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What Does Silvio Astier Want?

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“Mad Toy” by Roberto Arlt was a fascinating read about a young boy named Silvio Astier who is confused, to say the least about society, life, love and responsibilty. By the end of the first chapter, he has formed a “club” which is accurately a gang, comprised of himself and his two friends Enrique and Lucio. Towards the end of the first chapter, they commit their first crime together of stealing books. One thought of Silvio’s that stood out to me was when he commented on how he felt alive in sneaking around in the dark and how commiting this crime was him facing danger head on. However, this quickly changes, when the boys realize there is something amongst them. Silvio remarks that his body starts involuntarily bracing for consequence and his nerves coursed through his body. When reading the sudden change in his demeanor about committing the crime, it became clear to me that the adrenaline rush one may get from committing a crime is a driving factor for Silvio. Instead, I look at the fact he turned to his two friends to form a club to do something they all just knew how to do. Here it is highlighted that Silvio craves to belong to something and moreovers, wants to find companionship. His desperation for companionship is also made evident while they are reading pieces of the books and poems they stole and he is reminded of his ex-girlfriend, which fills him with feelings of regret and loneliness. Another driving force that perpels Silvio into his confusing journey in society is his wealth status. At the beginning of chapter two, Silvio’s mother approaches him and tells him he needs to work. Silvio is pitiful of his situation and argues back asking his mother what she expects him to do for work. However, when his mother shows Silvio her tattered boot, he realizes he does in fact feel an obligation to her. They embrace one another and he remarks on how he wished he could comfort her more. I think Silvio feels a whirlwind of emotions towards his mother. We later find out in the third chapter that his father killed himself at a very young age. So considering this, I think Arlt displays the fact that Silvio cannot stand the fact that he comes from poverty and sees this as a fault of his mother, but also juggles the fact that she is on her own and takes responsibility for being useless in terms of finance. This is what motivates Silvio to find work with Don Gaetano, the owner of the book store. Silvio’s relationship with labour is an unique one, because after working with Gaetano for some time, he realizes he still feels vastly empty and particulary when he is walking with Gaetono’s wife to her sisters house, he sees a couple standing on a balcony. This is a key moment where he realizes that despite making use of himself and recieving money he earned somewhat honestly, this isn’t enough to satisfy him. He wonders to himself, will I ever have an aristocratic girlfriend. This shows two major motivators for Silvio, status and recognition, as well as true love.

 

Discussion Questions:

Although Swann’s Way and Mad Toy are very different in terms of plot, what parallels can be drawn between Marcel’s and Silvio’s development as young boys, in terms of discovering what it means to grow up?

Why does Silvio specifically want to be an inventor, instead of something that would make him more money or even more well known?

Proust: Reflections of the Past

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Marcel Proust’s “Combrary” is a beautiful reflection of Marcel’s past and how this shapes his current habits. Whether it is his sleeping habits that are influenced, or the way he views architecture, in this chapter, the past is truly recognized for its importance. The novel starts by describing his sleeping habits, which he connects back to remembering how he struggled to sleep if no motherly figure in his family wished him goodnight, but regardless, he would fall asleep at some point. His reference to his difficulties of falling asleep in the past are directly related to the past family traumas himself the rest of his family had faced. This led to Marcel to seemingly long for motherly companionship and support, such as being put to sleep. While reading the text, something that particularly got me to think about symbolism was the stained glass window and how it affected him. He said it became unrecognizeable and made him feel uneasy. I thought that this stained glass window is related to the changing family dynamics he faced in the past and how this uneasy feeling towards the change in appearance from the stained glass was also an extension to the uncertainty he felt once in the past. Marcel also recalls the tensions that once existed between his great aunt and his grandmother and how he was conflicted on how to go about the arguments that would arise and how this caused a sense of great burden and responsibility within himself. I think it was very interesting how Proust wrote “I did what we all do, once we are grown up, when confronted with suffering and injustice-“. I think this phrase was interesting because it is Proust commentating on a general human psychological phenomenon he believes to be true. I think this is where cultural norms and positionality begin to influence literary works. As the book continued, it is explained Marcel locks himself away where no one can see him and cries to console himself. I think this notion of dealing with family conflicts and suffering is very subjective and I am curious to understand more about traditional French family values to understand Marcel’s family structure a bit better. Combrary has quite an unique way of retelling stories of the past as it takes the lives, feelings and actions of many people and is rooting it back to how it all impacts Marcel as an individual. Moreover, as the chapter continues, some clarity is gained by delving into Marcel’s past, as it is evident how Swann M, his mother, father, grandmother and aunt are all guideposts in his present life.

 

Discussion Questions: 

  1. When it is said “our social personality is a creation of the minds of others” do we think this is a school of thought Marcel carries with him in the future, or something he rejects?
  2. Why is it important for Marcel to describe how he sleeps and wakes up at the start of the chapter?

Introduction (Week 1)

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Hi everyone, my name is Simi Braich and I am in my second year of my degree here at UBC. I have a dog named Caesar who is a cane corso and is almost as tall as me. I am very excited to be in this course because I enjoy reading and want to continue to expand my horizons in terms of the literature I read. In my spare time I enjoy playing and watching football, reading (not for coursework), baking and spending time with my family and friends.

Now that I have been to a lecture and also used the online materials, I have realized what my expectations are of this course, beyond the surface level of reading and discussing books. One of the biggest expectations I have for the course is that we will analyze literature with the scope of many different themes. Meaning, I expect that in this course we will not just determine what the plot of these novels are and why the author chose to take a story in a certain direction, but we will consider themes of gender, sexuality, race, class and attempt to reveal what larger messages the texts intend to impose on readers. Furthermore, I expect that because we are reading these novels in chronological order, we will take these novels into a contemporary understanding and examine the changes that occur in writing style, plot and characters. Moreover, I also expect to learn about some of the social and/or historical contexts that were present during the times of each of these novels and how this may have influenced the authors voice.

Responding to the online lecture, I think an important idea that was mentioned was the fact that we will be reading translated versions of all of these novels. I think it is very important to note this because regardless of the quality of translation, there will always be some social context that will be absent in translated versions. This is because translations are literal and for the most part, do not encompass the history of words or phrases in other languages and struggle to contain the full meaning of language, both surface level and beyond. However, based on my expectations of the course and what was said in our first class meeting, I think by considering cultural influences within these pieces of literature, it will help to regain a deeper understanding of the novels we will be reading. I have never taken a romance studies course before, so I found it interesting to hear how the romance world does not know physical boundaries and that different people will tend to visualize different parts of the world when asked about the romance world. Since the romance world has no physical borders, I think it will make the literature very interesting and diverse to read, since it will likely draw from an array of culture and experiences. Furthermore, since UBC is very diverse and like it was said in the lecture, I am excited that everyone will bring their own perspectives to the text because there is no ownership of this world.

Thanks for reading!