What is maturity?

English historian John Finley wrote that, "Maturity of mind is the capacity to endure uncertainty," which I believe is an excellent definition to apply to Aleksander Hemon's Love and Obstacles. The nerve-wracking scramble for female affection, as other bloggers have pointed out, is a test of maturity that leads him into some gray areas riddled with doubt mitigated by his faith in the effectiveness of the "pill." The image I see clearest in the story is of a young man who is uncertain about himself, where a quest for sexual gratification mirrors a metaphysical search for identity. But when he is beaten and kicked by Franc and his woman chasing ends, the first thing he thinks of is his home, his regular family life, and his breakfast - comforting thoughts, but perhaps indicative of a reflex urge to return to certainty? How long did he endure? Was his pill perhaps symbolic of a lingering childhood optimism that finally gets washed away or was it like the freezer that malfunctions at the end of the story, rendering his journey moot?

Thoughts on Sbrenica

When reading on the atrocities that occurred at Sbrenica and the ineffectiveness of the UN to address leader Ratko Mladic, it got me thinking about how international institutions, though well-intentioned, consistently enable wars like these through their collective silence. One would wonder that if a leader's actions are publicly condemned, why would he still be allowed to participate in international circles and continue to receive politeness instead of protest? This reminds me of how a country can denounce one thing while still feeding their economy - a casual look-the-other-way, if you will...consider Equatoguinean President Nguema Obiang, who has been long cited by the U.S. for violation of human rights and political fairness, yet continues to receive support for his government-backed oil companies.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/7221.htm

Sanctions for abusers of human rights should be swift and absolute, and should, for all reasons, involve a dissolution from international trade and communication. Could Mladic have been stopped? I feel he could have been.

Aleksandar Hemon writes of Sarajevo

I was browsing Aleksandar Hemon's website, www.aleksanderhemon.com, and found one of his recent projects entitled, Nowhere Man, which I encourage everyone to visit. It contains a series of photographs and short entries of prose and poetry that are based on locations, like Sarajevo and my hometown of Chicago. His entry on the the buildings of Sarajevo, Not Buildings, was particularly chilling and a stern departure from the comical nature of Love and Obstacles, and presented a significant case against wartime violence with a slight nihilistic slant.

Humor and the Graphic Novel

One thing that I noticed while reading Persepolis was that owing to the work's visual content, the work was generally funnier than standard texts; I think this is because though humor is conceptive, it is also physical, it is also visual. This is the same principle that makes one laugh at a video reel of John Cleese doing funny walks but one barely snorts at a description of his outrageous postures. Had Satrapi placed the same tale in any other medium without visual context, I doubt the fragile humor would be well sustained. Perhaps this also speaks to the ability of the graphic novel format to "carnivalize" normal representations and make them more palatable to our senses. A good example of this is the graphic adaptation of Shakespeare's controversial Merchant of Venice by Gareth Hines, who carefully places the characters in deliberate postures to convey a certain degree of levity previously unnoticed. Take for example the following image:

The Chase

When the narrator of Love and Obstacles chased the two girls down the street at first I thought it was naive, desperate, and comical. Like most of this thoughts about relationships and sex he was as misguided as he could be. A few days later I listened to speaker from True North talk about sexual violence. I thought about all of examples I read over the semester as walked back to my dorm. After re-reading that piece of the story again I wondered what would've happened had he reached the two girls? What if in his drunken and desperate state he became violent in order to lose the virginity he was ashamed of? If this happened how would it affect his actions in the future? The same story that caused me to laugh and shake my head now became more unsettling. I realized that the narrator could've started down a path to become a rapist similar to the ones mentioned in the previous books we've read. Who knows how many of those men had the same urges and acted on them.

Below is a link to True North, a shelter and aid for people in abusive relationships.
http://www.truenorthofcolumbia.org/sexual_violence.php

Parents

Marji's parents in Persepolis allowed her to express herself everywhere. At home she was allowed to sit in on conversations and at times contribute. They defended her argumentative attitude when she caused disruptions at school. She was even sent to Vienna so her self-expression could be fostered. At a time when oppression was mainstreamed Marji's parents made room for her to voice her opinion. I feel that it is healthy for any teenager/young adult to be open with their thoughts. The mistakes and achievements that come from it are worth the wisdom that's gained. Marji's parents were not thinking of how she could become a successful child but how she could grow into a strong adult.

This link promotes the idea that free expression early in life is an important part of becoming a stable adult.
http://www.cse.nd.edu/~skuntz/FoodForThought/FiveEmotions.txt

An Apology

After 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were murdered what does an apology mean? Women who were pulled away from their fathers, brothers, sons, and companions will always suffer. The decimation of an economy leaves those willing to stay with little to purchase. As foreign forces stood idle neighbors were killing one another and burning each others homes. I do not fully relate to any of these situations, but an apology still holds value. If it's scoffed at by the generation that survived, then so be it. But for the Muslims growing up in Serbia, and the youth around the world, it is a sign of acceptance. The majority of the government admitting shame for being absent when their people were in danger. A short statement that requires an removal of pride and employment of empathy gives people hope. Not necessarily a gratifying sense of optimism but a chance that the future will be better.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8594625.stm