In contrast to Proust’s “Combray,” which I found to be longer and more difficult to read, this week’s reading was Roberto Arlt’s “Mad Toy.”  I connected more deeply with “Mad Toy.” I couldn’t help but consider the difficulties individuals, particularly those from the working class, experience on a daily basis. I had the impression that Silvio Astier, a young, disillusioned man living in Buenos Aires in the 1920s, was confessing while I read this novel. In his account of his experiences and observations, Silvio offers an unvarnished viewpoint on the social and economic divide, political corruption, and the chaotic character of metropolitan life. We are informed that Silvio surrounded himself with book lovers and grew up surrounded by books. He attempts to make it in the real world using concepts gleaned from literature. Silvio’s adolescence, during which he becomes enmeshed in a world of crime and rebellion. Silvio establishes a club with his friends, first for amusement, but soon the club members start committing thefts, which vary from taking books and reselling them to stealing lightbulbs. Along with other dejected young people, he creates a gang and takes part in small-time thefts and other crimes. The story captures the social instability and dissatisfaction that characterized that era in Argentina. Arlt addresses how societal expectations and financial hardships shape young people’s behavior and push them in the direction of anarchy and rebellion through Silvio’s character. 

After their group split up, he stated that “life is made up of meetings and partings” which to me seems like a level of maturity and growth, Silvio attempts an alternative strategy to get out of poverty (I will discuss how I personally relate to this later in this post). He begins his job search. any kind of labor. As long as it was not against the law, he was cool with everything. Silvio’s mother begs him to begin working because things are getting worse for their family every day. Silvio used to work at a bookstore, and I thought it was unusual that he had to live with his bosses and work around the clock that is, until he tried to set the place on fire. Silvio had trouble landing a lasting job.

I stated earlier that I’ll mention how Silvio and his friend group split connects to me and is also a sign of growth. I have experienced having to split groups multiple times in my life. The first time was when I initially moved from Nigeria to Canada, I left all my childhood friends behind. Another time when I split up with a group was after graduating high school, all my friends got into different universities and chased different goals. 

Question for the class…how hard do you think it is to break up from a friend group you grew up in? And how does it affect an individual mentally?

Thanks for reading!