Final Thoughts on Black Swan Green

The last 4 chapters of Black Swan Green: "Knife Grinder", "Goose Fair", "Disco" and "January Man," has left me utterly frustrated, to the point where I don't want anything to do with this book. It seriously pains me to even write this blog post. I've come to the conclusion that I will not be assigning this book to my future classes. I may recommend it to students because there are some lovely, well put together chapters in the beginning half of the book, but as far as assigning this as required reading - definitely not.

Just like every chapter, the book ends with somewhat of a cliff hanger. And I'm so disappointed by it's anti-climactic nature! Also, I still don't truly know if I like Jason as the protagonist of this book or if I believe him as a reliable narrator. I want to know for sure if he's a mental case or not and the book doesn't explicitly say if he is or isn't. Grrr! Sure, I'm glad things, for the most part, went well for him. He was able to overcome the bullying situation with the help of fate, even though it's really dark and cruel to think fate wanted Wilcox to lose his leg, and self-confidence or sheer stupidity depending on how you want to view the way Jason dealt with Neal Brose & friends. Plus, he got to make out for the first time with Holly Deblin.

However, not everything turned out positively for Jason because his parents get a divorce and each of the Taylor family go their separate ways: Taylor with his mom to Cheltenham, his dad & Cynthia (the mistress) go off to live in Oxford and Julia moves to Edinburgh. Although, his parents' split may be a good thing since they didn't have the best relationship AND Jason gets to move out of Black Swan Green and start a new adventure. Again whether this is a positive or negative thing for Jason is unclear to me.

I want to end this post by bringing up a quote in the final chapter that both intrigued and vexed me at the same time. "The world won't leave things be. It's always injecting endings into beginnings. Leaves tweezer themselves from these weeping willows. Leaves fall into the lake and dissolves into slime. Where's the sense in that? Mum and dad fell in love, had Julia, had me. They fall out of love... The world never stops unmaking what the world never stops making. But who says the world has to make sense?" (285). I love this passage because it's so beautifully written. I like the imagery that the leaves bring to my mind. But I also absolutely hate this passage! I think it's put in place to justify the anti-climactic ending of the book. And the message behind it (life is full of ups and downs and you just have to deal with it) just seems so cliche to me.

Good riddance, Black Swan Green...

Jason from Beginning to End

Jason didn't really change. I'm angry because he experienced little growth over the course of the novel. By the end, he has grown up a bit, but I'm left feeling that he might still be pushed around in school.

During his interactions with Mme Crommelynck earlier on, I thought Jason would've grown much more, but by the end, I still thought that he hadn't fulfilled his coming of age destiny.

Also, I think Jason has been selfish. Granted, he's a 13-year-old boy, but this is a coming-of-age story; shouldn't he have learned more about matters of the heart? Shouldn't he have improved somehow? It seems to me that something more could have gotten better for Jason. By the end, he seems to know how to handle his bullies better, but that doesn't mean that they have stopped bullying him. His stammer? It's the same as it was in the beginning of the book.

Perhaps I'm being overly critical of the poor boy, but I find him to be intelligent, but awfully lazy when it comes to self-improvement and self-exploration. By the end of the novel, I feel that Jason is just a bit less naïf than he was in the beginning—that's about all the improvement we see from him.

As an aside, we still don't know if he's crazy or not! I will follow up with another post after I've pondered the novel a bit more (and after I've calmed down from being angry at Jason).

Jason as a Narrator

I find it difficult to post on several chapters at once. I'd rather spend time talking about the themes I've noticed that tie between the chapters (otherwise, I end up summarizing the chapters instead of analyzing them).

I've noticed that after finishing nearly 3/4 of the book (I'm writing this from notes I had taken up until p. 217), I still question Jason as a narrator. (Full disclosure, I question him even after finishing the novel). I cannot tell if Jason is reliable or not. I wrote about this previously, but there is still cause for me to question. One quote that I think leads me further from trusting Jason is found on page 181: "Dad's norey skonks and flobberblobbers're impossible to sleep through. No wonder my parents don't sleep in the same bedroom." Here will see all of Jason's naïveté on display. There is a part of me that doesn't want to believe that Jason really believes this. In fact, he may not; however, he reports to us that that is what he believes. What other lies is Jason telling us?

I begin to think that much of what Jason reports to us is embellished. Perhaps the bullies aren't as bad as he says they are. Perhaps he exaggerates what they're doing to him. I find it difficult to take Jason's word about anything.

However, there are those other times when Jason seems very adult for his age and as a reader I'm pushed in the direction of believing what he's saying. It's all rather confusing, honestly.

I suspect that most of you have the same reaction, but I'd love to hear what you think (especially since our digital projects are coming up soon).

Reflection on Solarium

Because of my strong feelings about "Solarium," I felt a singular post on the chapter is warranted.

Solarium is my favorite chapter of the entire novel. In part, this is because I feel that much of the whimsy of the first chapter resurfaces here. In "January Man" (chapter one), there is a sense of mystery which surrounds the House in the Woods. There is a bit of the same that surrounds the vicarage. What's more, Mme Crommelynck is a mysterious figure as well. She offers Jason advice about his poetry. This advice translates into life lessons, in my opinion.

I don't think we see anyone give Jason such extensive advice about life other than Mme Crommelynck. Though she seems to focus on Jason's poetry, one can tell that she is searching to get at a deeper meaning as well. She speaks a lot of beauty. Though she seems to be against Jason using beautiful words in his poetry: "Beautiful words ruin your poetry," she seems to believe that beauty is a positive thing once refined: "A touch of beauty enhances a dish, but you [Jason] throw a hill of it into the pot!" (147).

The entire exchange about beauty interested me because of its contradictions. This advice is coming from a woman who was once beautiful, but now has faded. It is ironic that a crone should be lecturing a young boy about beauty. On the contrary, it seems fitting that someone who has lost her beauty to be the authority about things which are beautiful.

Mme Crommelynck's opinions and theories about beauty seem to be quite complicated, but by the end of the chapter, I felt that they came across beautifully. By Jason's second meeting with her, her temperament seemed to have changed and she was much more likable. Again, the dichotomy between ugliness in beauty is demonstrated by her temperament.

Also, as a side note, Mme Crommelynck is my favorite character from the novel. She is a very rounded character. What's more, we can see her diversity from just one chapter. Jason, on the other hand, seems to be a bit more flat and predictable.

Reflection on the First Half

I realize that I haven't been prompt in posting to this blog. Part of that has been because of complications with work which have made this a slow read for me. The other part is because I find it difficult to post chapter-to-chapter. Rather, I would like to discuss themes of the novel that tie into several chapters, not just themes from one chapter or another.

I'm sure you've all noticed how the narratives of each chapter is unrelated to the next; there is no story that continues from one chapter into another. In groups, we've discussed this quite extensively and this was one of the most important realizations from the first half of the book for me. I've posted about the first several chapters already, but I'd like to discuss a few more things as we begin working on presentations with this book.

I've asked myself why the author would choose to make each chapter somewhat of a short story. Short stories tend to end the moment after the story climaxes. I feel that each chapter has its own climax but that the novel as a whole does not. This is in-line with the notions that a short story should be little more than build up and climax leaving the reader to make assumptions for him or herself. What then, is the purpose of constructing a novel in this way?

From the chapters of the first half of the novel, I can say that though the chapters do not share a concurrent narrative, they do share similar themes, characters, antagonists. I would like to offer that these antagonists (such as Hangman, maggot, the bullies, as well as Jason's reaction to each of them) are perhaps the real narrative of the story—that is to say, it is through the stories change every chapter, these 'antagonistic themes' do not.

Jason of course is the protagonistic force of the novel. Through his interactions with the antagonistic themes, we as readers can more clearly see a development of plot occur. The scenes, the places, the events—these have little to do with the development of Jason as a character and protagonist.

I feel that this is common in many novels. When I think of the Harry Potter series (I use the example because I feel that it's readily familiar to most), it isn't the scenes and places that affect Harry the most, but rather internal conflict. What makes Black Swan Green different is that the narrative is intentionally broken, bringing the 'core' of the novel (Jason's inner turmoil) to the forefront.

[6] disco, january man

Are things looking up in this chapter?  It sort of seems like it, to me at least.  Jason starts fighting back, bullies are dealt with, Holly Deblin proves to be more than just an ally.  Jason might not be a cool kid, he might not even be back to his middle-of-the-pack standing, but he’s not “a human punchbag” (276) anymore.  His first kiss makes an interesting contrast to his experience with Dawn Madden back in “Bridle Path.”  
The chapter ends, rather unsurprisingly, with the revelation that Jason’s parents are getting divorced-- though his father can’t quite manage to get the words out.  It leaves us to wonder how he’s going to deal with it-- we’ve seen the hints of this since the first chapter, but Jason seems to be (intentionally or legitimately) oblivious.  
Bringing things full circle, ‘january man’ answers a lot of the questions the others have raised.  We finally get the whole story behind Jason’s father’s affair, which I must admit is not entirely what I expected it would be.  Jason gets ready to move out of town.  Black Swan Green gets a swan.  We learn that the Sour Aunt isn’t dead, the House in the Woods isn’t really a house in the woods, and in the process of leaving, of becoming an outsider, everything suddenly seems a lot smaller and less important.  
What really rounds the story out for me is Jason’s Oxo tin, and all the items within it.  Not only do they remind us of the earlier chapters-- some questions are answered by the contents.  I had to smile, particularly, at the Christmas card from Mme. Crommelynck-- she’s possibly my favorite character, and I was glad she didn’t forget him.  
As far as endings go... well, as Julia says to close out the novel, “it’s not the end.”  I still have some unanswered questions.  I’m not clear on how sane Jason is, I’d like to know what happens to some of the other characters in the story, I still can’t work out how he got out of the House in the Woods.  I’d like to know how Jason’s relationship with his cousins will be affected by his experiences throughout the last few chapters.  But, of course, that’s all we get, from january man to january man.

[5] maggot, knife grinder, goose fair

Though the 'Maggot' chapter starts with Jason being teased for going to the movies with his mother-- something he’d been panicking about in the last few pages-- it quickly becomes obvious that there’s more than that affecting his standing.  His stuttering has become common knowledge, and there’s the matter of his (presumably) crossing the Spooks at the end of that chapter.  Obviously, bullying is the main focus of this chapter.  Interesting points included, for me: the “allies” he encounters in terms of teachers, Moran, and potentially Holly Deblin; the ambiguous history of bullying in the school, as represented by the hanged student in the old gym; and once again, a repeated line: “Cigarette smoke billowed out like fog in Jack the Ripper’s London,” on 212 and 39.

As things get worse at school, they get weirder at home, we learn in the next chapter. A television is a pretty big gift.  Jason tells us explicitly, “Dad never gives things like this for no reason, not just out of the blue.”  Yet, he doesn’t seem to speculate on why.  Does Jason realize how bad things are between his parents?  Is he naive or in denial?  

Gypsies are a big theme in this chapter; again we get a scene from two sides, as in ‘Souvenirs.’  We’re told that each group (the townfolk and the gypsies) wants the other “to be gross, so the grossness of what they’re not acts as a stencil for what they are.”  (229 and 240)  I’m not surprised that Jason becomes a sort of observer/ambassador for the gypsies.  Throughout the book he’s been on the outskirts of popularity at best, and as the story progresses he seems to identify more and more with marginalized social groups.  
It’s not a huge surprise, either, that the gypsies prove to be allies of a sort in the “Goose Fair” chapter, though the focus shifts to a more personal moral struggle.  I found myself wondering again how much of what happens, happens only in Jason’s imagination: lines like “A mile-long neon Chinese dragon wove through the Goose Fair and bit my jeans pocket.  Luckily, no one else saw it” make me doubt his sanity a little bit.  
Ross Wilcox’s accident at the end of the chapter made me think of a popular saying in my family-- “No good deed goes unpunished.”  Ross Wilcox has been an awful person, throughout the novel; he’s a bully and a brat at the best of times.  Jason finally decides he can’t be responsible for getting him in trouble with his violent, abusive father-- but Wilcox ends up suffering anyway.  How do we feel about this?  How do we expect Jason to react?

[4] solarium, souvenirs

For me, Solarium was an interesting, grounding chapter, that (as much of the novel has before this) teased me with the promise of answers and failed to provide them at the last moment.  Some topics for discussion I found interesting: what do we make of Jason’s alter ego, Eliot Bolivar?  What might his poems look like?  What about the fact that his poems are titled after chapters, and seem to borrow lines from them-- how does the interaction between the text we’re reading and the text Jason creates affect our reading of the novel?  How far do we trust him as a narrator?  
Moving into the rest of the book-- what repetition are we beginning to see?  What is its effect on the narrative?  Beginning in the Solarium chapter, I started to notice lines I’d read before-- Druggy pom-pom bees hovered in the lavender” on 151, borrowed from 94.  In Souvenirs, “Then I saw this lush girl” pops up twice.  For me, the first was a little disconcerting-- there had been enough of a gap between the two instances of the description that I really had to search to find the first time.  I did remember the general context-- the scene in “Malvern Loonybin.”  It made for an interesting juxtaposition-- especially considering the religious imagery used to describe the escaped mental patient with the bees, and the fact that the second occurrence is outside the Vicarage.  The second example was a little more obvious, since it matched the structure of the chapter-- two stories of a day spent being a tourist, each offering a glimpse into his parents’ daily lives.  Jason has some interesting encounters with total strangers in this chapter; honestly, I’m not sure which (if any) will be important to him in the future.  He still seems utterly clueless about sexuality, which seems to be becoming a major theme.

First, what do you think the significance is for David Mitchell starting the first chapter of the novel January Man and ending it with the same title?

After reading the novel, I understand that it takes us through the life journey of a 13-year-old boy for one year, but his ordeal is not that of a typical teenage boy. Rather, it is atypical and suggests that Jason in my opinion is not living a normal teenage life. Besides his parents divorce ,being bullied by the popular kids in school, and other things, his adventures through the woods, imaginary inner twin, and confusion of reality leaves me to determine that he is undoubtedly weird as I suggested in my first blog.

Knife Grinder

What is the purpose of this chapter like every chapter? Mitchell, start a new chapter, with a new theme, and sometimes-new characters to confuse the reader. He builds suspense up until you turn to the next chapter and you are hit with sadness because he does not continue his climax. How will students feel about this? I think they would be upset. They are reading a “juicy” text and then it crashes and pitfall to absolutely nothing. Students may be completely confused about reading this book from beginning to end. I think that if students do not know that this book is about a typical teenage boy’s life journey and particular events, then they will be lost in the text mainly because it does not continuously read like a regular novel that they are used to. However, it is the teacher’s responsibility to give students an overview of the book so that they are not disengaged. Implementing useful activities in the classroom pertaining to the novel will keep students engaged.

Gypsies? I have still yet to figure out what is the purpose of adding them in the novel. Apparently, this is where Jason begins to accept who he is and identify with others. Jason parents continue to decline with their relationship. At this point, there is no hope for either the mother or father. Will they end in divorce or rekindle their relationship?

Goose Fair

Goose Fair is by far the most interesting chapter thus far. Jason continues to develop, but his maturity level (coming of age) is explicitly delivered here. He returns a wallet to probably the biggest bully in his hometown. Although he hesitates and wants to purchase another Omega Seamaster, he relents and returns the wallet back to Ross Wilcox

Disco

As with any coming of age novel, Jason experiences a first. His first is kissing a girl. Wow! Who would have ever known it would be something simple like this. Nevertheless, to Jason, it is the start of a new beginning. The beginning of no longer being a Maggot.

In my last posting, I suggested that Jason head is getting bloated. I believe that we will no longer think of himself as a maggot and go after Dawn Madden since a bus driver suggested he needs a pretty girl so that others will be jealous. Rather, he does not seek after Ross Wilcox’s girlfriend, but finds a girl of his own. I think he wants Holly to be Dawn. What is confusing about the book is that the back cover suggests the Jason will go after Dawn, but as you read the book, he never really tried to seek her. The only real conversation they ever had was in the farm.

I doubt students will be interested in a book like this, but it is my duty to keep them engaged as much as possible. I would have students write their own narrative about a time frame in their lives from 13-years-old to 14-years-old. I would use the same situations, obstacle, and events that Jason describe and have students create their own. This way, students will continue to predict about what will happen in the text.

January Man

Hannah posted some interesting questions that I also thought about. What does Julia mean by “it’s not the end?” Is she suggesting that something will happen? Is there a part two to the novel? We finally find out about Jason’s father strange behavior. His affair has torn the family apart, which probably sends Jason on this tangent of visiting different aspects of his life. Therefore, Black Swan Green does have swans...Mmmmmm. Interesting to know this because now I feel as if this last chapter could have been the first chapter. The entire novel is summed up without the long drawn out details that surrounds Jason’s life. He takes us on a quick road down memory lane that jogs all the experiences Jason has had throughout the novel.

As Julia said, “it’s not the end.”

My blogging experience:

I have had the pleasure of reading, writing, and commenting on the different blogs that we have posted in the past month. It is interesting to know that we are all reading the same novel, but have different takes on what we comprehend. We have all been an excellent insight to each other’s knowledge of the text and I enjoyed reading the novel and sharing my metacognitive experience about the book.

Solarium, Souvenirs and Maggot

All throughout reading Black Swan Green I've pondered about the titles of each chapter because they just seem to appropriately summarize the chapter in a word or two, and they seem to represent a greater, abstract idea. I want to further discus this thought using these 3 chapters:

Solarium---
"I looked 'solarium' up. It just means 'an airy room,'" (Mitchell, 151). Yes, a solarium is an airy room, but it's also defined as a glass-cased room that is exposed to the sun. Some dictionaries even add that it is a room used for healing. I thought this was really interesting that the author and/or Jason uses a really basic definition when the solarium in this chapter seems to signify a bigger concept. Of all the rooms to meet in, why does Madame Crommelynck and Jason meet in the solarium? I have to believe there's some significance to this setting.

In this chapter Jason's pseudonym, Eliot Bolivar, and his poems are discovered by Madame Crommelynck. They meet because Jason thinks she can help him with his poetry. She ends up doing more for him. She introduces authors to him, makes him reconsider using his real name when he publishes and enlightens him on the idea of beauty and poetry. However, in the end of this chapter Jason finds out she and her husband are potentially criminals.

The solarium is the room Jason and Madame Crommelynck went to in order to restore something about themselves which they didn't like. They found a connection with another and in the solarium they were able to forget their troubles and heal their pride.

Souvenirs---
Jason received some interesting gifts or "souvenirs" in this chapter. A kite from his dad's co-worker, Danny. A fossil from his dad. And ultimately the movie, Chariots of Fire, from his mom. But the one gift Jason really wanted was to replace his grandfather's watch that he broke. And he finds out it's virtually impossible to replace it because the watch is extremely rare and very expensive.

The souvenirs, the gifts, the title and the concept they signify, is really fascinating to me. Jason received these items as sort of consolation prizes. Danny felt bad for him because his dad was caught up in a meeting. Jason's dad felt guilty for standing him up. And his mom rewarded him for helping her catch the girls who were stealing from the museum. However, the gifts became meaningful to Jason because they reminded him of the concept of friendship, of having a decent relationship with your parents. So, in a way the gifts were souvenirs, remembrances of how cool it is to have lunch with a interesting stranger, or sharing a connection with your dad, or being able to please your mom.

Maggot---
Jason is ridiculed by bullies in the school because someone saw him in the theaters with his mom. This chapter gives a closer look into Maggot, one of Jason's alter egos? Jason, the loser. This chapter scared me. The vivid remarks made by Wilcox and friends, and, of course, the beating they do to Jason transported me into Jason's character and I felt just as scared and ashamed as he did. And the ending was really alarming, too, when the bus driver advises Jason to carry around a knife. I hope this isn't a foreshadow. I thought it was really interesting, too, that this is the first chapter that transitioned well from the previous chapter, and how the story lines are directly related.

Solarium, Souvenirs, and Maggot

This will only be a short blurb because we have to answer questions pertaining to the second half of the novel. Once I post the final blog, it will be an in-depth version of what I have already started. Capeesh!

Solarium

Black Swan Green continues to be a novel that adds something new to its already weird demeanor. Nothing is adding up so far and Jason seizes to amaze me every time. In this chapter, we meet another character. Madame Crommelynck seems to be an inspiration for Jason and his writing. He begins to discover who he really is and he truly wants his writing to flourish. She breaks down what beauty is and whether beauty defines something or something defines beauty.

What does maggot mean?

"Little naked ants” (151). Mitchell is marvelous at describing even the smallest things. I just love the imagery that comes to mind when I read this line.

I find myself re-reading lines and sometimes passages to understand exactly what is going on. Jason sometimes confuses me because I am unable to realize if he is speaking from a dream or reality.

Souvenirs

Jason goes into explicit details to describe his father’s dangling penis. The vivid images have stuck in my head since and I have hard time trying to figure out why he went into such details. This led me to predict that he and Dawn Madden might have sex by the end of the novel. I am cheating my prediction because I read the back flap of the book to get a gist of what the novel is about. I wish I had not, but this is one way to find out if the book is interesting. Some other strategies would be to read a few pages of the book, ask a friend if they have read it before, or read an online review.

I wonder why his dad decided to fly the kite with him. Do you think he feels guilty of not spending time with him?

Maggot

As the novel advances, Jason stammering gets worst. Could this suggest that he may be getting into trouble? Is he nervous about something? Jason is becoming a dweeb.

As I predicted in my last post, Debbie Crombie is pregnant. Like a typical military man that leaves to fight for his country, Tom Yew wanted to leave behind a history of him. I knew she was pregnant because of prior experiences of my friend’s boyfriends and girlfriends whose boyfriends go across sees and nine months later, they have a baby.

Jason head is getting bloated. I believe that we will no longer think of himself as a maggot and go after Dawn Madden since a bus driver suggested he needs a pretty girl so that others will be jealous.

Hangman, Relatives, Bridle Path, Rocks & Spooks

Having now read a good portion of Black Swan Green, I've noticed something peculiar, but interesting, about David Mitchell's writing and the set up of the novel. Perhaps this may be a bit reaching, but to me the novel reads more like a compilation of short stories rather than a book with a cohesive & progressive plot. Sure, it can be read this way. It is, after all, considered a novel and not a book of short stories, but somehow Mitchell writes each chapter in such an intricate and conclusive way, even though they end with cliff hangers, that makes me study each chapter with a microscopic lens. I find myself writing notes & summaries at the end of every episode because they each explicitly explore a theme and/or plot that is not necessarily followed up in the next chapter. At first I found this to be very obnoxious, but now, more and more, I see it as a brilliant craft move by the author. This maneuver really makes me question not only the validity of the novel, but also of the main character, Jason. Why did Mitchell choose to tell the story in this way, in a way that makes his protagonist less and less reliable?

It may be too early to say, but I feel as if this novel will end in a very anti-climactic way. Right now I'm expecting a surprising twist in the end, but I get the sense I won't be happy with the ending. It's the experience I go through while reading each chapter, I get really immersed in them, only to be left wanting in the end. Maybe this is Mitchell's way of saying, it's not about the whole, it's about the pieces that make the whole.

I would definitely consider teaching this book to my future high school students, or even 8th graders, if they are as proficient as the ones I am working with now for my student teaching placement. However, I don't think I'd have them read the whole book. I would pull out certain chapters and teach them individually. For instance, I could see myself devoting a lesson to each of these five chapters.

By focusing on "Hangman," the students can examine the difficulties of having a speech impediment through Jason's perspective and how he copes with his stammer, as well as how the people treat him because of this problem. In "Relatives," there is an emphasis on family relationships, this fake, pretentious interaction between the Taylor and Lamb family. There is also this idea of idolization, how Jason idolizes his cousin, Hugo, which turns out to be more of a problematic, destructive situation for Jason rather than a positive one. "Bridle Path" is an adventure chapter. While on this path, Jason is exploring nature --- the woods that envelope his town, but also his sexual nature as a young boy. He meets Dawn Madden in the woods and they have this sort of cat and mouse interaction that demonstrates Jason's feelings for Dawn and Dawn's neurotic personality. There is also the instance where Jason witnesses Tom Yew and Debbie Crombie having sex in the woods. The students can explore how it feels to be privy to a secret moment, the uncomfortable nature of it and possible emotional consequences.

"Rocks" is a very clever chapter. The title is completely fitting because this chapter delves into all of the things in Jason's life that are on the rocks, his parent's marriage, the war, even Tom Yew's death spilla pain and negativity throughout Black Swan Green. All but his sister, Julia's relationship with her boyfriend, Ewan, has a looming sad and/or dangerous quality to it. And the symbolic nature of the rocks/landscape/pond that Jason's mom insists on having, how it screws her in the end really amazed me. "Spooks" is a chapter about fitting in. Jason and his friend, Moran, are invited to become part of a secret gang called Spooks. When they try out and Jason succeeds, but Moran doesn't, he's left to choose between being part of the "in crowd" or standing up for his friend. Then there's also this thematic debate between being a local vs. a townie. Jason and his family are not and are never going to be considered locals because they settled in Black Swan Green after the war started. No matter how hard they try they'll always be considered townies. So, there's a great lesson here on what it means to be categorized. How far would one go to fit in?

I'm really enjoying taking apart each chapter, but I'm still hoping for a more cohesive conclusion...

Hangman and Relatives

Like Hannah, I am posting my responses separately (though not as I read the chapters, I would just rather have them broken up a little). I plan on posting the next three chapters shortly, but I'm a bit behind and I want to finish reading Spooks before I do.

Hangman

I really enjoy that in this chapter, we are given a new understanding of Jason. The first chapter seemed to be shrouded in a sort of mystery and there were several things which were unexplained. In this second chapter, I find quite the opposite. I feel as though the mood has changed quite a bit. We are now privy to Jason’s hangman problem and exposed to the ways in which he handles his shortcoming.

There is a line in this chapter that makes me question everything that Jason says. I spoke last week about Jason as a narrator and questioned whether or not he was reliable. He calls a metronome a Metro Gnome and tries to explain away why it’s referred to as a gnome. This tidbit brought questions of his reliability to mind because of his ignorance of the device’s correct name. Suppose Jason was ignorant to other goings-on about which we, the reader, are misguided. In other words, could it be that Jason is reporting to us his perceptions through (dare I use the cliché) rose-tinted glasses?

This point in particular could be a nice starting point for a class conversation about narration. I remember having philosophical debates in many of my college classes regarding a narrator’s reliability (or lack thereof). Showing a simple mistake to an English class regarding the Metro Gnome/metronome idea could possibly help them to bring other parts of the text in question. We know now that Jason had dreamed the occurrence at the House in the Woods. As readers, how do we trust that Jason won’t recount other situations that he has daydreamed? How will our students know whether or not to trust Jason?

Relatives

This chapter opens up discussion about the class system. The class system is still largely intact in British society (even more so during the 1980s when the story takes place). There is some semblance of a class system in the US as well. I particularly like the discussion of how Jason’s family got ready for their visitors. It showed the family getting ready and using their nicest things for company. I felt that those scenes are easy to relate to. How many times have our own families had company when we were children and we were told to be on our best behaviors?

I enjoy that we get to see a bit more of Julia in this chapter. In some of the previous chapters, she seemed more of a bully. In her exchange with Brian, however, we can see that she is strong-willed, quick-witted, and intelligent.

I could find this chapter useful in a discussion of inequality. When I was reading this, I became disgusted with Uncle Brian because of how he looked down on the universities that Julia had chosen. The bullying that he displayed perhaps parallel the bullying seen later between Hugo and Nigel. I’m sure students in an ELA classroom wouldn’t be hard-pressed to find their own examples of bullying in their lives.

I find that there are several points to which students in an ELA classroom might relate. I feel this is important when trying to keep students engaged in a novel. For me, each chapter has seemed relatable, yet it doesn’t rest on a particular topic for too long.

Also, speaking of inequalities, there are again strong notes of homophobia in this chapter. I am speaking to the scene with the darts where Hugo belittles Nigel and sends him away in tears. There have been moments like these sprinkled throughout the story thus far. It makes me think that perhaps Jason will have some sort of encounter of his own.

[3] rocks, spooks

What kind of community, what kind of society, is Jason operating within?  What traits are valued?  How does one advance?  At the beginning of the novel, our narrator seems content to be an average kid-- he’s not called by his first name but he hasn’t acquired any unpleasant nicknames; he hangs out with people who won’t get him mocked, he scrupulously avoids any of the myriad things arbitrarily labeled “gay,” even if he doesn’t understand why they’re so bad or exactly what all the innuendo signifies.  

In these chapters, though, we see him making an effort to become better liked by those around him... and the motivation, I think, is Dawn Madden.  Jason’s claim to fame is a stunt involving a roll of thread, a long-distance variation on ding-dong-ditching.  So, we’re starting to get a picture here: to be popular, he should be brave, he should be innovative, he should be a little on the cruel side.  Obedience to his social betters is a big deal, too-- and disobedience, however covert, towards their enemies is definitely rewarded.  
This doesn’t seem out of line with the militaristic theme in the early chapters, and I find it kind of an interesting parallel to the overtly military side of the plot: Tom Yew, who we’re given to understand was a bit of a rebel in his school days, is the pride of the town by the time he’s killed in action.  He was a bad student, but evidently a good sailor, and I suspect the qualities which made him so popular among the boys did help him succeed in the Navy.  He might not be questioning authority as much, but the way he refers in his letter to the locals where he’s stationed suggests, to me, that he’s still got a bullying streak.  
I’m curious to see how (or maybe even if) being a Spook changes Jason; he seemed relatively content in his unremarkable position earlier in the novel, and in some ways he doesn’t seem like the type to be one of the cool kids.  I feel like this could be an interesting discussion- how well do we know Jason, what is he really like, how aware is he of his motivations?  I’m definitely curious to read on and see how this pans out.  
Another discussion topic could be his more philosophical thoughts; his dialogue isn’t always interesting, but Jason’s inner monologue is peppered with strange, often morbid asides.  Sometimes they’re brilliantly observant: “War’s an auction where whoever can pay the most in damage and still be standing wins.” (105)  “War may be an auction for countries.  For soldiers it’s a lottery.” (109)  This could be a good segue into considering the historical context of the novel, if one wanted to do so.  I don’t know much about the Falklands Conflict, but the subplot is certainly comprehensible without that background knowledge.  Still, for those interested in doing interdisciplinary work, it seems like it could be useful.  
Structurally, I’m really enjoying the complexity.  Cliffhanger chapter endings abound, foreshadowing is heavy without being heavy-handed.  The unexplained sudden inclusion of a newspaper cutout reading GOTCHA! made me jump a bit, just because it was unexpected; but in context of his scrapbook it makes perfect sense, a trick I rather liked.  
And, one last note-- I’m enjoying the shifting relationship between Jason and his sister, the way their dynamic is changing long with their parents’.  I’m curious to see how much she knows-- or at least, what she’s guessed-- about the root causes of their parents’ “rough patch,” and how all of these relationships will evolve.

Hangman, Relatives, Bridle Path, Rocks, and Spooks (23-142)

So far, I am still very interested in reading this book. David Mitchell leaves the readers in suspense throughout the entire chapter. What I dislike so far is that Mitchell builds upon a suspenseful scene until it climaxes then you flip the page and it is an entirely new chapter that has nothing to do with the one before. For instance, in chapter one title “January Man,” we learn the Jason has sprained his ankle and is now in the old woman’s house in the woods and it is a possibility that she has died. When it is time to read for the next blog, we are introduced to a new scene and we later learn the Jason had a dream. If I were to teach this novel, I would have students identify imagery and symbols in the text. I would also have them do a quick stop-n-jot to make a prediction about that chapter and the entire novel. As we read each chapter, we will then create a new prediction and compare it to the one before. Most importantly, I will hold a class discussion so that the students understand why Mitchell leaves the audience in suspense after each chapter.

Hangman

In this chapter, we learn more of Jason’s stammering dilemma. Jason is more in tune of what others around him think about him. At this point, I believe that he is insecure about his stammering. His language changes in sense that he identities that he wants to say an “s” word, but changes it due to his inability not to stammer. He refers to his stammering as “hangman.” As a visual reader, I imagine a pole with a stick figure hanging from it and spaces, which is missing letters. This may also foreshadow that Jason my hang himself due to his stammering. Jason is a very funny character. I was amused to find out that he came up with Hangman’s Four Commandments on page 31. As I continue to read throughout this chapter, I learn more of Jason’s reality with death. There are numerous references to death, drowning, and how many minutes of life he has left. Jason also gives reference to not liking the fact of living in reality. While in bed, he says “One hundred and fifty minutes of life left” in reference to not wanting to get out the bed and go to school (36).

Since Jason is the younger sibling, I sense that he is jealous of his older sister Julia who is 18. Jason says, “She’s eighteen, she’s leaving Black Swan Green in a few months, she’s got a boyfriend with a sports car, she gets twice as much pocket money as me, and she can make other people do whatever she wants with words” (36). Jealousy is written all over Jason when he brags about what somebody else has. I sense that he wants to be like his sister or have what she wants. In order to understand this jealousy, I went back to my personal experiences and examined my sister and I privileges. Although she always had more than I did, I realized it was like that because she was older and I was not at the age where I was able to get the things she had.

Who is this Unborn Twin? I have concluded that this is Jason’s inner voice. If students ever have any questions as they are reading, I would tell them to quickly jot it down while reading and then ask the class during a whole group discussion. I pondered about this Unborn Twin, until I was able to examine that Jason always mentioned this twin when he talks to his sister. He resents her and probably wished she were never born. If I were to teach this novel, I will tell students to keep in mind all the details and questions they might have and make connections to personal references so that they may understand what it is that is going on in the text. There is also a sex allusion throughout the few chapters I have read. Either Jason is interested in having sex, or he gets a kick out of watching other people have sex. Once again, I will have students predict what might happen with Jason’s interest in sex. Jason might be homophobic. If something is too “girlie” and a guy does it, it is gay. He says, “Boys can’t use umbrellas ‘cause they’re gay” (38).

Relatives

Jason’s family members visit and the family seems to change. They become more of an uptight family that tries to impress the relatives. I learn in a later chapter, that the mom spends extra money on fine and gourmet food to please the outsides which makes the father upset. I am still confused whether Jason smashed the watch in the dream or in real life. Through the family dinner dialogue, Jason admits to himself that he is jealous of Hugo (his cousin). While in the mirror, he says, “I was scanning my face for signs of Hugo” (52).

Mitchell uses such details when describing an action. For example: Mitchell writes, “Alex raised his head ten degrees for a quarter second to say yes” (51). I vividly pictured someone doing this and while I read, I noticed myself raising my head ten degrees to act out the scene. I would ask my students what images come to mind when they read those few word that are very descriptive. In order to make sense of this action, I have to act it out. Tension begins to build again, when Alice (Helena’s sister) ask Jason’s mom about the strange phone calls that Michael receives. As I read further, nothing is mentioned about it again and it makes me believe that I will understand it before the end of the novel. Mitchell continues to build suspense throughout the novel. He describes the lake as “nervous with riplets and counterriplets” (63). This can mean that something is going to happened but he must continue to read in order to unravel what will happen.

Bridle Path

Jason gets personal time with Dawn Madden but I am starting to wonder whether he is dreaming or not. We only know of their relationships through earlier conversation and it appears to me that he has not spoken to her in person before. I can only assume that they will have sex because immediately after running into her on the farm, he catches up to Tom Yew (may he R.I.P) and watches him have sex with Debbie Crombie. I am assuming Jason will have sex with Dawn because I read the back of the book for a quick summary and it speaks of the “first.”

Rocks and Spooks

It is now summer time (little did I know the season were changing, but I had to figure this out based on context clues). The mother and father seem to have personal issues going on involving finance and who spends what. The mother always mentions her garden and now “the tulips are black plums, emulsion white, and yolky gold” (103). This symbolizes growth within the family. After the death of Tom Yew, I assume that Debbie Crombie will be pregnant. Typically, men that went off to war left their wives pregnant.

Jason and Dean Moran are invited to join a secret organization. Their task is to run across six backyard gardens. Jason decides to go first and he succeeds while Moran fails at crossing the finish line within 15 minutes. Presumably, one of the homeowners catches Moran. This chapter closes without us knowing, but rather Jason going to the homeowner against the permission of the Spooks.

[2] hangman, relatives, bridle path

I’ve been keeping a list of phrases that jump out at me: 

a farty ditch, grapplewrapped, yolky rug, stewy air, white chocolate throat, melony sun, sour aunt, moon-gray cat, bubonic zits, Russian-secretary glasses, brown-polish-on-black-suede skins, bad doe eyes, superheated flies grandprixed, tail-chasing wail
(in no particular order.)  

I really like this about Mitchell’s writing-- he uses such strange descriptions!  There are certainly easier, more conventional ways to describe each of these things, but his choices are so eye-catching and perfectly descriptive that they really keep my attention.  I think if I were teaching this book I might make a note of that, for the purposes of a writing lesson: the advantages of creative word choice.  I think this is a great model for that.  


A lot of the food-related descriptors on this list come from around the incident with Dawn Madden on page 85, which I found rather interesting; I’m curious as to whether the white chocolate throat, the melony sun, were meant to foreshadow or lead into the business with the danish somehow.


Also, there’s a lot of sex in this section!  Interesting to see how disconnected it seems from all the sexual innuendo that gets flung around in the first chapter.  Does Jason make a connection between calling someone a “fat orgasm” and seeing someone have an orgasm?  He seems pretty aware of how intensely attracted he is to Dawn, but he generally verbalizes it in strange, indirect ways: “She must use gel.  I’d love to gel her gel in for her.”  It’s interesting that after his very charged, utterly failed experience with her, he watches Tom Yew and Debbie Crombie having sex and feels “Not proud and not pleased and not like I ever wanted to do that.”  There’s a disconnect between feeling and seeing, which I suppose might be why he replied to Dawn the way he did.  I couldn’t help but laugh at that.  He’s clueless and well-informed at the same time.  Paired with all the tension and accusations of homosexuality that fly among the boys, I’m curious to see how all this pans out.  




[I know this isn’t the full set of chapters for Monday, I just wanted to break my posts up a bit more so I didn’t forget anything I’d wanted to talk about.]

January Man

What interests me the most about this book so far is how complex the first chapter is. There is a lot going on in just a handful of pages.

It seems obvious that Jason's parents do not have a happy relationship. When I read the lines about Jason and Julia being forbidden to go into their father's office, I thought very little of it. I suppose I brushed it off because I didn't really know their ages and I just assumed that he didn't want his children meddling with things. The one line that became my oh wow moment was when the family was eating dinner. After Michael presses his children with "Have either of you been in my office," he goes on to explain that they shouldn't be answering the phone even if it rings forever; they are to unplug the telephone cord. This line follows, "Mum was just sitting there. It didn't feel at all right." For me, this was the moment where I realized that something was greatly amiss in the household. Michael is keeping secrets from his family.

Jason is also keeping secrets from his family, but these are the types of white-lies that youth often feel they need to hide from their parents. Jason does not mention that he has been to the lake. What I find interesting about this is that when Jason returns to the lake, he gets hurt and ends up in the sour aunt's house. Because Jason was not forthcoming with information about his whereabouts during dinner, it seems unlikely that his parents will know where to look for him (as, at the end of the first chapter, it seems as though the sour aunt is holding in captive in her home).

Because of these complexities (and the cliffhanger at the end of the first chapter), I feel pushed to read on. It's important for me that the initial chapter of a novel capture my interest and set up some sort of plot complication. I feel Mitchell does this well. I'm not sure where the story is going to head at all, but I'm eager to stick with it and find out.

I do have a few guesses, however. This is a coming-of-age-story and I feel that Jason will eventually have to deal with his home life. I'm certain that the parents will separate at some point. I also feel that Jason will have to deal with some sort of sexual questions. He certainly mentions "sexual intercourse" quite a bit, but I'm also interested in his homophobic speech. For me, that was a red flag that issues of sexuality might be discussed.

Other things (like Jason's inner voices) intrigue me. So does his interest in poetry. I'm not certain what to make of it. Any thoughts?

January Man

I am angry! Why? Because I could not continue to the next chapter until I finished my first blog! I must say, that I love the novel so far. It is somewhat mysterious, weird, and breathtaking all at the same time. Pierre said that the novel was dense and hard to follow. The moment I left my Thursday's class, I immediately went to the NYU bookstore to purchase this novel since they were out of stock for a week. Once I got on the train, I opened the book and was amazed at what David Mitchell started to write and did not agree with Pierre.

The novel opens up with, "Do not set foot in my office." As Juna-Willa stated, this also leaves me to think that Jason's father is hiding something. Yet, Jason wanders into the office feeling like a "bride going into Bluebeard's chamber after being told not to" (3). The more I read, the more I envisioned myself being apart of the story. The second character we run into is "Moron" also known as Dean Moran. I immediately thought that his name signifies something. But within the first 23 pages, I am unable to figure out how much of a "moron" he is. I believe that Moran will be a main character in the novel and that I must pay close attention to him.

I predict that "Black Swan Green" will have something to do with money later on throughout the novel. I might be wrong but I predict this because Moran and Jason crossed by the Black Swan and talks about board games and money. Green means money. Hence, Black Swan "Green." Furthermore, I find the novel to be very amusing. There was various times where I would laugh aloud because Jason would tell a story to Moran. I realize that a lot of the dialogue that goes on between Jason and Moran is based upon the past.

Halfway through the first chapter, Jason mentions over six new characters. Rather, they are his friends or people inside/outside his social circle. The significance to these references might be important because they might show up again throughout the novel. I am still trying to figuring out why Mitchell would mention so many new characters.

Jason also seems to be a character with a slick mouth and disrespectful at times. When speaking to the old woman in the woods, he has a negative demeanor in his tone of voice. I suspect that Jason is a person who is rude, does not like to be told what to do, and has no respect for elders. Jason asks questions to his father which suggests that he is curious about the world around him.

When at the house in the woods, Jason discovers that he broke his grandfather's Omega watch. He said, " Grandfather's Omega'd never once gone wrong in four decades. In less than a fortnight, I'd kill it" (22). This may suggest that time is up and Jason might not make it out alive. In reference to the Game of Life game board, I believe that this may be symbolic to the story as a whole.

The old woman in the house in the woods takes her last breath. Or is it really her last breath? I wonder what will happen. I hope my suggestions are accurate. I wonder if Jason will make it out alive. Is he in any harm?

I am enjoying this novel thus far. I hope it continues to be suspenseful!

Unpacking January Man

Chapter 1 starts off with a rule, which sounds more like a command, "Do not set foot in my office." Right away I sense a dark, foreboding nature to the book. This rule is strictly enforced by the protagonist's, Jason Taylor, dad. So, I am lead to believe 3 things. 1 Jason's dad is very neat and doesn't want his children messing up his office. 2 Jason's dad is hiding something. 3 Jason is a disobedient kid. Although this opening chapter doesn't necessarily unravel my suspicions, it does subtly validate my #2 and #3. First, when Jason hears the phone ring in his dad's office and after 50 rings he decides to enter the forbidden room and answer the phone. Second, when the Taylor family are having dinner and Jason's dad asks if anyone has been in his office. Jason, with the help of his sister, Julia (who also had the same experience), explains that he disobeyed the rule because the phone would not stop ringing. Then he claims that when he picked up the phone, he could tell someone was on the other end, but didn't want to say anything, and that there was a baby crying in the background. Jason's mother's cold and silent reaction to this suggests she knows the meaning behind these mysterious phone calls.

I don't know how to feel about Jason's mother yet. For now she seems a bit insignificant, sort of like a prop in the background. If Jason's dad is supposedly having a secret affair, I'm not sure I feel sorry for her just yet because she's not as well developed a character as Jason's dad is, or even Julia is. From the dinner table scene alone, I know that Jason doesn't really have a close relationship with his older sister. Perhaps it's because of the gap in their ages. Or maybe they can't relate to one another because they're members of the opposite sex. Needless to say, Julia calling her brother, "Thing" followed by a nasty comment or two doesn't really evoke the idea affection to me. But their relationship is intriguing and even humorous. In my family my siblings and I are extremely close, so I wonder about why Jason and Julia don't get along well. Is Julia just a mean, older sister, who likes to bully her brother, or does Jason provoke her?

Jason is undoubtedly the most complex and interesting character so far. I'm curious about his poems that get published in the Black Swan Green Parish Magazine. Nice reference to the title! But mostly, I like reading about him and his relationship with the rest of the characters, starting with his friend, Dean aka Moron, then with his schoolmates and the strange hierarchy they have that spring from their names and ultimately with Sour Aunt. I have a lot of questions about Jason. I'm perplexed about Hangman, Maggot and Unborn Twin. Hangman seems to be the term is he says when referring to his stammer, which actually reminded me of the author W. Somerset Maugham. He was an English writer, whose first language was French, so as a young student he developed a stammer. I wonder about how Jason developed his stammer. And why he names it Hangman. Also, I'm eager to find out more about Maggot and Unborn Twin. And I'm still trying to rack my brain over the last few scenes in chapter 1, where Jason has a strange encounter with a boy he assumes is the butcher's son, Ralph Bredon. Was this imaginary or a hallucination? And the part with Sour Aunt dying is so eery yet compelling, but also such a cliff hanger!

I have to say I'm enjoying the book so far. I like that I'm at the edge of my seat, trying to decipher all these mysterious events. I can't wait to read what happens next!

[1] january man

Black Swan Green starts out simply enough-- there’s the occasional bit of slang too foreign for me to figure out on the first try (“pongs of gravy,” for example) and the occasional detail that makes no sense; but all of that is the sort of thing one can easily brush aside, assuming an answer will be forthcoming.  

Then it gets weird. 

No, actually?  I’m wrong.  It starts weird, with the story of the mysteriously ringing office phone, but that episode is overshadowed by the relatively solid, mundane picture it paints of life as a young boy in the village.  There’s a complex, rigid, and (if not for the narrator’s explanation) baffling social hierarchy upon the girls, one that imposes a mock-military structure on their games.  There’s the borrowed adult language of sexuality, tossed around by kids who don’t always understand it, who only know that it’s gravely important not to be on the receiving end of the insults.  There are small mysteries-- the ‘odd’ children of the village, the House in the Woods.  

But then, slowly and subtly, it gets very strange.  The first reference to Hangman seemed incidental, and after a while I got the sense that this was the narrator’s way of personifying his problems with stammering.  I thought it a bit odd, but not completely an irrational way of dealing with such a condition.  Then, all of a sudden, there are these casual internal references to “My Unborn Twin” and “Maggot,” apparently other internal voices he’s accustomed to recognizing.  It gave me the sense that maybe Jason isn’t quite as mundane as he seems; and the fact that these internal conversations were so unremarkable in his own estimation (which, of course, makes perfect sense,) was a little chilling.  In a good way.

There’s also a certain pervasive air of mystery-- there’s the repetition of “It didn’t feel at all right” about both the Sour Aunt in the woods, and his own family in light of the phone incidents.  It’s hard to tell, though, how much of the strangeness occurs because he’s looking for it-- like his offhanded observation that he ought to take down the license number of an unfamiliar car, just in case it should show up on a police show.  I think asides like that help to link the usual incidents to the unusual ones-- they remind us that we’re perceiving reality through one character’s particular lens. 

As for what might happen next... I honestly have no idea.  Personally, I like that in a first chapter-- it sets up some mysteries I’d like to see resolved, but doesn’t entirely explain where it’s headed.  I expect we’ll get a bit more explanation of Hangman, Maggot and Unborn Twin, but I’m also hoping to see some more of the other village boys.  I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them turned out to be important to the story-- particularly Squelch, since he’s treading the line between the “normal” (village) and “unusual” (the House in the Woods).  

I’m assuming that ultimately this isn’t a supernatural story, though I have to confess that assumption is partially informed by circumstantial cues; the tastes of people who’ve recommended it to me, the sorts of reviews quoted on the cover, and so forth-- even the publishing imprint.  I know not to judge a book by it’s cover, but covers are informative! 

All in all, I have to say I really enjoyed it, and I was a bit frustrated when I realized I had to stop reading until I had a chance to sit down and write about it.  Blogging done, I’m looking forward to picking it back up.

Testing

Hi,

I am just testing to see if it works. I signed in with my NYU e-mail and password...so I guess that I did not have to create a gmail account.

Rochelle