To recap: The narrator returns on leave from the Navy to attend his mother's funeral. While there, he talks his brother Sonny into staying in high school, reminding him that there is a piano in the apartment he will be living in, that of the narrator's fiancee's family. Sonny leaves that apartment when the mother complains about the sacrifices the family is making for him. When the narrator returns from the military, he and Sonny fight, and stop seeing each other. Then Sonny gets busted for using heroin (this is at the beginning of the story; there's been a long flashback in between). The narrator writes to him in prison on the day his daughter Grace dies. The narrator and sonny start to correspond, and when Sonny gets out of prison he comes to stay with the narrator and his family. That's where we are now.
1. We learn about Grace's illness and death at paragraphs 177-178; Sonny wrote about it in his letter to the narrator back at paragraphs 50-52. How does Grace's death matter in the story so far?
2. The narrator writes that Sonny's piano-playing in the narrator's fiancee's house (the narrator was away in the navy) must have been like "torture" to the fiancee's family. Please note that it's not that Sonny's playing is bad--on the contrary--but as the devoted follower of Charlie Parker, aka "Bird," Sonny is learning how to play a form of jazz known as "Be-Bop," and it's challenging to listen to, even today, for most people. At the time it was even more challenging because it was brand new.
Read over paragraph 170 as a description of a young artist in training, devoted to his art. Comment.
3. The narrator's mother tells him about the death of his father's brother (paragraphs 91-105). What makes the story particularly poignant or painful?
4. The narrator remembers Sunday afternoons and evening when he was a child in paragraph 82 (starting with "This was the last time I ever saw my mother alive." How does this memory connect to the narrator's feelings and thoughts about what is going on now with Sonny living with him, either taking heroin or not?
5. Try to put into your own words a succinct summary of the conversation between the narrator and Sonny at paragraphs 183-226.
6. In the conversation mentioned above, music and the effect of heroin are both discussed. Can you describe their relationship, according to Sonny, even though it's not easy for Sonny himself to express it?
12 comments:
hey everyone,
I am going to try and answer question number 3. The story is both poignant and painful for the reader to read. The story is so well described that for the reader they can almost imagine being there and seeing this death happen in their own minds. For me at least I could see this whole tragic incident playing out in my head and because of this the reader feels connected to both the people involved and feels like they are feeling the same feelings the characters are. I think that this story is particularly sad because it is the narrator's fathers brother who is killed and since the narrator never knew about it you feel sad for him and his father. All the years he never really had a huge appreciation or understanding for his father but know that he knows this I'm sure he would have treated his father differently or talked to him or something. In addition, it is really sad because the two boys were just trying to have fun and no one was supposed to get hurt. While it is sad, It is also painful because like I mentioned above you see it playing in your head and the part where the mother says that his father could hear his brother scream when he was ran over is extremely discomforting and by most readers would be preferred left out of the story if it were possible. It is also painful because of how rude the people who ran him over were. They didn't even apologize or anything and almost intentionally ran him over. In conclusion the story is both poignant and painful for the reader for many reasons. Have a great rest of the day everyone!
3. The narrator's mother tells him about the death of his father's brother (paragraphs 91-105). What makes the story particularly poignant or painful?
Adressing to question numbber 3, I think the story is poignant and painful because of the death of the narrator's father's brother. And lets not forget death of Grace too that's in the story. While reading, I felt unhappy and sad. THe description of the death of the father's brother is so well written that you start to have strong feelings for the character in the book, "Sonny Blues". I agree what Ashleigh responce to question number 3. This story is both poignant and painful.
Responding to #1.
I think Gracie's death matters so far in the story for a few reasons. One reason is that the narrator would never have written Sonny in jail. Gracie's death motivates the narrator to write Sonny because family deaths are important. He needed a strong enough excuse/reason to talk to Sonny. When the narrator describes how Gracie seemed fine one second, and died the next, this kind of relates to the narrator's worry over Sonny. Because of this tragedy, he is on higher alert for his loved ones. Sonny may seem fine, but the narrator is scared to lose his brother.
Addressing to question #6, music and the effect of heroin are both therapeutic for Sonny. When Sonny plays the piano, he is in a euphoric state. He dedicates his soul to music as if to unleash the pain from the inside. Also, Sonny tries to alleviate his life by taking heroin as well. Both music and heroin are different but they are similar at the same time. Music and heroin are addiction and people rely on them for the source of comfort. Sonny wants comfort in his life because he is lost and he is only experimenting to find his path.
Regarding question two, I have a hard time understanding what you mean by comment on him as a young artist. Sonny's life is clearly not meant for interaction with people. In the paragraphs following 170 the narrator explains how Sonny walked around the house like some sort of god, a movement in the atmosphere. Sonny has had an extremely hard time expressing himself in words. Instead, although not instantly, he is determined to show himself through music. He feels more comfortable behind the shadow of the keys rather than face to face. He is not yet ready to show himself as a musician but he understands that music is not about him. Music is about life, his life sufferings, his life mistakes, and his accomplishments. As said before, Be-bop was a relatively new style during this time. This new era led through horns such as dizzy and charlie parker. In reality, piano was a new idea for be-bop in it's early years. With little to look at, Sonny might be in trouble, but trouble can lead into greatness.
YO
Pertaining to question #6, I think the fact that he is so devoted to piano and such, and he has such love for it, this heroin helps him relax with all this love and devotion from time to time. When one works so hard on one particular thing, it can get very stressful and addicting. When this particular state comes into someones life, it's difficult to keep focus without some outside force guiding your actions and subconscience being. I think this heroine is the answer in his eyes. However, his love and devotion should not be affected by it.
Mason
I'm going to address prompt #1 tonight. While I agree with Sarah and her opinions, I actually had an additional thought that I thought I'd share.
I found that the account of grace's death was relevant because there is a long conversation in the story between Sonny and his brother about suffering and its place in people's lives. The narrator obviously suffered when his daughter died, and so he has every right to discuss suffering and the idea that nobody goes through life without suffering. I really started to see a theme of hardships and suffering and the way they are dealt with in this story, so I feel that Grace's death is important to show that the narrator suffered too. Even though his sufferings weren't as dramatic as Sonny's (i.e. drug use, not having a home), they were still just as painful.
Because of this dominant theme of sufferings, I found Grace's death to be quite relevant.
See everyone tomorrow!
In answer to question 5, Sonny and the narrator's conversation is Sonny describing what it is like to search and search for that perfect state where art and reality mix and the beauty of his music can just be let free, and he talks about how he was indebted to heroin, which allowed him to find that holy ground and how in order for anything beautiful to occur and even greater sacrifice has to be made.
In regard to number 2, I feel that music was what kept Sonny sane in some ways. He had lost his mother and his older brother was away. Sonny doesn't seem like a person that values interactions with other people, and seems content to be left in his own world. It seems like his family respected that and left him alone for the most part. I don't know if some human relationships would have helped him, or if music was all he wanted. I admire Sonnys dedication to his music as a young artist. He engulfed himself in his music, and into experimentation with new types of music. I can't help but wonder if it was his way to escape from what he didn't like in the world. He could express himself with his music and take risks that were still safe. I feel like music kept Sonny safe, yet his complete immersion in it made him completely lost when he had that conflict and instead of really dealing with it, takes his records and leaves.
Read over paragraph 170 as a description of a young artist in training, devoted to his art. Comment.
Paragraph 170 is a description of a young artist in training, devoted to his art. The paragraph discusses how Sonny "moved in an atmosphere which wasn't like theirs at all." Any artist who is completely devoted to his or her work, when really focused, leaves this world and this atmosphere. They are transported somewhere else and have a whole new set of problems. It becomes easy to forget the problems that the real world presents and become so engrossed in your art that the problems no longer need to be worried about. In this way Sonny escaped the difficulties of the world and became so caught up in his art that nothing else mattered. When one realizes how passionate they are about their art, other things in life become less important. The main point of the day is to grow and learn more about your art. Sonny was "all wrapped up in some cloud, some fire, some vision all his own; and there wasn't any way to reach him." This is the precise description of the growing artist who is devoted to their art. It becomes clear that Sonny is running away from life's difficulties and possibly even the prospect of growing up, by engrossing himself in his art.
Hello,
Addressing prompt #1...
First, I completely agree with Kacie in that the death of the narrator's daughter Grace shows the connection of suffering between the narrator and Sonny. But I think Grace's death is even more important because it symbolizes the narrator's reconnection to Sonny through letters. The day Grace dies is the day the narrator writes Sonny again in prison and this sparks their new relationship, as Sonny comes to live with the narrator and his family after he gets out of jail. We as readers are unaware of why the narrator suddenly decides to write Sonny in jail at this time, but perhaps it is because the narrator loses someone very close to him and realizes he does not want to lose Sonny forever also. The death of Grace is important because she brings the two brothers back together, if only momentarily.
Thanks
Hello,
Addressing prompt #1...
First, I completely agree with Kacie in that the death of the narrator's daughter Grace shows the connection of suffering between the narrator and Sonny. But I think Grace's death is even more important because it symbolizes the narrator's reconnection to Sonny through letters. The day Grace dies is the day the narrator writes Sonny again in prison and this sparks their new relationship, as Sonny comes to live with the narrator and his family after he gets out of jail. We as readers are unaware of why the narrator suddenly decides to write Sonny in jail at this time, but perhaps it is because the narrator loses someone very close to him and realizes he does not want to lose Sonny forever also. The death of Grace is important because she brings the two brothers back together, if only momentarily.
Thanks
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