So, it's been a while since I wrote one of these blog posts and I'm not sure what to really say. I guess I could go with what I see as heroic qualities of Juliette, but I'm not sure if that alone would be enough because I'm not sure if I've read enough of the book to have a grasp on all the heroic qualities. I mean, for the record, I'm pretty close to finishing the book, I probably will tonight, but I'm not sure if the author will kill off another hero. At this point I doubt that would happen, but I'm not sure at this point...
I'm rambling though. Back to Juliette and her heroic qualities. I mean, yeah, she's portrayed as good looking, which is helpful because most people like to have a hero that's good looking. And yes, she's really resourceful and is a good person, which again, people like to see in heroes. But she's not a very willing hero, is she? I mean, she didn't want to become sheriff when she was offered the position, and from the little tidbit I've had spoiled to me in class discussions, she doesn't want to become mayor. To me, a hero has always been somebody who's willing to step up to fight the oppression and all that good stuff, so maybe my view is skewed by Disney and superhero movies.
Again, rambling, sorry about that...Juliette is also super lucky and helped by others, a bit like the Greek and Roman heroes. She's helped by her friends for the cleaning suit, the Greek/Roman heroes are helped by the gods. She was lucky enough to not die in the poisonous air and stuff and to be able to get into the silo, the Greek/Roman heroes are lucky enough not to die during these terrible journeys full of monsters and beasts and poisonous everything. These qualities, I think, are important and have been used repeatedly for all heroes.
The next quality ties in a lot with the Roman and Greek epics. Juliette has a kind of homecoming story, where she goes on a journey and ends up getting her revenge on Bernard (I mean, I haven't gotten to this part yet, but people in class said it's true so I'm just going to go with it). In the Aeneid, Aeneas, the hero of the epic, goes on a journey in order to find a new place to call home. He goes on an epic journey full of love, loss, boring traveling, and a creepy stalker lady (Dido). In the end he fights a huge battle against Turnus, who also wants to rule the land. In this battle, Turnus kills Aeneas' close friend which just pisses off Aeneas who more or less turns into the Hulk and kills Turnus brutally. I mean, I don't think Juliette is the type that would brutally kill someone, but deep down it's the same thing of getting revenge at the person/people that have wronged the hero.
Overall, Juliette probably is a hero, just not the one I'm used to watching or reading about. She has the good qualities, such as not being ugly, being lucky, having good allies, and having a homecoming story, but at the same time, she doesn't really look like she's willing to be seen as a hero (which would probably also make her appear really humble, another good quality of a hero). I've heard a hero described as one who will do what's needed when others are too frightened to. With this definition in mind, I think Juliette is both a hero like those in ancient epics, and a hero that we can see in life outside of books and movies.
I don't think it's that she isn't willing to step up and be heroic as much as it is her wanting to feel at home and in a familiar setting. She's is a sort of hero in mechanical, emitting a confident and strong aura, with the ability to fix anything. She is also humble, which is part of the reason she doesn't step right up to go straight to the up top and be sheriff. Eventually though, she realizes that if the job is done right, she could create a sort of equality in the silo that would help her peers in the depths.
ReplyDelete"She has the good qualities, such as not being ugly, being lucky, having good allies, and having a homecoming story..."
ReplyDeleteOh, Eric. I love how bluntly you've phrased this. I agree that Juliette is a cross between the larger-than-life Greek/Roman heroes and the ones we see in everyday life. One difference I could mention; Greek and Roman heroes are almost always born into heroism, while Juliette comes from the working class. I think this cross is part of what makes her such an interesting, sympathetic character. She's attainable and easy to relate with, but at the same time she embodies the tropes we associate with the Greek and Roman epics. Nice post!