Archives: March 2022

Amulet- reflections

I really liked this novel, it was a very intriguing and even suspenseful read. The fact that this novel is set in Mexico at a time of great political unrest is what makes it both unnerving and interesting at the same time. The opening lines of the story immediately catches the reader’s interest and successfully holds it throughout the novel. I even found myself pausing the read to research more on the general social and political situation during the time period the novel is set in which I believe is evidence as to just how much Bolaño manages to engage his readers with this narrative.

The controlled, seemingly lucid beginning seems to highlight the narrator’s confidence in controlling not only the pace of the story but how we as readers engage with the texts only to send us spiralling into a world where literature and its beauty that has constantly to be an outlet of some sort, often providing some sense of escapism, is complete juxtaposed against the brutal violence of the political conflict going on around it. What I thought was extremely intriguing (I really have got to find a better word for ‘interesting’ and ‘intriguing- the amount of times I have used them now!) is the way in which there is no sense of terror or emotional turbulence especially expressed throughout the novel although it is an almost certain thing our narrator must have experienced it to some degree given the amount of ongoing violence. She avoids paying too much attention to the unrest yet the brief windows she provides of it make it seem all the more real and tangible to the reader.

As she tries to outlast the violence and grows weak from hunger, the theme of memory and recollection grows stronger. The narrator recalls several memories from her past including her lost teeth and her friends as well as strange landscapes before ending on a vision of victims. There is a sense of falling into her own head and drifting, seemingly cut off from the reality that surrounds her before she jarringly brings us back to the present when she mentions the song of war and its meaning.

My question for this post would be whether we can consider the narrator’s telling of this story a way of her trying to escape what must have undoubtedly been a horrible reality? Or is it to ensure the way in which such terrible political unrest plagues people is not eventually forgotten and lost in time?

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The Trenchcoat- Reflections

Norman Manea’s ‘The Trenchcoat’ is definitely a confusing read. I felt there was a lot of  what one of my high school literature teachers referred to as ‘invisible reading’ to be done. By this they meant that there is a story being told in between the lines and I have to agree that this was most prominently show in this week’s novel. The author focuses a lot on historical and political points throughout the novel and I admit that I am biased when I say this narrative was my least favourite read we have done in this class thus far as I usually avoid any material containing non-fiction or political elements like the plague.

That said, I can appreciate the historical context the novel draws on at several instances as (and yes, I see how this is ironic since I am not fond of politics) as I find history extremely intriguing and often like to read up more on people, events and instances I find mentioned in books and media. I believe the most significant question in this novel is regarding the true meaning behind the trench coat for which the book is titled. Unlike most authors, Manea tends to be more open-ended in his writing which results in the reader not being given as definite an ending or closure as we might like. Just like history which we will never known truly know, the novel leaves us with questions and reading into more aspects, looking for hidden meanings, anything that might dispel the ambiguity Manea leaves the narrative and therefore the reader, surrounded by.

Another interesting fact about this novel is the lack of names. It is accepted by many that names provide one with a foundation for one’s identity and that Manea refuses to name his characters leaves us wondering whether he means to strip them of what many agree to be a basic right. But there is also the notion that history rarely remembers names and even when it does, it is mostly either the wrong names or for the wrong or unjust reasons.

My question for this weak is what is the level of ambiguity present in this novel meant to achieve, from the author’s point of view?

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W, or The Memory of Childhood

Let me start by saying I apologise for the late post. I was caught up in another assignment and completely lost track of time.

About the novel, I found it to be a very interesting and even somewhat appealing read in small degrees. I am well aware that I use the word ‘interesting’ about almost every book in we have read thus far in this course however it doesn’t diminish that it holds true, in various ways for each narrative of course.

Perec’s narrative style combined with historical experiences post World War Two create quite an engaging read that draws the reader in. Time seems to expand and contract as we follow the protagonist to the island of W and see the way he tries to connect with a past he has no memories of. In any world, we would find it strange that someone could exist with no remote idea of a past but I feel it is especially true of the present world we live in where one’s identity is brought under sharp scrutiny.

What I found more intriguing was that the author had no particular intention in creating the ambiguity surrounding W. Maybe it is just me, however I find that any mystery the reader might feel surrounds the island is accidental rather than purposeful, unlike in most other novels where there is an active effort on the author’s part to create some character or thing whose truth is hidden in order to build up suspense.

Peres merely seems to document the details of his voyage to the island of W, each story melding into the other and building his narrative in the same way his journey helps him piece together a past he has never truly had.

My question is; is it possible to ever really reconnect with a part of you that wasn’t really yours to begin with? Can that sort of past really be reclaimed?

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