The Last Part of The Lazarus Project

The final bit of reading of The Lazarus Project started off with a particularly brutal section. It talks about Lazarus witnessing a man being brutally killed during the Pogrom. For a boy to witness this kind of brutality is hard to believe, and it goes a long way to show how horrible the pogrom was.

An interesting part occurs later on, where Rora talks about when he saw "a magic carpet flying across the river. It was a blue and white piece of nylon, but still I could not stop seeing it as a magic carpet." (page 253). It's useful to noticed that previously, Lazarus also imagined himself to be on a magic carpet when he was back home as a boy.

I think the magic carpet really symbolizes these struggling people's wishes to be free of their troubles and to just get away. Lazarus, who was an impoverished Jew, wished for the carpet to fly him away to America and a number of other countries. Rora just imagined a piece of Nylon as a flying carpet, a way to get away that the Chetniks would keep shooting down, showing how one's circumstances in the country keep them from getting away from the troubles.

I also found it interesting when Brik talks about his indecisiveness while in the car with Seryozha. He says that if Mary was in the car she would have been sure to do something, but he ended up doing nothing in the situation.

Later, though, Brik does step up and do something. He ends up pummeling Soryozha, breaking his jaw and perhaps even killing him. He says, "I wish Mary could have seen me in that moment, the lethal combination of wrath and good intentions." (page 264) Brik, in this section, reaches his breaking point. He can no longer keep his passive self in the very hostile country and has reached the point in which he can't handle the terrible things going on in the country anymore.

I did find some comfort that Olga decides to help Isador instead of living in total regret over Lazarus. She writes her mother that "I chose life over death. God will take care of the dead. We have to take care of the living" (page 272). Even though Olga will struggle with Lazarus, it's good to see that she can continue to live and help others in bad situations such as Lazarus's.

Finally, it was eye opening to see that Rora's whole story about Miller and Rambo was all made up. I guess when one comes from a very troubled past, it just makes things feel better when your whole past is made up to put you in a better light.

The Lazarus Project Part 3

This section of reading was already discussed a lot by Mr. Kudera in class, so I found a lot of connections that I probably wouldn't have otherwise. The first part of the story has a very informative list of all the wounds Lazarus received in his death. The assistant chief then calls Jews "creatures of a different world" which is agreed upon by Miller (page 88). This once again reinforces the hate and anti-semitic views of these characters.

The story then shifts to the story of Olga, who, as discussed in class, now seems to be the protagonist of the older story. The story begins to focus on her actions and thoughts and her struggles of losing her brother Lazarus. I thought it was interesting how Lazarus "daydreamed about being a reporter for The Hebrew Voice, while Brik in the present day story is a writer and has written columns. It's just another way to connect the two characters.

The end of the section also had a puzzling scene in which Lazarus comes to the door. After my initial reading, I was unsure of whether this was a dream, flashback, or just Olga going mad. Either way it certainly illustrates the emotional torment she is experiencing.

Back in present times, Brik and Rora are journeying through Eastern Europe. I thought as they were driving and saw "a horse cart with a cage full of rabbits, the man holding the reins slouching like a refugee" that this showed the contrast between their privileged lives and those of many in Eastern Europe (page 100).

I also liked the section in which Brik talks about how in America people often disbelieve a story when they hear it, but those in Ukraine and Bosnia leave all notions of reality behind to follow the story. I think they do this for the same reason that Rambo and Miller careen dangerously around a warzone in an Audi-they are looking for release from reality. They want a way to, even if just for an instant, remove themselves from their tough lives to escape to something better.

I also find it puzzling how Miller can continue to write so venomously about the Jewish and poor community in Chicago as he is exposed more and more to them. Maybe his preconceived notions about them are just too much, but it seems like he would eventually change his views about them after being exposed to the truth so much.

The Lazarus Project Part 2, off to Europe

This section of reading proved to be fairly intriguing, keeping the pages turning as Brik and Rora meander through Europe, learning more about life and searching for answers.

I looked up a few words to help my understanding of the reading. First off, deracination means an isolation of an individual from their native land. A fishmonger is simply a dealer of fish, and finally an aberration is the act deviating from the normal.

This section of reading starts off with Brik and Rora meeting and talking more about their past, present, and future. While the two are meeting and discussing ideas, I think I enjoyed more from Hemon's side tangents than the main plot itself. For example, Hemon writes about Rora: "He stuck out in the morning Andersonville crowd embarking upon their day's work of achieving perfection...I finally comprehended what I had known but had never been able to formulate; he had always been complete. He had finished the work of becoming himself, long before any of us could even imagine such a feat was possible" (page 30).

I liked this quote because it shows what a lot of people struggle with-confidence in themselves. Almost everyone I'd say struggles with their own identity long after reaching adulthood. People like Rora stand out because they're completely fine with where they have come from and who they are.

Another section that stood out to me was when Brik describes the church he attended as a child. He says that "everything in the church bespoke death, the heavy-clothed, airless, blind and deaf and decaying death" (page 39). I think it's very ironic that a revolutionary and life filled religion of Christianity can be so downtrodden in traditions that it becomes the solemn place as Brik describes it.

When the story shifts back to the early 1900's immigrants' mistreatment becomes the clear subject in the story. When the Fitzes and Miller go to investigate Lazarus's apartment and interogate his neighbor mercilessly, one clearly feels sympathy for the immigrants who are severely mistreated. Also, when Olga sees her dead brother sitting there, the situation is extremely distressful. Fitzpatrick even goes as far to say, "Happy to see him? Give him a kiss..." (page 57).

This mistreatment strikes anger in most readers, I'd assume. It's hard to tell where people get so much anger from. Really, though, when put into stressful situations, people tend to want to force the finger of blame somewhere. In Spike Lee's movie, 25th hour, there is a brilliant scene in which Edward Norton stares into a mirror and laces out an expletive laced rant against any kind of minority in New York, venting all of his frustrations in the post 9/11 environment of New York City. No minority was at fault, but Norton feels a sense of justification in himself in making everyone seem like villains.

In the same sense, when problems arise, people have to blame someone as responsible. Whether this responsibility resides with them or not is really beside the point. Blame is given in order for the other party to feel at peace with problems. With punishment dealt out, they feel happier about themselves, and better with the overall situation.

The Bridegroom

The Bridegroom by Ha Jin, like many other stories we've read recently, focuses on human relationships and the overarching power that the politics and culture put on individuals.

The story starts with the narrator talking about his adopted daughter, Beina, whose father was an old friend of his who had passed away. Beina, short, squat, and homely, was not exactly a shining beauty. The narrator was surprised when a handsome man, Baowen, proposed to her and married her soon thereafter.

A funny quote from the story happened when the speaker was describing Braowen as "well educated-a middle school graduate" (page 92). This just shows the cultural difference between the United States and China. There, being a middle school graduate was quite the accomplishment, when in America it's certainly a given.

When it turns that Baowen is a homosexual, the narrator didn't even know how to react. He'd "heard that term before but didn't know what it meant exactly. Seeing many of us puzzled, Chief Miao explained, it's a social disease, like gambling, prostitution, or syphilis" (page 95). This furthered on what we talked about in class today. China's censorship of things for their citizens really extended to cover a lot. They can't research many topics thoroughly, and are so censored that they don't even properly know what homosexuality is, thinking of it as a disease.

This censorship includes elements of brainwashing. Chief Miao even tells the speaker that "homosexuality originated in Western capitalism and bourgeois lifestyle", which of course has no substance or concrete backing (page 96).

They even go as far as trying to treat the homosexuality in a mental care facility. They make Baowen undergo electric shock treatment which obviously isn't going to do anything towards his sexual preferences. One of the doctors finally admits to the speaker that homosexuality is indeed not a disease, but rather a preference. The speaker is, of course, shocked by this new found knowledge.

I did find it interesting that Beina really didn't mind having a gay husband. She viewed the entire relationship as very platonic, seeing advantages for both sides in getting married without including a physical relationship.

After Cowboy Chicken Came to Town

Well after realizing I initially blogged on the wrong story today, here goes my second blog in one day, woohoo!

So this blog is about the story, After Cowboy Chicken Came to Town, by Ha Jin. The story follows suit to many of our recent readings, talking about relationships between people and the clashing of cultures. This story does a particularly humorous job of intersecting American and Chinese cultures that ends up creating a very entertaining story.

One of the first things I noticed was how the boss, an American man, took to being lazy when things became successful. "At first Mr. Shapiro worked hard, often staying around until we closed at ten-thirty. But as the business was flourishing, he hung back more and stayed in his office for hours on end, reading newspapers and sometimes chewing on a skinny sausage wrapped in cellophane" (page 190). This, to me, showed the stereotypical American dream. Make money, get rich, and be lazy. This is so against the stereotypical Chinese culture of keeping your nose to the grindstone to get success.

Particularly funny to me was how they hosted a wedding banquet at the restaurant. A couple had decided to marry, and "wanted something exotic for their wedding dinner, so he picked Cowboy Chicken" (page 199). The thought of someone having an "exotic" dinner at someplace like a Kentucky Fried Chicken was very funny for me, and certainly showed differences in culture.

Another more serious matter involved the relationships between men and women. In America, romance and relationships can be wild and sporadic, while in Chinese culture they seem much more orderly. This is certainly shown by the boss when he "grasped her wrist and called her "Honey" (page 206). To the Chinese folks, this seemed like a grand offense worthy of the police, but in America it would be more of just a creepy situation.

The whole issue of wastefulness is also tackled in the story. Americans are shown in the story, and I would say it's definitely true, to bed incredibly wasteful. When they could be giving the leftover chicken away, Peter was taking it out and burning it in the dirt. They make claims later that it will eventually lead to less waste, but that is all just ridiculousness.

Finally, I thought the last part was particularly funny. When the boss took the workers' note as them threatening to bomb the fast food joint, it exemplified what the story was all about: 2 different cultures having troubles getting along and having trouble understanding each other.

Orbiting

This blog's all about the story, Orbiting, by Bharah Mukherjee. After reading another short story by her last week, I was interested to see how this story would relate, if at all, to the previous story. Both stories turned out to be strong commentaries on relationships and different cultures.

I looked up a few vocabulary words during my reading to get a better understanding of the story. First off, lasciviously means inclined to lustfulness. Next, poignant means strongly distressing to the feelings. Finally, holism can be defined as the theory that whole entities, as fundamental components of reality, have an existence other than as the mere sum of their parts.

The story starts with the narrator, Renata, preparing for Thanksgiving dinner with her family. She immediately alludes to a past relationship with Vic, so one can surmise that relationships are going to be a strong focus in the story. Renata's parents are also quickly described to start off the story.

One quote I liked was when Renata speaks that "Mom has the simple, immigrant faith that children should do better than their parents, and her definition of better is comfortingly rigid" (page 58). I think this can be related to by many families. The parents work hard to bring their family into the prosperous land of America. Now that they're in the land of the American dream, the parents really see no reason why their children can't surpass them in terms of monetary value and success.

I also liked the quote, "Grumbling and scolding are how we deMarcos express love" (page 58). I can say that this often holds true in my family. My father especially is quick to point out the mistakes that I tend to make. Ultimately, though, this is done to help me out in the future.

A lot of the commentary by Renata is about her thoughts on being with Vic. She often refers to things with him in the present tense, then switches to the past tense in realization that she is no longer with him. For example, she says that "he isn't good with directions that come in four languages. At least he wasn't" (page 61). Anyone who's been in a long relationship can certainly understand these emotions. After being attached to one person for a long period of time, your thoughts become often centered around them. When they leave suddenly, it's hard not to include them in your thought processes.

I like the perspective on America Ro gives the story. Ro describes America as a more chaotic place than many would describe it, talking of sudden raids, papers, detention centers, etc. While Renata comes from a fairly stable background, Ro comes from a much rougher past, including scars received from jailtime in Afghanistan during torture.

I thought the interactions between Renata's father and Ro were particularly humorous. A middle eastern man conversing and trying to relate with a very politically conservative man generally calls out for humor. My grandfather was the stereotypical republican, so imagining him talking to Ro was how I envisioned the father in the story. Two completely different mindsets on politics and two completely different kinds of backgrounds makes for some awkward conversations.

Finally, I do think it's rather sad how people, including myself, often judge people too quickly when they're not the norm. Renata talks of Ro: "He's sophisticated, he could make monkeys out of us all, but they think he's a retard" (page 72). I think in general people need to open up their minds to accept people from all kinds of cultures and see what they can learn from different kinds of people.

A Wife's Story

Well it's been a while since I blogged. We'll see how spring break affects my writing skills. I'm writing now about the short story, "A Wife's Story," by Bharati Mukherjee.

First off, I'll go ahead and list a few words that I looked to help clarify some things in the story. The first word, Magyar, is a word for a member of an ethnic group coming from Hungary. Next, zamindar is a landlord required to pay a land tax to the government. Finally, flautist it turns out, is just another word for flutist.

So, A Wife's Story is in fact a story about a wife. The wife, a lady from India, starts off her story by commenting how she wishes to write David Mamet. The speaker and a fried of hers, Imre, are watching the play Glengarry Glen Ross, and she becomes infuriated at the crass nature Mamet gives to minorities. The short story, which is all about the clashing and blending of different cultures, shows that the minorities do in fact have feelings and thoughts separate from the general American stereotype. I really liked when the speaker says "I don't hate Mamet. It's the tyranny of the American dream that scares me. First, you don't exist. Then you're invisible. Then you're funny. Then you're disgusting" (page 26).

This quote really stood out to me as important. Generally, it is fairly true of how Americans more or less treat minorities. The author does a good job of summing up this harsh treatment of minorities in one succinct statement there.

Imre, though, tells her she needs to "let go a bit" on page 28. Perhaps he has a point, since there are many successful people who are minorities in America today. Everyone gets made fun of to some extent, so maybe people need to just simmer down and not take insults and generalizations personally.

The rest of the story really showed the stark contrast between different cultures. Examples of the cultural shift between America and other countries are abundant, including Charity. "Here, she's a model with high ambitions. In India, she'd be a flat chested old maid" (page 30).

I also found it humorous when the speaker's husband visits her in America and explores the various eateries and entrees that America has for him to satisfy his tastes. Everything comes off as rather bland, though, so he carries around a bottle of red peppers.

The speaker also becomes much more guilty feeling when he comes to town. In America she gets the sense of free love being given and received, while in India things seem much more formal. When her husband comes to visit, she takes on a bit of the formalness again and begins to feel more guilt concerning her infidelity.