Punctuation Analogy
Victor compares his
father to punctuation marks to show the transformation that happens when he
drinks. “During those long drinks, Victor’s father wasn’t shaped like a
question mark. He looked like an exclamation point.” Aside from the physical
shape of his father there is a deeper meaning to this description.
The obvious meaning of
the analogy is that Victor’s father goes from being hunched over and just kind
of there, to fully alert and upright. He becomes aware of life around him as he
forgets the past with alcohol.
A question mark is
placed at the end of a sentence to replace a full stop and makes the sentence
and interrogative one. It is also used to replace unknown or missing data.
Sober, Victor’s father embodies a question mark. He is questioning his life and
his choices. Victor’s father questions himself and questions his past and who
he is as a person and an Indian living on the reservation. “Victor’s father
remembered the time his own father was spit on as they waited for a bus in
Spokane.” Following a question mark there is usually and answer, a question cannot
stand on its own, it needs something else to make it whole. The way that Victor’s
father needs alcohol to cope.
An exclamation point is
used at the end of a sentence to show strong feelings or loud volume. It’s a definitive
mark that brings a sentence to an end. The origin of the exclamation mark comes
from the Latin exclamation of joy, and was seen as a symbol of admiration.
Victor’s father turns into an exclamation point, showing that he goes from
uncertain to strongly emotional and comes to terms with his life. He doesn’t love
his life but he accepts it or at least forgets it while he is drunk.
The analogy of the
exclamation point works for Victor’s uncle’s too. When they are drunk they
literally beat each other out of love. They feel in extremes, the way that an
exclamation point is used to show something is more extreme than a period.
Rebecca,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad someone chose to write about this imagery! I was drawn to this idea that the alcohol brought Victor's father to life. He stood up tall, straight, and maybe even a little proud after his first swig of the day. However, I do not think we know quite enough about Victor's father to assume he questions everything. I think the alcohol puts more life into him, and makes him forget about his problems, for a little while. But, in the end, the alcohol can only do so much. Which, I suppose, is why he became an alcoholic. Why everyone on the Res seems to become an alcoholic.
This is a great connection between punctuations and body language though. My only concern is that your post is a little short. I would love to see this fleshed out a bit more.
I agree with Cynthia, in the fact of we don't know really enough about Victor's father to say that questions everything. It's a very good though but doesn't have anything to back it up. I feel like you could also use this punctuation analysis and look at other characters what kind of punctuation mark would Victor be? I think he would be a question mark. He seems helpless and concerned. He cried until he found his parents and as a child may not have really understood what was going on. This is a really good start for a great read.
ReplyDeleteThis a really good post. I agree with you that the alcohol is used as a means to clarify emotions for the characters. What do you make of the fact that the thing which clarifies the complexities of their lives is something that was introduced to Native Americans by the white man culture and is destroying them while still offering that moment of clarity?
ReplyDeleteRebecca,
ReplyDeleteLike everyone else I really enjoyed your post! I am glad that you talked about this because this quote was actually something that I was very curious about. As you mentioned I understood the obvious physical description of his transformation, however I really liked that you explained Victor’s father mental transformation as well.
Also in response to Victor choosing to represent his sober with a question mark, I believe he picked this because when his father is sober he is in a constant daze, like most alcoholics. I think that he is not so much questioning everything, but instead just trying to block things out and not really thinking about anything, except maybe alcohol.