The last couple of chapters in this book made me realize how influential our minds really are. Chapters 24 begins with Harold's encounter with Maureen at a coffee outlet. He feels very determined to continue his journey to finish his walk to see Queenie by the help of his followers. On Harold's walk that's accompanied by his pilgrims see Maureen and Rex out in Darlington for what she explains to just be "driving around", pretty believable excuse right?
Truthfully she went all that way in the hopes that she would be able to persuade Harold into coming back home, which does not work out so well.
Throughout Harold's journey, seeing different people along the way as well as adapting to new personalities and behaviours, changes the way Harold perceives things. I guess by him meeting Martina speaking about her marriage, also meeting the famous actor made him become a little more different with his actions, which Maureen senses. Many people idolize Harold for this journey. Maureen notices how different this exposure made him. For example within the coffee shop he is able to easily sign autographs for people without showing any sign of confusion, as if he is a celebrity...like the fame changed him into a completely different man. Even though they have been married over 40 years, it's as if they met for the first time. "Maureen and Harold sat opposite, not side by side. And even though she had drunk tea with him for forty-seven years, her hands shook as she poured. Harold's cheeks hollowed as his frappè shot up through a straw and entered his mouth with a honk"(Joyce, 244). It looks like after the couple of weeks they've been away from each other, they became total strangers because of the awkward small talk they tried to have. Reminds me a little bit of the encounters I've had with the old teachers I've had throughout high school, or even after semesters.
But seriously, having the people that Harold met did impact a small fraction of his mindset. I'm not saying it's a bad thing but having people/things in your life can motivate you positively and/or negatively towards certain goals, which could change they way you act as a whole. The dog that followed Harold though the middle of his pilgrimage was the only companion that he felt was by his side. Talk about a man's best friend. While Harold was reflecting on some of the events that happened to his life, he did not realize that the dog had made a new friend and decided to follow the schoolgirl onto a bus. "He reasoned the animal had made its own decision. It had chosen to walk with Harold for a while, and then it had chosen to stop, and walk instead with the young girl. Life was like that. But in losing his last companion, Harold felt a further layer of skin had been ripped from him. He was afraid of what would come next. He knew he hadn't got it in him to take much more"(Joyce, 268). He lost all of his motivation to continue on his pilgrimage because he felt he did not have any support or motivation to continue his journey; even regretted turning the offer of going back home with Maureen and tried to call her for her to come back to pick him up. I can connect with this because it reminds me of a series I used to watch called BET The Game, and one specific scene was about how one of the main characters was trying to get his life back on track after his intervention on his drug abuse. After getting cured he explained to his friends and family how with the help of one girl named Tasha, he was able to push through and complete his days at rehab with her motivation and positive energy, even though most of the members in the group that relapsed back onto the drugs they took.
In conclusion, I really enjoyed this book and the question I have for you guy's is, what motivates you?
Hi Daniel,
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that you touched on the theme of how loss can impact a person. I discussed a similar topic on my blog as well. Ultimately, I think that the quote about the dog that you mentioned is used to capture the idea of the inevitability of loss. People can't stay with each other forever. And the dog, being known as one of human's most loyal companions, is used to further demonstrate that idea. Despite Harold understanding that "Life was like that", it is also evident that his response is less than ideal for someone with that level of consciousness. In contrast, following Queenie's funeral, Harold is happy. With Maureen, Harold reminisces the time that they first met each other, laughing at the ridiculousness of something that Maureen had said. It appears that at this point, Harold believes that instead of grieving, he should be enjoying his time spent with other people that he loves. We never know exactly when our loved ones will leave us and that is why during Queenie's funeral, Maureen realizes that, "If we can't accept what we don't know, there really is no hope" (Joyce 317).
All that said, your blog now carries the honour of being the keepsake for my final comment before I retire as a blogger. This will be the last blog comment you will ever read from me. Ever.
Consider yourself fortunate.
Thank you for the experience,
Freddie
I like your idea about how everyone we meet impacts us in some way. Sometimes I wonder people are only a result of their experiences (including the people they interact with), kind of like the nature/nurture debate. I think that the people that we surround ourselves with have a huge impact on our personalities and the way we think. For example you mentioned how in the series that you used to watch, the main character overcame his drug addiction with the help of someone who had “positive energy”. By surrounding himself with someone so positive, he was able to overcome something difficult. Who he interacted with had an impact on who is became.
ReplyDeleteI really like that you brought up the quotation where the dog leaves Harold's side. The way he compares it to having "a further layer of skin had been ripped for him" and the way he acknowledges that he is "afraid of what would come next" becomes a very important lesson for him in the story. After his son had committed suicide, his wife had used him to place the blame and I feel as though he lost himself and grew particularly dependent on others rather than having the mindset of being able to do things for himself. His journey once the dog left was one of courage, as he was doing something he felt that was individualistic and I think that he learned from that. Later on in the novel, he learns to forgive himself and let go of the past, which I believe he would have been unable to do if it had not been for his journey to see Queenie.
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