Thursday, April 9, 2015
Jason and Hugo
Jason finds Hugo impeccable. Jason is at a very impressionable age and I think we sometimes forget this due to his vocabulary and his real understanding of social constructs. I think this was an amazing touch from Mitchell because I think most of us had someone we looked up to a lot. I know I have a friend that I thought was amazing. Fortunately, I am still really good friends with him and, unlike Jason, I think he is still a pretty cool guy. This is probably the most relatable thing I have read all semester though just because it feels so real and the fact that Jason starts to see through his facade. Jason isn't a stupid kid and we seem to forget this sometimes with the whole dynamic of his family but it is more the fact that he is afraid to speak up to his parents. Jason needs to realize that he can be just as cool as Hugo if he just acts like himself. In the words of Holden Caulfield, he needs to stop being such a phony. Jason is only 13 which means he is trying to figure himself out and his stammer really isn't helping but I think it's a good thing that he is looking for role models but Hugo should not be the one.
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I agree. Jason has the potential to be someone much better than Hugo. I think he worships Hugo because Hugo can break the rules of social dynamics without being socially persecuted. Jason, understandably as a middle schooler, is hellbent on not being socially persecuted. I think Hugo's ability to break the rules of social dynamics and Hugo's personality are two different things to Jason. Jason doesn't seem completely in to all the things that Hugo does, even though he follows him. Maybe (and hopefully), Jason's conscience will lead him away from Hugo's influence.
ReplyDeleteDon't put past tense on "I thought was amazing" you know I'm still the bomb. But seriously I agree that Hugo shouldn't be his role model. I think that it is something I am still realizing and living out that you will have the best results and be happiest if you are yourself and not phony, and I hope Jason sees that as well. Also Hugo is a total dick.
ReplyDeleteIt's striking (and, I think, accurate in terms of how these kinds of "crushes" actually play out in many cases) that even as Jason knows he's getting played by Hugo, he can't help but go along with it--it feels so good to bask in his apparent regard (he "smiled as if he actually liked me"). When Hugo hustles Jason at darts, that should be a strong sign, but Jason continues to be hustled for the rest of the chapter (the Cadbury eggs, the cigarettes), and he does so knowingly. But maybe by the end of the chapter, with his beloved cousin laughing at him as he's vomiting, Jason is learning something about coolness and the sacrifices it apparently entails.
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