One point that Isaac brought up in class that really sparked my attention is the way we see and sympathize for Smithy in comparison to the way the people Smithy meets on his long journey perceive him. When we look at Smithy from the start of his journey to where he is now, we see a vast improvement. He’s eating healthier (and less), he becoming more physically fit, he’s losing weight, he is becoming more confident when talking with Norma, etc. Smithy has drastically changed; he is not his old, fat, drunk self anymore, nor is he his young, scrawny, socially awkward self either. He has created a new path, and with it, a new Smithy.
Although we see how Smithy has evolved throughout his journey, and feel proud of him, the same feeling is not apparent with the people he meets on his journey. Many of the people Smithy meets look down upon him, judging only upon his looks and way he presents himself. This proves to be a classic example of someone who judges a book by its cover. (Of which I am usually guilty of). An example of this is with the doctor who takes care of Carl, Dr. Donna Trivitch. Dr. Trivitch takes one look at Smithy, and immediately comes to the conclusion that he is going to abuse Carl for his condition, when in reality, Smithy is one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet and wouldn’t dream of doing those kind of things. Never the less, Dr. Trivitch’s skepticism gets the best of her, and she sends for her cop friend to beat him up, unaware that Smithy hasn’t been anything but nice to the man who ran him over with his truck.
I suppose the reason we sympathize for Smithy and respect the progress he has made is, as Isaac stated, because we have seen his rock bottom. We’ve seen him at his worst, and are beginning to see him at his best. Because of this, we see the vast amount of progress and growing Smithy has done throughout his journey. He has left his home, which was full of unwanted memories of his fat, drunk self, and has set out to find Bethany and explore the big USA on the way. But people only seem to dwell on the fact that Smithy has left his home, and is now roaming homeless, and don’t ask why.
Therefore, I am curious to see if Smithy will make a true friend, other than Norma, that he can talk to and bring on the rest of his journey, although he is almost there (with respect to the entire journey). I think one of the only things that is missing on Smithy’s journey is a companion. One he can talk to without the restriction of phone lines.
I agree with your point that to the reader Smithy has made many self improvements from the beginning of the story and others don't realize this growth because he is basically homeless. However I think Smithy has made many companion's on his journey and not specifically one true friend which is so different from the beginning of the story because he essentially had no friends.
ReplyDeleteI see where all of you are coming at with this sympathetic approach. However, I must remind you that pathetic is the root of sympathetic. I don't sympathize with Smithy -- whenever people say oh I sympathize with him in this scene, most of the time, I'm like dude, you brought this upon yourself. He doesn't take a stand, and that's what goes against him most of the time (that, and the fact that he looks like a hobo).
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the point that, because we've seen Smithy at his worst, we can appreciate what he's become now. I completely disagree with Shaleen, we don't think Smithy's pathetic, we think his past actions are. While I can agree that it's a bit annoying how Smithy never stands up for himself, I find it's one of his better qualities. He's not one to be violent, even if he's wronged, and I respect him for that.
ReplyDeleteI've been seeing this story as a coming of age novel, and maybe his coming of age would be him changing himself and getting rid of his insecurities and awkwardnesses, like his lack of social skills. Who knows? Maybe it might be about him having a friend in Norma, after the years of ignoring her. I think that might be more what this story is about. Him opening the door to friendship with others by realizing his love for Norma.
ReplyDeleteBut that's only my opinion.
I sympathize with Smithy, despite all of his problems. I can understand where Trivitch is coming from though. As a close friend of Carl, I do believe that she would be concerned about people taking advantage of him and his condition. If some random person became the caretaker of someone I was very close to, I'd be very, very suspicious about how and why this person got involved. It's not exactly something that would somebody do just out of the blue. I guess this just shows the large disparities between the Smithy that we know and the Smithy that other people see initially.
ReplyDelete