Buffalo: coming of age
“... We spotted Four-Eyes crouching by the inert mass of the dead buffalo: he was collecting the blood pouring from the gash in a big upturned hat woven of bamboo leaves” (93).
“‘To gain courage, you must swallow it when it’s still lukewarm and frothy”’ (94).
Movies: coming of age
“The local girls were gorgeous, but we forced ourselves to concentrate on the screen, paying close attention to the dialogue, to the actors’ costumes and gestures, to the setting of every scene, even to the music” (19).
“The headman sat in the middle of the front row, holding his long bamboo pipe in one hand and our ‘phoenix of the earth’ in the other, to time the duration of our performance” (19).
Sijie uses the symbols of the buffalo and the movies to illustrate how the narrator and his peers experience adolescence and coming-of-age during their re-education. The buffalo that broke Four-Eyes’s glasses is slaughtered for his leaving ceremony. This ceremony is to celebrate the completion of Four-Eyes’s re-education, which is part of him growing up and fitting in with the rest of the new proletarian society. The headman of Four-Eyes’s village encourages him to drink the buffalo blood to symbolize him gaining courage, leaving behind his childish cowardice and bourgeois ways.
At the movies, even though the narrator and Luo are distracted, they acknowledge that as they become older, their responsibilities hold more weight and. This causes them to be very attentive during the movie even though there are a lot of other distractions.This demonstrates the maturity that they have gained during their re-education.
I like the title a lot, it's very clever. I also liked your unique insight on the movie scene, which most people would not think of.
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ReplyDeleteWhat connections do the buffalo and movies make?
ReplyDeleteYour analysis about the buffalo and Four-Eyes growing up & being a true Proletariat is insightful towards coming of age.
I thought the title was clever. How do you think the Little Seamstress matures, and do you think this is influenced by her meeting Luo and the narrator? I like how you connect to coming of age and explore the perspectives of different characters.
ReplyDeleteFollow up question:
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think the second quote about movies is saying about coming of age? Is it about how they have responsibilities to the village?
Why do they believe that drinking buffalo blood will give them courage?
ReplyDeleteI thought that the title was unique and interesting. I liked how you were able to link the buffalo and the movies together to coming of age.
What else could the buffalo blood incident symbolize?
ReplyDeleteAnother theme that these quotes could relate to is the theme of loss. Instead of seeing a movie for the carefree joy of it, the main characters are forced to do so as an alternative to back-breaking labor in the fields of the village. Also, the buffalo scene depicts the level that the characters descend to just in order to prove their compliance.
How could the buffalo and the events that took place be a coming-of-age moment for the narrator as well?
ReplyDeleteThese quotes link to coming-of-age by the responsibilities that they have entrusted upon them.
I love your title! I think the ideas you said were creative and different, which brought new perspective to the movie and tail.
ReplyDeleteWould you say the buffalo in the others scene also represent how the characters are coming of age?
ReplyDeleteThese quotes represent coming of age because it shows how the characters are learning to adapt to the world they have been thrust into and realizing how to survive.
I thought that your connection between the buffalo blood and the movies was very interesting. It showed a unique take on coming of age. How could you connect the two symbols into a more specific idea?
ReplyDeleteDoes drinking the buffalo blood represents something other than coming of age?
ReplyDeleteThese quotes represent coming of age because it shows that Four Eyes, Luo, and the narrator are learning to focus on the important things in their life and handle situations with maturity.
I also thought that drinking the buffalo blood represents coming of age. Do you think that it could represent something else at the same time?
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