Category Archives: childhood

Week 8 – My thoughts on Georges Perec’s W, or the Memory of Childhood

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The text W, or the Memory of Childhood by Georges Perec, is multiple different stories that are woven together in which the reader has to make sense of the novel. To begin with, the novel itself was incredibly confusing for me. I found that while the novel’s content was interesting, I was left confused from most of the initial reading. The text relates to the concepts of childhood and memory to me. The notion that the text is about childhood and memory is reflected based on the title. The title itself states that the novel is about the Memory of Childhood; and thus relates to the themes of childhood and memory. An aspect of the story that drew my attention was the narrator’s stance on how they “have no childhood memories,” which struck me as odd (Perec, 6). The lack of childhood memories may be due to traumatizing memories in their adolescence or the fact that the main character was put into a situation in which they had to grow up and mature. Additionally, what struck me as odd was that the narrator also found “comfort in such an absence of history” regarding their childhood (Perec, 6). The reason as to why this struck me as odd is that I believe that the history of someone stems from their childhood memories, as they are memories that define a person and their actions in the future. 

The lack of clarity that the narrator has on their childhood and their past may contribute to the confusion that the novel itself has. The initial confusion in the novel for me was from the title W, or the Memory of Childhood. The lack of clarity in the title reflects the different storylines in the novel, which the reader has to understand. Additionally, there is either a lack of clarity or a means to obscure information, but the naming of places with “K,” and “H,” also shows the gaps in the main character’s memory (Perec, 6). The obscuring of the name of the locations, while those add some anonymity to the novel, also confused me for the most part. As the characteristics were being listed for places, it seemed as though it was hard for me to follow what was occurring in the novel. Additionally, since these locations are based on the narrator’s memory, and as a narrator, as previously stated, they do not remember much from their childhood, I would question the reliability of the main character as a reliable narrator.

 

A question that I would ask the others about this novel is: based on the novel, does knowing childhood memories or knowing history seem an essential part of building a character?

 

-Muskan Shukla

 

Week 6 – My thoughts on Françoise Sagan’s “Bonjour Tristesse”

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The text Bonjour Tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan for me was an exciting text, to say the least, and additionally kept me engaged till the very end. The novel discusses a relationship between a wealthy father and his daughter. The main character is a girl named Cécile who is 17 years old and changing her family dynamic. The change in this family dynamic is reflected at the start of the novel, where we are introduced to the characters and the father’s mistress (Sagan, 3). However, it is essential to note that the father does consider the main character’s feelings. Though the main character does reply that her father’s mistress, “Elsa would not get in our way” (Sagan, 4). The father’s relationships change based on a given amount of time, though the main character did accept it as the father’s new lifestyle after he had lost his wife. 

Though, there is something perverse about the mentality that Cécile has when it comes to being interested in other men. Such as, when there is a mention of a university student, she states that she “much preferred my father’s friends, men of fourty, who spoke to me with courtesy and tenderness,” (Sagan, 5). The relationship that Cécile has with her father must be incredibly embedded in her due to Cécile losing her mother figure and growing up without her mother. That makes me wonder whether Cécile may lack attention from her father, and due to that, she prefers “men of fourty,” (Sagan, 5). There is also the relationship that Cécile has with Anne, her mother’s closest friend. Such as, when Cécile’s mother had passed, it was Anne who “taught me something of life,” while her father was managing his grief (Sagan, 7). Throughout the novel, we understand that Anne has intentions are not pure, as Elsa’s feeling of being threatened could show that. There is also an aspect in the novel that Cécile takes another role. Cécile also takes on the role of an adult when it comes to her father. Such as when she states that her “father must be protected. He’s nothing but a big baby,” when it comes to Anne interrupting the lives of Cécile, her father, and Elsa (Sagan, 66). The protectiveness that Cécile feels could stem from the fact that since her father has multiple partners over a short period of time, Cécile is the constant female in her father’s life. Therefore, there could be an understanding that Cécile must approve or agree to a relationship with her father and guide him to the right woman. This is also shown with Cécile’s judgments of her father’s mistresses. 

Therefore a question that I would ask is: does it seem as though Cécile lacks affection or attention from her father? If so, how does this reflect their relationship?

 

-Muskan Shukla

My thoughts on Alberto Moravia’s “Agostino”

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The text Agostino by Alberto Moravia discusses a period of time during a vacation between a mother and her son. For me, while the novel was short, I felt that the author successfully created a world that presents different themes, such as maternal relationships and the process of maturing. The text gives specific emphasis to the relationship between the mother and the son. The relationship between the two characters seemed strange to me at first, as the bond between the two seemed incredibly strong and has a strong emotional attachment. Such as when the narrator discussed the time spent with his mother before the two went their separate ways. When talking about his mother, the narrator speaks such as; “all the bathers on the beach seemed to be watching, admiring his mother and envying him,” (Agostino, 3). From the start of the text, I felt that the relationship between the narrator and the mother was of a different nature. The relationship between the two is also shown when the narrator states that they would “follow her anywhere, even to the bottom of the sea,” reflecting the narrator’s dependence and attachment to the mother (Agostino, 4).

Though, the act of growing up is shown in the novel as the narrator spends time with other kids while his mother is away with a “younger man,” (Agostino, 10). Though, it seems as though the kids that the narrator is hanging out with have different life experiences compared to the narrator. Such as; when Berto asks the narrator that “you don’t smoke?” and later states that the narrator does not smoke since his mother does not allow him to (Agostino, 20). Therefore, there is a clear boundary between the narrators and the group of kids that they spend time with within the novel. The distinction between the two worlds is reinforced when Berto calls the narrator a “crybaby” and states that the narrator should “go back to your mamma,” (Agostino, 22). The distinction between these two worlds and these two different groups allows for the narrator to experience a new world. In this case, the new world somewhat forces the main character to grow up and gain new experiences. Additionally, the experiences that the narrator goes through with the group of kids includes the fact that he did these events without the influence of his mother. Without the mother’s influence in this scenario, this allows the narrator to grow without adult influence and satisfy the curiosity that one would have.

 

The question that I would ask my peers is: How does the mother’s influence in the novel reflect the limitations of the main character?

 

-Muskan Shukla

 

My Thoughts on “Combray” by Proust

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After reading Proust’s Swann’s Way and, more specifically, the two parts of Combray, I can clearly state that this text was incredibly confusing to me. I believe that the confusion that was present in my mind was due to how the lines between reality and fantasy seem to be blurred for the main character and are therefore blurred for me as well as I was reading the text. The blurring of these lines is based on the construction of a literary dream world and the main character’s interest in literary characters. More specifically how at the start of the text, there are mentions of the world of dreams. Such as how, in the world of dreams, Proust refers to how, while sleeping, it is easier to go to “a period of my early life that had ended forever,” (Combray1. p4). In this, the author seems to want the readers to appreciate the impact that dreams can have on a child and an adult. The dreams, in this case, are a means to escape from being an adult and reflect a simpler time. The concept of dreams is later referred to as “the world of dreams,” which struck me as odd since dreams could or could not be a literary world in itself (Combray1. p4). The main character’s dreams also comment on human memory as his dreams are specifically images that please the main character, rather than the vast possibilities that dreams could be. Nevertheless, the construction of this world reflects the childlike curiosity that the main character has and how that childlike curiosity allowed for the lines of fantasy and reality to be blurred through dreams. 

As I was reading the text, due to my background knowledge, when the text mentioned the names of fictional characters such as; “Bluebeard,” and “Golo,” my attention moved to the mentions of those names (Combray1. p10). Then, as the text continued, the two parts reflected that the author had a specific interest in literacy and literary figures. The author constructs a literary world in which, through the use of dreams and interest in literary characters, the author is able to reflect the childlike curiosity that the main character has, which sparks a passion for writing. The question that I would ask regarding the text is; how does the construction of a literary world through dreams relate to the notion of modernism, and how does this impact the way that the text is read? The two aspects of dreams and the mention of literary figures shape the text to reflect the author’s affinity for both writing literature and an affinity for the moments of childhood that the author had taken for granted.

 

Muskan Shukla