CCBC-Net Archives
monster
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: Christine Hill <chill>
Date: Sat, 24 Jul 1999 15:24:18 -0400
I've had the advantage of reading Monster while this discussion proceeded, so I have been able to mark passages that support or belie the various points of view expressed. I do not think Steve is an unreliable narrator. I don't think he writes anything in his journal entries that is technically untrue, yet this is remarkably subtle writing. Over and over, I would refer back to something previously said and find that it wasn't precisely what I had first thought. (I am assuming that the trial transcripts are unaltered "documents", and not affected by Steve's memory or point of view.) At the same time, I think the jailhouse conversation about truth versus survival testimony is a turning point. I think that at this point, Steve decides to commit perjury by stating that he was not even in the drugstore that day. I don't think he becomes an unreliable narrator at this point, he becomes a perjurer. Why do I think so? Three excepts from the journal: p. 115- What did I do?Anybody can walk into a drugstore and look around. Is that what I'm on trial for? p. 140- What did I do? I walked into a drugstore to look for some mints, and then I walked out. What was wrong with that? I didn't kill Mr. Nesbitt. p. 128- I can see me at that moment, just when Mr. Nesbitt knew he was going to die, walking down the street trying to make my mind a blank screen. Those of you who believe(d) Steve innocent, do you mean that he was actually not even there? I don't think that's possible. I think this is a fascinating book and far more emotionally satisfying than Making Up Megaboy, even with its ambiguity. No one seems to feel in MUM, with the exception of the victim's wife. In Monster, even minor characters, like the defense attorney and the witness, show their emotions.Both are technically brilliant, but MUM is, in comparison, hollow at the core. Christine M. Hill Willingboro Public Library One Salem Road Willingboro NJ 08046 chill at willingboro.org
Received on Sat 24 Jul 1999 02:24:18 PM CDT
Date: Sat, 24 Jul 1999 15:24:18 -0400
I've had the advantage of reading Monster while this discussion proceeded, so I have been able to mark passages that support or belie the various points of view expressed. I do not think Steve is an unreliable narrator. I don't think he writes anything in his journal entries that is technically untrue, yet this is remarkably subtle writing. Over and over, I would refer back to something previously said and find that it wasn't precisely what I had first thought. (I am assuming that the trial transcripts are unaltered "documents", and not affected by Steve's memory or point of view.) At the same time, I think the jailhouse conversation about truth versus survival testimony is a turning point. I think that at this point, Steve decides to commit perjury by stating that he was not even in the drugstore that day. I don't think he becomes an unreliable narrator at this point, he becomes a perjurer. Why do I think so? Three excepts from the journal: p. 115- What did I do?Anybody can walk into a drugstore and look around. Is that what I'm on trial for? p. 140- What did I do? I walked into a drugstore to look for some mints, and then I walked out. What was wrong with that? I didn't kill Mr. Nesbitt. p. 128- I can see me at that moment, just when Mr. Nesbitt knew he was going to die, walking down the street trying to make my mind a blank screen. Those of you who believe(d) Steve innocent, do you mean that he was actually not even there? I don't think that's possible. I think this is a fascinating book and far more emotionally satisfying than Making Up Megaboy, even with its ambiguity. No one seems to feel in MUM, with the exception of the victim's wife. In Monster, even minor characters, like the defense attorney and the witness, show their emotions.Both are technically brilliant, but MUM is, in comparison, hollow at the core. Christine M. Hill Willingboro Public Library One Salem Road Willingboro NJ 08046 chill at willingboro.org
Received on Sat 24 Jul 1999 02:24:18 PM CDT
