The Things They Carried

Melinda Rubenau
2/26/08
Eng.387
Paper #1

Fact and Fiction of “The Things They Carried”

There is much conflict in America about the Vietnam War and if it was a necessary evil or a war against a people who were looking for a better way of life. Feelings of exile sprouted within the troops fighting in Vietnam because the enemy had the advantage of knowing the terrain and the Americans were not used to the environment or the warfare used by the Viet Cong. The constant reminder that they were not wanted in Vietnam form the Vietnamese and their fellow Americans back home, gave way to more awkward feelings of fighting a war with an unclear purpose. The American troops ended up fighting for their sanity and their lives as they tried to compete against the Viet Cong’s use of guerilla warfare and ambush tactics. When the troops returned to America, adjusting to civilian life after years of constant violence and having to stay alert gave way to new feelings of exile. They couldn’t fit in with their old way of life after the experiences they had endured. Tim O’Brien depicts the use of warfare and the feelings involved with mentally dealing with the war experience in his novel The Things They Carried, as he attempts to recreate how these young men fought to survive in the jungles and mine fields of Vietnam, in a way that one who hasn’t experienced war might understand.
Even though the stories are either fictional or exaggerated, O’Brien explains that “In many cases a true war story cannot be believed. If you believe it, be skeptical. It’s a question of credibility. Often the crazy stuff is necessary to make you believe the truly incredible craziness.” (71 O’Brien) O’Brien uses these stories in order to convey; not the exact accounts of what happened historically, but the true emotions that he, and soldiers like him felt in the jungles of Vietnam.
It is impossible to remember every fact of a past memory, especially when multiple years have passed and the unused memory has faded into a person’s subconscious. By utilizing the stories however, O’Brien is able to recreate his own Vietnam so his readers can grasp the true emotional impact of loss, confusion and paranoia felt by the soldiers fighting. His story on the death of Curt Lemon while he plays chicken with his friend and comrade Rat Kiley brings the reality of sudden and unexpected death of these young, inexperienced soldiers to a light that a person who has never experienced war would have known:
The angles of vision are skewed. When
A booby trap explodes, you close your eyes and duck and
Float outside yourself. When a guy dies, like Curt Lemon,
You look away and then you look back for a moment and then
Look away again. The pictures get jumbled; you tend
To miss a lot. And then afterward, when you go to tell about
It, there is always that surreal seemingness, which makes
the story seem untrue, but which in fact represents the
hard and exact truth as it seemed. (71 O’Brien)

The story of Curt Lemon quickly turns form two young men goofing around to the death of a young man that was entirely unexpected, given the atmosphere conveyed. O’Brien attempts to recreate how suddenly an ambush could occur in the jungles, and how every step could be a soldier’s last if they fell victim, as Curt Lemon did, to one of the multitudes of buried mines: “’Mines and booby traps have been employed so often and effectively by the Viet Cong that the war has often been referred to as the ‘War of Mines and Booby Traps’ Mines had a major influence in the way the ground war was fought,” (www.hrw.org) Mines were not only deadly but maiming as well, which added to the apprehensions of the soldiers.
Along with mines, which were buried in Vietnam by both sides; guerilla warfare was utilized to its full extent by the Viet Cong. Due to their small numbers, compared to the U.S. troops, the Vietnamese took to ambush tactics as well as blending in with the local villagers. O’Brien’s exaggerated stories of the platoon reflect larger, historical problems of the Vietnam War and its troops. Lee Strunk and Dave Jensen, both men in the same platoon, have an altercation over a stolen “jackknife”. During the fistfight that ensues, Jensen breaks Strunk’s nose. When Strunk returns form medical, Jensen is so paranoid that he wants revenge that he ends up breaking his own nose to make things even “No safe ground: enemies everywhere. No front or rear. At night he had trouble sleeping-a skittish feeling-always on guard, hearing strange noises in the dark, imagining a grenade rolling into his foxhole or the tickle of a knife against his ear. The distinction between good guys and bad guys disappeared for him.” (63 O’Brien) Jensen’s complex of a lack of enemy distinction is a common, historical issue of the war as well.
The N. Vietnamese used ambush attacks in the majority of the battles with U.S. soldiers, because of this there was no sure way for the military to know when or where the enemy would attack “The highly unusual nature of the communist force structure with its regulars, guerillas, part time village defense forces, and subversive apparatus, made it difficult to agree on a valid picture of the whole communist lineup.” (4 Thayer) With O’Brien’s depiction of two comrades, on the same side, distrusting each other is his way of showing how an ambush could be waiting around any path taken, a quiet village could have Viet Cong forces lurking and the troops wouldn’t know until it was too late.
Returning soldiers faced adjustment problems due to the environment differences that surrounded them, however they also felt displaced due to the changes in their personal lives as well. Veterans of Vietnam were forced to cope with losses of loved ones, girlfriends who married other men while they were overseas and jobs that could no longer hold their attention: “More often we think we know our motives without being aware of the real motives. That is, quite frequently we are attempting to gratify motives of which we are not even aware of.” (Rogers 10) Norman Bowker commits suicide, after recieveing a copy of Tim O’Brien’s “Speaking of Courage.” It seems as if Bowker’s suicide is directly related to the story O’Brien wrote due to his “somewhat bitter” letter he wrote about it: ““It’s not terrible,” he wrote me “but you left out Vietnam. Where’s Kiowa? Where’s the shit? “Eight months later he hanged himself.” (O’Brien) The story is not the reason for Bowker’s suicide though, it is the underlying problems, the social changes that have passed the men who served in Vietnam by.
The lack of understanding form the Americans who did not witness Vietnam firsthand leaves the soldiers without anyone to relate to except other exiled veterans like themselves. “A good war story, he thought, but it was not a war for war stories, nor for talk of valor, and nobody in town wanted to know about the terrible stink. They wanted good intentions and good deeds. But the town was not to blame, really. It was a nice little town, very prosperous, with neat houses and all the sanitary conveniences.” (O’Brien 150) Civilians don’t want to hear gory details, they’d rather hear about acts of courage however, the problem faced by many soldiers is that their so called courageous acts were inspired by fear and the intense want to stay alive.
Exile felt by the troops after the war was a huge factor in many soldiers returning from Vietnam. Since they were use to the constant violence surrounding them, returning to civilian life was difficult “”The thing is,” he wrote, “There’s no place to go. Not just in this lousy little town. In general. My life, I mean, It’s almost like I got killed over in Nam.” (O’Brien 156). For years the soldiers have been fighting in a foreign jungle with the only purpose being to survive. Returning to civilian life is a sharp curve from struggling to live everyday in distant jungles: “That he has shown unquestioned courage under fire does not alter the fact that facing civilian life is a frightening experience and involves many decisions that he hardly feels ready to make.” (2 Ragers). For men like Norman Bowker, and others in O’Brien’s platoon, civilian life was a huge contast to life in Vietnam. The men have fought in unfamiliar territory only to return to an old life they can no longer relate to.
O’Brien explains throughout his stories that truth is not as important as the reality that the story depicts “A thing may happen and be a total lie, another thing may not happen and be truer than the truth.”(83 O’Brien) Although his stories may not be entirely true, what matters is what he tries to convey while telling the story. O’Brien’s fictional stories recreate events that happened and the impact it had on those who were involved:
“You can tell a true war story if it embarrasses you. If
You don’t care for obscenity, you don’t care for the truth; If
You don’t care for the truth, watch how you vote. Send
Guys to war, they come home talking dirty.
Listen to Rat: “Jesus Christ, man, I write this beautiful fuckin’ letter, I slave over it, and what happens? The dumb
Cooze never writes back. (O’Brien 69)

What is being conveyed is the psychological change that occurred among the soldiers of Vietnam. The war forces boys to become men and to survive on their own. To cope they harden themselves and hide their pain with words that make them feel brave, however they are just masking pain and hurt with apathy and jokes.
The fact that there is no moral to any of the stories shows the frustration of a war with no point. Numerous times in the text the soldiers will ask their listeners if they want to know the moral, and when told yes the answer they give is either too obscure to make sense or that there was no moral to begin with “For some Americans who served in Vietnam, however, events were distinguished by their senselessness. The phrase ‘It don’t mean nothin’ was commonly used by American soldiers to express their alienation from their surroundings and from the acts they performed and witnessed.” (1 Taylor) The young men of O’Brien’s platoon used apathy and jokes to get through a war that had no moral. The truth, therefore, lies with the feeling received from the story and not the story itself.
Although O’Brien’s stories are fabricated, the reality emitting from them is the true emotional impact of the war that he aims to reveal to the reader. The stories get the reader to understand how Vietnam truly affected soldiers and what they had to go through as the country fought over whether the war should even continue. O’Brien uses these fictional stories to get to the reality of the alienation, hopelessness and fear felt by these young men who have been forced to leave their innocence behind because of the violence of reality they have witnessed.

Injustice

Poems From Guantanamo is a depressing story of individuals who were just contained because of their ethnic background in my opinion. The people who were held captive from 2002 were not just ordinary people. Some of them were recognized figures like Ustad Badruzzaman Badr, who has a Master's Degree in English. There were some people unlike Ustad, who did not have a degree like Abdullah Thani Faris Al Anazi, who was an ordinary worker in Afghanistan. That is until the U.S. came and basically took away his freedom. Its like what Peggy said, you believe that everything the U.S. has done is right. I thought racism no longer existed but from the actions taken by the U.S. Government since 2002, we should be considered the bad guys.


To My Father by Abdullah Thani Faris Anazi is a poem dedicated to his father letting know that he is alive to say the least. He wishes to send his regards to his whole family, since he is unable to communicate with them. Al Anazi considers the custody as an injustice by the U.S. He explains that though the U.S. wants to make him guily, he will not let that happen because no crime was committed. To tell a lie is something that he will not do because nothing was done wrong, but the U.S. Government feels that is not the case.

Reading Bhaba's Arrivals and Departures made me think of a newspaper article I once read concerning a man's avatar and his avatar "wife". Since this man was married in real life, the author of the article questioned whether he was being unfaithful to his real wife when he spent time with the avatar. He had created a world for himself, with a job, friends, everything. It seems that he had become addicted to another reality which existed primarily in his mind. So was he in exile in the sense that Bhaba means? An online connection is something forced upon people these days, and according to Bhaba, an essential component of exile is the feeling of being forced.
The online communities that exist today have more or less requirents, but it is always separate from the physical world-- messages get lost in translation, and people are free to present themselves differently. Since we need it so today, it seems that our online world is a world of exile.

The Detainees Speak

I am sorry, my brother.
The shackles bind my hands
And iron is circling the place where I sleep.

I am sorry, my brother,
That I cannot help the elderly or the widow or the little child

Do not weigh the death of a man as a sign of defeat.
The only shame is in betraying your ideals
And failing to stand by your beliefs.

- "I Am Sorry, My Brother," by Abdulraheem Mohammad


This novel was so touching. People are so quick to send others to jail, but we never hear their story and what they are going through. Reading these poems reminded me of my sister, who was imprisoned for three years. Whenever we would speak to her about what she went through in prison, her stories are unbearable. These detainees were exiled from the only place they call home to be tortured and mistreated. Falkoff really made us see their views and open our eyes.

Wow, I had no idea

For the First time in my life I’m ashamed to be seen as an American. I remember being in elementary school and singing the song from September to June for at lest eight years every morning, I stood inside a classroom with my right hand over my heart pledging to a flag, to a country… that is not even sure what it stands for. Reading poems from Guantanamo, I kept rereading the text to make sure I was seeing the United States of America and not some other far off land in our world. Guantanamo, Guantanamo, probably three hours from New York, right under our noses. When we say “one nation, under God, for liberty and justice for all” does it only apply to the fifty states and Canada? I was just so shocked and angered at this situation, what got me really boiling was the fact that there was no reason why theses people were being heal other then suspicion. These were not uneducated people: they were University graduates, authors, journalist, magazine editors, parents, and amputees for God’s sake! One the stories that really struck me way the story of: Ustad Badruzzaman Badar (27)…he’s an essayist with an MA in English. I kept thinking that could have been me, which is not far fetched seeing as someone was detained for the brand of the watch he was wearing (49). These prisoners’ writings are so filled with pain, hurt, and confusion, they are held from all outside contact from their family and only given heavily censored letters, no news and no regular use of pens. One man can only make out the words “I love you” from the letter/poem that his daughter sent him. Many of the author’s in exile that we read at least had the ability to write, to communicate their emotions, their individual thoughts. Even the prisoners that were released were not given all of their works. I remember one man asking why was he given a pen if they were just going to take it away…because poetry can be a potential risk!
The poem I decided to do my close reading on was “They fight for peace” (20) by Aamer.

The poem is divided into four stanza’s. I choose this one because it made me think of the war in Iraq that we are fighting for peace.
The poem begins with questions about peace of mind or earth, questioning exactly what kind of peace which leads into the next stanza. The second and stanza is what he observes from the soldiers who are “fighting for peace” and is again questioning what kind of peace they were looking for. The last stanza he comes up with the idea, or revelation that they are fighting for peace. What’s interesting is that he never defines what peace is, perhaps that is because he never witnesses peace in the detainment center.
There is so much to say about this book I haven’t the slightest idea where to being. I read
This book thinking it was merely a book of collected poetry. It left me questioning who I am and what kind of a mark am I leaving in the world. Because these poems are translated and edited I could only imagine what more they have to say…the words and thoughts that we will never read the struggle that we will never fully understand. Instead I’m sitting her giving my armature opinion about something I know nothing about, but at least I’m writing.

For the First time in my life I

For the First time in my life I

Poems from Guantanamo

Poems from Guantanamo, I felt was a great source for seeing exile, which is what the course is all about. Each and every poet in this book, writes about their exile from their homeland, because of there being a slim chance of them being terrorists (when they have no link to anything at all). The particular thing I want to look out is the bond they all share with God. There is a lot of religious over tone, everywhere in every poem. Of course this is partially expected due to the fact that when you are held against your will in a foreign place, you will turn to God. Through out each poem, you can see them blamming their religion for why they are detained but at the same time saying no matter what they won't give out hope because salvation will be given to them by God.

The poem that interested me the most was Homeward Bound. Of course this particular poem doesn't have much of a religious overtone. The reason I particularly love this poem is not only because of the meaning and power of the poem, but the meter and rhyme scheme. The meter and rhyme scheme are simplistic and memorable. The poem itself is great. It is written by Moazzam Begg, and throughout the poem you can hear the loss of dreams and hopes as he is stuck in limbo in this prison slowly losing himself to despair. Then he finally comes out and says No i still have hope I want to be Homeward Bound. It reminds me of Etheridge Knight, who is a great poet who also wrote from jail, mostly about how he wants to be home with his family.

The Reality of Guantanamo

Guantanamo Reality

To be exiled from reason, from family, from everything you’ve ever known and form everyone. To know that the only peace you will have form the atrocities that will befall you is the stone walls and floor that enclose you. Most of the authors that we have read about know why they can’t return home or know why they don’t fit in socially. The people of Guantanamo Bay are kept alone; their life is simply another form of death. A death where your cell is the grave and your warm flesh and pulsing blood is the coffin. Most don’t know why they’re there, they haven’t been charged with anything, but they are still facing the torture of a capture terrorist. With no rights and no encouragement, some have found an escape through poetry, but once the writing is over, their nightmare still exists.
Shaikh Abdurraheem Muslim Dost was a religious scholar, poet and journalist who was arrested twice, the second time he was never heard from again. Shaikh’s poem “They Cannot Help” stuck out from the rest. An educated man subjected to treatment not even befitting an animal touches upon human nature and how people act differently depending on what they believe and follow. A man accused of horrible, but un clarified atrocities has written a touching poem about the good and evil of people. Those who are charitable and honest will devote their lives, at all costs, to help others even of this means exile or worse. However, those who oppress others will have to answer for their sins eventually. Even though hope is bleak for Shaikh, he still believes that justice will prevail in the end and that everyone gets their just desserts in the end, due to the prevalence of integrity and honesty.

Guilty until proven innocent?

What is happening to our society nowadays? We are not only allowing the distribution and diffusion of false propaganda about a religion that only promotes pacifism, but now we are also allowing (if not promoting)the barbaric and unhmane treatment of people, who have to prove that they are innocent. Reading Poems from Guantanamo left me with so much despair and sadness, I honestly could not believe that our nation is recurring to a methodology similar to that of "terrorists" who not only commit atrocities but they commit them towards innocents. Two of the poems that really got me thinking and feeling the anguish of the terrible situation of the detainees were "Death Poem" by Jumah Aldosari "To My Father" by Abdullah Thani Faris Anazi.
In "Death Poem" I felt the irony, and loneliness, the pride of remaining integer and to stand by one's beliefs and to have the courage to die for them. I also felt the importance of showing this to the world before it becomes a bigger horror and we will have to apologize forever (As it usually the case in History, Slavery, Camps during World War II).
In "To My Father" I also saw integrity and faithfulness and the importance of faith when in despair, and sadness.
In addition, the article "Arrivals and Departures" really suits the poems well, it shows the problematic of "these world news" that spread like an unstoppable virus and half of the time are not true

MY HEART SANK INTO MY STOMACH.

Poems from Guantanamo THE DETAINEES SPEAK edited by Marc Falkoff made my heart sink into my stomach. These poems really had a striking impact on me. It made me feel like starting a movement, fighting for the rightful justice for these detainees. Over emotional? Yes, I would agree but these accounts came from the individuals who experienced what exile really meant, being away from family, mistreated, abused, this book embodied the true meaning of the silent killer we know as Exile. Reading about innocent, well-educated, respected citizens of various backgrounds being held in these iron cages just shows how unfair the justice system can be, even in present day 2008! It is just unrealistic, and really disturbing. All the poems in this compliation had its relavence, and importance, and it was very difficult for me to choose one and discuss it part by part. Many stood out to me, but I closed my eyes and imagined myself as a detainee, as one of them, and said to myself what would I write. The poem that I chose to examine closely is, IS IT TRUE? By Osama Abu Kabir, the water truck driver from Jordan. This poem appealed to me because it was straight forward, and it addressed all the important topics: Home, Family, and the man who makes the decisions, the Judge. This poem clearly shows that the detainee longs to be with his family, and in his homeland. He begs for his rightful freedom, but sadly Kabir remains at Guantanamo even till this day. Above all, I guess you left the best for last professor. I really enjoyed this class, and it really opened my eyes on a whole other level. Before taking this class, I went around taking things for granted, but after being a part of this class I learned to appreciate the simple things in my life. Thank you Professor Kijowski.

Hope

A common thread within the Poems From Guantanamo- The Detainees Speak seems to be this ever hopefulness for redemption and release from oppression and exile. According to Forms of Suffering in Muslim Prison Poetry, Flagg Miller states that "an old Arabic saying goes...poetry is born of suffering" (Falkoff 7). Arabic poetry comes from a long line of oppression, poetry being the voice of oppression. The poets in this book speak of a similar exile/oppression common within their history of poetry, and express a glint of hope in the publication of this book in obtaining freedom.

The author Jumah Al Dossari has been held in Guantanamo for half a decade, attempting suicide nearly a dozen times. His poem entitled "Death Poem" doesn't display hope for his existence and possible release from prison, but hope that his dead body will be used to present to the world "this soul that has suffered at the hands of the "protectors of peace" (Falkoff 32). He proclaims the displaying of his tortured soul to "the people of conscience" (Falkoff 32).

Another poem by poet Emad Abdullah Hassan is still held in captivity even though there isn't any clear proof or suspicion that he did anything wrong. The attraction in this poem is the allurment in the first stanza, which begins as
"Inscribe your letters in laurel trees
From the cave all the way to the city of the chosen.

It was here that Destiny stood wondering.
Oh Night, are these lights that I see real" (Hassan Ln. 1-4)?

Hassan proclaims oppression, but hope in his devout religion that the "youths" Mohammed have suffered but their endurance is a test of belief in God that keeps them from faltering in these extreme conditions. The lines above describe light which is obviously symbolic of goodness, whereas, dark is evil. Similar to Jumah Al Dossari's poem, Hassan also shares hope in the publication of this book, such as "My song will expose the damned oppression,/ And bring the system collapse" (Hassan Ln. 15-16).

Free=New York

What I found interesting about the novel was the relationship between Edwidge and her care taker/ Uncle Joseph. I suppose because of modern times I thought the relationship was going to be similar to the one in “Lolita” but it was different and poor Uncle Joseph dies. I agree with Sara when she says that the story is very realistic because it’s very common. I can see how she experienced a form of personal exile being isolated from the only home she’d ever known and the person she sees as he father. Interestingly enough, she joins her parents in New York for a better life but she doesn’t see it that was because she loves Haiti and misses her family. At one point the doctor instructs them to take their medications for tuberculosis and promises them the pills will bring them “closer to New York” (p 101). That idea aliens with the constant motif of finding freedom in New York. I think the novel was an easy read and very easy to understand.

Edwidge Danticat on Memory and Language

An amazing recount of her family past and present, with her memories being what the reader sees even though a lot of what she remembers is from what her family members that can’t speak for themselves anymore have told her. She starts with the present, or what is considered the present in the book. Introducing her Haitian family the only way she can, by describing the experiences they face day to day.
The doctor the beginning who tells her that her father is going to die, without even thinking about how her father will feel about his daughter knowing. This depicts the lack of attention her father can receive do to his economic status and being an illegal immigrant in the United States. The doctor, almost casually tells her that he is not getting better and will never get better.
Memory is important to her, and she describes two different types of her memory that she is recounting as she writes this novel: Her own, and what she remembers her family members telling her about her past and their own. Many times she will tell the reader before she finishes a story that the person couldn’t remember a certain event, but they can remember a fine detail like when her father tells her about when “Papa Doc” went into office and he saw his brother crying but can’t remember what he was doing. This lapse in memory can either be looked at as doubtful recollection or a loving memory that a brother has for his pained sibling.
She speaks a lot about understanding Language. She is a writer so her close bonds with her father through his letters when she is a child come at no surprise. However the detail she writes in makes the reader feel the bond she felt as she studied her father’s lettering and modest phrases and wording. The way she can tell what a person’s feeling by imagining the contexts in which they are trying to speak. Language barriers such as her Uncle’s inability to speak and her mother’s use of their old Creole language are also predominant features that show up in her writing. The need to understand and the ability to decipher the literal meaning of words encoded in vague writing and hand gestures shows her point that words don’t always get a point across, that one must feel what that person is feeling and see what they see in order to completely understand what is gong on.

Brother, I'm Dying

In the novel Brother, I am Dying displays an immeasurable account of exile and strife inflicted upon a seemingly 'good' family, told through the eyes of Edwidge Danticat. In Danticat's story there are three main points of exile presented, one being in Danticat's separation from her Uncle Joseph in Haiti when she left to be reunited with her parents and brothers. Before her departure from Haiti she had been living with her Uncle, a man that became a father to her for the ten years she was without her parents. This book instills upon the reader the personal levels of exile that exist within families. It reminded me of a close family friend who came to America at the age 17 from Cuba, and to this day, approaching her 88rd birthday she has not seen her brother who remains Cuba, unable to leave. Another point of exile exists in her Uncle's cancer that hindered his speech and ultimate source of communication between himself and Danticat. This is a bodily exile, a person exiled from his own voice, and then Danticat's feeling of exile toward her Uncle's inability.The third example of exile appears in the Uncle's exile from his beloved homeland; Joseph chose to stay in Haiti, whereas his brother and family chose to leave, therefore at the point of being kicked out into a land not of his own [America], and dying in captivity is absolutely horrible. I was not expecting the story Danticat told in Brother, I am Dying, it was truly heart breaking.

Exile in Life and Death

The plight of Edwidge Danticat's uncle Joseph provides perhaps the most compelling example of exile that we have seen so far. Due to political instability leading to threatening conditions in Haiti, the 81 year old man is more or less forced out of his homeland for his own safety. What he finds in America is clearly no safe haven. He is treated like an unwanted refugee at the detention center he arrived at. When he becomes sick, he is accused of faking his illness, and is not given proper medical attention. His family is not allowed to visit him, and he ultimately dies alone. It is a depressing tale of exile: being forced out of the only home you know in search of safety, only to be practically left for dead.
Even in death, Joseph can be viewed as being in a state of exile. Rather than being buried in Haiti with his wife, his body is buried in Queens. Exile transcends livelihood; one must wonder if Joseph's spirit can truly be at peace when he remains locked out of his own home.

Brother, I'm Dying a most heartbreaking and realistic memoir

When I started reading Brother, I'm Dying by Edwidge Dandicat I honestly felt like I was reading a seventh or eighth grade book, which kind of made me feel that the book was not going to have an outstanding and memorable storyline, but as I got deeper into the memoir I realize that I was leaning towards the wrong assumption.
This story is not only very realistic (I know someone that has been through the same ordeal as the uncle) but well told, I mean the simple language and smooth chronological flashbacks allow for a better and more humane feeling ( in the reader) and at the same time provide a greater spotlight for the things that need to be highlighted. The generic but detailed language that Edwidge makes use of, makes the horrific events stand for themselves, without having to be glorified with superfluous writing.
The narrative style is so touchy, especially at the end, that I really did not want to get to the end because everything got so pictographic, scary and sad that I felt a knot in my throat and expected worse than what i had already read (which was terrible).

Dying Yet Again In Another Novel

Death seems to occur in some our readings, "Brother I'm Dying" is no exception. A family from Haiti comes to America to have a better life, with the exception of Uncle Joseph, who stays in Bel-Air, Haiti. Danticat has the unfortunate situation of her father dying, and unexpectingly being pregnant all at the same time.
The reason for Uncle Joseph staying in Haiti was because he did not want to leave. He was very much a big influence on the people there and did not want to abandon his fellow people. He was a rather popular preacher and lfted the lives of people there. It was a shame that his exile from the country was through death.
From the novel and my knowledge of the country, Haiti has gone through tough times even after its independence in 1804. From having presidents, one of which was exiled in three weeks. It is a heartbreak story of a family from Haiti fleeing to America to seek freedom. Its almost the same story as Elian Gonzalez, and how he and his mother came to America.

Her king/ Olga

Poem:
Her Kind by Sexton

I have gone out, a possessed witch,

haunting the black air, braver at night;

dreaming evil, I have done my hitch

over the plain houses, light by light:

lonely thing, twelve-fingered, out of mind.

A woman like that is not a woman, quite.

I have been her kind.



I have found the warm caves in the woods,

filled them with skillets, carvings, shelves,

closets, silks, innumerable goods;

fixed the suppers for the worms and the elves:

whining, rearranging the disaligned.

A woman like that is misunderstood.

I have been her kind.



I have ridden in your cart, driver,

waved my nude arms at villages going by,

learning the last bright routes, survivor

where your flames still bite my thigh

and my ribs crack where your wheels wind.

A woman like that is not ashamed to die.

I have been her kind.

Exile Through Heartbreak

In Salman Rushdie's Shalimar the Clown, the reader is given a glimspe at a form of exile primarily instigated by heartbreak. Shalimar's love for Bhoonyi makes her betrayal that much more difficult to endure. Maxmillian's affair is the ultimate catalyst. Shalimar's exile comes in a violent form, as he becomes an assassin and ultimately murders Maxmillian. With the intense political backdrop, it is interesting that Shalimar's exile is arguably brought about because of his own feelings. I guess that Shalimar can be most closely related to Nabokov's Humbert Humbert in this regard, although his feelings were not nearly as unconventional, and his actions proved dangerous on a different level. The motivations for the exile of the characters we have examined is truly astonishing, since there can be such a broad range of factors.

Memory & Exile

“And memory was not madness was it, not even when the remembeed past piled up so high inside you that you feared the files of your yesterdays would become visible in the whites of your eyes. Memory was a gift. Is was a positive. It was a professional resource” (122) remarked Coloel. The first mention of the Coloel’s memory is described as “exceptional” (96). Later, his feelings regarding his memory progress until it is seen as a possible mental problem, which he refuses to seek help for fearing it will end his career. I find it interesting that Rashdie decided to use memory as a curse and a gift being that many of the books we read referred to exile and memory collaboratively.

Olga Volga

After reading Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie, I feel that there is a strong sense of Exile in the novel. I must admit that this novel was not one of my favorite, mainly due to the writing style. I found it to be long, and really drawn out. The thoughts of Olga Volga really stood out to me, she said 'I live today neither in this world nor the last, neither in America nor Astrakhan. Also I would add neither in this world nor the next. A woman like me, she lives some place in between. Between the memories and the daily stuff. Between yesterday and tomorrow, in the country of lost happiness and peace, the place of mislaid calm. This is our fate. This I now don't feel. Consequently however I have no fear of death" (p.9) This excerpt brings up many important themes in the novel, including the aspect of death, a type of nomadic stream and that of being a woman. This passage brings up a wide range of topics to discuss.

Shalimar the Clown

The most poignant moment in the book, for me, comes from Olga Volga the potato witch. "As to myself," she says, "I live today neither in this world nor the last, neither in America nor Astrakhan" (9). Seemingly irrelevant, this conversation with Olga Volga is tinted with loss, with exile. She goes on to say that she lives "in the country of lost happiness and peace, the place of mislaid calm." Rushdie seems to have taken special care when crafting these few short lines. It seems almost as if he is speaking in his own voice. Rushdie himself is no stranger to exile, both personally and politically. He has walked around with a death sentence hanging over his head since the late 80's and is the given reason for the British breaking political ties with the Iranians.

-- Ian Herman

Agha Shahid Ali

As a prelude book Shalimar the Clown the author Salman Rushdie placed a poem by Agha Shahid Ali that emphasizes a similar strain of exilement that appears throughout the entirety of the novel.

“I am being rowed through Paradise on a river of Hell:
Exquisite ghost, it is night.
The paddle is a heart; it breaks the porcelain waves…

I’m everything you lost. You won’t forgive me.
My memory keeps getting in the way of your history.
There is nothing to forgive. You won’t forgive me.
I hid my pain even from myself; I revealed my pain only to myself.
There is everything to forgive. You can’t forgive me.
If only somehow you could’ve been mine,
What would not have been possible in the world”?
-Agha Shahid Ali

When I first read this poem, I initially thought of India, and her exile from both of her parents. Which could certainly be true, for there is a reason why Rushdie placed this particular poem at the beginning of the novel. It set the mood for the mood for this dreary, complex narrative, full of different people suffering and enduring life.

The beginning of the poem reminds me of the beginning of the book, where India’s sleep-talk is explained, which could be a psychological effect of her mother’s death/abandonment. Especially the line: “My memory keeps getting in the way of your history” (5) which crosses with her India’s own life and her mother’s death.

This poem also relates to Shalimar’s love for Bhoonyi, and the betrayal he felt for Max when he stole her away from him. It is filled with a certain angst, hopefulness and nostalgia, but deep and dark. The last two lines: “If only somehow you could’ve been mine, /What would not have been possible in the world”? emphasize Shalimar’s loss, and exile, as he is left to endure a dirty betrayal, and lost love one.

Rushdie somehow blends "reality fiction" and fantasy and makes them both believable-- even when they are components of the same story. Each major character in the story has a unique, personal exile, existing in a world that is all his or her own. It is interesting that the very art of fantasy-writing entails "creating" a world, and that is just what Rushdie has done-- created realities for different characters in different formats.
Perception plays an important role in Shalimar the Clown, and the message within the complex madness of the tale seems to be that the world is made up of perceptions. Each of us has a unique set, and can never fully relate to anyone else's. It is fascinating to enter into the universe constructed by Rushdie and to see how the views of different characters overlap or clash. The results of each interaction end up making the story, and part of the joy in reading Rushdie's work was chronicling each step and example.

Significance to 9/11

One of the most difficult readings I have ever read. Very difficult to get into until the midpart of the book. As mention by Sara, this plot has been used in several of today's mainstream books, person is heart broken and then seeks revenge on others. Also the book can be made with reference to 9/11 because Shalimar wanted to get revenge on others, similar to how 9/11 occur because of possible jealousy.
Doing some background information on Rushdie, he was under police protection for several years because of the books that he wrote which had references to terrorism. I find it unique that Rushdie would write about such a topic that at the time of the novel released would most likely to criticized with relation to India.

Below there is a link with connection to Shalimar The Clown which I found rather interesting about the life of Rushdie.
http://www.radionetherlands.nl/features/amsterdamforum/20060730af

Shalimar the Clown and a different style of writing

Honestly out of all the books that we have read in class, and that I have read in other classes or independently, the main plot (apart from the historical background) of The book Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie, did not impress me much, it seemed a little played out and predictable . The guy that was once great, innocent and wonderful and then is betrayed by a beautiful woman, and kills the man with whom she had an affair (as a means of revenge) or viceversa. However, the writing style presents an interesting challenge to one as a reader. It is so complex and poetic that it is almost impossible to follow, it seems to be mostly written in the passive voice (which is not very common) and it contains so many adjectives that constantly throw one off the main story, and enhance the character's integrity and/or rationality. Also, it presents an amazing imagery and metaphoric language that intensify the emotions of Shalimar as a young man. Rushdie is so successful in his narration that it makes the feelings become almost personal "Standing before him, oiled of skin and with wildflowers scenting the carefully braided hair [...] was the girl he loved, waiting for him to make her a woman and in doing so make himself a man" (Rushdie 60). I thought this specific moment is so enticing, it displays the climax of the innocent and naive love story between Shalimar and Boonyi Kaul, and it places the reader in this mood of expectancy that when she tells him "if that was it" (Salman 61) it is just heartbreaking.