tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8692381608294018617.post4848420724914222465..comments2023-11-05T07:27:43.837-05:00Comments on Narrative and Technology: Revision 2: Jimmy and His MomAdamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16302919444091859459noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8692381608294018617.post-20451487271348656872013-11-08T21:24:42.339-05:002013-11-08T21:24:42.339-05:00The idea in the first paragraph is good. For it t...The idea in the first paragraph is good. For it to really be an excellent argument, though, I think there'd need to be a claim developing *from* that idea of pushing away / hiding behind.<br /><br />The 2nd paragraph is good. One thing I'm noticing for the first time his how his mother turns away from the violence - how should we understand that? Is that turning away part of the fantasy itself? Or is it just really ingrained into how he understands his relationship with her?<br /><br />Your extended discussion of the various thanksgivings is basically good. I would have liked a more coherent preparation for this material, ideally in the introduction. I also think that your analysis isn't even close to exhaustive (what about the car ride to the restaurant at thanksgiving as a child?) which goes to show that it has substantial merit. I'd like to have seen more discussion of Thanksgiving-as-Thanksgiving here, too - the absence of a stable romantic/sexual connection leads to an absence of the family Thanskgiving...<br /><br />Re: your good analysis of his fantasy of skinning his father, one thing you're moving towards is making explicit the connection between his mother's sexuality and the ongoing themes of violent retribution through the book - but curiously Superman is both the agent of violent retribution in our cultural fantasies and the *object* of that violent retribution in your initial scene. I'd like to see you bring all of that together.<br /><br />"Jimmy Corrigan, because of these experiences, is a walking contradiction." - good paragraph.<br /><br />Your closing paragraphs, explaining the consequences of his inferiority complex, are perfectly good. For my part, I would have preferred a return to superman - since you're on the edge of addressing the paradox of superman as savior and object of revenge. *However*, my preferences doesn't mean that you haven't done well. This is well organized, well argued, with a good dose of research. It's also a large jump ahead of the previous drafts.Adamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16302919444091859459noreply@blogger.com