Jason's Published Poems

Solarium made me happy to read, until the end of course. The reason for this is I felt like Jason grew and matured as a poet and a person. When he went first went to visit Eva, she criticized his poems in a way that legitimized them. Now that Jason knows that his poems are actually being read, he will work harder on them, and her criticism will help him improve his poems.

The part that really made me happy though was when Jason went home and spent a few hours translating a poem from French to English. He says that he spent several hours translating but that it felt like just a few minutes. This was a successful accomplishment because Jason worked hard and the end result was rewarding, which will motivate him to work hard again in the future. This is what every teacher wants from their students, because being able to focus and work hard is like a muscle you flex and train to make sure it still works.

Eva is pretty clear to Jason that she looks down on him for using a pseudonym. She says that Jason Taylor is not a name that he should be ashamed of, and that the poems will have more value if people can see that it is him doing the writing. This resonated with me because when I was a freshman, I did some writing of my own about Pokemon under the pseudonym Red Ados. This wasn't necessarily because I was embarrassed of my peers, like Jason, but because my parents were afraid of the internet and didn't want me to have an account anywhere (come talk to me in person if you would like to hear me rant about this!).

This past year, I have started writing again, and my name is plastered across the front page of my blog. Not using a pseudonym is more difficult, because you can't hide behind anonymity. When I first posted a link to my blog on a group on Facebook, I didn't necessarily enjoy all of the comments. I assume that this is what Jason feels like when the kids in his class make fun of him or trip him into puddles. However, unlike Jason, I have friends who have my back and stick up for me. The internet brings a whole new level to social groups and not-so-nice comments, but Facebook is not completely anonymous.

Feel free to check out my blog here.

The Social Status of an Adolescent

When Jason explains the social hierarchy and how precarious it is, he describes how the coolest people go by their first name. The people in the middle go by their last name (Jason goes by "Taylor"), and the people on the bottom of the ladder go by a nickname. For example, Dean Moran goes by "Moron". Jason describes this ladder as easy to fall down but difficult to climb up. He is constantly self-editing, trying to preserve his standing. For example, in "Hangman", he is nervous to give a speech in front of the class because he is afraid that kids will make fun of him for his stammer. He also makes an effort not to be seen with Dean too much because Dean isn't cool and the other kids might make fun of him.

Socially, Middle School was my least favorite time socially. Before that, everyone was oblivious and enjoyed each other regardless of other factors. In High School, we've come to the realization that little things don't matter, and if someone doesn't like another person, they simply avoid interactions with that person.

Middle School, which is where Jason appears to be, is right in between, where people judge and haven't yet realized that it doesn't matter. I remember a moment where there were four or so people standing around me asking me why I wore sweatpants all the time, and how it looked pretty stupid. I wasn't really "bullied" in middle school, but moments like those happened where other kids would make me feel bad for no reason. I definitely see that in Jason's classmates (and Hugo!) when they say and do mean things.

Middle School is the worst time, and we get to see Jason during that transition.

Pressed Flowers and Pressed Leaves

In Chapter seven of Housekeeping, Ruth finds pressed flowers in the dictionary when she is looking up a word for Lucille's sewing project. Lucille immediately proposes that they put the flowers into the oven, which horrifies Ruth.

"What will we do with these flowers?"
"Put them in the stove."
"Why do that?"
"What are they good for?" (127)

If someone presses flowers in a book, it means that the flowers have significant value to them. The fact that the flowers are forty years old make make them even more valuable. Not only has Ruth captured flowers from forty years ago, but she also gets to catch a glimpse of her Grandpa's thoughts from forty years ago.

Why does Ruth hold on tightly to the flowers when Lucille seems content to let them go? One reason could be that Ruth has abandonment issues because she believes that her mother abandoned her, whereas Lucille believes that he mother's death was an accident.

There is a dictionary  belonging to a deceased relative full of pressed leaves in my house. Every time I go to use the dictionary, I'm careful not to disturb the leaves as wish by a relative close to the deceased. The scene with the pressed flowers reminded me of this.

There is irony in the fact that Ruth didn't want the flowers going into the oven, because they would have ended up going up in flames anyway when the house burned down.