Arya on History as Fiction and Other Cool Things

The entirety of the novel shakily revolves around this relationship between Dana and Rufus. Dana is connected to him in the way that she tolerates him to some extent and is related to him by blood. Throughout Kindred , Dana has attempted to change Rufus's behavior. Seeing as he is a product of the slave-owning environment of the 1800s, Dana aims to prevent Rufus from growing into his abusive and strict father. While Rufus is an emotional, brutal, and selfish mess, Tom Weylin is a cold, predictable slaveholder. He tends to be quite impersonal and doesn't possess Rufus's affection for some of the slaves. Some might argue that Tom Weylin's style of slavery is preferable to Rufus's methods. Oftentimes, Rufus lets his attachments to some of his slaves skew his perspective, causing him to bend promises and destroy relationships. Examples of this mindset includes Rufus lying about sending the letters to Kevin (since he doesn't want Dana to leave him). In this way, Rufu...

A lot of things stood out to me when reading Mumbo Jumbo . The storytelling, plot lines, and general atmosphere of the novel all became a flurry of confusing thoughts as I progressed into the novel. The one thing that seemed to be at the center of it all was Jes Grew, manifested as an unknown virus spreading across America, influencing people to listen to music and dance and generally, have a good time. Ishmael Reed constantly describes instances of Jes Grew but never really provides a definition for it. So, what really is Jes Grew? Does Jes Grew even have a definition? Jes Grew seems to have no creator. It springs up out of nowhere and spreads like a wildfire throughout society, seeping into every crevice and nook. This unknown phenomenon seems to often manifests itself as entertainment, such as the growth of jazz music and dance culture seen in the novel. Another characteristic of Jes Grew is that it seems to invite competition. The existence of Jes Grew often incites fear of this n...

In "False Documents," E.L. doctorow states that there is no common distinction between nonfiction and fiction and that instead, "there is only narrative." History is generally based around what we might consider a fact. A general view of the world from a point of objectivity. We don't really know if this point is objective or not, but we believe it to be so. In this way, do we really know what's fact and what's not? Can this point of objectivity even exist? Many facts that human civilization have believed to be true have in fact been disproved and refuted time and time again. We all know times where history doesn't exist. Our view of the universe, our understanding of the human body, and our interpretation of recent history are all facts that have been changed time and time again. We may have false facts surrounding us at all times. As argued in "False Documents," fact is often communicated through language or film. It only exists in the m...

The introduction of Coalhouse Walker into the novel dramatically shifts the course of the novel, allowing the author to explore the realm of race and the revision of common social behaviors. In turn, this shift alters the perspective of the characters towards people of color. Walker is first introduced at the start of Chapter 21, looking for Sarah with a sense of self-importance. Doctorow even states, "there was something disturbingly resolute and self-important in the way he asked her if he could please speak with Sarah" (Doctorow 156). What could be so disturbing about a black man having a sense of self-importance and firmness of character?  The family, especially Father, seems to perceive that Walker is stepping out of his "assigned place" in society. The idea that escaping social normality is a reckless behavior scares Father, so much so that he deems that Coalhouse Walker probably doesn't even know he's black. His formalities and general demeanor irks F...