April 2022 – RMST 202 Blogs

I must say this class was definitely a new class structure for me, but I really enjoyed it. For starters, due to the contract and pre-determined grade in this class, I never really felt overwhelmed or stressed by this class, which definitely helped put me at ease. I also enjoyed how every week, it was the same routine, which made this class more flexible for me as I knew exactly how much time I would have to set aside for it. I liked how we only had one class a week as it helped me catch up on the readings if I ever felt I had fallen a bit behind. I never really felt stuck or lost at any point of the semester, and always felt like I had a way of expressing if there was something I didn’t quite understand, which is greatly appreciated. The other aspect of this course that really stuck out to me was the constant communication. After being online for an entire year, it was nice to sit in a classroom where conversations between peers were encouraged. This was really cool to me as I am in my second year and never got to experience that aspect of a university course until this semester. It was nice to have the diversity between smaller and larger discussions where you got to hear everyone’s ideas or perspectives on the books we read. I always looked forward to reading the blog posts or going to class to listen to everyone’s favourite characters or least favourite, and hearing the differences in the way people perceived parts of the books compared to others. I felt like hearing everyone’s perspective really opened my eyes to ideas that stuck out to them, that I would have never interpreted on my own. This really helped broaden my perspective on the importance of the stories we read. This course also opened my perspective to other genres of books that I would have never explored on my own, but was pleasantly surprised by. The books that stuck out to me the most were The Time of the Doves, as I felt true sympathy for Nataliya and will never forget how I felt reading about her contemplation of whether or not to kill her children. Bonjour Tristesse was another one that stuck out to me, mostly because I felt like it was the book that I could relate to the most. I could understand where Cecile was coming from to a certain extent, and I know how it feels wanting to gain the control of your parent’s attention when you feel it drifting to a step parent. Lastly, I want to say thank you to all the instructors, even though this course was a requirement for me, I really enjoyed it!

Questions:

Which texts was your favorite, or stood out to you the most? Why was it your favorite?

Unlike the other stories we have read throughout this class such as Time of the Doves, Nada, or Bonjour Tristesse, I found this one much more light-hearted and not as heavy as the others. Not to say there wasn’t any significance in this book, but the events that took place were not as dark as some of the other stories.

I was not expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did, as it is not like any stories that I usually read. Although, I felt that book really captured and sustained my attention as it included many different writing styles. The story also seems to incorporate not just the idea or dreams, but also politics and relationships as well. This also brought many different levels of the story together nicely. It was interesting to see different perspectives throughout the story, with the letters, journal entries, and descriptions of past dreams. I felt that it gave it many depths, and levels.

In saying that, it is a good way to portray the story, especially having such a heavy focus towards dreams, as dreams themselves often come with many layers. Sometimes dreams have a deeper meaning to them that can be unpacked, but also sometimes dreams are just dreams and don’t mean anything. It was interesting to see how the author incorporated the idea of dreams into the story, as I often try to analyse my own dreams in search for a deeper meaning. In addition, I often found myself searching for the meaning of the characters’ dreams throughout the story. The details the author incorporated also made it feel very dream-like, for instance, the rainbow hotel, or the girl with the cotton-candy hair, both sounding like something that only comes from dreams. Those little, yet key details, really accentuated the story and made it feel like I was reading a detailed description of someone’s dream. One of the lines that really stuck out to me was “glass jars filled with anxious little hearts, still alive and palpitating,” (p.364). Again, it showcases how these little details really brought the dream-like aspect of the story to life. I think some of the events that took place like Daniel’s daughter getting arrested, or the discovery of a technological device that captures images of peoples dreams, are also representative of the theme as some may wish that those things were only a dream, and not real events.

Questions:

Did you feel that the different writing styles were easy to follow, or were you often confused on how the story shifted?

Do you feel that dreams always have deeper meanings?

Month: April 2022

Concluding Post

José Eduardo Agualusa “Society of Reluctant Dreamers”