You first really begin to see this in the essay Brothers. In this essay Lott begins with a story of he and his older brother at their grandparents pool. His brother pinches him, and Brett cries. Lott then speaks of a picture of he and his brother six months after his wedding, they are smiling and happy. He says "That pinch was entry into our childhood; my arm around him, our smiling, is proof of us two surfacing, alive but not unscathed." (32) Lott and his brother are not close, as he shows with the story of showing Zeb the picture of him and his brother. That fighting between Lott and his brother, even before he can truly remember, is a representation of their childhood and teenage relationship. His stories of his sons fighting, Zeb accidently hitting Jacob. Zeb's hand caught in the van door, represents the similarities between the two generations relationships.
He fears his sons relationship will end up like the one he and his brother have. You can see this when he's ending the scene where he's showing Zeb the picture, he writes "But I was thinking of my question: Who's the other guy? and the truth of his answer: I don't know." (30). He's almost lamenting the distance between his brother and himself. He makes mention of the distance between them through out the book, in several ways, the many times Brad runs away, the distance between them as adults, (physical and mental) and times like when Brad watches Lynn beat him up.
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI could identify the thesis very well; just long enough to get the point across and good.
In the second paragraph, there should be a comma where "in this essay, Lott . . ."
The sentence "You can see this when he's ending the scene where he's showing. . . " It would be easier to say "You can see this when he's ending the scene with Bret showing Zeb the picture . . ."
Through out is one word. In the same sentence, I would put it this way:
"He makes mention of the distance between them throughout the book in several ways; the many times Brad runs away, the distance between them as adults (physical and mental), and times . . ."
The examples are good and help prove the thesis. I know that you can still elaborate a little bit, but could only write so much for this post.
Very nice and I like where it's going!
Direct comparison and indirect comparison.
ReplyDeleteDoes Lott believe that his sons are exactly like his brothers?
Thesis:He is using the stories of his childhood to rely his fears for his own sons, their relationship, and their lives. (i have a very similar thesis.)
ReplyDeleteYes
on the plus side I feel your quote is a good one pertaining to your thesis and you did a great job of explaining the significance of the quote. Also, I like how you tied the two different generations similarities together, but try to find a direct quote explaining the the conflicts that Zeb and Jacob have.
I feel you used a lot of unnecessary summary after your first quote to inform the reader of your blog about the hatred relationship between Lott and his brother. Keep in mind that the readers of your blog have a strong understanding of the book.
I don't know if there is much of an argument for your thesis. I can't find it in the text, but I'm fairly certain that he mentions how he doesn't want to risk his sons turning out a certain way.
There is only one "t" in Bret Lott's first name.