I swear I just got slapped by Black Swan Green when I read that line in Sag Harbor, when Melanie and Benji are reminiscing about how things were when they were just kids. Melanie then asks Benji "What happened to you?". Just like Holly (?) asked Jason towards the end of his story. Which I find really interesting. In both cases, these characters kind of pop up towards the end of the book, presumably towards the end of the character's developmental arc, and asks "what happened to you?". This could, of course, be a ploy to get the reader to really think about what they just read for the last 3/4 of the book, but it could also be something to force the character themselves to reflect. What did happen to them? Did they really change?
I also think it's interesting that in both cases, the questioning character is a girl. A girl who shows up later and is nice to our main character, who seems to understand him in a way that no one else has yet. Not to say that she's perfect and understands everything about him, but she understands him and sympathizes with him. I don't really know what to make of the fact that they're girls who are insightful - maybe it's the authors acknowledging the girls' sensitivity to matters, maybe it's the authors recognizing that the entrance of girls into the boys' worlds brings something new and more intimate in a non-romantic or sexual way that the boys don't seem to really think about.
Unrelated (or related, you decide), it's interesting how both Holly and Melanie end up 1. making the first move on their guy and 2. end up kissing the guy and 3. end up splitting up with the guy not long after due to travel circumstances.
This comparison is really interesting because it seems like the same thing happens in Catcher as well. The female character that asks "What happened to you?" towards the end would be Phoebe, after Holden leaves school for home. She is also seems to not sympathize with him but at least know him very well, as we see her frequently call him out on his BS.
ReplyDeleteI really like your comparison because both protagonist in Black Swan Green and Sag Harbor seem to be given a lot of advice from females. We also see Benji get his music from his sister just like Jason. We also see both older sisters more attuned to the family issues.
ReplyDeleteI never really thought about the comparisons between Melanie and Holly before reading this blog post. Maybe part of the reason Melanie and Holly are insightful is because they're outsiders to Jason and Benji's lives (they both show up later and haven't always been part of the main characters group of friends).
ReplyDeleteWow really interesting and insightful comparison. I really like the observation that the girls bring the character into their next stage of sexual development and because of that are able to get them to reflect on their growth. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that it's a girl who calls them out on their b.s. It just goes to show how observant girls are and how they can easily tell and know what's going on with someone and they aren't afraid to question them about it. I didn't make the connection between Melanie and Holly but it's interesting how similar the two characters are!
ReplyDeleteThis a great comparison of the two female characters. In Black Swan Green we discussed how most of Jason's mentors are female, like his sister, his mom, Eva van Crommelynck, Holly Deblin, etc). Benji has very few role models except for his sister and potentially Melanie, though she does ditch him for Nick later on. It's interesting that both Jason and Benji are challenged to articulate their growth by girls. Maybe the girls noticed more of how they've changed, or maybe everyone noticed but the girls weren't afraid to ask.
ReplyDeleteYeah it's interesting that they're all female characters who are sort of the mediators, but maybe that's a symptom of us reading books from mostly male perspectives. And I think it is kinda related the the girls usually make the first moves- maybe they're just more mature at this moment, but it kinda sucks imo that we dont really get to know they're opinion. They're just are not a lot of books about this period of life for girls - or at least its hard to think of them.
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely quite interesting how both Mitchell and Whitehead use the romantic interest at the end of the book as an element to show growth. I know that in Black Swan Green, everything prior had really built up to that moment. The old Jason, who fell head over heels for Dawn Madden despite his inability to voice his love, develops into the new Jason, who is confident enough to show his affection for Holly.
ReplyDeleteI think that the girls are used as the climactic symbol of growth because the first kiss is the ultimate step of our teenage years. Such an intimate act is mirrored by the intimate conversations between the protagonists and their lovers.