And of Clay Analysis
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McComb 1
Extended Analytical Paragraph ! In Isabelle Allendeʼs And of Clay We are Created, the narrator uses images of
cameras, lenses, and screens to demonstrate how Rolfe Carle uses them to distance himself emotionally, physically and symbolically. ! When the narrator initially introduces Rolfe Carle, along with first bringing
Azucena into the story, Rolfeʼs reporting background is laid out. “It was as if it transported him to a different time from which he could observe events without actually participating in them” (1). This quote explains how Rolfe can be a brave reporter through the horrifying events that he has witnessed. Symbolically, while behind the lens, he can isolate himself from human emotions and stress. When Rolfe puts the camera down however, he becomes just as human as everyone else. In the beginning of the story, when he first encounters Azucena, he approaches as the average reporter would, “..his camera zoomed in on the girl…”(1). He has not yet connected to Azucena, and he remains behind his glass emotional wall that is his lens. As the story progresses, and Rolfe opens up to Azucena as much as she does to him. “He had completely forgotten the camera; he could not look at the girl through a lens anymore” (3). Azucena has reached Rolfe in a way that most have failed too, and his emotional wall comes crashing down. Rolfe can no longer bear to hide himself behind his lenses, and all the years of emotions he had kept tucked away are ready to be dealt with. His wife, the narrator, has noticed the change in Rolfeʼs behavior. “Your cameras lie forgotten in a closet; you do not write or sing; you sit for long hours before the window, staring at the mountains” (5). Now, instead of being emotionally distant, he is completely consumed
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McComb 2
by his emotions and has yet to deal with his personal traumas. Throughout the story, Allendeʼs uses lenses to physically show when Rolfeʼs emotional walls were up or down. When he was behind
McComb 1
Extended Analytical Paragraph ! In Isabelle Allendeʼs And of Clay We are Created, the narrator uses images of
cameras, lenses, and screens to demonstrate how Rolfe Carle uses them to distance himself emotionally, physically and symbolically. ! When the narrator initially introduces Rolfe Carle, along with first bringing
Azucena into the story, Rolfeʼs reporting background is laid out. “It was as if it transported him to a different time from which he could observe events without actually participating in them” (1). This quote explains how Rolfe can be a brave reporter through the horrifying events that he has witnessed. Symbolically, while behind the lens, he can isolate himself from human emotions and stress. When Rolfe puts the camera down however, he becomes just as human as everyone else. In the beginning of the story, when he first encounters Azucena, he approaches as the average reporter would, “..his camera zoomed in on the girl…”(1). He has not yet connected to Azucena, and he remains behind his glass emotional wall that is his lens. As the story progresses, and Rolfe opens up to Azucena as much as she does to him. “He had completely forgotten the camera; he could not look at the girl through a lens anymore” (3). Azucena has reached Rolfe in a way that most have failed too, and his emotional wall comes crashing down. Rolfe can no longer bear to hide himself behind his lenses, and all the years of emotions he had kept tucked away are ready to be dealt with. His wife, the narrator, has noticed the change in Rolfeʼs behavior. “Your cameras lie forgotten in a closet; you do not write or sing; you sit for long hours before the window, staring at the mountains” (5). Now, instead of being emotionally distant, he is completely consumed
!
McComb 2
by his emotions and has yet to deal with his personal traumas. Throughout the story, Allendeʼs uses lenses to physically show when Rolfeʼs emotional walls were up or down. When he was behind