I'm using the "Literary Device Admiration" prompt.
Jeannette Walls is very competent in using symbols to show other meanings in her book, and some of them almost seem like a motif, which is a style that people use which involves having the same pattern or thing hidden or very obvious within because she repeatedly shows the main character's personality or inner thoughts.
In page 38, Jeannette and her mother are talking about the Joshua tree, which are trees that grow in arid, windy areas. Because of the harsh conditions, Joshua trees must adapt by growing with the wind, and grow to be bent and strange. When Jeannette says that she wants to protect a Joshua tree sapling nearby their house, the mother states: '"You'd be destroying what makes it special".' '"It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it it's beauty."'. This is a small section of Jeannette's writing where she makes great use of symbolic writing. Jeannette lived a hard life throughout her younger and early-adult years because of her impetuous parents, who did whatever they wanted, even if it wasn't in the best interest of their spouse or children. Jeannette repeatedly implies this with small, off-handed comments like this that have deeper meanings in the book. When she talks about the Joshua tree's struggle, she is referring to herself, who grew up in a situation where she had to adapt, and in the end, she turned out contorted but as functional as any other person.
Holy heck! That was an amazing analysis into the meaning of your memoir. I didn't even know what a motif was so thank you. I'd have to agree that struggle is a beautiful thing. It can scrape us of our pride and show who we truly are and what we can do. Without struggle we would be a hollow shell with nothing to prove and no real accomplishments. I belive in order to find pride, you must overcome a struggle. The Joshua tree is a perfect representation of the idea that true beauty is what we can do and accomplish.
ReplyDeletewow william great blog entry. you did a great job of using the prompt.i liked how u talked about the tree and about how the struggle of the tree makes it beautiful . In the beginning you talked about how the author gives pretty straight forward explanations of the ideas he wants to put out there, that really showed well in the quote because the mother clearly states her opinion.
ReplyDeleteThis is a terrific blog post. I am reading the same book and can really see the connection. I really liked how you connected the tree to her life and showed how it affected her family. I also see how you can connected the Joshua tree to the true beauty of life and how people have to struggle and adapt. Great job.
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