Tuesday, September 29, 2009
The Ruin of Vanity
By acknowledging her beauty, Connie only drifts deeper into an unhealthy and egotistical lifestyle. The make-up of Connie’s character holds her own beauty as the definitive quality of her personality. This is evident when the narrator states, “she knew she was pretty and that was everything” (1¶). Connie is even arrogant enough to believe that her mother secretly favors her over June due to her better looks. While visiting the restaurant “shaped like a big bottle”, Connie’s vanity is exposed once again while walking through the parking lot with Eddie. As the narrator explains, “Connie couldn’t help but let her eyes wander over windshields and faces all around her” (8¶). The necessity to constantly remind herself of her good looks displays a clear lack of poise in her personality. She requires a gratifying glance in a reflection to once again reassure herself that she is indeed good looking.
Connie’s open exhibition of her beauty and arrogance is the main factor contributing to Arnold Friend’s creepy interest in Connie. This disturbing character first appears when Connie is walking away from the restaurant. He jeers at her and barks, “Gonna get you, baby” (8¶). From the get-go, he has clearly taken in interest in Connie from his blunt remark. Her arrogant behavior is furthered when she rejects the barbecue invitation presented by her mother. Connie rolls “her eyes to let her mother know just what she thought of it (13¶). By excluding herself from the barbecue, Connie creates a greater rift between herself and the rest of her family. It is natural for a teen to want to distance themselves from their family. Connie is clearly struggling to fit into her own skin and uses rebellious actions to ease the transition into womanhood. She is associated with a history of poor judgment that can be viewed as a stress outlet for Connie’s confusing stage of adolescent life. While unsure of her role in society, Connie’s mind is malleable and easily manipulated by a seductive influence. This unfortunately gives Arnold Friend an accessible path that he can follow right into Connie’s life.
From the initial moment that Arnold and Ellie pull up in the car, the reader is aware of their malicious intent. At first, Connie is enticed by Arnold. In her eyes, he is simply masculine teen boy, driving a golden jalopy convertible, with a radio playing Bobby King. The playing of Bobby King on Arnold’s part was a clever way to gain quick entry into Connie’s comfort level. Prior to Arnold’s arrival, Connie was singing along to a Bobby King song. How he knew that she enjoyed Bobby King is a mystery, but it is undeniable that his utilization of popular music was a sure way to influence her. The pivotal moment in their encounter occurs when she questions his age. Connie grows substantially more suspicious of the two figures who actually appear to be closer to middle aged men than their teen facades.
Connie’s depressing encounter with Arnold illustrates how the proper exploitations of the instabilities of a personality can strongly influence and even control the targeted individual. Arnold specifically preys on Connie because of his knowledge of her obsession over appearance. Her preoccupation with her looks generates the ideal mentality for Arnold's manipulation. As a willing victim by the story’s conclusion, her incapacity to draw strength from her hollow persona enables Arnold to direct her thoughts and actions.
(676)
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Response to "Cathedral"
The story starts off with the narrator describing how Robert, a blind friend of his wife, had recently lost his wife and is visiting. Right from the get-go, the narrator has formed an narrow-minded prejudice against Robert. The concept of blindness is very foreign to him a creates an unsettling feeling. He expresses this when he states, "And his being blind bothered me...A blind man in my house was not something I looked forward to" (99). His only true observation of a blind individual was from a movie which clearly does not depict him/her in an accurate, personable manner. The narrator also feels threatened by the strong relationship that Robert shares with his wife. As though initially very cynical of the blind man, the narrator gradually learns to figuratively lifts his own blindness and accept Robert for who he really is. The narrator passed ignorant judgment on Robert before even meeting him when he found out that his wife's name was Beluah. According to the narrator, "That's a name for a colored women" (101). He is already making rash assumptions of Robert based on something barely related to Roberts personality.
Although Robert is blind, the narrator can understand that Robert can see into his wife's emotion better than himself. This is seen when Robert arrives and the narrators wife greets him on the curb. While walking to the house, both are laughing and apparently already sharing a joyous moment. This sort of happiness is not seen in the wife prior to Roberts visit. The wife and the narrator clearly don't share a very deep relationship when the narrator feels compromised by his wife's best friend. The narrator even goes as far as criticizing Robert for having a beard. This is expressed when the narrator state, "This blind man, feature this, he was wearing a beard!...Too much, I say" (101). Does Robert feel this need to belittle his beard because he knows that Robert has no way of seeing it?
The narrator begins to gain some respect for Robert at the conclusion of the meal By listening to Robert's various jobs and interesting tasks, the narrator starts to understand the depth of Robert's character. Initially, the narrator viewed Robert as a helpless handicapped blind man, but by the end of the story, the narrator grows truly connected to Robert and can see life with a fresher perspective. The narrator sees how Robert has had the experiences of a lifetime while at the same time faced the disadvantage of lacking eyesight. Robert seems to gain a great deal of satisfaction from his past full of exciting experiences specifically his work as a ham radio operator. While smoking marijuana on the living room couch, the narrator attempts and struggles to describe what a cathedral looks like to Robert. This is expressed when the narrator explains, "They reach way up...I'm not doing so god, am I?" (107). The narrator needs leaves his comfort zone, illustrating what a cathedral looks like by drawing it on paper and having Robert hold on to his hand. While drawing it, the narrator closes his eyes and begins to understand life through the eyes of Robert. This is the deepest connection between the two individual in the story and the point where the narrator lifts his veil of ignorance. He begins understanding that he has freed himself from a blinding barrier of ignorance.
(581)