Writing Styles: Min Jin Lee and Kamila Shamsie

Min Jin Lee's writing style has similarities and differences to that of Kamila Shamsie (author of Home Fire). 

First, both novels are broken down into books. Yet from there the structure differs: Pachinko seems to be divided loosely by location or generation, while Home Fire was separated by different characters' perspectives.

Perspective continues to be an important element in both author's writings. Shamsie chose to have one character inform just one section, yet multiple character's perspectives are voiced in each of Lee's chapters. While Lee's approach is less straightforward or easy to keep track of than Shamsie's, it does help the readers to understand how different characters think about a situation in 'real time.'

Another key element of the authors' writing styles is their use of imagery and symbols. Shamsie seems to favor long descriptions of settings and repeating motifs, while Lee's narrative appears to focus more on constant actions and thought processes. There may be symbolism present as well, but its more subtle and more difficult for me to recognize right away.

A final aspect of writing style I noticed between the two novelists was the scope of their stories. Home Fire featured only a small number of characters, a much shorter span of time, and what appears to be less geographical locations (although there were multiple). I think this strategy is good for the 'case study' approach to social commentary as it gives readers limited and specific ideas to focus on. On the other hand, Pachinko's storylines span many generations and perspectives, which I think is a better strategy for making arguments about the ways social ideals, priorities, lifestyles, and challenges shift across time and individuals.

Shift in Setting

In this week's readings, the setting has moved from Busan, Korea, to Osaka, Japan. This transition has forced Sunja into a new life trajectory and altered the ways she thinks about herself, her relationship with others, and her beliefs about society.

While not without its struggles, Sunja's experiences in Busan were mostly stable and secure. Her work was valued, she enjoyed being close to nature, and was close to her mother. In Osaka, all of this changed, which increased Sunja's loneliness, stress, confusion.  However, Sunja also grew more resilient, confident, and business-minded in Osaka. Being cut from her familiar hometown and influences, she is able to find the skills to barter and grow her own kimchi business. In a way, life in Osaka opens Sunja's eyes to what she is possible of.

The Osaka setting also influences Sunja's relationship with others. She changes from being a dependent to having a family that in part depends on her. This alters her relations to Isak, Yoseb, Kyunghee, because she is able to contribute to their welfar, causing her voice and ideas to matter more. She is also able to feel deep love for her sons which allows her to more easily distract herself from Hansu.

Finally, moving to Osaka impacted the way Sunja thinks about society. She recognized the extreme poverty and discrimination against Koreans when in Busan, yet these are heightened and affect Sunja more personally when in Osaka. She is amazed by the way Koreans are treated in the "ghetto", as well as the cruelty she faces from other market vendors. It seems like living in Osaka is teaching Sunja that the world is a much more horrible place than she realized in her childhood, and that all that matters is the survival of her family.

"Interest" and Related Words in Equiano's Narrative

When reading the final few pages of Equiano's narrative, I was confused by the shift from focusing on the immorality of slavery to the potential profits from ending it. After spending the entire novel appealing to the reader's emotions: shock, horror, sadness, rage; why would Equiano decided to appeal to their logic with only a few pages left?

Honestly, the approach would have made more sense to me if it was more a 50/50 split. I can just imagine sketching out an outline of the novel: "Two reasons that slavery should be abolished is that 1) it is immoral and 2) it denies Britain potential profits", with half the novel dedicated to each reason. Obviously, however, this is not the strategy that Equiano decided on.

So why the last-minute financial interjection? Perhaps Equiano realized he had a wonderful wordplay opportunity in connecting financial interests to his interesting narrative title, and wanted to close his book on that impression. Or maybe towards the end of writing he decided he needed a back-up plan: if his personal account wasn't moving enough to convince the British Lords to abolish the slave trade, maybe the lure of money would suffice.

As much as I appreciate Equiano's wordplay, the numerous "interest"-related words at the end of the novel complicated its meaning for me. I look forward to hearing everyone else's interpretations to see if it did the same.

Learning from the Equiano Project

One of my biggest surprises from working on the Equiano project was learning that the movement to abolish the slave trade and the movement to abolish slavery were very different things. I feel like in my history classes, we have learned about colonial-era slavery and the Atlantic Slave Trade in the same breath, causing me to view them as inseparable systems that necessitate each other. I had always assumed that people in the 18th century felt the same way.

Yet recognizing that the two movements were separate put my understanding of history, and Equiano's narrative in a new context. I began to appreciate what it meant for Equiano's narrative to join anti-slave trade literature and focus on that more than slavery itself. I still think Equiano would want slavery to be abolished in its entirety, but it seems like abolishing the Atlantic Slave Trade is much more of a priority for him that he wants to focus on for his audience.

This helps answer some of my questions about why Equiano would keep mentioning how much better slaves were treated in his homeland. Originally assuming that his main goal was to argue for the abolishment of all slavery, I thought that including 'better' forms of slavery was an unstrategic move on Equiano's part. However, now my guess is that Equiano intended to communicate that slavery can be acceptable in the one's homeland under more humane conditions, but it is when the practice of slavery is conducted across the world that the true injustices arise.

Final Project Update

For my final project, I will be developing a literary interpretation about the experience of women in The Secret River. 

My current plan is to cover four main categories: lower-income women in early 1800s London (like Sal and Thornhill’s mom and sister), higher-income women in early 1800s London (like the green slippers lady), settler colonist women in early 1800s Australia (like Sal, Mrs. Herring), and finally aboriginal women in early 1800s Australia. I haven’t started research yet and this may end up being too much information to cover, in which case I will adjust.

Since these categories only cover two different locations, I am a little wary of using a geography-based platform like Neatline. I’m also unsure about using a time-based platform like TimelineJS, since all the topics are within the same time period. Maybe the best platform will be an exhibits tool like the Omeka one, a slides presentation with interactive components, or another visual tool like developing an infographic on Canva. Determining my final project’s platform is my current challenge, since it will impact the type of research and writing I do. If anyone has suggestions, comment and let me know!

To be completely honest, the final project has taken a back-burner position for me for most of this quarter. With a deadline so far away, it is difficult for me to motivate myself. I always end up getting distracted by other assignments and projects that are due sooner, and fail to make the final project a priority. I wonder if I should dedicate an hour of every week to working on the project or adopt another time management strategy. Hopefully once I finish the Equiano project, I’ll catch up on this one and have more to update soon!

Wealth and the History of Print

One of the most interesting themes for me from our class visit to Archives and Special Collections was the relationship between wealth and the history of print. I learned that not all texts and editions were made equally, and that a consumer’s financial position impacted the types of printed texts they would have ordered and owned.

Today, when we buy physical books they come with a cover and binding. Yet with the dawn of the printing press, consumers would go to a book binder and select their own binding for a book. Wealthier individuals could afford nicer bindings of higher-quality materials and even engravings of embossing. 

Monetary status also affected the insides of printed books. In the spirit of the old manuscript traditions, wealthy book-buyers would order their books to include hand-drawn or painted illustrations. These illustrations often featured colored dyes made from ground up materials like lapis lazuli and gold leaf. 

Finally, wealth impacted who had access to books. Since hand-scribing a book was such as time-consuming and expensive process, very few could afford them. Yet as new printing technologies made books faster and cheaper to mass-produce, more and more of the public could have access. 

Even today, money plays a role in print and other text availability. For instance, electronic devices that can support e-books or audio-books are often expensive. Also, many scholarly articles and texts can only be accessed with a paid subscriptions. I think while we have certainly made progress throughout history in making print and other texts accessible, there is still work to be done.

Thoughts on Transculturation

Right now, I consider transculturation to indicate foreign practices or ideas being adopted by an established culture. These elements may be accepted as they are, or modified by the established culture. 

What I find interesting about the term is the way it gives agency to the changing culture. Instead of presenting the exchange of ideas like passive surrender the way assimilation does, it lets often disempowered groups choose the ways in which their culture is impacted by another. The connotation of transculturation is also interesting to me. Assimilation is generally thought of as bad, but transculturation devictimizes and implies that some good can come when one culture learns from another, on their own terms. 

The confusing part of transculturation to me is whether the term applies to relationships where a culture with more power adopts practices or ideas from a less powerful one. I feel like the prefix 'trans' implies that the exchange should be able to go both ways, but I still would like to check.

An example of transculturation is the spread of Western medicine throughout much of the world. I think this is a good use of the term transculturation because it results in benefitting people as they are instead of harming them and forcing them to change like assimilation does.

Challenges and Surprises in Equiano's Narrative

It seems to be pretty clear that An Interesting Narrative was written with a certain audience in mind, and even clearer that I am not that audience. Like many mentioned in class today, reading the historical autobiography has proved to be challenging in multiple ways.

For one, the text constantly refers to people, places, and events that I am unfamiliar with. My edition has footnotes that often provides additional context on these subjects, but it can be exhausting to continually search for more information. I wonder if readers in the 1789 British world felt the same way. Was reading about the foreign customs and long-concealed slave practices overwhelming, or humbling as they realized how much they did not know?

Another obstacle in my understanding of An Interesting Narrative has been its exceedingly formal language. Sometimes, it felt like Equiano was so concerned with not offending the British lords that it masked any true anger he may have felt. And regardless of the tone, the style of almost never-ending sentences sometimes makes it difficult for me to get the point of what Equiano is saying. However, I think reading this style will become easier as I get used to it.

Finally, Equiano's narrative surprised me with its cheerfulness. I expected to be reading the words of a bitter, passionate man, yet his message is mostly positive and respectful. Constantly, Equiano looks on the bright side of his circumstances and relates his gratitude at the friends he makes and the elements of white culture that he adopts. To be honest, his style reminds me a bit of Voltaire's Candide (1759), and I'm not sure if that was intentional or not. Candide is a French satire that uses absurd optimism to critique social structures, and I wonder if Equiano is trying to do the same thing. 

I am certainly being challenged and surprised by An Interesting Narrative, but I still look forward to reading more and seeing how Equiano's life and ideas evolve.