heroic and thus Odysseus has at least a few heroic qualities to him.

Athena's Divine Intervention

One of the major aspects of the last few chapters that we have read is the sheer amount of work the gods, especially Athena, are doing to get Odysseus home. Ranging from convincing people to do certain actions, to messing with other gods, the whole story is basically, "how can I manipulate these people to help this one guy get to where he wants to be?"

We see the first of Athena's manipulation in how she convinces Telemachus to try and find out what happened to his dad and restore order to his household. The effect that this has is fairly large in terms how Athena's plan to help the household of Odysseus does work and makes sure that Odysseus does have a house to return to.

In addition to this Athena convinces the other gods to also help Odysseus, causing him to be able to escape from Calypso's island easily, and also allows him to survive Poseidon's attempts on his life. After all of this Athena gets Nausicaa to wake him up through a long series of manipulations including coming to her in a dream to convince her to wash her clothes and put the idea of marriage in her mind, and then while this happens change the path of a ball to land in a pool so that a seemingly very marriageable man wakes up and wants her help. After this Athena helps him find the castle and tells him how to gain favor with the royal family, and helps him more by announcing his presence to the whole town.

In short, we haven't really been able to see Odysseus as a hero much so far, other than his cunning and physical strength (which was affected by Athena as well), and most of the story has been about how Athena is helping Odysseus. I hope we will be able to see Odysseus solve some problems by himself in the future.