Tag Archives: Family

Race, Family and Colonialism- Black Shack Alley

Black Shack Alley by Joseph Zobel was a touching read that had so many unique perspectives on growing up. At the core of this novel, we are taken through Jose’s journey of growing up, which is what we have seen in quite a few of the books we have read so far. However, Jose’s experiences of maturation are highly influenced by many outside factors that make his story gripping, upsetting and powerful. Most importantly, Jose is born and raised in a small area called Petit Mourne in Martinique, where he lives with only his grandmother. When reading his childhood recollections of how he would sometimes watch M’man Tine with her hoe, working all day tiring herself out, this made me think about my own personal experiences with watching my parents work. I think watching your parents or caregivers exhaust themselves at an age where you cannot really grasp what labour is or how strenuous it can be, it warps your perspective into being hyper-aware of this struggle you cannot experience yourself. Jose’s coming of age vastly differs from Agostino’s in many aspects, especially the emotional maturity. Agostino was very confused by these new feelings and thoughts about sexuality and appropriateness and this was further heightened by the boys he met. Jose however, from a very young age, showed that he cared deeply about others. For example, when he was going on child-like adventures in Black Shack Alley and then returned to his grandmother’s house where his friends made a mess, he instantly thought of his grandmother. He did also think about the punishment he would recieve, but from a very young age he was able to balance his selfish wants of not getting punished and the weight of the mistake he had made. I think M’man Tine did not mean to force Jose to grow up at a rapid pace, but regardless, her honest messages of how the world worked and forcing Jose to focus on his education quickly made him in touch with the notion of his race positioning himself at an automatically disadvantaged spot in society.

This book obviously discusses race and the inequalities that exist because of it. However, another lens to race that Zobel includes is the internalized hate many Black and other people of color may have about themselves. For example, when Jose’s godmother gives him a chicken as a parting gift because she has not seen him in years and then he goes on to lose it, M’man Tine becomes distraught. This is not because the chicken is gone, but instead it is because she thinks her grandson is doomed to an eternal fate of “being an unlucky black boy”. There are multiple occurences of this self hatred manifesting and it points to a larger message of the novel. While Jose focused on his education and took to it naturally, he had to go to France for schooling in order for his intelligence to be actually recognized and valued in society. Everyone back in Martinique is aware of this, so by this being the standard, it is affirming the racial hierarchy that is ingrained in everyone’s minds, ensuring it will continue onto the next generation.

Overall, I enjoyed this book thoroughly and thought it spoke to power relations and structures in society and critiqued what intelligence can mean by including Jose’s friends Carmen and Jojo, who demonstrated emotional intelligence and what many call “street smart”.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do we think that Jose feels any resentment to his mother for not being with him for so long?

2. Why did Jose’s mother not come straight away when M’man Tine was about to die?

Ana Maria- A Product of Her Time

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“The Shrouded Woman” by Maria Luisa Bombal is a beautiful and somewhat tragic unfolding of Ana Maria’s life. The concept of this book is that Ana Maria is now dead and being prepared for her sending off from this life. Since Ana Maria is dead, she is now finally revisiting her entire life and delving into the complex relationships she held with her family, lovers and others. While reading the book, I felt there was an unique lens of objectivity, that is not very common for me to feel while I read fiction. What I mean is that most fiction works that are written in first person perspective, so while I read them, I am thinking about why the story is being told in a certain way and I also try to consider the possibility of the story being different if it was being narrated by someone else. However, her recollection of her memories felt raw and unfilitered and I think this is strongly tied to the fact of her death. To me, this account of her life was herself trying to honour and commemorate the complicated life that she lived.

Now discussing what I personally thought was the most interesting reoccuring theme in the novel, was the potrayal of women and their interpersonal relationships. Ana Maria suffered a tremendous heartbreak early on in the novel, with a young man named Ricardo. This caused her to be submerged in a whirlwind of emotions, but most importantly, I think she became permanently attatched to the idea of being with Ricardo. “You had marked me forever.” (169). This is what she remarks when she remembers how they touched for the first time. I think this is connected to certain gender norms and stereotypes of the time frame of this novel. That being in a romantic relationship with another man as a woman, must mean that you are eternally connected and committed to them, even if this notion is not reciprocated back to you. While Ana Maria shows signs of being in competition with other women in her life, such as her own sister, she is also aware and maybe slightly sympathetic to other women who are battling strong insecurities and uncertainities. An example of this comes much later in her life, when her son Alberto explains a dilemma of the fact that he loves a woman Silvia, but Silvia is convinced that Alberto thinks a woman named Maria Griseldo is more beautiful. In my opinion, this is one of the first and only times we see Ana Maria put aside her competitve nature with other women and admits she understands how Silvia feels, being compared to another woman. I think Bombal did a great job of exploring the complexity and layers to womanhood of the time. It highlighted how in every phase of Ana Maria’s life, there was a man that was a central portion of her life, that she devoted majority of her time and energy to, whether it be Ricardo, her husband or her sons. It also displayed a complicated relationship with her daughter Anita and how Ana Maria almost felt a jealously of her intelligence. I think this novel having a backdrop of the “protagonist” being dead, made the novel quite an different lens to understand the story through.

Discussion Questions:

Do we think that Ana Maria sees Alicia (her sister) in her own daughter Anita?
Do you think there was any real aspect of love for Ricardo, or was it more of an infatuation?

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:

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?
Why is it important for Marcel to describe how he sleeps and wakes up at the start of the chapter?