Student Blogs

There is an inherent classist structure which dominates the life described by Zobel, from the plantation workers to the Beke wealthy white island-dwellers. What struck me as interesting was the underlying Marxist tensions of the world that Zobel describes, and which is developed and more apparent in a few choice scenes, especially concerning Jose's schooling, and his uncertain future working on the island.

The school scenes provide the most detailed development of these themes, especially when contrasted with a future of manual labour. In school, the teacher asks them to repeat the answers to the questions over and over in hopes of memorization. Rather than learn through understanding, it is hopes that pure repetition will create a positive experience and outcome. This is not an enviable way to learn and the class struggles with this method. It also showcases one of Marx's main critiques of the modern labour era, where repetition and input were prized over creativity, or foundational ability. 

We can see the flip side of this argument later, when Jose reveals that his marks are improving, and that he finally feels successful later in his third term, as he is finally "contributing to the class". Marx believed that like students, workers would only be satisfied in their work if they were able to contribute to the end goal of the production in a meaningful way. Simply doing meaningless or repetitive tasks would not bring them satisfaction at work. Here, Jose feels like is improving and adding to the class and his education, and his ability is improving, as Marx writes in his critiques of work and classism.

I think overall, these themes are very important to the world of Black Shack Alley. The colonial nature of their life on the island makes these issues important--work and especially where these oppressed citizens work is key to their livelihood. M'man Tine says that Jose won't have to work in the plantations like the rest of their community, and instead he may be able to work in the factory, which Jose likens to his new big school he attends outside of the village. The segregation of the people, and the nature of the work which rules their lives in Martinique exemplify much of Marx's principles, and their is a deep social commentary at work here, as Zobel narrates his account of life on the island under colonial rule.

What social issues can you compare from Black Shack Alley with problems in current Western culture? Is colonialism, and the problems which stem from it, still affecting certain groups' daily lives?

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There is an inherent classist structure which dominates the life described by Zobel, from the plantation workers to the Beke wealthy white island-dwellers. What struck me as interesting was the underlying Marxist tensions of the world that Zobel describes, and which is developed and more apparent in a few choice scenes, especially concerning Jose's schooling, and his uncertain future working on the island.

The school scenes provide the most detailed development of these themes, especially when contrasted with a future of manual labour. In school, the teacher asks them to repeat the answers to the questions over and over in hopes of memorization. Rather than learn through understanding, it is hopes that pure repetition will create a positive experience and outcome. This is not an enviable way to learn and the class struggles with this method. It also showcases one of Marx's main critiques of the modern labour era, where repetition and input were prized over creativity, or foundational ability. 

We can see the flip side of this argument later, when Jose reveals that his marks are improving, and that he finally feels successful later in his third term, as he is finally "contributing to the class". Marx believed that like students, workers would only be satisfied in their work if they were able to contribute to the end goal of the production in a meaningful way. Simply doing meaningless or repetitive tasks would not bring them satisfaction at work. Here, Jose feels like is improving and adding to the class and his education, and his ability is improving, as Marx writes in his critiques of work and classism.

I think overall, these themes are very important to the world of Black Shack Alley. The colonial nature of their life on the island makes these issues important--work and especially where these oppressed citizens work is key to their livelihood. M'man Tine says that Jose won't have to work in the plantations like the rest of their community, and instead he may be able to work in the factory, which Jose likens to his new big school he attends outside of the village. The segregation of the people, and the nature of the work which rules their lives in Martinique exemplify much of Marx's principles, and their is a deep social commentary at work here, as Zobel narrates his account of life on the island under colonial rule.

What social issues can you compare from Black Shack Alley with problems in current Western culture? Is colonialism, and the problems which stem from it, still affecting certain groups' daily lives?

read full post >>

 Bonjour Tristesse by Sagan has so been my favourite text so far. I love how Sagan used characters we could relate to because of age and gender. The main character was a young girl raised by a single parent. At first, I initially thought that I would relate to this character because I am a young girl who also lost a parent and was raised by a single parent. However, her experience was catastrophically different from mine. Her father was very laid back, and my mother, who raised me, was much more like Anne in the story. My mother was rigorous and always wanted me to put school first before anything. If I put myself in Cecile's situation, I can see how I would like to push Anne away to keep her hedonistic and chill lifestyle. My younger self always dreamed of having a life with no stress. Raymond, her father, definitely influenced her way of living and the idea of love. Her father had a mistress but also was going to marry Anne. Growing up as a young child, this would have affected her way of seeing and understanding love because we always get the first dose of love by watching how our parents love each other. A question I have is, would Cecile maybe have loved Cyril in the end if she didn't grow up with her playboy, hedonistic father? 

The way that Cecile schemed her plot to get Anne and her father to part their ways was shocking. I would never think she would use her lover to make her father jealous. This surprising plot intrigued me into reading and finding out what happens at the end. Cecile's story and inner self-thoughts portray her as an immature, scared teenager for her future. As young university students, we can all relate to this, as we are coming of age just like Cecile in Bonjour Tristesse's text. I can relate to her feelings of self-doubt and worries for the future. As a young student, I am worried about what will happen after I graduate and also just anxious about providing for myself and learning to be an adult and one day take care of my child and raise them. Growing up with someone like Anne has made me appreciate the skills I have learnt, and even though the "hedonistic" life is more pleasurable, I am more mature than Cecile because I was lucky to have a mother who cared about my success. 

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 Bonjour Tristesse by Sagan has so been my favourite text so far. I love how Sagan used characters we could relate to because of age and gender. The main character was a young girl raised by a single parent. At first, I initially thought that I would relate to this character because I am a young girl who also lost a parent and was raised by a single parent. However, her experience was catastrophically different from mine. Her father was very laid back, and my mother, who raised me, was much more like Anne in the story. My mother was rigorous and always wanted me to put school first before anything. If I put myself in Cecile's situation, I can see how I would like to push Anne away to keep her hedonistic and chill lifestyle. My younger self always dreamed of having a life with no stress. Raymond, her father, definitely influenced her way of living and the idea of love. Her father had a mistress but also was going to marry Anne. Growing up as a young child, this would have affected her way of seeing and understanding love because we always get the first dose of love by watching how our parents love each other. A question I have is, would Cecile maybe have loved Cyril in the end if she didn't grow up with her playboy, hedonistic father? 

The way that Cecile schemed her plot to get Anne and her father to part their ways was shocking. I would never think she would use her lover to make her father jealous. This surprising plot intrigued me into reading and finding out what happens at the end. Cecile's story and inner self-thoughts portray her as an immature, scared teenager for her future. As young university students, we can all relate to this, as we are coming of age just like Cecile in Bonjour Tristesse's text. I can relate to her feelings of self-doubt and worries for the future. As a young student, I am worried about what will happen after I graduate and also just anxious about providing for myself and learning to be an adult and one day take care of my child and raise them. Growing up with someone like Anne has made me appreciate the skills I have learnt, and even though the "hedonistic" life is more pleasurable, I am more mature than Cecile because I was lucky to have a mother who cared about my success. 

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Wow. This book floored me. On its own, it’s an incredibly engaging and well-written novel. However, it’s rendered so much more impressive when you factor in how young Françoise Sagan was when she wrote it. The uniqueness of a teenage author writing this narrative centered on the interpersonal relationships and teen angst of an adolescent […] read full post >>

 Sagan's Bonjour Tristesse was an interesting read. I enjoyed reading about the privileged Cécile and her problems, more so because her issues seemed both superficial and deep simultaneously. While reading this text, I couldn't help but make parallels to Moravia's Agostino because of how the genders have reversed in Sagan's text. Cécile is more mature about her feelings for her father as opposed to Agostino, a boy at the verge of puberty. I found the bond between Cécile and her father quite interesting because of the possessiveness she has over her father and how she views him more as a friend than a father in most situations. 

I was quite perplexed about what to feel for Anne, as our narrator herself kept swaying between love and hate for her. Initially, she was excited at the prospect of her joining them, but over time she grew more impatient with her because of Anne's need to 'fix' her. Moreover, it was hard to tell who was being 'dramatic' and who wasn't solely from Cécile's perspective because she switched from emotion to emotion herself. I found her awareness of her privilege and her spoilt lifestyle quite funny because of how openly she expressed her joy for the frivolous parties she attended. Her father supported this and even found joy in the fact that she thought this way. His character was also a weird one, and I found Cécile's description of him as a 'big baby' to be quite accurate. 

Often, it felt as if Cécile played the role of the parent instead of her father. This was an intriguing dynamic to read because both made careless, impulsive decisions, often without considering others. Overall, I found this portrayal of frivolity to be humorous to read. 

Additionally, I agree with the idea proposed in the lecture that certain words and phrases cannot be translated as their meaning is only conveyed in the intended language. I find how Cécile welcomes this feeling of melancholy funny, purely because she adds her twist to it with the sarcastic tone she seems to say it with. 

All in all, I enjoyed this text thoroughly. My question to the class would be: what did you think about Cécile's privilege? How do you think it impacted the decisions that she made and the way she views people?

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 Sagan's Bonjour Tristesse was an interesting read. I enjoyed reading about the privileged Cécile and her problems, more so because her issues seemed both superficial and deep simultaneously. While reading this text, I couldn't help but make parallels to Moravia's Agostino because of how the genders have reversed in Sagan's text. Cécile is more mature about her feelings for her father as opposed to Agostino, a boy at the verge of puberty. I found the bond between Cécile and her father quite interesting because of the possessiveness she has over her father and how she views him more as a friend than a father in most situations. 

I was quite perplexed about what to feel for Anne, as our narrator herself kept swaying between love and hate for her. Initially, she was excited at the prospect of her joining them, but over time she grew more impatient with her because of Anne's need to 'fix' her. Moreover, it was hard to tell who was being 'dramatic' and who wasn't solely from Cécile's perspective because she switched from emotion to emotion herself. I found her awareness of her privilege and her spoilt lifestyle quite funny because of how openly she expressed her joy for the frivolous parties she attended. Her father supported this and even found joy in the fact that she thought this way. His character was also a weird one, and I found Cécile's description of him as a 'big baby' to be quite accurate. 

Often, it felt as if Cécile played the role of the parent instead of her father. This was an intriguing dynamic to read because both made careless, impulsive decisions, often without considering others. Overall, I found this portrayal of frivolity to be humorous to read. 

Additionally, I agree with the idea proposed in the lecture that certain words and phrases cannot be translated as their meaning is only conveyed in the intended language. I find how Cécile welcomes this feeling of melancholy funny, purely because she adds her twist to it with the sarcastic tone she seems to say it with. 

All in all, I enjoyed this text thoroughly. My question to the class would be: what did you think about Cécile's privilege? How do you think it impacted the decisions that she made and the way she views people?

read full post >>

Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan was a bittersweet book about Cecile, a 17-year-old girl, as she grows up and learns... read full post >>

With each reading we have read, the easier and more enjoyable they are. I wonder if I’m getting better at reading translated works, as I originally found them tricky to digest, or if they are simply more interesting or are written using easier language. Perhaps for this one, it’s the fact that the narrator is […] read full post >>

This week I chose to read Bonjour Tristesse by Françoise Sagan, which was a novel about the relationship between a daughter and her father, Raymond, along with Anne, who is a woman he plans to marry.  Firstly, I found it was quite odd that Cécile “knew his need of a woman” (6) and “his fancy […] read full post >>

Reading Sagan’s Bonjour Tristesse felt like riding a playground swing. For me this book was full of an ongoing internal contrast in Cécile’s mind between admiration and resentment towards Anne. On one hand, the difference that Cécile and her father had from Anne seemed to be highlighting class differences; Elsa, Cécile, and her father’s lives […] read full post >>

This was a bit of an astonishing read, particularly how it ended. I’m struggling to find the symbolism of it or what exactly Sagan was trying to achieve in writing it. However, what stood out to me was the contrasting ebb and flow of Cécile’s impulsivity and analytics that seemed to be a mirror of […] read full post >>

I didn’t expect to feel very much while reading Françoise Sagan’s Bonjour Tristesse, but I did. I felt frustration both with and for the characters throughout most of the novel; I felt confusion and curiosity with each change of Cécile’s feelings towards Anne; and by the end, I mainly felt something like pity for Cécile and Raymond […] read full post >>

The text Bonjour Tristesse (1954) by Françoise Sagan for me was an exciting text, to say the least, and additionally kept me engaged till the very end. The novel discusses a relationship between a wealthy father and his daughter. The main character is a girl named Cécile who is 17 years old and changing her […] read full post >>

Bonjour Tristesse was a very interesting read. It’s about Cecile and her relationship with her father as he falls in love with Anne, the woman Cecile believes threatens their free and youthful way of living. All this is to disguise the sense of instability has within herself, with the thought of losing the only other […] read full post >>