Little Bee. I feel ashamed because little Bug has it right. "Horror in your country is a something you take a dose of to remind yourself that you are not suffering from it" (pg. 45). This novel is just another dose of that sweet medicine to remind me that I live in a life without fear. Blood Diamond, The Invisible Children, Zeitoun have all touched me yet I've done nothing. What can we do? There are so many of these terrible stories. Bee is not special - she is a beautiful, strong, independent girl who is just like countless others. Who do we help. This feeling of helplessness overcomes me.
And here I go again, making this about me. Isn't it exactly like Americans to hear about tragedy and focus so much on how it affects them. Yes, it does affect them, but is that where their core focus should rest? The reminds me in Sunset Park where Alice notices that our generation won't shut up. We have so much to say about ourselves, but most is just prattle.
On an entirely different note, I found my self sighing with relief after the death of the nameless women. I found it right for her. Her family was murdered, and she was broken seemingly beyond repair. I do not doubt that she could have gotten through it and found people to love and help again, but I wonder if it would have been worth it to her. Our society stigmatizes suicide but Bee puts it in a beautiful new perspective. In fact, its practically impossible for the majority of our society to understand this concept since most do not live in a state of fear: that there are hardships worse than death. Death can be a haven.
This was an inspiring post, and very true. What happened to Little Bee happens to so many girls around the world, but what do we do? Little Bee's character really does make us look at things in a different way.
ReplyDeleteLittle Bee does put suicide in a new perspective that I have never thought about before. She contemplates suicide because she knows there are worse things that can happen. It is interesting to see how your opinions about suicide can change when you look at it from someone else's situation.
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