Sam had been thinking when winter comes she will get a black motorcycle jacket and dye her old tan cowboy boots black. (7)
They eat in silence, and as Mamaw mops her plate with her roll, she says, "I keep thinking about Dwayne and how everybody's life is different without him. If he had lived, he'd have a house down the road with Irene, and you would have grown up there, Sam, and I'd have knowed you a lot better, sugar. And you'd have some brothers and sisters."
Sam shudders at the idea of growing up on a farm, doing chores, never going to town. She swallows clams and says, "What makes you think he would have stayed on the farm? Maybe he would have gone to New Orleans. Maybe I would have grown up in the French Quarter."
"Why, he wouldn't traipse off to New Orleans. It would cost a fortune to live there."
"What makes you think he wouldn't have been rich? Maybe he would have made something big out of himself. He might have been an airplane pilot. Or a movie director." (13)
Emmett just fiddles with the buttons on the old Army jacket in his lap. Emmett dragged it out of his closet before they left. He said it might be cold in Washington. It is summer and Sam doesn't believe him. (4)
Bobbie Ann Mason (b. 1940, Mayfield, Kentucky) on the back cover of the first edition of In Country.
Peggy Rea as Mamaw, Bruce Willis as Emmett, and Emily Lloyd as Sam in the 1989 film version.
In Country was a critical and commercial success when it was first published in 1986. Bobbie Ann Mason is not a veteran, and as she says in the back of our edition, she did not know anyone who went to Vietnam at the time she started the novel. "I did meet some soldiers from Fort Campbell on a bus and I was affected [by it]. I was a college student, and although the war was much on everyone's minds we didn't always see firsthand evidence of it, so meeting these soldiers was an awakening moment, They were so young and innocent and gung ho—and some of them were going to be wounded or killed. I was scared."
1. Your reaction to these first 20 pages? What particularly struck you or stayed with you?
2. Your reaction to Sam, our protagonist? How would you characterize her so far? Quote once in your answer.
3. The novel begins 9 years after Vietnam fell to the Communists in 1975—10 years after the last American troops left the country. So how does Mason portray America a decade after its most costly war (58,000 American dead, 150,000 wounded, 21,000 permantly disabled; 2 million Vietnamese civilians dead, 1.1 million North Vietnamese Army and Vietcong dead)? What does this America ten years after Vietnam look like? You don't have to quote, but use some specific detail in your response.
See you tomorrow. I'll try to give you time tomorrow to get to work on your paper. Maybe half the block discussing and half getting going on your essay.
This book is so straightforward in narration, I feel like I’ll miss a lifetime’s worth of details if I don’t pay close attention to every word. It is almost as if being told to people watch for twenty pages and pick up any interesting happenings. I cannot tell if I like this narration style or not, which makes for a more interesting read.
ReplyDeleteSam is a pretty standard teenage girl from what I have managed to pick up so far. She is going through her rebellious phase and is obviously infatuated with a guy, Tom, which we see when we read, “Sam had been thinking when winter comes she will get a black motorcycle jacket and dye her old tan cowboy boots black” (7), and when she talks to herself about missing Tom, etc. She is annoyed by her grandmother, drinks spiked Coke with her uncle, and is incredibly attached to her new car. I appreciate the way the story is written, without the typical gushiness of the fictional teenage girl, because otherwise her teenage characterization would be a bit much.
I think the America portrayed in this novel seems pretty similar to today’s America. It seems relatively unchanged by the war, with its shopping malls and Beatles albums; however, there are details like her uncle’s army jacket and the rigging of a cartop luggage rack (I’m assuming from another veteran) that remind the reader of the war before. I think this novel does a great job of showing how easy it is to forget. Sam thinks, “She would like to move somewhere far away—Miami or San Francisco maybe” (7). I don’t think Vietnam ever crosses Sam’s mind if the farthest places she can think to move to are Miami and San Francisco. America appears generally unchanged.
Prompt One: In the first 20 pages, the crew going to Washington is what struck me the most. An older woman grandmother to the driver of their car, but not related to the older man beside her… an uncle. Also why are these three together? Sam’s mom is likely at home dealing with the complications of having a child, but why does Mamaw come along? I was also struck by the uncle, Emmett, because of the line “A month ago, Emmett wouldn’t have gone to Washington for a million dollars…” (5). What changed? There is certainly a theme of unanswered questions I have noticed here.
ReplyDeletePrompt Two: Sam is rather mysterious (though so are most characters at the beginning of books). She references the previous summer and how it changed her. So too does she keep many secrets: “Mamaw would have a heart attack if she knew about the pot Sam had in her purse” (9)... And that secrecy is reiterated on the last page of Part One as she falls asleep, thinking of Tom. Also, who is this Tom? Is he culpable for these sudden developments of hers? Did she meet him over “The summer?” In short, she intrigues me. I’d characterize her as secretive.
Prompt Three:I thought that there were some rather funny moments… For instance, when Emmett plays the walkman it picks up stations from Pennsylvania. They are in Maryland. Hopefully mishaps like that wouldn’t happen now, a reminder of our slight technological advancement. And though the televisions still airs the Democratic Convention like it does today, there isn't any mention of the Vietnam war. The only allusions to that aspect of American history are the trip to washington and Emmett’s jacket. As far as the stories we’ve read this year go, this opening seems least like it’s related to war because of this lack of direct acknowledgement to its supposed subject matter.
1. I am intrigued by the mystery of the book. So far, it has raised a lot of questions that I’m sure (though it may be wishful thinking) will be answered so. Off the top of my head, these include major plot points, like why they are on this, clearly unplanned (as the have little money, no plans about where they are staying, etc), trip, to smaller details, like why Emmett brought his Army jacket (it is fairly clear that it isn’t to protect against the cold, there are deeper reasons). At this point, I really just want to learn more.
ReplyDelete2. So far, I’d characterize her as a bit of a ‘rebellious teen’. I actually wrote that phrase in my book, when it says “Actually, Sam never really cussed much before this summer. But now she feels like letting loose. … It feels good to say shit, even if it’s only under her breath” (8). She has started cussing, wants to paint her car and boots black to seem more “sinister” (7). She seems like she is enjoying rebelling against anything she can, most notably Mamaw, though her rebellions seem to be on the more subdued side. She says shit, a word that “shocks Mamaw”, but does it under her breath, so Mamaw doesn’t hear.
3. It seems like it has mostly recovered from the war, there are still McDonalds at every exit, but there is a clear scar left by the war. You get the feeling that everyone knows someone who fought, was wounded, or died in the war. On page 13, our travelers have a discussion about ‘Dwayne’, someone that, it can be inferred, died in the war. America ten years after the war has recovered from the war, but has not forgotten it, and those that died in it.
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1. One thing that I noticed and think is really interesting in these first 20 pages is the family dynamic. Why are the three most random family members going on a trip together? Mamaw and Emmett really aren't that related at all and Sam says that Mamaw isn't even the grandmother that she is closest with. It all seems really complicated. Why does Sam live with her Uncle and not with her mom?
ReplyDelete2. Overall I am pretty confused by Sam's whole situation and character. I want to know more about this Tom that she keeps talking about and I want to know what trip she is going on and why because she doesn't seem all that thrilled to be apart of it. She is obviously going through her classic, rebellious teenage years by hiding weed from her grandmother and secretly getting drunk without her grandmother knowing. She's excited about driving and the freedom that comes with it, even if her car doesn't even work. She views her grandmother as really old-fashioned and not-understanding, and she is frustrated with her grandmother's lack of worldly/travel experience. "Well, she's never been anywhere before, and she doesn't know how to act.' Emmett seems unusually calm and considerate. Sam doesn't understand it." Sam is, like many teenagers, impatient and doesn't understand older people and where they come from.
3. Mason portrays America 10 years after the war as split. Either you are wealthy, upper class, fancy-car owners like her mother, or you are poor and think that every hotel room you stay in is extremely luxurious like Sam does, and are very frugal with your money like Sam's uncle. It doesn't seem like there is any in between or middle class. Also, it doesn't seem like many people are thinking about the war anymore, everyone has moved on. The only reference to the war is Emmett bringing his Army jacket, but he does it very quietly and it doesn't seem like anyone really talks about the war. He is bringing his jacket in the summer so it's evident that the war had some impact on him however, he can't talk about it or explain why he feels the need to have the jacket with him.
Each character we are introduced to seems to have some internal conflict they are dealing with; Mamaw grapples with being extremely overweight, Emmet suffers from PTSD from the war, and Sam is addicted to pot and alcohol. These characters are all stuffed together in a broken car to cope with one and other on a long road trip. The scene in which Sam admits that “Mamaw doesn’t know Sam is a drunk and a done fiend”(20) stuck out to me. Sam clearly lets out her tension and sadness through these addictions. This scene illustrates how Sam and the other characters are so much more complicated than how they appear to each other. From the complex characters to the broken transfusion, Mason clearly depicts a very dysfunctional family trying to get by.
ReplyDeleteSam is angsty. She is in the midst of a quarter life crisis where she has bottled up her emotions for too long and is finally letting go, “but now she feels like letting loose. She has so much evil and bad stuff in her now”(8). Her life of having to care for Emmet and worry about money has tethered her wild spirit down to a life with limited opportunities. “Sam likes the feeling of strangeness”(17) rather than staying stagnant. Because Sam is deeply troubled and somewhat of an outsider, she seems to understand and empathize with Emmet in a way that Mamaw can not. Sam is a character fraught with complexities.
Mason depicts America as being in a state of limbo just like Sam. After the war, the nation is in a liminal space between a vicious war and deciding how to carry on as a country. As Sam watches the traffic, she says “they are at a crossroads”(17). She is not specific about who “they” is referring to, but I think that she is not only talking about herself and her family, but also America as a whole. Just like Sam who is a senior ready to start a new chapter of her life, the country is also in a transition period. “Crossroads” holds a symbolic meaning of being a place where one can make a deal with the devil and sell your soul to the devil. America and Sam are faced with this dilemma of which road to follow at the crossroads.
1. Your reaction to these first 20 pages? What particularly struck you or stayed with you?
ReplyDeleteOverall, I think after these first 20 pages, I am very curious about the reason why the group is headed to Washington D.C. Throughout the reading, there are slight mentions that the trip was once looked down upon, but now accepted. Sam narrates, “A month ago, Emmett wouldn’t have gone to Washington for a million dollars, but after everything that happened this summer, he changed his mind and now is hell-bent on going and dragging Mamaw along with them.” In addition, Sam hints that the past months have been very hectic and have changed apart of her. However, this little into the book, the audience is unaware what that event was. It makes me curious if whether or not those details are to be revealed or forever kept secret. The description of the characters also stuck with me a lot. The author describes each in great detail, using similes and metaphors for the audience to imagine them.
2. Your reaction to Sam, our protagonist? How would you characterize her so far? Quote once in your answer.
In a way, she could be described as just your average country young adult at that time. However, I believe that some characteristics that make up Sam so far is sheltered, naive, and innocent. “She has never been this far away from home before. She is nearly eighteen years old and out to see the world”(7). From this quote, she seems like a typical (a little sheltered), young adult who wants to find independence, having a natural curiosity for the outside world. It can be inferred that she lives in the small town of Hopewell, and that she does not travel frequently, if at all. However, this could also be attributed to her financial situation. However, I also believe Sam to be a bit naive and innocent. For example, when she was in the bathroom, she makes a note to remember the phrase for math class when we know that the excerpt is alluding to something else. In addition, Sam in naive in the sense that she refuses to think that Tom sold her a bad car. She believes in him wholeheartedly that he did a transmission on the car, rebutting Emmet whenever he tries to point out that there is something wrong with the car.
3. The novel begins 9 years after Vietnam fell to the Communists in 1975—10 years after the last American troops left the country. So how does Mason portray America a decade after its most costly war (58,000 American dead, 150,000 wounded, 21,000 permanently disabled; 2 million Vietnamese civilians dead, 1.1 million North Vietnamese Army and Vietcong dead)? What does this America ten years after Vietnam look like? You don't have to quote, but use some specific details in your response.
In a sense, the Vietnam war has never actually been flat out mentioned, as so far the story does not even seem to revolve around it. From non-analytical perspective, it would even seem as if this story could happen in the present time. However, there are some moments so far that allude to the idea of the Vietnam War. For example, the allusion is shown when describing Emmett bringing his army uniform on the trip, even though it was the summer and mentions of Sam’s father, Dwayne, who died in the war. One possibility for the purpose of the trip is that they are going to see the Vietnam Memorial, which could be a reason why Emmett brings his uniform, to pay his respects. All in all, the city almost seems to be recovered, yet at least for Sam, although see was not in the war, she still feels the repercussions of it.
My immediate reaction was that it is so much calmer than everything we’ve looked at so far. The scenery of the road trip is almost humdrum, and there is almost nothing happening in terms of action. However, like in The Deer Hunter, there are already indicators of conflicts below the seemingly tranquil surface. The car transmission is breaking down, Sam is defensive and experimenting with rebellion after an unstated swamp incident, Emmett smokes and drinks and seems extraordinarily distant and reluctant to plan ahead, and we don’t really know why Emmett has asked Mamaw to tag along on this road trip with her geraniums. Hanging over it all is the unstated reason that is driving them to visit Washington in the first place. After all, the reading ends, “She dreads going to Washington” (20). Considering that both Sam and, until recently, Emmett, don’t want to be heading to Washington, there’s something fairly significant that we don’t know about yet urging them forward. Something has changed dramatically recently. I was particularly interested in Emmett. There’s something about how withdrawn he is that sort of reminds me of Michael. Although there are hints that he may still be struggling to cope with the aftermath of the war, what with the smoking, drinking, and headaches that weren’t there pre-War, he is not openly falling apart and remains rather enigmatic. He also has a connection with nature, which manifests here as birdwatching, not hunting. I wonder whether the throwaway comment about some bird from Florida being seen in Kentucky is just that, or if birdwatching and his search for this one bird will somehow play a larger part in his character, since it is a rather random detail to note otherwise.
ReplyDeleteShe is incredibly teenager-ish. A bit defensive, a bit of attitude, lots of aggravation over not being treated as an adult. In particular, she seems to resent any suggestion that her recent car purchase was a bad deal, particularly since it seems like Tommy is also her boyfriend. It seems likely that she is interpreting this criticism as an attack on her maturity and adulthood, especially considering she has probably never made that many large decisions before. For Sam, it’s important to seem adult, and there’s definitely a bit of posturing that occurs in the way that she wants to drive her new car instead of switching off with Emmett, as well as the way, “Sam likes to say ‘Fill ‘er up,’” at the gas station and considers it one of the pleasures of car ownership (4). In addition, it feels like she is just starting to experiment with rebellion. After she swears quietly, the author notes, “Actually, Sam never really cussed much before this summer. But now she feels like letting loose. She has so much evil and bad stuff in her now” (8). There has been some kind of loss of innocence for Sam, at least in her own perception. Although we don’t know the catalyst for this change yet, it must have been fairly extreme if it leads her to perceive herself as evil inside. Yet, whatever is going on, she still worries about normal teenage things. “[The mall] is too far away, but she wishes she could run all the way there, so she could go in and see if they have that Beatles record she has been looking for” (12). Her concerns are everyday and fairly mundane. She comes across, so far, a fairly normal girl, not deeply traumatized of shellshocked, like many of our other protagonists.
Although Mamaw comes across as fairly traditional and Southern in her manners, such as her reluctance to mention that she had to go to the bathroom, the general culture seems much more liberal than the upbringing Kovic describes in Born on the Fourth of July. This free-spirited, hippy mentality is idolized by Sam, who thinks it’s dreamy that Jim Morrison got arrested for “exposing himself during a performance” and wants to paint her car black. Rebellion is definitely cool right now. There is no sense of being in war, even though it’s still somewhat on the radar. When they talk politics, Sam mentions that Reagan would like to go to war, and that the first mainstream female candidate for VP, Geraldine Ferraro, would not. However, despite these hints, this generation is not the one that went to war. Sam has not demonstrated much awareness of Vietnam so far. Her world is one at peace, and she can afford to spend her time thinking about dying her car black and finding a Beatles album.
Delete1. Sam as a character sticks out to me. “Sam likes the feeling of strangeness” (17). Strangeness is such an interesting thing to like. I understand liking new things or not enjoying monotony and routine, but strangeness has a negative connotation. Unlike Mamaw and characters from other stories and movies we have talked about, Sam does not feel a strong connection to her hometown, which seems to be the only place she has any connection to. For example, unlike Nick in the Deer Hunter, she would not want to be sent back to Hopewell if she died in another place. I am interested to see how her relationship with Tom, the guy who sold her the car, will unfold. I feel like the more the car deteriorates, the more strained her affections for him will become, but maybe not. I also wonder how she will handle her aggravation with Mamaw through the long trip to Washington.
ReplyDelete2. I like Sam. She seems to know what she wants and how to get it. I love her response to Emmitt when he talks about the broken transmission. She says, “I’m not sorry I bought the car, so don’t throw it in my face!” (7). I love this quote for a few reasons. One, it shows that she has a lot of character. Two, it shows that she will not have other people’s opinions or facts sway her. Three, the quote demonstrates her desire for action. She views the transmission as a problem that has no point in being discussed now because there is nothing to do about it.
3. This America is getting by. It is surviving, but it is also not thriving. This America is making do with what it has. America is just like Sam. She has a new sense of independence because she bought a car. The car may not work well and needs repairs, but it gets Sam, Emmitt, and Mamaw pretty far. Sam is not deterred by the car’s transmission troubles and continues thinking about how great she will be able to make the car look once she paints it black. There has been no mention of Vietnam, other than the fact that Emmitt was in the army and has an army friend who lives in Washington, who he avoids calling, even though they currently have no set lodging in Washington.
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ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the first twenty pages of the book. What stuck out to me was the ongoing talk of Sam’s car. It seemed as though every page centered around the state of the car. Perhaps, it is so important because it is the only thing holding this odd group of characters together. Certainly, the car is critical to the story as it is the reason the group is stuck in a “Holiday Inn” and it was their mode of transportation in the first place. The frequent mentions of the transmission “popping out” made me think that the car carries a lot of significance in this story (7).
ReplyDeleteI think that Sam is an experimental teen. It seems as though she is not only interested in experimenting with pot and alcohol but also herself. Mason states, “She would like to move somewhere far away” (7). Sam would like to alter her life which is also shown through her impatience for her grandmother who lacks life experiences. Sam wants to experience change. Mason, also states “Sam has been thinking that when winter comes she will get a black motorcycle jacket and dye her old tan cowhide boots black,” which clearly shows this (7).
Mason hints at the state of America through her look at Emmett. In one moment, Emmett plays with the buttons on his army jacket in a reflective way. Mason also talks about the state of America through talk of the democratic convention and Geraldine Ferraro, Kentucky’ female governor. The last mention of war that Mason makes is when Sam states, “Reagan wants to go to war’ (18). Overall, the majority of what America looks like ten years after Vietnam is shown through the pop culture. The references to the Beatles and McDonald’s make this America seem very similar to the one we experience today.
1. The thing that I am most struck by is the odd collection of characters we have met so far. Who are these people, where are they going exactly, and why? I also find the narration to be interesting as well; the story clearly focuses around Sam, yet it is not told from a first person perspective. The attention to detail is striking as well, the descriptions so clearly lay out the unique world in which the story takes place, yet there is a familiarity there as well.
ReplyDelete2. From what we’ve read so far, I’d classify Sam as the typical American teenager who’s going through her rebellious phase. Yet one thing that I find interesting about Sam’s character is how old she is, for when one thinks of an angsty teenager, the image that comes to mind is most likely not that of an eighteen-year-old on the brink of adulthood. This makes me wonder if she was extremely sheltered as a child, and what events have transpired recently that make it so “she now feels like letting loose. She has so much evil and bad stuff in her now” (8)?
3. Despite the fact that the Vietnam War was merely a decade ago, Mason’s depiction of America gives no hint of its past – save for one small reference to Emmet’s Army jacket – the country seems to have moved on and forgotten the war. Instead, the landscape is filled with fast food restaurants and McDonalds just as one could find driving down the interstate today. However, these landmarks reveal something about the culture, just as the Bruce Springsteen songs and TV programs do as well, they depict an American that is seemingly stable and prosperous, yet there are also undertones of economic instability and tensions brought out by the frugality and wariness of the characters.
1.I am still very confused by this first part of the book. It is unclear why they are heading to Washington, and I have a ton of questions about their family. However, I do like the writing style, as it is straightforward. The part that stayed with me the most from this reading was the description of Emmett’s head pains. I assume these headaches have something to do with war, and it is interesting how Mamaw thinks that she knows what it is. It shows her ignorance.
ReplyDelete2.I like Sam, so far, and I am intrigued to know more about her family life. I originally thought she was much younger than 18 (other than the fact that she can drive) because she seems very innocent. She describes scenery as resembling “scoops of ice cream” (7). She also seems childlike when she orders ice cream at the restaurant. However, after learning that she smokes marijuana and wants to “live anywhere but [her home town],” she definitely seems to fit the classic moody teenager description (7).
3. Mason portrays America as having a big divide between classes. Sam and her family do not seem to be particularly well-educated or well-off. For example, Sam finds the hotel to be extremely fancy because the toilet doesn’t clog. Also, something new and different awaits the group in Washington. This may symbolize a division between the government and the people. However, I don’t think this is much different from how today’s society looks. In terms of the war, the characters still seem very much affected by it. People who had family members who fought or died in the war are still thinking about it.
I got an eerie feeling from the narration about Sam; she is a mysterious character with an unclear background, yet she talks ominously about “everything that happened this summer” that changed Emmett. The amount of foreshadowing and hinting to previous events stayed with me the most; the reading left me wondering “who is Sam?” She seems to be in a strange place in life. She is not yet an adult, yet she tries to act like one; she drinks and smokes pot, but has a childlike view about her father “What makes you think he wouldn’t have been rich?...Maybe he would have been an airplane pilot. Or a movie director.”
ReplyDeleteI already talked about this, but Sam is somewhat of a question mark so far in the story; she seems to lack a fondness for her past: “I wish I’d wake up and not know where I was.” I would argue that Sam is damaged. We know that she has lost her father, drinks alcohol, smokes pot and wants to leave her past behind. She has grown up without a father and a mother whom we have not seen in the story so far, so it makes sense that she would have problems.
Mason portrays America as a country resistant to change; the characters talk about the presidential candidates. They talk about how the country is not ready for a female president (apparently still applies), but the other option will get them into war. We now know that America, fresh out of a war, chose the hawkish man over the seemingly popular woman. Also, the characters of the story also show reluctance to change; Mamaw has never been so far from home. Overall, the characters represent their country’s resistance to change; they want to hold on to what they know.
1) So far, I’m interested in these characters. I want to know who Tom is, and who Dwayne was. I assume Dwayne has something to do with the war, but honestly I don’t know if I should assume that just yet. There seems to be an unspoken loss, that isn’t acknowledged in full by the characters but has been alluded to over dinner and through general dialogue. I’m also incredibly interested to learn more about Sam and what has brought her on this road trip that she clearly does not want to be on.
ReplyDelete2) I found myself relating to Sam a lot in these pages. The sort of hypercritical inner dialogue is something I have found myself having over the past few years as I have formed my own opinions on things. I understand her frustration with Mammaw (I have been in similar situations with my own family members) but I also am interested to see if her attitude changes or shifts at all throughout the book. I doubt she will stay this critical or negative for the entirety of the book, and I’m interested to see what makes that change.
3) There seems to be a general dejectedness in the places they visit in these first few pages. The language used to describe the bathrooms, the car and even the people that Sam meets is extremely pessimistic. While this could definitely be related to her being a teenager, there is also a possibility that this negative aura stems from something much greater than simply her age. If I had to guess, I’d say that the generation growing up after such a devastating war has become pessimistic out of necessity: children have lose fathers, brothers, and their childhoods as they grow up in a time with so much destruction and division.