zaaaAP Lit SuperBlog

Still on Light in August.

So I know that we finished Light in August last week, but I forgot to say some things that were bothering me about the book.  I think that in alot of literature, subjects like sex, rape, abuse, exc are discussed in a manner that trivializes them.  In Light in August, much of the same themes were brought up.  In our class discussions, we all seemed to put off Christmas and his brutal raping and beating of women as "a product of his identity crisis."  I mean really? If someone went to court for raping and beating someone, could they say that they did it because they couldn't decide if they were white or black? I know that this of only a book, but the same goes for the media.  We are exposed to really brutal stuff daily, and pretend that it doesn't affect our lives.  Have you seen the stats on rape? Some say that 1 in 3 women will be raped in their lifetime.  That personally disgusts me.  If we trivialize sex, violence, exc in things like "classic literature," no wonder the media does it.  I'm not saying that some kid is going to read LIA and say, "I want to me just like Joe Christmas!" and go rape someone, but I think we can't just take something like rape and be like, "oh, well that is there to support this motif." 

I also get that this was written in a completely different time period than now, but I am simply asking for us AP College English students to think a little more about what you read before you brush it off as support of your motif.   

Meaning Behind the Italics

I would have done the same as the brother; the father would have done the same. She has no mother because fatherblood hates with love and pride, but motherblood with hate loves and cohabits (26).So far I have come to understand that italicized sentences and paragraphs are the inner thoughts of a character, but I keep hearing in class that it is more than that. This is where I got lost. I hears that the italicized is the inner inner thoughts of the character. I am having a lot of trouble grasping that concept. Can someone maybe clear this up for me? At first I thought, "oh this is simple. This just means that the person is only thinking not saying the following out loud." Apparently I was wrong. Is the italicized a deeper subconscious thought or is it an entirely different point of view or narration that is interrupting that moment of the story? I want to appreciate Faulkner's style and writing techniques but I want to understand them first.

The Feminine "Mistake"

All this talk about "Light in August" and forcing identities on others brought to the forefront of my mind the issue of holding each other to stereotypes in OPRF.While I will never experienced the kind of racial profiling black people may experience, I have ample experience with the type of sexism that usually flies under the radar.

Any of my friends will unhesitatingly call me one of the least manly guys of their group. I admit, I have certain tastes in movies, music and life in general that don't conform to the typical male stereotype. It's not that I don't like "guy" things, it's just that I also like "girly" things, like Taylor Swift, Badminton and talking about emotions.

I digress. Our discussions about "Light in August" reminded me of the feeling I get whenever one of my friends tries to call me out on acting, in their eyes, "embarrassingly girly." My reaction is always the same: so what? How does conforming to a male role of working out, letting my emotions out physically and toning down my excitement levels make me a better person? Why should I feel like I made a mistake every time I act like I want to act?

I think these kinds of confrontations happen not because of bigotry (I believe no public bigot could survive in Oak Park), but because of unconscious expectations bred by a combination of natural tendencies and upbringing. These expectations (and maybe a bit of an overcompensation problem) cause people to lash out at anyone who does not fulfill these expectations, and this is unacceptable.

I don't think we should be unconditionally accepting of others (people need criticism to grow), but I think we should enter into relationships with a blank slate and without comparing people to each other. As Oak Parkers, we realize the importance of diversity, so why should we hold anyone to limiting roles?

Joe C. in Our Time

When I was in elementary school I gained a good friend who just happened to be biracial.  She was both black and white.  She didn't fit in with the stereotypes of either a black person or a white person, she was just herself which made me want to be her friend.

My friend reminded me of Joe Christmas in some ways, but I also noted something that Joe lacked and my friend had.  Acceptance.  Today's society, while not perfect, has come a long way.  If my friend had grown up in the time of Light and August, I can't but help think that she would also be just as torn as Joe Christmas was.

Society plays a crucial role in helping identity be formed, my friend grew up in a time where she could happily be both white and black without having to pick and chose. 

If Joe Christmas had lived in today's society I believe he would've been able to find an identity for himself. 

Why Are All These Books So Similar?

It seems like all the books we've read have central themes that tie them all together, which is mainly about an individual's identity.  Yes, I do know that many books revolve around a character's growth, but it seems as if these books were picked specifically to cover the theme of identity.  In all the books we've read so far society has affected a character or individual's personal identity.  I'm just wondering how these books are picked, and if they were all selected for their similar themes.

Who killed poor 'ol Joe?

Who killed poor ol’ Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

 

“Oh it was not I!” said Miss Atkins the dietician,

That was just simply not my mission.

That bi-racial boy was such a brat,

I had to yell at him so he would not rat.

I did not know why the old man liked him so,

The janitor, he just stooped so low!

He needs to leave, that small boy,

Christmas has to know that my job simply is just not a toy.

 

Who killed poor ol’ Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

 

Now that you’re here on our land

Don’t expect us to give a hand.

Your biracial life was too much for us

Now you’ve died and gone to dust.

Now don’t place this blame on me,

We never cared can’t you see?

Your veiled face is what hid your past,

And now you’ve gone and left us at last.

 

Who killed poor ol’ Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

 

“Not I” cried out casted Miss Burden

I never did nothing to hurt him.

I welcomed him into my home

While all he did was wander and roam.

I gave him food and sexual pleasure

I even prayed for him, hospitality without measure!

I gave him a chance to change his life

I even offered to be his wife.

No, it wasn’t me who got him shot

Rest the blame on me you cannot.

 

Who killed poor ol’ Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

 

“Not me” says Joe Brown

He had the blood which brought him down.

I told the sheriff only what was fair,

Because everyone (about race) gives a care.

I didn’t want any blame

For a crime with no hope of tame.

I wasn’t the one with the razor,

Or the one who put the house a ‘blazer.

 

Who killed poor ol’ Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

 

Am I black? Am I white?

It's an on-going fight.

People asking who killed me

Well it's not so apparent you see

Yes somebody shot the gun

but you can't let the others run

For all the people in my past

Helped to finish me at last

 

Who killed poor 'ol Joe?

Who dared to stoop that low?

Christmas Vs. Garp

I did enjoy Light In August, but I found it hard to really get into.  In the end it really picked up, but it took a lot of reading to get to the truly interesting parts.  One slight issue I had was that the main character, Joe Christmas, was never a very likable character.  At the same time I was reading Light In August, I was also reading the book The World According To Garp for my novels into film class.  In that book, the main character has many clear flaws, but is still a character that I liked, and wanted to read about.  Despite the mistakes he made, he is still a character you root for.  I never found myself rooting for Christmas.  His past was hard on him, and that does spark some sympathy, but in the end he was still a violent, woman hating jerk, and a murderer to boot.  I'm just woundering why Faulkner based most of his book around a character who doesn't play off of the audiences sympathy. 

Christmas

I have been thinking about why Joe Christmas is named Christmas.  Besides the literal meaning that he was named because he was found outside the orphanage on Christmas Eve, there must be a metaphorical meaning to that.  I have concluded that Christmas is the foil of the someone who was born of Christmas, Jesus Christ. 

First of all, Jesus grew up with two parents.  Christmas did not.  Both his parents were killed either by Doc Hines, or in child labor.  Next, Jesus seemed to always know what his identity was.  Christmas did not.  Christmas seemed to be on a mission of finding his identity, whether he liked it or not, but Jesus seemed to know who he was from the moment he was born, to the moment he was crucified.  Although both men are killed with the "town" against them, Jesus died with "honor" where as Christmas was killed while hiding, and was always running away. 

That's the best analysis I can get out of the fact that Christmas is named Christmas.  Does anyone have any other thoughts?

Imperfections of Society

Society creates barriers that are simply insurmountable. Throughout life, we are put into situations that are simply inescapable.

Joe Christmas is shaped by the society he lives in. At first, he is born illegitimately. Then he moves into the orphanage, where he learns to steal from the dietician. This is his first sign of his interesting lifestyle in which he lives on the edge, and makes risks.

The point where he starts distilling the whiskey illegally etches in stone his misdemeanor life. It is at this time the Joe Christmas also starts sleeping with Miss Burden. She treats him as a student, and acts as though he needs help. She sets the food out of her house so he can enjoy it.

Joe's lifestyle is greatly shaped by the events that occur around him. Is it our thoughts that make who we are, or is it our society that develops our impersonality?

Faulkner: A Master of Words

While reading Light in August, every now and then, I come across a vivid description of something.  One particular instance where his description was even more vivid than usual was when he was describing the dogs that had been sent to find Christmas.  He describes them as, "two gaunt and cringing phantoms whose droopeared and mild faces gazed with sad abjectness about at the weary, pale faces of men who had not slept very much since night before last, ringing them about with something terrible and eager and impotent" (Faulkner, 296).  Faulkner uses words like "gaunt" and "phantoms" to describe the dog's sad, tired, and ghost like qualities.  Then he combines this description with one of the Men in the search party.  Their faces were "pale."  Faulkner then describes the aura surrounding the men as "something terrible and eager and impotent."

Although this book doesn't really interest me as a whole, these perfectly worded descriptions keep me interested.

The Power of Diction

One of Faulkner's greatest strengths is his his use of diction. As I was going back through Light in August for our motif presentations I found one passage that particularly stuck out at me. On page 147 Faulkner describes Mr. McEachern, when writing,"His hair, damp, still unsilverd, was combed clean and stiff upon his round skull. His beard was also combed, also still damp".

This excerpt I think is particularly note worthy because of the way Faulkner uses McEacherns physical appearance to set up the cold way he acts towards Joe in the following pages. The way McEacherns  hair is described as unsilverd, clean and stiff makes McEachern seem flawless almost inhuman. Furthermore Faulkner's choice of the word skull instead of head stuck out to me as well. The word skull to me also seems somehow much colder, less human  than the word head. The added effect of Faulkner's specific selection of diction build McEachern up as cold, inhuman and unsympathetic before the reader sees the horrible things that he does to Joe.

The Boring Conundrum Of Identity

I want to first say that, for the most part, I enjoyed Light in August. Although some sections seemed to drag on, adding nothing significant to the story, I found the rest of the book fascinating. Now that we are in, what has become a routine practice, the post-novel phase where we make motif presentations and discuss the themes of the novels I am facing a problem. The motif that our group tracked was that of 'light in august.' My group decided that the hazy, non clarity of the light symbolized the ambiguity of identity or whatever. Whether this is right or wrong doesn't matter, but it is a fact that this book deals with identity. This is what makes me annoyed. It seems that every single novel we have read this year some how deals with the struggle of identity creation or discovery. While this book brings race into the picture (like Beloved) it is still discussing the same underlying themes. I think (hope) that by now everybody knows the difficulties of identity creation and discovery. It just seems silly that we keep visiting the same tired old subjects.

What's In a Name?

After finishing Light In August,  I am still curious as to why Faulkner gave the character Joe Christmas that particular name.  Due to my group's motif presentation being based on the name of characters, we came to the conclusion that Joe Christmas has to do with Jesus Christ.  Not only do both men have the initials J.C., Joe was found on Christmas Eve, the night before Christ's birth.  This connection, along with the fact that in the end of the novel Joe is killed, like Jesus, because society cannot be satisfied otherwise, is what are group ultimately discovered.  So, my question is do you agree with are conclusion on the choosing of Joe Christmas's name, or do you think Faulkner meant for it to represent something else?  Personally I am still questioning what he really meant. 

Advice on Creative Project

For this round of motif presentations, my group was assigned to do the creative project. My group has been given the creative license to do what we please. The creative presentations in my class have been pretty good, at least so far. My group has elected to do a movie, rather a “mockumentry” since one has not been done yet. I was originally hesitant to do a movie because they require a lot of time, dedication, and equipment, but the one we are planning sounds interesting and fun. We have decided to create a frontline/60 minutes sort of segment on the indecent(s) involving Joe Christmas and his past. For the current plans the project may be over ambitious, but I have hope that we can make it work. I am looking for any advice or words of experience that anyone who has create movie for class could share. Ideally, your advice will help this project move fluidly and not become too hectic.

Blood, Blood, and More Blood

I noticed something kind of interesting about how blood is used on page 449.  In this passage, Joe Christmas' black blood is described as something that "drove him first to the negro cabin" and his white blood as what "drove him out of there".   So,  is this saying that his black blood is what causes all his trouble and that his white blood is what "saved him"?  I also noticed that blood is used repeatedly used on this page (hence the title of this entry).  Here are some more examples on that page:

"It was the black blood which swept him by his own desire beyond the aid of any man, swept him up into the ecstasy out of a black jungle where life has already ceased before the heart stops and death is desire and fulfillment."

"And then the black blood failed him again, as it must have in crises all his life"

Please let me know what you think.

Blood: Now In Black and White!

Today in class, as groups toiled away working on their motif projects all around me, I was suck. The motif that I had to track was blood, one that I wanted to do because it seemed easy, simply even. Well I was wrong. As I looked over all the instances that my group found where blood was mentioned in Light in August, I was unable to see how they fit together to help develop a theme of the novel. There seemed to be two distinct types of blood, one being when people were actually physically bleeding, and then referring to either “black blood” or “white blood.”

After some helpful hints from Bernie and my wonderous group I was able to see it. Faulkner sets up blood to act as the defining characteristics of people. Either black or white. And it doesn’t matter what you are or whatever shade of gray you might be, it all has to do with how the community and people around you see it and that’s what you become. In Christmas’ case, they saw him as “black blooded.” Therefore, his blood became a self-fulfilling prophecy of what he was to become. The town had specific stereotypes accompanied with his black blood, and because of that, that’s what Christmas became. And when Christmas or anyone else tried to go against what the majority thought, it resulted in a physical loss of blood.

Well that’s what I got from it. Does that make sense? Did anyone else have any trouble with their motif?

Who Killed My Brain? And Why Didn't I See This Before?

First I would like to comment that I know that my title is a bad pun in reference to the Bob Dylan song that we wrote about this week, but I implore you to look past it and accept it for its very witty reference. Secondly I would like to talk about the bigger picture that I finally see after completing the book and beginning to work on my motif presentation. My motif for "Light in August" is fittingly enough light. When I was reading the book I could not comprehend what the motif of light could could contribute to the overall meaning of the book. And then all of a sudden it hit me like a ton of bricks. The light and dark that has been used throughout the book, was employed in order to show the struggle that biracial folk of the post-reconstruction period of the south went through. Christmas throughout the book could never make a decision, neither light nor dark, in terms of his identity. He was only truly happy on the road away from everyone, sort of in the middle. Also Faulkner wanted to show how people in the south were not accepting of anything that did not have a sense of finality or was ambiguous. What was your final take after finishing the book and your motif presentations?

The Nameless Baby

Since my group is focusing on the motif of names, we spent some time today discussing the passage on page 410 where Lena tells Byron that she hasn't named the baby yet. At first, I thought that it was pretty insignificant but after talking about it with Bernie we decided that the reason why Lena doesn't give the child a name is to prevent it from having expectations from society based on its name, like several other characters in the story. Does anyone else have a reason why Faulkner had Lena keep the baby nameless?

Why is Everyone Alone?

One thing I noticed about Light in August is that many of the main characters were isolated from society and had to go about their lives on their own. For instance, the first character we are introduced to, Lena Grove, is on her own. She is a young, unmarried, pregnant woman who is traveling on her own. Society has made her an outcast for not obeying the traditional rules of having children under wedlock. 

Then there is Joe Christmas. Joe has been on his own since he was young, he had no parents and lived in an orphanage and then went on to be a very closed off man. He was isolated because he was part black and went on to kill the only person who got close to him.

Hightower is another good example. He was kicked out of his church and victimized by his town. His wife died leaving him to live alone with very few friends.

Joanna Burden also fits this grouping. She is a middle aged woman who lives by herself and is outcast from the town for being a "negro lover."

I was wondering what Faulkner's point in making all the main characters individuals who had been isolated from society and forced to live on their own, was? Any ideas?

The End is the Beginning

Over the weekend, as I neared finishing Light in August, I was pleasantly surprised to find the last chapter from a different person's point of view.  I was eager to find out what happened to the rest of the characters in the book, and I thought that having the last chapter from the perspective of someone outside of the story was a good way to explain Lena and Byron's relationship without a bias.  This point of view allowed me to see their characters for who they were, without the commentary of other characters such as Hightower.  The perspective shows Lena trying to make a life for herself, and Byron hopelessly following her but we know he will never succeed.

Faulker also ends the book similar to the way it began.  As the truck nears Tennessee Lena comments on how far she has traveled in the past two months.  Similarly, one of the first lines in chapter one is Lena thinking "I have come from Alabama: a fur piece.  All the way from Alabama a-walking," (3).  Why would Faulkner do this?  It is almost like he is circulating the plot: ending it where he began.  I have to say, the ending caught me a little off guard - but in a good way.

Faulkner the Feminist?

Even there is a lot of negativity involving women in Light in August, the character of Lena seems to point to feminism. The fact that she follow her desires (with Lucas Burch, running from home, running from Jefferson) says something about the novel. It's as if Faulkner is trying to point out that the only way to be an individual is to isolate yourself from other people. The characters who travel alone are the heroes of the book. Lena is clearly a female, and she is supposedly pretty. Yet she is much stronger than Joanna Burden, the gender-neutral, and thus frightening, woman in the novel. Lena is comfortable in her own skin and can take it wherever she wants to go. Her spirit is solid so her body can get around easily.

What do you think about the ideas of gender and strength in the novel? There are so many layers and examples.

Where, Oh Where, Did Lena Go?!

I made a comment on someone's post about this exact idea, but I really wanted to expand on this.  Light In August by William Faulkner began with a BAM! I was excited to read about Lena's journey to Jefferson pregnant and all.  Then, I became disappointed. 

The novel seemed to drag on about Joe Christmas and his identity crisis.  It is not like I did not think it was un-interesting, I just felt like we finally got it: Joe Christmas does not know who he is.  He is either part of the black community or part of the white community.  He cannot be both, so he was stuck in the middle. I felt compelled by that story, but I was also bored. 

I was then still left in the dark about Lena.  Where was she staying?  How did she deal with motherhood at a young age? Her story seemed so compelling, but I feel like she was just forgot about.  It felt like Faulkner forgot about Lena until the very end of the story. 

Maybe Fingerprints?

The Identity Crisis is still upon us!

I bet if anyone where to respond to the question of "who are you," they would most likely reply with some sort of ethnic or religious construct. "Who is Melissa Romeo?" why she is half Italian and half Jewish... a Jewtalian as some say. But we all know of course, that this is not really who I am. This sort of ambiguity when it comes to identity is all part of, what I believe to be, Faulkner's main point: identity is but a construct created by society as a justification for the human fear of the unknown.

As we find in A Light in August, Christmas is unfortunately a mystery to himself as well as the community. But was it the chicken first or the egg? Does Christmas suffer from an identity crisis as a result of the community or himself? Rather, is Christmas questioning himself because of society's fearful inacceptance, or an inner turmoil and self-doubt that he brings upon himself?

Joe X-Mas; The X is for Xtreme

For those of you waiting for me to make another poem/rap, your wait is over.  I will write this rap/poem from Joey C's POV, so please be at ease cause you're about to be pleased.

My name is Joey X-Mas and I got a lot to say.
But let me start from the very first day.
I must admit that my mind has been spinning
'Cause from the beginning, I seen my share of sinning.

I sawed a janitor and this chick jump on it,
I had too much toothpaste and then had to vomit.
Taken out to this farm by some religious guy
Whipped me every hour, but I refused to cry

Wait, sorry, am I going too fast?
That's what happens when I talk about my past.
To me it happened slow, but now it's all a blur.
And now I'm off topic, that didn't need to occur.

Met this cute girl, then I called her mine.
I knew we would marry n everything would be fine
But then one day she said to me "Listen Joe,
I gotta let you know, I work as a ho."

I didn't care, I paid no attention.
'Til dad met us at the dance and I released some tension.
Didn't mean to kill him, that's just too bad
So I stole from the woman, made her real sad

One night crept into this old lady's house
She seemed lonely, but she wasn't a spouse
So every single night I raised up her blouse
And... that's kinda gross, I'm just gonna move on if that's cool

She tried to change my style and personality
I refused to change, had that set mentality.
So she tried to kill me but the pistol jammed.
I kill her, and then thought "I'll be damned."

Could not flee from the tricky police
Tried to hide behind this dumb old priest
So now I'm stuck in jail, writing this rap was a cinch
But this might me my last, I could get lynched.

-Joe "Common" Christmas

I Feel Misguided and Excluded

Can a book really change your life?  I believe so.  Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert definitely changed my life and the way I perceived the world.  But so far (442 pages in the novel), I am not changed by Faukner's work.  Bernie said at the beginning and continues to insist that Light in August will change our lives.  The first time he said it, I have to admit I was a little excited.  Change is good, right?  But after I read more, and after Bernie insisted more, my opinion of the novel leveled out as indifferent and my outlook on life remained unchanged.  Has Light in August changed your life?

Crucifixion?

So my groups motif for Light in August is crucifixion. And even after finishing the novel I am still pretty thoroughly confused as to what crucifixion really means in the novel. Bernie gave us a big step in the right direction on Friday when he basically told us that Joe Christmas (JC) has the same initials as Jesus Christ for a reason. So then we started to think about Jesus' crucifixion in the bible and what it represented. Now I am not a very religious person at all, but if I'm not mistaken Jesus died for our sins. If Joe Christmas' death is also considered a "crucifixion" I can not seem to see what reason he died for. If anybody has any insight on this matter that would be swell.

Style: Repetition

While reading Light in August, I have been paying attention to the style of William Faulkner.  Faulkner has a unique style that is apparent throughout the novel.  One thing that I will hit on is the repetition that Faulkner uses.  There are many instances where Faulkner uses repetition in the same paragraph to get across his point.

An example of this repetition occurs in chapter seventeen.  "...'If I can just get past and out of hearing before she hollers again,' he thought.  'If I can just get past before I have to hear her again' (400)."  I think the repetition here helps the reader to understand that it is important that Byron is thinking this because he wants to get away from her.  Since he says it twice, it shows that it is on Byron's mind for a while.

Another example of this is in chapter eighteen. "But he was not thinking about that at all; he was not thinking about Lena at all; she was completely out of his mind as if he had never seen or heard her name (426)."  Here Faulkner definitely tells us that Byron was not thinking about Lena.  By him repeating the same thing in different ways for three sentences, he makes it clear that it is important and that Lena was out of his mind/thoughts.  Do you think that Faulkner uses repetition a lot to let us know what is important?  Do you have any other instances where Faulkner uses repetition in the same paragraph?  What do you think this means?

Faulkner's Power

The most captivating part of this novel is the lack of descriptions the author writes, but the amount of personal imagery it creates. Although I didn't particularly love the novel, I found that the main reason I liked it was that I was able to create the characters completely myself with little guidance. Faulkner gave sparse details about physical characteristics of each person beside meager basic descriptions which allowed each reader to form their own picture of the novel and how it appears in their mind. With his language and how he presented each character gave you leeway to, for the beginning at least, decide their race. It was shocking to have figured out how I categorized each character racially by his descriptions and plot and then have their true identity the complete opposite. Anyone else have this happen to them?

When This Book is Over...

 Light in August is actually a great book to read. However, there is just one thing I do not understand: Why do the authors of these books try to make everything to confusing? I mean when the reader starts to read this novel, anyone would think it is about Lena Grove and her journey to find her child's father. Then the book does a complete 180, and starts talking about this man named Joe Christmas. There is so much skipping around in this novel that it reminds me of Beloved. Yes I enjoyed both books, but they were both just so confusing. Since we are supposed to finish this book for tomorrow ( I still have the two last chapters to read), I just have a few questions. Does this novel really have a point? And if it does, then what is it? By the time I finish the novel, I want all the loose ends to be tied up. This book is just all over the place!

The Power of Pride

I found it very interesting how Hightower always told the town about how his grandfather was shot off of his horse by then Union Army during a cavalry charge on Jefferson, when in reality, his grandfather was killed by a Confederate soldier's wife while stealing chickens from her hen house. It is interesting how our pride often leads us slightly alter the way we tell stories that might not be even about ourselves.

Interestingly, I was watching Hot Rod a couple nights ago. Now Hot Rod is, in my opinion, an extremely dumb movie without enough funny parts to make it worth watching, but unfortunately, it is relevant here, so I might as well discuss it. In Hot Rod the main character, Rod, continually talks about how his father was a stuntman who died while performing a stunt. However, as it turns out, his father was just a cashier who died by choking on pie during a pie eating contest. Now in Rod's defense, his mother never told him how his father really died. Instead, as she explained it, as a young child Rod would make up these fantastic stories about his father being a stunt man and she just didn't have the heart to tell him they weren't true.

I guess that's the funny thing about pride. It can be so strong that we would often rather live in a fake world of our own denial than face the embarrassing truth of our past. After all, Hightower allows his whole live to become dominated by the memory of his grandfather, saying that he himself died the day his grandfather was shot, 20 years before he was born. In addition, he let the ghosts of his past ruin his own life, resulting in the death of his wife and his own disgrace. Rod too allowed his own stories to rule his life. He became a stuntman so that he could live his life like his father, his false hero. In the end, the moral seems to be that we should not let our own pride or the actions of our ancestors determine who we are or what we do. In the end, I think the true hero accepts the shortcomings of their ancestors and themselves and learns from them rather than running into the same problems and difficulties his or her ancestors did.

Sorry, the end got kind of cheesy there. What do you think about this?