Real
As I read the essay They All Just Went Away by Joyce Carol Oates (http://www.usfca.edu/jco/) , I scanned the text over and over looking for a message that could relate to our blog and the topics we have chosen to cover. The piece by Oates was one that could be interpreted in many different views, but in essence I believe that is what separates a good author from a great one. On page 158 of our reading packet and 555 of Oates essay there was a line that caught my eye. " But the 'real' -- what assaults the eye before the eye begins its work of selection -- is never on the verge of dissolution, still less of appropriation". This line stood out to me because it can be applied to more than what she references in the text.
My first connection that came to mind was with the word real in that sentence. This idea of "real" has been debated by many different religions and cultures since there has been different views on something. For example, today there are many people who do not believe in Christianity. These people dont believe that what they are being told has actually happened or is even real. That being said the people who follow Christianity more than likely don't believe in what the skeptical person has for their religious views. Oates goes on to say, " The real is arbitrary" (555). http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arbitrary . I have linked the definition of the word arbitrary because I feel that what Oates has said strongly backs up my view point. Arbitrary is depending on individual discretion (as of a judge) and not fixed by law, and that is why religion is one of the things that can be so heavily disputed. There is no fixed law saying that one must follow a certain religion and most religions were concepts that we thought up by people of power to widen their following.
In sum this idea of "Real" that Oates talks about in her piece is quite a debated subject. She clearly shows her view point on how she feels about it in her story but the beauty of English is being able to interpret things in your own views and decide for yourself what is real and what is not.
-- Shane Wilson
Shane, I thought this was a very thoughtful post. It's interesting how you took two sentences and made them relate to religion. Though I didn't see many instances of religion in the text, I agree with your explanation. I think that "They All Just Went Away" also relates to race. The characters were all white, but Oates made it very clear that are divisions within the white race. The narrator came from what seemed like solid middle class, whereas the Weidel family was characterized as "white trash". The narrator says, "None of the Weidels were wanted" (159). Not only are there "dominant" races in our society, there are also dominant positions within the same race.
ReplyDelete-Amanda
I thought it was really interesting the way you connected this piece to "reality" and religion. I agree that it seems that throughout the story, Joyce Carol Oates is searching for truth. Her fascination with the Weidels shows her need to understand all different aspects of human life. She explains Edward Hopper, the painter, as, "not a realist but a surrealist" (158). Oates' goal is to try and see through the surrealism,and find the realism. As in one of his paintings, she wants to see inside the closed windows of one of his house paintings, and find what's going on inside. This relates directly to the goal of religion, to find truth. I think this is relevant to your comment too, Amanda. People want to find the truth of race and why we are different.
ReplyDelete-Jordan
Shane, I thought that the quote you decided to analyze was spot on. Religion is one of the most disputed and pretty much up in the air topics out there. There is no right religion, and no one really knows about what some of the larger than life things out there are. And lastly, I totally agree that the message that Oates gives is that in the end, you can take her literature how you want, she doesn't tell you what to believe she just gives you a piece of her work and it can be analyzed any way.
ReplyDeleteNick