Thoughts Of Jessy

         While reading Alison Bechdel's graphic novel Fun Home, Bruce Bechdel emerges as a deeply flawed yet interesting antihero. As we heard during class, an antihero is a protagonist who lacks traditional heroic qualities like morality, courage, or selflessness, yet still commands the reader's interest. Bruce is a man full of contradictions–a devoted intellectual and a detached, secretive individual. He hides his homosexuality while maintaining a rigid, often oppressive household, shaping Alison's view of him both as a tragic and puzzling figure. Despite many of his faults, Alison still doesn't entirely disparage him, instead revealing him as a deeply complex character who struggles, though he is harmful to those around him.      Although Bruce often aligns with those of a traditional antagonist, Alison doesn’t resent him in her story about him. Alison’s narration presents him in a more nuanced light. Even when he engages in affairs with young...

    In Sylvia Plath's novel The Bell Jar, the metaphor of the bell jar really illustrates Esther's struggle to break free from both societal expectations and her internal struggles. The bell jar represents an invisible barrier a suffocating enclosure that separates Esther from the world, magnifying her sense of isolation and entrapment. She feels restrained by the rigid roles imposed upon her as young woman in the 1950s-the pressure to become a perfect woman. We noticed this when she is having a conversation with Jay Cee as she questions Esther about her career plans and pushes her to learn languages and hone her skills, it highlights the relentless pressure Esther feels to "be someone" in a way that others will approve of (Plath Chapter 4). This moment intensifies Esther's sense of being observed and judged, as if she is trapped under the glass of the bell jar, with Jay Cee and society peering in, assessing whether she measures up. .As Esther enters the mental ho...

         J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye follows Holden Caulfield as he travels through the depths of New York City, dealing with feelings of loneliness, grief, an frustration. While Holden often hides his true emotions when he's talking to us, the readers, there are moments when he tells people how he truly feels about them--usually during arguments or altercations. Whether it's his fight with Stradlater, his violent beat down with Maurice, or his heated moment with Sally, these conflicts bring out his raw emotions and thoughts to people that's not the readers.      One of the first major altercations in the novel occurs when Holden fights with his roommate, Stradlater. The fight is sparked by Stradlater's date with Jane Gallagher, as we know a girl Holden deeply cares about. Which leads Holden to be extremely anxious about what occurred between them, knowing what type of  "techniques" he does in the Coach's car. As they fight Ho...

      Towards the end of The Stranger , others were starting to really see the depths of Meursault true personality. Being viewed as cold and indifferent in other words "étranger", leading some to see him as a "horrible person". However, Meursault's apparent lack of emotion and his refusal to hold to societal expectations do not necessarily make him immoral. Instead, these traits reflect his authenticity and honesty, to values that Albert Camus prized. Through Meursault, Camus challenges readers to question what truly defines morality and whether society's judgment of Meursault is fair.       A huge reason people might see Meursault as heartless is how he reacted to his mother's death and what they noticed at the funeral. "The director then looked down at the tips of his shoes and said that I hadn't wanted to see Maman, that I hadn't cried once, and that I had left right after the funeral without paying my last respects at her grave" (C...

      I n The Sun Also Rises, Hemmingway presents a fine yet touching ending that reveals much about the complex relationship between Jake and Brett. The final scene, where Brett says, "Oh, Jake, we could have had such a damned good time together," capturing the essence of their unfulfilled love and the distinct emotions that brings them together. Hemingway leaves readers wondering if this moment marks an end to their relationship or if it signals a moment of acceptance for Jake, who, throughout the novel, has grappled with his unrequited love and inability to fulfill Brett's desires.      Jake and Brett's relationship is one of deep affection, but it is continually frustrated by external limitations, most notably, Jake's war injury, leaving him very vulnerable. This physical inability acts as a barrier that neither Jake nor Brett can overcome, creating a bittersweet connection that is more unique than the relations she has with other men. ...

 In Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway , the characters of Clarissa Dalloway and Septimus Warren Smith explore the complex interplay between memory and identity. Both characters are heavily influenced by their pasts, but their responses to these memories differ significantly. Clarissa, a woman of social standing in post-World War I London, is deeply reflective, her thoughts often returning to significant people from her past like Peter Walsh and Sally Seaton. Her memories evoke self-doubt and criticism as she grapples with who she is and the life she has chosen. Clarissa's internal struggles, shaped by her relationships, reveal her complex identity. Torn between her desire for freedom and the security of societal expectations.  In contrast, Septimus, a war veteran suffering from shell shock, is consumed by the trauma of his past. He is haunted by memories of the war, unable to engage with them in hte way Clarissa does. His hallucinations and intrusive thoughts, particularly of his...

     The Mezzanine follows a protagonist Howie who views everything, on a different level kind of like a painter. Especially with regard to his tendency to overanalyze everything in the world around him. It is said that Howie's mind is a whirlwind of ideas, perceptions, and recollections all together. Although it appears from the outside that he is doing something typical, Nicoholson Baker gathers all of Howie's ideas and turns them into a narrative. Howie's obsession with the smallest things you overlook in your "everyday" life is similar to that of a painter who is always perceptive.       Howie's mind is the most evident in the way that he fixates on small objects and small details that most adults would overlook. He give everything a bigger picture and finds a meaning behind it, Baker is remarkable at making his thoughts deeply introspective. Ranting about the designs of a stapler, textures of a straw, and these thing would trigger beautifully de...