Jan. 7th, 2021

In Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson, the environment is directly connected to Hatsue and Ishmael’s derailed love affair. Hatsue, a Japanese American, fears the repercussions of her relationship with a white boy—a relationship unacceptable to her Japanese parents deeply rooted in tradition. When speaking with her mother about the differences between their own culture and that of the Anglos in their community, Fujiko says:

That is the fundamental difference Hatuse. We bend our heads, we bow and are silent, because we understand that by ourselves, alone, we are nothing at all, dust in a strong wind, while the hakujin believes his aloneness is everything, his separateness is the foundation of his existence. He seeks and grasps for his separateness, while we seek union with the greater life—you must see that these are distinct paths we are traveling, Hatsue, the hakujin and we Japanese.

Fujiko argues in favor of Buddist ideology—the intrinsic connection between their people and the earth. She questions how Hatsue could fraternize with people who clearly hold such opposing values and believe they are above nature.  Ultimately, however, both Hatsue and Ishmael, are intrinsically connected to their environment.

When they are together inside the hollowed-out cedar tree, nature embraces them both literally and metaphorically:

…what was love if it wasn’t the instinct she felt to be on the moss inside the cedar tree with this boy she had always known? He was the boy of this place, of these woods, these beaches, the boy who smelled like this forest. If identity was geography instead of blood—if living in a place was what really mattered—then Ishmael was a part of her, inside of her, as much as anything Japanese.

Hatsue’s sensory connection to Ishmael, and their unified bond to their environment seems like the very epitome of the Buddist concept that seeks “union with the Great Life,” despite the fact that Ishmael is not Japanese. Ultimately, however, Hatsue and Ishmael are separated, and, in turn, their respective environments deteriorate.

Hatsue, interned at Manzanar, is covered in the dust blowing in from the Mojave desert: “That night dust and yellow sand blew through the knotholes in the walls and floor.”

Similarly, Ishmael, convalescing in a military hospital is surrounded by death: “…the smell from the open window was of dying leaves and of rain in the dirt and turned fields…”

The environment, so sweet smelling and wholesome when Hatsue and Ishmael were together, has now corroded.

Color Symbolism in Ian McEwan’s Solar

Sep 7th, 2020

In another story, set in a more contemporary environment, Ian McEwan, master of choice detail, fleshes out the differences, both physically and emotionally, between Michael and Patrice as their marriage disintegrates. The color pink is used in the descriptions pertaining to both characters, but with entirely different symbolism.

An early sigh of Beard’s distress was dysmorphia, or perhaps it was dysmorphia he was suddenly cured of. At last he knew himself for what he was. Catching sight of a conical pink mess in the misted full length mirror as he came out of the shower, he wiped down the glass, stood full on, and took a disbelieving look. What engines of self-persuasion had let him think for so many years that looking like this was seductive? That foolish thatch of earlobe-level hair that buttressed his baldness, the new curtain swag of fat that hung below his armpits, the innocent stupidity of swelling in gut and rear. Once he had been able to improve on his mirror self by pinning back his shoulders, standing erect, tightening his abs. Now human blubber draped in his efforts. How could he possibly keep hold of a young woman as beautiful as she was? Had he honestly thought status was enough, that his Nobel Prize would keep her in his bed?

Michael, who has been riding the waves of his Nobel Prize win, is now forced to grapple with the reality before his eyes. The short but poignant details paint a vivid picture of our protagonist, and McEwan, like Doerr, uses color to amplify the physical disarray that is Michael; the “conical pink mess” permeates the passage, and pairs with the “thatch of earlobe hair that buttressed his baldness,” to present a sad sight.

Similarly, pink is one of the colors utilized to bring Michael’s wife, Patrice, to life, however, the effect is starkly different:

That summer of 2000 she was wearing different clothes, she had a different look around the house—faded tight jeans, flip-flops, a ragged pink cardigan over a T-shirt, her blond hair cut short, her pale eyes a deeper agitated blue. Her build was slight, and now she looked like a teenager…She was thirty-four, and still kept the strawberries-and–cream look of her twenties…There was a fullness in her lower lip, a promise of trouble when she lowered her gaze, and her shortened hair lay curled on her nape in a compelling, old-fashioned way. Surely she was more beautiful than Monroe, drifting about the house and garden at weekends in a haze of blond and pink, and pale blue.

In Patrice’s case, hues of pink come across as summery and youthful, reminiscent of the “strawberries-and cream-look” of earlier days. Clearly, the dismantling of their marriage has revitalized Patrice and the color motifs present a picture of inherent optimism. The depictions of husband and wife are so diametrically opposed, not only because of their physical differences but also because of the shift in tone. Michael’s description carries a permeating heaviness; the humid, airless bathroom, his heft of his body, and his own insecurities that are weighing him down. Patrice on the other hand, is shrouded in a sense of light-weighted youthfulness—a blast of fresh air after viewing Michael in the misted bathroom mirror.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
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The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus your own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus your own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.