The Clucking Clock
“After that historic morning we got into the habit of re-adjusting the time on the alarm clock. It all depended on how we were feeling, physically and mentally. Sometimes, instead of turning the clock back, we would put it forward by an hour or two, so as to finish the day’s work early. In the end we had changed the position of the hands so many times that we had no idea what the time really was”(15).
Dai Sijie utilizes the clock to show the mundanity of life at the re-education village, as the boys repeat the same mindless rituals, while they are trying to understand themselves and their situation, they feel without purpose because of the pointless, work, and lack of an intellectual anchor, and as they grow older, they are in an even greater need for something to hold onto.
The Suitcase of Life
“After that historic morning we got into the habit of re-adjusting the time on the alarm clock. It all depended on how we were feeling, physically and mentally. Sometimes, instead of turning the clock back, we would put it forward by an hour or two, so as to finish the day’s work early. In the end we had changed the position of the hands so many times that we had no idea what the time really was”(15).
Dai Sijie utilizes the clock to show the mundanity of life at the re-education village, as the boys repeat the same mindless rituals, while they are trying to understand themselves and their situation, they feel without purpose because of the pointless, work, and lack of an intellectual anchor, and as they grow older, they are in an even greater need for something to hold onto.
The Suitcase of Life
"After a few moments’ silence I reopened the suitcase: ‘What if we just take a few? He won’t notice.’ ‘But I want to read all of them,’ Luo said resolutely. He shut the suitcase again and resting, on the lid like a Christian taking a solemn oath, he declared: ‘With these books I shall transform the Little Seamstress. She’ll never be a simple mountain girl again’”(100).
The suitcase symbolizes an anchor in Luo and the narrator’s life. While they push through the hardships of their re-education, the suitcase is a beacon of hope that could potentially grant them happiness and self-fulfillment in their lives that the village.
I loved the title on this piece. I had to read the title over a few times to really understand the meaning, but once i read the rest of the symbolism it made perfect sense.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the way you analyzed the meaning of the alarm clock. The idea of it being a routine that occurs over and over again is the perfect way to describe the clock and the lives of Luo and the narrator. I also like the way you connect both your symbols to life of reeducated people.
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