Light in August, Saint Maybe, and The Things They Carried
The literature contains unique expressions of life issues. In close view, many writers have written on various matters affecting humanity. Importantly, their writings have significantly inspired society's understanding and appreciation of life. Thus, the stories and accounts told from various perspectives help to draw lessons, ideas, and various themes from the actual life. Some of the novels recount of predicaments that people went through in life. This paper considers the theme of predicaments in three novels. The first is Light in August by William Faulkner, Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler, and The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Put simply, the aim of this paper is to assess the different predicaments that particular characters encountered in their lives. As well, it will analyze the degree of intensity of each of the predicaments.
Light in August: Joe Christmas
Predicaments are difficult, embarrassing, or unpleasant situations that people face. Light in August by Faulkner focuses on the contrasted situations of Joe Christmas and Lena Grove. The author presents the incidences of the story through dialog. Typically, he uses the first-person narrator and the stream-of-consciousness narration. Primarily, the story tends to probe into particular religious questions. The first is whether God created man in his image or vice versa. By implication, this question explores the boundary between the divine and the human consciousness. Secondly, the author addresses the question, where does the man's mind end and where does God's mind begin? Lastly, the author asks the enterprise of God. Most simply put, the he explores whether God is a God of wrathful hosts, love or of providence (Yamaguchi 166).
His predicament: What it was made of. How bad it was.
Joe Christmas finds himself in a predicament in which he has to fight to maintain his identity. In the novel, Joe Christmas perceives himself as the god. As such, he alone should be revered and praised. Conversely, Joanna and McEachen believe that Jehovah is the true God. Thus, Joe has to defend his sovereignty against the newcomers who oppose him. Accordingly, Joe spurns all offerings and makes himself indifferent to beatings. Interestingly, Joe has affinities with Christ as well as with Dionysus. Joe associates himself with the dark and with snakes. In addition, Joe is a reveler and an employee of Satan (Yamaguchi 181). Thus, Joanna becomes a significant enemy and threat to Joe Christmas.
At some point, Joanna and Joe came to confrontation. In this incidence, Joe brought the shadow of the black cross into Joanna's house in order to wage war against her (Yamaguchi 181).
Eventually, Joe Christmas is killed in the Roman Holiday. The yellow smoke appearing from Joanna's house summons the people of Jefferson to perform the festival of the sacrifice. Finally, they castrate and kill Joe Christmas (Yamaguchi 168).
Saint Maybe: Ian Bedloe (180)
According to critic Jay Parini, Saint Maybe is a book that celebrates family life despite the boredom and pain that families almost inevitably inflict upon their members (Leshe 36). The book provides important insights into how someone can go through the pain of guilt but are healed because of the power of repentance and the forgives the sins.
His predicament: What it was made of. How bad it was.
Ian Bedloe found himself in an intricate situation. He felt that he was responsible for a series of predicaments that hit his family. His brother, with whom he had argued with got involved in a hit and run car accident. As a result, Bedloe's brother was left for dead soon after the accident. In addition, no sooner had the accident occurred than the wife to Bedloe's brother committed suicide, leaving three of their children orphaned (Leshe 36).
The extent in sum or part to which he extricated himself from the predicament
Bedloe decided to drop out of school to fend for the three children. As well, he went to seek forgiveness of his sins at the Church of the Second Chance. As well, Bedloe decided to seek God as an ascetic, and the would-be saint (Leshe 36).
The Things They Carried: Tim O'Brien
The Things They Carried is a collection of narrations from the Vietnam war. In principle, they are fictional accounts of real incidences that took place during the Vietnam war. In the accounts, O'Brien tells of unusual things he witnessed during the war period (Notes n.p).
His predicament: What it was made of. How bad it was.
According to Notes, this story comprises of predicaments of love, enemies, and friends that O'Brien found himself. After finishing college in Macalester College, O'Brien received a draft letter asking him to join the troops in the Vietnam war. Apparently, O'Brien was not for the idea. To make the matter worse, O'Brien's community was pushing him to join in the war. This situation caused him to consider various options. Firstly, to run away and decamp to Canada. To continue with his studies, or to go to the war. Eventually, he decided to go to Canada. Upon arriving at the Rainy River in the border between America and Canada, he changed his mind. O'Brien decided to stay at the Tip Top Lodge. Later, O'Brien apologized to his parents through a letter(Notes n.p).
The extent in sum or part to which he extricated himself from the predicament
O'Brien decided to write about the difficult experiences in the war. According to him, writing helped in the healing process. Kathleen, his daughter, had asked him to stop writing on the bloody incidences of the war since that were scary to her. The Vietnamese war had numerous risk exposures to death in the form of landmines. Interestingly, Notes explains that O'Brien's Company hired 'poppa-san,' a native Vietnamese, to help them navigate through the landmines (Notes n.p )
Whose predicament was the worst and whose was easier
In my view, Bedloe's predicament was the easier one. He had to ask simply for forgiveness and to forgive himself. On the other hand, the worst scenario was the one for O'Brien. I found it difficult for him to decide whether to follow his principles and decline to participate in the war or to go to the war and suffer for it on behalf of his community.
Works Cited
Leshe, Linda Parent. The Best Novels of the Nineties: A Reader's Guide. California: McFarland, Feb 1, 2000. Print.
O'Brien, Tim. The things they carried. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Print.
Yamaguchi, Ryūichi. Faulkner's Artistic Vision: The Bizarre and the Terrible. No. 10. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 2004. Print.
