Wednesday, December 7, 2011
It's Kind of a Funny Story (Part 1)
In my opinion, Part 1 was really intriguing, beginning with the first sentence, "It's so hard to talk when you want to kill yourself" (Vizzini 3). After that sentence, I couldn't stop reading. I really want to know more about why Craig wants to kill himself and what got him to this point. He keeps referring to "the fall of last year" and I wonder what happened then. Two terms that he used with his shrink, Dr. Minerva, that I thought were interesting were Tentacles and Anchors. Craig says that "Tentacles are the evil tasks that invade my life" and "Anchors are things that occupy my mind and make me feel good temporarily" (Vizzini 14-15). I feel that these two terms sum up Craig's life, and what he is going through. Another random quote from the reading that I found interesting was on page 37 when Craig is discussing how much his mother does for him, and how many times he tells her he loves her. Craig says, "I think you run out of I love yous" (Vizzini 37).
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I agree, that first sentence was so short, but powerful; "It's so hard to talk when you want to kill yourself" (Vizzini 3). I haven't been able to stop reading as well. The book is through Craig, who's a teen, and i feel that's why i am so hooked. It's as if he's a friend personally telling his story.
ReplyDeleteI also thought his terms Tentacles and Anchors were really interesting. He says, "I had a lot of Tentacles. I need to cut some of them. But I couldn't; they were all too strong and they had me wrapped too tight; and to cut them I'd have to do something crazy like admit that I wasn't equppied for school" (Vizzini 88). Essentially they were interferences in Craig's life that he objected to. He defines them as 'evil tasks', and from this it is apparent to understand that they are aspects he loathes in his life. In this example, for instance, Craig disapproves of school. Even though he scored 800 out of 800 on the exam, continues to question if he was up to par amongst his other classmates. At one point he questions himself, "Why were the other kids doing better than me? Because they were 'better,' that's why. ..I'm not gifted" (Vizzini 89). This shows his Tentacles is starting to consume him; he's loosing hope that he is as smart as he was thought to be. In this way, he feels like the 'common man,' which he is ashamed to be content with.
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