Mad toy- Character Development and The Poverty Cycle

Hi everyone,

For week three of the course I read the novel Mad Toy written by Roberto Arlt. This novel is about a young criminal and his life in poverty as he grows older. In comparison to Proust’s Combray I found it to be a faster, more enjoyable, immersive read. If I was rating this book I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.

To continue, the most prevalent theme within this novel is the reality of the poverty cycle and class. One of the most realistic aspects of Silvio’s character as an impoverished person is his inability to escape poverty, despite his numerous attempts. He is full of ambition and drive to succeed and escape a cruel situation that he is disgusted by and knows is wrong. He demonstrates the cycle of poverty because everytime he seems to break the cycle, he fails. For example, after the failed robberies his mother tells him to go to work, and he begins working for a man who provides room and board. He is told he will have a warm bed and proper pay. However, he sleeps in a broken cot with no mattress and his boss is abusive and refuses to pay him. Similarly, when he begins working as a paperboy he believes that this is his ticket to success. However, he discovers that it is difficult to obtain clientele, profit margins are small and sometimes people would complain and not pay him at all. Both of these situations describe false hope for Silvo, and situations in which the system was working against him. His consistent struggle to survive may seem repetitive and uneventful but actually represents the reality for many individuals like Silvo.

Another interesting aspect of the novel is Silvo’s character development. He begins as a refined young criminal but in the end is unsure of his actions and considers turning in his friend who wants to commit a robbery. The total reversal of his ideas reflects how much he has changed and grown throughout the novel. He realizes something every young adult does. He says, “ We work to eat and eat to work”(Arlt 137). He realizes that he is ultimately a slave to a capitalist society and the ultimate goal is to survive in a system built on the premise that the poor remain poor and the rich get richer. He highlights that he was born out of love and care, but forced to live a life of cruel difficulties.

Discussion Question: If Silvo made different choices, would he have been successful or is he already successful? (because the novel was left slightly open ended)

Thanks,

Nadia

Proust- A good read? Gender? My thoughts.

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Hello everyone,

I would like to begin my blog post with discussing the introduction of Combray written by Proust. There are three main posts I found most interesting. To begin, this novel is not his thoughts but his world as a whole, both his voluntary and involuntary memory. It is similar to a biography as it recounts his life events but it is also a novel that explains his journey as a writer that began in childhood. Furthermore, because this novel is written in first person it conveys something unique, almost as if he is a lost and confused adolescent attempting to discover himself and imagining what he wishes to see. For instance, he imagines Gilberte, a person who looks at him with disgust as a woman with blue eyes and immediately falls in love with a manufactured idea of her. This idea is explored in section 2 and I will discuss it further on in this post. Lastly, there is a note about translation explaining that translations can sometimes alter meanings. For example, the verb chercher in French can mean both to look for and to try. Therefore, the English equivalent would be to seek, but this translation is not entirely accurate. Some words are kept in french as an attempt to maintain integrity and to step away from this notion of betrayal that translation can cause as we discussed.

This novel discussed Marcel’s journey as a writer and a reader, relating to the notion of a good read that we had discussed in class He describes reading as, “ what I was to love so in his style was not apparent to me. I could not put this novel I was reading” (Proust 96). I agree that a good reading is meant to be an immersive experience and stylistic experience meant to transport you to the world of books. He further explains that reading is like meeting a woman and becoming further drawn to her nuances. Although I would never choose this analogy to explain my feelings I agree and understand what he is trying to say. It’s not just about reading symbols on a page, but understanding them and applying them to a greater context. Unfortunately I would not personally consider this a good read because I found it quite slow and difficult to understand at first.

In addition, I want to further explain my thoughts about Marcel’s infatuation with Gilberte as it showcases his pessimistic views of love and his similarities to Swann. Not only does he fall in love with an idealized version of her. He becomes disappointed that she is unable to live up to his ideals surrounding her physical appearance. Ultimately, he becomes hypocritical and is unable to see women as who they really are, objectifying them like Swann

My favourite quote from this book: “The woods are dark, but the sky is still blue” (Proust 123).

Question: What are your thoughts about Marcel’s Infatuation with Gilberte?

Introduction post!

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Hi everyone,

My name is Nadia and I use the pronouns she/her! I am in my first year hopefully studying psychology in the Faculty of Arts at UBC. I am originally from the lower mainland and have plans to eventually work as an occupational therapist. I took this course to satisfy the literature requirement because I wanted to try a course unique in comparison to an typical english course. I love reading, although I have not read as much as in recent years as my priorities have changed. I hope this course provides me with the opportunity to explore genres different than the typical fantasy and fiction that I enjoy. gain. My goal for this semester is to find some books that ignite my love for reading again, learn something new and allow me to become lost in the world of books.

Within this weeks lecture, I found this notion of betrayal within translation quite interesting. As a french speaker, who often struggles in conversation with others who are native speakers I understand that sometimes moments can often get lost in translation or become misinterpreted. When reading these novels, I completely agree that nothing can truly compare to reading the original texts. However, it is within this betrayal that I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to read the translated versions of these books. I view this betrayal of as more of a gift, to be able to understand these novels and apply the themes and messages to a broader global context as well as the original context in which it was written. Applying these themes and contexts can also help make the reading experience more enjoyable because it becomes a personal intimate experience. For example, I am particularly interested in reading books written by women, french novels and novels that explore aspects of history. Despite this, when reading and discussing these novels its incredibly important to remember that they are translated, and there are missing puzzle pieces when translated novels are to english.

One last thing, Jon referred to Romance Languages as “Latin’s bastard offspring” and I think this is another important idea that must be understood when reading these novels because they all stem from Latin. However, it is important that we view these languages not as romantic, in the usual sense of the word, but as a group of languages based on different regions. Altering the connotation associated with the word can help change and broaden perspectives and help us become better “readers” as we discussed in class.

Excited to meet you all,

Nadia 🙂