How does Sebold use representations of speech and other stylistic techniques to present Jack in the extract printed below, and in one other episode elsewhere in the novel?
How does Sebold use representations of speech and other stylistic techniques to present Jack in the extract printed below, and in one other episode elsewhere in the novel?
Sebold presents the character of Jack as having conflicting behaviour after Susie’s death. Initially after the death of his daughter, Jack is mentally strong and seems to be coping with Susie’s death in his own way, but we later realise Jack is not as strong as he seems on the surface, and is close to the breaking point himself.
This is because in chapter 5 we see Jack trying to explain how they won’t see Susie anymore to Buckley, during this part of the novel we see Jack as comforting although he is grief-stricken himself. For example, Sebold makes it so that Jack is using a very patient tone so he can explain it thoroughly to Buckley, who is still a child and will find it difficult to grasp the concept of death at such a young age, this is clear in the line: “when I rolled the dice, one of the pieces would be taken away, what would that mean?”
“They can’t anymore?”
“Right”
“Why?”
This is a good example of Jack’s patience as we see how Jack wants to say ‘”because life is unfair” or “because that’s how it is”’ but does not because he wants to make sure Buckley fully understands the situation his family are in and what has happened to his sister.
In the extract, we also see a blunt side to Jack, as when Buckley asks why the person cannot play anymore, Jack considers what to say, and instead just tells Buckley “Susie is dead” which seems a rather harsh thing to tell a 4 year old child, but Jack cannot find any other way without it being to confusing for Buckley. However, the compassionate side of Jack is seen when Jack bursts into tears after explaining Susie’s death to his son, and explaining that none of them will ever see her again.
This is in stark contrast to the Jack we see earlier in the novel,
Sebold presents the character of Jack as having conflicting behaviour after Susie’s death. Initially after the death of his daughter, Jack is mentally strong and seems to be coping with Susie’s death in his own way, but we later realise Jack is not as strong as he seems on the surface, and is close to the breaking point himself.
This is because in chapter 5 we see Jack trying to explain how they won’t see Susie anymore to Buckley, during this part of the novel we see Jack as comforting although he is grief-stricken himself. For example, Sebold makes it so that Jack is using a very patient tone so he can explain it thoroughly to Buckley, who is still a child and will find it difficult to grasp the concept of death at such a young age, this is clear in the line: “when I rolled the dice, one of the pieces would be taken away, what would that mean?”
“They can’t anymore?”
“Right”
“Why?”
This is a good example of Jack’s patience as we see how Jack wants to say ‘”because life is unfair” or “because that’s how it is”’ but does not because he wants to make sure Buckley fully understands the situation his family are in and what has happened to his sister.
In the extract, we also see a blunt side to Jack, as when Buckley asks why the person cannot play anymore, Jack considers what to say, and instead just tells Buckley “Susie is dead” which seems a rather harsh thing to tell a 4 year old child, but Jack cannot find any other way without it being to confusing for Buckley. However, the compassionate side of Jack is seen when Jack bursts into tears after explaining Susie’s death to his son, and explaining that none of them will ever see her again.
This is in stark contrast to the Jack we see earlier in the novel,