M.C. Higgins The Great poses many difficult questions. Challenges in vocabulary, content and structure make this book different from the other books we have read this semester. I found that unlike other novels we have looked at, M.C. Higgins the Great invited us into a community in which we felt a complete disconnect. To me the most similar novel we have focused on was The Wizard of Earth Sea in the way it was difficult to visualize what was unfolding. I also found that the abrupt sentence structure would slow me down, as I would read. Once we discussed these difficulties and acknowledge their presences in class today I felt more confident in the way I approached M.C. Higgins the Great. Being aware of differences in difficulties gives the reader an advantage.
While reading M.C. Higgins the Great I worried about M.C.’s safety and ability to take care of his younger siblings. Part of me constantly wanted to intervene, obviously I didn’t have that control. I found M.C.’s relationship with Ben very interesting. I felt that they were two young boys that had the ability to break the barrier of differences in race, but both lived in fear of the preconceived ideas that their families held on to. Lifestyles as well as the mining that is occurring on the mountain segregate the community in this novel.
I also thought it was interesting that race didn’t seem to be the issue between the two families, but instead it was the “supernatural” element. This book was written in 1974, so I thought the main problem was going to be race, considering the civil rights movement was still going on, and this is a very rural setting, where traditions would hold up stronger than new laws. I’m glad Hamilton had the white Killburn’s as the outcasts of the area because having M.C. come to the realization that they have more in common than he thought, was a cool way to take the idea of prejudice out of the “race” playing field, and into the idea of difference in general. If their races had been swapped, this story would have probably been more about typical racial discrimination, but instead we get to see how a boy (who realistically would have been discriminated against for his skin color in much of the country at the time), grows and learns to accept others who are also sources of gossip and are treated poorly for their differences.
ReplyDeleteThe points you mentioned about the realism in this novel, such as discrimination and worrying, interested me as I also noticed this aspect of the novel, though it may be hard to actually visualize at times. The idea of "worrying" is one we visited a couple of weeks ago in reading Dicey's Song, and it seems M.C. as well as Dicey both felt the pressure of responsibility on their shoulders that led them to worry. However, the difference with M.C. is that he worries but he does not yet understand why in the early part of the novel. He is somewhat aware of the struggles his community must endure upon Sarah's Mountain. Discrimination against Ben's family, however, does not allow for the sense of community to arise just yet. It is only in dealing with the conflict of the threat of the spoil that they ultimately come together.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment about the disconnect. It is interesting that we read this novel directly after reading Dicey's Song which is one that most of us in class could relate (even if just a little bit) to her and her story. I also question if the vocabulary was another way that the author tried to separate us (the reader) even more from the world and the characters.
ReplyDeleteI also wanted to step in several times and help out M.C. I thought it was very similar to how I wanted to step in and save Dicey. Both of them dealt with the issue of race and differences amongst other characters. I liked how we read the two back to back. I think it would be very interesting to compare the two novels.
ReplyDeleteYour feelings of wanting to intervene and help M.C. speak volumes on how engaging Hamilton made this text for you as a reader. I also found myself wanting to step into M.C.'s world and either help, guide or support M.C. when I felt like he needed it most. Hamilton's ability to create a text that resonates so much with the reader that they wish they could become a part of the text is a very powerful skill. I believe that it may actually be this deep seated involvement and wish for inclusion in the text that makes certain points "difficult." I wanted to be there and I wanted to help M.C. but when I reached a sentence or a particular scene where I was lost and confused, the deep connection I shared with M.C. and the text was, in some way, disconnected and altered. I found that it was only through the acceptance that M.C. will learn and grow on his own at the pace and timing that is appropriate that I was able to take more meaning from Hamilton's creation.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the setting of this book and the language used to communicate MC's world could be difficult. The narration shifts made my mind jump in the story. I think that Hamilton intended such sudden changes because people often think in a similar pattern. I think you bring up another interesting point in the question of racial interactions between MC and Ben. I also wanted to see more resolution between them, and I felt that MC's exposed friendship with Ben near the end of the book was more focused on MC's maturation rather than on Ben's inclusion. I guess race was a more secondary theme.
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