My favorite line in Hour of the Star is, without a doubt, the line in the introduction where Rodrigo asks the reader: "Who has not asked himself at some time or other: am I a monster or is this what it means to be a person?" The first time I read this line, I stopped and got a little shiver and I asked myself the same question. This line occurs during Rodrigo's very convoluted opening section. We have finally gotten to the point where Rodrigo actually seems to be starting the story (ie, telling us a bit about Macabea), but then he pauses again to talk about himself. And yet, while the whole of his introduction is dripping with irony and the reader often finds herself loathing him, one cannot deny that he is good at probing into the depths of human nature--just as he purports himself to be. Not only does he break the fourth wall (again), but he sets this paragraph aside and alone in the longer surrounding narration about Macabea herself. Clearly, the question is meant to stand alone, to give us pause, and to offer commentary on the nature of people who have in the midst of those who have not. The tone is chilling and the reader is forced to confront some ugly truths about him/herself. Rodrigo says "this book is a silence; an interrogation." The "am a I monster?" question is one of the first thing that we must be interrogated about.
“To Death and Transfiguration, in which Richard Strauss predicts my fate”. I thought this quote is important because it mentions fate which connects to the rest of the novel. The question of fate is brought up in the novel when macabea goes to see the psychic. If fate truly exists then what the psychic predicts should be true and her life should improve. Of course that doesn't happen, so this could mean one of two things, first that the fate discussed by the psychic was false and it was actually fate that she got hit by the car, or fate doesn't exist at all. The poem Death and Transfiguration mentioned in the quote is about a artist that is dying and reflects on his life. By mentioning this play Lispector is saying that she is reflecting on her own life. Because of this it can be inferred that some parts of the novel actually reflect the events of her own life. We know this is true because she visited a psychic and imaged getting hit by a car right after going to see the psychic. -Kate Wehba
This section of the introduction discusses Clarice's influences and then devolves into a existentialist discussion. The mention of Death and Transfiguration highlights Clarice’s self-reflection as she is dying. This is also significant to the rest of the novel because it has connections to Clarice's real life. Clarice mentions many composers in order to compare her book to the artistry of music. This also means that Clairce is intending this novel to be interpreted as a piece of artwork. The last paragraph of this section devolves into a discussion of existence. Her questioning her own is existence this goes along with the concept of self reflection that is present in the rest of the novel. -Kate Wehba
Steven Vu My favourite line in Hour of the Star is, the line when the author describes the systematic routine of Macabea’s life at work and then perceiving this dull repetition as acting like a limiter to her potential for creating diverse, unique literary works, saying: “I cannot stand repetition: routine divides me from potential novelties within my reach.” Although this quote may not be as thought provoking as the earlier quotes which involved questioning the world around us, but it appreciates the craft of the author. I like this quote because it shows that the author wants to make their work stand out - to spark a new interest for the reader in a unique way. The appeal of Hour of the Star is its weird structure in which it doesn’t follow traditional rules for literature, as such, this is what makes this book stand out from the rest. It is like extracurriculars for colleges to look at I guess.
My favorite line in Hour of the Star is, without a doubt, the line in the introduction where Rodrigo asks the reader: "Who has not asked himself at some time or other: am I a monster or is this what it means to be a person?" The first time I read this line, I stopped and got a little shiver and I asked myself the same question. This line occurs during Rodrigo's very convoluted opening section. We have finally gotten to the point where Rodrigo actually seems to be starting the story (ie, telling us a bit about Macabea), but then he pauses again to talk about himself. And yet, while the whole of his introduction is dripping with irony and the reader often finds herself loathing him, one cannot deny that he is good at probing into the depths of human nature--just as he purports himself to be. Not only does he break the fourth wall (again), but he sets this paragraph aside and alone in the longer surrounding narration about Macabea herself. Clearly, the question is meant to stand alone, to give us pause, and to offer commentary on the nature of people who have in the midst of those who have not. The tone is chilling and the reader is forced to confront some ugly truths about him/herself. Rodrigo says "this book is a silence; an interrogation." The "am a I monster?" question is one of the first thing that we must be interrogated about.
ReplyDelete“To Death and Transfiguration, in which Richard Strauss predicts my fate”. I thought this quote is important because it mentions fate which connects to the rest of the novel. The question of fate is brought up in the novel when macabea goes to see the psychic. If fate truly exists then what the psychic predicts should be true and her life should improve. Of course that doesn't happen, so this could mean one of two things, first that the fate discussed by the psychic was false and it was actually fate that she got hit by the car, or fate doesn't exist at all. The poem Death and Transfiguration mentioned in the quote is about a artist that is dying and reflects on his life. By mentioning this play Lispector is saying that she is reflecting on her own life. Because of this it can be inferred that some parts of the novel actually reflect the events of her own life. We know this is true because she visited a psychic and imaged getting hit by a car right after going to see the psychic.
ReplyDelete-Kate Wehba
This section of the introduction discusses Clarice's influences and then devolves into a existentialist discussion. The mention of Death and Transfiguration highlights Clarice’s self-reflection as she is dying. This is also significant to the rest of the novel because it has connections to Clarice's real life. Clarice mentions many composers in order to compare her book to the artistry of music. This also means that Clairce is intending this novel to be interpreted as a piece of artwork. The last paragraph of this section devolves into a discussion of existence. Her questioning her own is existence this goes along with the concept of self reflection that is present in the rest of the novel.
ReplyDelete-Kate Wehba
Steven Vu
ReplyDeleteMy favourite line in Hour of the Star is, the line when the author describes the systematic routine of Macabea’s life at work and then perceiving this dull repetition as acting like a limiter to her potential for creating diverse, unique literary works, saying: “I cannot stand repetition: routine divides me from potential novelties within my reach.” Although this quote may not be as thought provoking as the earlier quotes which involved questioning the world around us, but it appreciates the craft of the author. I like this quote because it shows that the author wants to make their work stand out - to spark a new interest for the reader in a unique way. The appeal of Hour of the Star is its weird structure in which it doesn’t follow traditional rules for literature, as such, this is what makes this book stand out from the rest. It is like extracurriculars for colleges to look at I guess.