Redbeard's Take - Chapters 3-10
I'll go over my notes from a few more chapters tonight. I was talking about the book this weekend to Yuki's brother, who is very well-read. He liked it, too.
From Chapter 3:
"And each of them had an individuality of his own, a will of his own, a hope and a heart's desire; each was full of self- confidence, of self-importance, and a sense of dignity. And trusting and strong in faith he had gone about his business, the while a black shadow hung over him and a horrid Fate waited in his pathway. Now suddenly it had swooped upon him, and had seized him by the leg. Relentless, remorseless, it was; all his protests, his screams, were nothing to it."
This passage really makes me sad. It's just like real life. For most people, life doesn't turn out how they expect. When you're new and fresh, you're so optimistic, but that point when you find out that you're just drudging through your life, that life isn't fair, that's the tipping point.
From Chapter 5:
"And all the men of the same rank were pitted against each other; the accounts of each were kept separately, and every man lived in terror of losing his job, if another made a better record than he. So from top to bottom the place was simply a seething caldron of jealousies and hatreds; there was no loyalty or decency anywhere about it, there was no place in it where a man counted for anything against a dollar. And worse than there being no decency, there was not even any honesty."
What a terrible way to live. This is how I imagine someone who works on commission lives.
From Chapter 7:
"She was too good for him, he told himself, and he was afraid, because she was his."
"He was all that she had to look to, and if he failed she would be lost; he would wrap his arms about her, and try to hide her from the world."
That's how I feel about relationships. I don't want to get sappy, but it's scary having someone else depend on you. Wonderful, but scary.
From Chapter 9:
"When Jurgis had been working about three weeks at Brown's, there had come to him one noontime a man who was employed as a night watchman, and who asked him if he would not like to take out naturalization papers and become a citizen. Jurgis did not know what that meant, but the man explained the advantages. In the first place, it would not cost him anything, and it would get him half a day off, with his pay just the same; and then when election time came he would be able to vote – and there was something in that. Jurgis was naturally glad to accept, and so the night watchman said a few words to the boss, and he was excused for the rest of the day."
So, he's getting his naturalization papers because he gets 1/2 day off work? It's like wanting to do jury duty because you get paid time off. But under the conditions he worked in, you didn't have vacation time or floating holidays.
..."and so there were two rival sets of grafters, known as political parties, and the one got the office which bought the most votes."
That was true 100 years ago, and hasn't changed much since. Even with those 'sweeping McCain/Feingold campaign finance reforms'.
From Chapter 3:
"And each of them had an individuality of his own, a will of his own, a hope and a heart's desire; each was full of self- confidence, of self-importance, and a sense of dignity. And trusting and strong in faith he had gone about his business, the while a black shadow hung over him and a horrid Fate waited in his pathway. Now suddenly it had swooped upon him, and had seized him by the leg. Relentless, remorseless, it was; all his protests, his screams, were nothing to it."
This passage really makes me sad. It's just like real life. For most people, life doesn't turn out how they expect. When you're new and fresh, you're so optimistic, but that point when you find out that you're just drudging through your life, that life isn't fair, that's the tipping point.
From Chapter 5:
"And all the men of the same rank were pitted against each other; the accounts of each were kept separately, and every man lived in terror of losing his job, if another made a better record than he. So from top to bottom the place was simply a seething caldron of jealousies and hatreds; there was no loyalty or decency anywhere about it, there was no place in it where a man counted for anything against a dollar. And worse than there being no decency, there was not even any honesty."
What a terrible way to live. This is how I imagine someone who works on commission lives.
From Chapter 7:
"She was too good for him, he told himself, and he was afraid, because she was his."
"He was all that she had to look to, and if he failed she would be lost; he would wrap his arms about her, and try to hide her from the world."
That's how I feel about relationships. I don't want to get sappy, but it's scary having someone else depend on you. Wonderful, but scary.
From Chapter 9:
"When Jurgis had been working about three weeks at Brown's, there had come to him one noontime a man who was employed as a night watchman, and who asked him if he would not like to take out naturalization papers and become a citizen. Jurgis did not know what that meant, but the man explained the advantages. In the first place, it would not cost him anything, and it would get him half a day off, with his pay just the same; and then when election time came he would be able to vote – and there was something in that. Jurgis was naturally glad to accept, and so the night watchman said a few words to the boss, and he was excused for the rest of the day."
So, he's getting his naturalization papers because he gets 1/2 day off work? It's like wanting to do jury duty because you get paid time off. But under the conditions he worked in, you didn't have vacation time or floating holidays.
..."and so there were two rival sets of grafters, known as political parties, and the one got the office which bought the most votes."
That was true 100 years ago, and hasn't changed much since. Even with those 'sweeping McCain/Feingold campaign finance reforms'.
posted by scott at 7:50 PM
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