Black Swan Green Analysis
Mitchell introduces Jason in Black Swan Green in a brutal game of British Bulldogs where he appears happy and carefree despite his mediocre social status. However, Jason’s liveliness disintegrates from dealing with his parent’s arguments to bullies at school. Jason’s identity undergoes metamorphosis as he struggles to grasp his true persona: Eliot Bolivar, a sensitive poet or Jason Taylor, a stuttering kid. He faces the challenge of conforming to society’s norms of a teenage boy whilst staying true to himself. Jason refuses to reveal that he’s a poet because he’s afraid of the negative connotations of homosexuality and femininity that come along with that title. On the road to self discovery, Jason learns about the importance of confidence
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When Jason visits Mrs. Gretton, he notices that “if [he] can reach this state of not caring, Hangman’ll remove his finger from [his] lips” (289). Since Jason doesn’t worry about Mrs. Gretton’s judgement of him, Hangman isn’t present when he talks to her. Therefore, Jason realizes that his speech defect will disappear if he doesn’t concern himself with the opinions of others. His newfound lesson of confidence and self-assurance allows him to stand up for himself. Jason makes a deliberate decision to destroy Neal Brose’s calculator in a vise, “putting all [his] weight on the rod thing. Gary Drake’s skeleton, Neal Brose’s skull, Wayne Nashend’s backbone, their futures, their souls. Harder” (259). To finally avenge the cruelness inflicted on him by his bullies, Jason takes a drastic move. Although the misbehavior shouldn’t be viewed positively, Jason is miles away from who he was at the beginning. Step by step, he learns to assert his beliefs in a poised manner. In Miss Lippett's class, he voluntarily speaks up about Neal Brose’s ‘buggered’ reputation and for the first time, Hangman isn’t in the way of his speech. In fact, he astonishes the class with a self-assured statement in which he notes, “that appalled silence was my handiwork. Words made it. Just words” (268). Jason goes from being impressed by Julia’s use of words to defend herself to doing the same in a classroom. He transforms into an adolescent with influence and significance behind his words. Not only does Jason gain confidence along his journey, he also understands the importance of
When Jason visits Mrs. Gretton, he notices that “if [he] can reach this state of not caring, Hangman’ll remove his finger from [his] lips” (289). Since Jason doesn’t worry about Mrs. Gretton’s judgement of him, Hangman isn’t present when he talks to her. Therefore, Jason realizes that his speech defect will disappear if he doesn’t concern himself with the opinions of others. His newfound lesson of confidence and self-assurance allows him to stand up for himself. Jason makes a deliberate decision to destroy Neal Brose’s calculator in a vise, “putting all [his] weight on the rod thing. Gary Drake’s skeleton, Neal Brose’s skull, Wayne Nashend’s backbone, their futures, their souls. Harder” (259). To finally avenge the cruelness inflicted on him by his bullies, Jason takes a drastic move. Although the misbehavior shouldn’t be viewed positively, Jason is miles away from who he was at the beginning. Step by step, he learns to assert his beliefs in a poised manner. In Miss Lippett's class, he voluntarily speaks up about Neal Brose’s ‘buggered’ reputation and for the first time, Hangman isn’t in the way of his speech. In fact, he astonishes the class with a self-assured statement in which he notes, “that appalled silence was my handiwork. Words made it. Just words” (268). Jason goes from being impressed by Julia’s use of words to defend herself to doing the same in a classroom. He transforms into an adolescent with influence and significance behind his words. Not only does Jason gain confidence along his journey, he also understands the importance of