Book Cover
Blog 2
John has a vivid imagination, but his imagination only provides him with momentary glimpses of escape. Largely, his imagination seems to only deepen his named and un-named sorrows. Discuss how John's wishes and fears manifest through his imagination (pp. 22-43) and their meaning and significance using examples and quotations from the text.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
An instance where John has a momentary glimpse of escape is when he is on the hill in Central Park. "He did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and I sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him" (Baldwin 27). His vivid imagination only deepened his sorrows towards the absence of a glorious life. John hopes for glory in the present rather than waiting until the afterlife. His wishes and fears manifest itself into John's vision for conquest and the desire for a life with options and freedom. In the quote, John mentions "power" and the "glowing" city before him, which has a deep-seated meaning for a better future with hopes for a chance to take control of his life and explore the world before him. Another example of this would be his desire to enter the Public Library on 42nd Street. John says, "He would enter on another day, when he had read all the books uptown [in Harlem], and achievement that would, he felt, lend him to the poise to enter any building in the world" (Baldwin 31). Once again, he strives to be a better self with more knowledge of the world around him.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your response because John is trying to better himself. He tries to get away to clear his mind but yet he still somehow thinks how he can better himself. John is making sure he does not let himself down or his family down. He does not want to be in the streets. Although his imagination is very vivd it has a lot details and gets straight to the point on what he wants in life.
DeleteI agree with your response. John is striving toward the goal of having a glorious life. He does not wish to wait for this glorious life. He wants power and glory now and his is willing to work hard to achieve it. John is indeed trying to better himself, because bettering himself means a better John. He is also reaching for knowledge, the knowledge to reach his ultimate goal of having a glorious future life.
DeleteI agree I think this moment of resolution for John and accepting who he is and that the world will be as it is foreshadows the rest of the section. John is very concerned with the perception of his family towards him as well as all others of various races, but later in the section Roy is stabbed and the parents focus an immense amount of their attention on blaming each other for Roy's shortcomings that occurred due to a differing race as del as his father continuing to put his hands on the mom and Roy for his own self pride. I think that this demonstrates to John that he cannot please everyone despite what he does and that he will need knowledge of the world and self to have a great future.
DeleteI agree because this is exactly what I would do if I were John. I often go away to clear things off my mind and get away from some people, and this is what is John did he went to his secret place.
DeleteI agree with your post. John is angry about the life he is living and his imagination is simply an outlet for his anger. He image what he wants to do because he fears the consequences if he were to actually do it, or they are unrealistic.
DeleteJohn is looking for a better way to live his life. Whether that way be the way his family expects it or the way he truly wants to live it. I think that John is struggling with how he was brought up, and his own will to live. John has a lot of built up anger and I believe that his vivid imagination is the manifestation of that anger. John wants power either to destroy or to build up, but he's not quite ready to have the responsibility
DeleteI defiantly agree with your post. It struck out to me from the rest because you emphasize the importance of John wanting to better his life and overcome his fears. He is coming to terms with what is expected of him and what he is actually capable of. We see the struggles he is introduced to but this all leads up to the transformation he is to take in the future. Accepting responsibility and growing as a person to better his future. I feel like I saw eye to eye with you on our perspective of this topic.
DeleteI agree with your response, because it is clear that John is struggling with the idea of giving his whole life to God and missing out on opportunities such as going to the library.
DeleteI agree with exactly everything you said. in the novel John is having a hard time with the life that he is living and wishes maybe that he could do otherwise until he remembers why he cant.
DeleteI also agree with your post because I feel John is trying to find himself as a person and doesn't understand yet what he wants for himself but becomes positive as he tries to better himself.
DeleteI agree with this post 100% because if I was in the same predicament/position as John I would've probably done the same thing.
DeleteIn this section of the book "Go Tell It on the Mountain" John climbs a hill in Central Park to where he can view the city of New York. James Baldwin writes that John suddenly experiences a vivid imagination of himself with great joy, "He did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and I sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him" (Baldwin 27). John feels like he holds a great deal of power that he can destroy the entire city, by crushing everyone like giant.This imagination that John has is detrimental towards his named and un-named sorrows because he feels the need to cause harm and disaster to innocent people instead of having the power for the use of goodness. John's wishes say "he felt like the long-awaited conqueror at whose feet flowers would be strewn, and before whom multitudes cried, Hosanna!" (Baldwin 27) This means that John wants to be that one person whom everyone should look up to and see him as the leader, and person with all of the power. This is very significant because he feel like no one notices him whenever he is out and about' even his own parents would not pay him any attention. Therefore he fells like he should do something, or in this case have something that can give him that attention that he desperately desires. John fears that he would end up exactly like his father. Baldwin writes, "In the narrow way, the way of the cross, there awaited him only humiliation forever; there awaited him, one day, a house like his father's house, and a church like his father's, and a job like his father's, where he would grow old and black with hunger and toil" (Baldwin 28). This means that John does not want to watch life passes by him, wondering what resources he needs or working extremely hard for nothing. This situation is significant to John because he tuns away, and he goes somewhere where he feels that he will succeed in life.
ReplyDeleteYour interpretation of this particular situation is unique and makes perfect sense. I believe John's feeling of power while standing on the hill reveals a darker side to him that emerges throughout the story. It illustrates the turmoil he experiences with good and evil on an internal and external basis. I also agree with your statement that John fears becoming a person like his father and that he struggles with his actions when being mindful of that fear.
DeleteI think that the scene on the hill is more than John not wanting to follow in his father's footsteps but trying to decide which road he wants to take in life. In his short life he seems to have experienced a lot of pain and maybe even rejection. He doesn't feel special or important so him being powerful allows him to inflict the same sorrows he feels on others. But he also worries about his soul if he were to do this. So he is facing an internal conflict between being a "good" man like his father, although he doesn't think his father is good, and being powerful and evil.
DeleteBaldwin explains what exactly is going on in John's mind as he gets on top of his favorite hill. While Baldwin is elaborating on John's vivid imagination he also shows how once John is thinking too hard he tries to run away from the hard concentration on life;"...and then began to run down the hill, feeling himself fly as the descent became more rapid, and thinking.."(27). John was thinking about how people did not love or like him at all and always judged him. Also on how the his parents saved him from the streets and violence with their open arms; "Then he remembered his father and his mother, and all the arms stretched out to hold him back, to save him from the city where, they said, his soul would find perdition." The things John thinks of symbolizes his strength and courage in life on how he has a very strong support system and how he does not want to let his family or himself down from becoming that "special something" in the future. He wants to make sure his family and especially his mother never feel as if he let them down since his mom said "You going to be a might fine man, you know that? Your mama's counting on you." (25) Through this section it shows John truly has a lot on his mind making sure he does not let anyone down in his immediate circle of loved ones.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your response concerning John's imagination. Because of his upbringing, whatever John imagines in his head can only be thoughts that cannot be transformed into reality. The statement I found interesting in your entry was the section where you made the connection between him running down the hill as a action for him preventing himself from thinking too hard. I thought this was a good insight because I never really thought about it like that. Now that your presented that statement I understand why you would think of it from that perspective.
DeleteI also feel that you made a great connection between John's inner thoughts about his life and him running down the hill.Because he is always judged, he tries his best to do the right thing to make other people happy and he is not living for himself. Having these thoughts are just his conscience telling him that he can be "freed" of his imagination. He's dreams can become a reality.
DeleteI loved your post!! Especially the comparison between him at the top of the hill idol in thought and him running down the hill so that he could clear his mind of the deep thoughts that were going through him head. Your thoughts on John's imagination were really thoughtful.
DeleteI agree with your response. I love the way you infiltrate the lines of the text with your opinion, it flows perfectly. John is trying to escape the harshness of the social realities placed on him.
DeleteJohn wishes to better himself while also satisfying and living up to the expectations of other; however, he fears the possibility of not being good enough and failing. Baldwin states "He did not know why, but there arose in him an exaltation and a sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed before him. But when he reached the summit he paused; he stood on the crest of the hill, hands clasped beneath his chin, looking down." When John develops enough courage to take risks and control his own life he always end up stopping himself because he fears the result of the aftermath. Although no one pay attention to him, he believes that if he does something wrong, he will put on display. He tries to please everyone else by allowing his own wants and desires to be put aside.
ReplyDeleteI like how you brought up the fact that John stops himself from straying from the norm or the expected due to fear of consequences. I also agree with the idea he puts his own desires on hold for other people, and I think this fact will play a part in John's future decisions. I'm curious to see if he will learn to take care of his own desires rather than reflecting others expectations.
DeleteI would agree with you that John shares a great deal of fear. Yet, he imagines himself with a great amount of power. It becomes very contradicting. I also believe that his struggle to reach the expectations of others while neglecting his personal wants will continue throughout the novel. For instance, he wants to tell everyone that it was his birthday, but he didn't. He wanted to go play "stick-ball", but he cast aside the idea and attended to his mother's call. I believe this continuous struggle will either be his downfall or his revolution.
DeleteI would agree with you that John is trying to please others and because of this he at times has to give up his wants and desires. He is in the situation that many people struggle including some of ourselves where your parents want you to carry on the family business or to go into the same profession. Ex. This guy at my work named Kevin, and his dad is a Master engineer who wants his son (Kevin) to follow the same path. Kevin hated engineering and for years he struggled to tell his father that he wanted to become a chemist. In the end, his father finds out and gets mad, but is also glad that Kevin told him and now Kevin is currently in his final years in college working to become a chemist engineer so he can please his love of chemistry and his fathers' love of engineering.
DeleteThis(above statement) should show that the most important things in life are the things most important to you and that your parents should be able to understand that if you deeply care about something they should give their full support.
Deletei agree with your clam because John always seems to be in a fight with himself. He seems to never know whether to be himself or to be something that his parents want him to be. He has too much pressure from the members of the church to be a pastor like his father. He doesn't want to disappoint his parents and do something that is frowned upon.
DeleteWithin this section of the novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, Baldwin allows the reader to view John’s contradicting imagination. As John stand on top of the hill he imagines conquering the city and gaining great glory. This is noticed when he states, “…he felt like a conqueror at whose feet flowers would be strewn, and before whom multitudes cried, Hosanna!” (27). This statement shows that John has control over his own destiny. He alone will conquer the city in a way that he chooses. Yet, even after illustrating such glory John swiftly shifts his train of thought to his father and mother saving him from the city which would bring him damnation. “…his father and his mother, and all the arms stretched out to hold him back, to save him from this city where, they said, his soul would find perdition” (27). Here it can be interpreted that his parents are his protectors and guiders. However, one can also develop the idea that John imagines his parents as his constrictors; forcing him onto the path to which they see fit, or one that is expected. John’s imagination could once again highlight his everlasting battle between living a righteous life or one that seeks his own desires. Also, a hanging decision of controlling his own destiny or following what has been predetermined for him.
ReplyDeleteParents are commonly known to try and live through their children. They teach their children to be them and confine them by forcing their beliefs and habits upon them. Some parents call this "teaching their children about reality" while some children characterize their lives as a prison with the same walls and floors and having to become what their parents expect of them in order to escape. However in the process, the children lose their independence and curiosity about life. In essence., the children lose themselves They are lost to their dreams and are conflicted because their parents forced their determination to live life out of them. I strongly agree with this claim and the exposure of predestination versus individuality.
DeleteI agree with the end of your response pertaining to John's parents. I do thing he sees them as a protector but also restrictors, making him believe what they see fit for him to do in the eyes of the Lord. It is as if they are forcing him down one path by not allowing him to explore another path. I think he sees both sides to his parents and knows that they expect some much from him. i think this confrontations between himself is what leads to his imaginations. He is trying to figure out what path to take.
DeleteI agree with your views of this section. I feel as though John is searching for his own identity in spite of what others have already planned for him. He is having an internal battle on whether he should stay on the path his parents are on or stray from that course into one that is completely his own.
DeleteI believe John is very confused about what he wants to do in life. I think that he doesn't want to be a pastor, but everyone is looking forward to him becoming one. John doesn't want to disappoint his his family,nor his church, so he is having mixed feelings. When his mind starts to wander on the hill, I felt as though John, was trying to see the light, or brighter side of becoming a pastor. This is how i interpreted most of page 27, beginning with the line that reads "But when he reached the summit he paused; he stood on the crest of the hill, hands clasped beneath his chin, looking down. And ending at, then he remembered his father and his mother, and all the arms stretched out to hold him back, to save him from this city where, they said, his soul would find perdition."
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with this claim. It is so often that we as a people feel the need to impress or live up to the spiritual and mental expectations others set for us that we forget or mask the things that we desire and hope for in life. It is almost as if our identity is altered.
DeleteI agree with this claim as well, because parents are the reflection of who you are inside. He feels as if he fails, then they will be upset with him, which is what most children feel in real life. His parents are a bit extreme when it comes to his life, because they tell him what they want him to do, and never really give him a chance to figure out his own path in life, which is what the imaginations signify. The imaginations are visions of what his future can be, but also shows how confused he is in this part of his life. He wants to escape the life his parents want him to live, but he cannot find a way out just yet.
DeleteI agree with your reasoning, because John is only fourteen year old boy, having tips from the future and how is trapped in the life of the sin and holy. He seems confused of what he wants his life to be because some people want him to be just like his father but others don't want to wai.
DeleteIn the story, John is on on top of a hill in Central Park when he receives a glimpse of escape using his imagination, "...and he would live in this shining city which his ancestors had seen with longing from far away.For it was his;the inhabitants of the city had told him it was his;he had but to run down,crying,and they would take him to their hearts and show him wonders his eyes had never seen.(27)".John is in a constant battle between living a holy and "right" life like his father, or venture out into the city of darkness which holds more opportunity for him.He feels as if his parents and the church are holding him back from the city to avoid evilness and temptation
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you. John is struggling with following behind his father or looking out into the world for more answers and opportunities that could possibly be awaiting him.
DeleteI agree as well. John is being held back on account of what others have experience and seen, for instance, his father not liking white people because of how he sees them. He will never have the opportunity to live life if his father and church continue to push him in the direction that they feel is best for him. It is possible for him to live a good Christian life without him being forced to be a pastor.
DeleteAfter John is surprised by his mother who gives him birthday money and tell him that he is growing up to be, "a right big boy," and how the Lord helps those who help the Lord (25). He later goes on to talk about the hill in Central Park where all the old men and dog walkers hang out. While thinking of the hill his imaginations start to go wild and dreams of," ...he saw the skyline of New York. He did not know why but he rose in exultation and a sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed like him" (27). In a sense this is a reference to John wanting to escape the shackles that is bring him closer to God while he is trying to fight his oppression, so he can be a normal kid and go out in the world and see it as it is.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your response because John is constantly being reminded that he will grow up to be like just like his father. John hates the fact that people are trying to plan his life for him. The only time that he has the chance to be himself is while he is running up the hill like an insane person because he is trying to elude himself from what people said that he will become in the future.
DeleteJohn's wishes and fears manifest through his imagination because his subconscious mind is expressing what is haunting him and how he really feels. As John struck out over a steep path, "He did not know why, but there arose in him a sense of exultation and a sense of power.."(27). John is subconsciously searching for power. He is unknowingly seeking it out in the depths of his mind. It is almost as if he has a secret mission for this power. When John reached the summit, "He paused; ha stood on the crest of the chin hands clasped beneath his chin looking down. Then he felt like a giant who might crumble this city with his anger"(27). John"s pent up anger and frustration is emerging as he realizes that he still has not accomplished anything. His still has not found the power that he is seeking, that his is constantly searching for.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your statement, I do feel that John's subconscious mind is trying to take over how he truly feels. He has always wanted to live a different "path" than what his parents have mapped out for him. It is very difficult for him to express to his parents and tell them how he feels so he can, for now, only live through his imaginations.
DeleteWhile John is in Central Park he has momentary glimpse of escape as he is approaching a hill. This is found as the author said, "He did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and I sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him"(27). John does this because he wants to live a normal life like every other kid his age. He is tired of people planning his future for him. Also, John wants to have to his own life, while having to deal with pleasing others and what they want to do and become. In a way this is John trying to escape from becoming a man of God without hurting his family or others surrounding him and their hopes for his future for becoming a predecessor of his father.
ReplyDeleteIn this section of the reading, Baldwin starts to reveal different actions and thoughts that John does. For instance, when John was on his favorite hill in Central Park. He visioned all these imaginations, in which cannot be made into reality because that was not the "path" that his parents wanted him to take. When John reached the top of the hill it states, "... he felt like a long-awaited conqueror at whose fleet flowers..." (page 27). I interpreted this statement that when John become old enough in time he finally understood what his thoughts thoroughly. In the sentences after that line the novel details how he ran down the hill crying and people took him in and showed him wonders he had never seen. I see this as a way for John to notice how he feels ad for the people to understand and know why he feels that way which is why they accepted him and exposed him things he had never experienced. In another section the book articulates when John gets too caught up in his thoughts, "these glories were unimaginable--but the city was real...on melting snow, distracted and then began to run down the hill..." From this quote I feel that John is trying to escape how really feels because he has been taught by his parents not to think about issues like that and that is why he runs down the hill. When Baldwin makes John run down the hill it symbolizes an act of him escaping his own truth.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I think that John is focusing an immense amount of his thoughts and frustration with being himself in life based on other people. In seeing his own desires do not align with others such as his family he tries to "escape" his own life and attempts to take on the ideals of others instead of accepting himself and whom he wants to be in life. John seems to be a very lost and confused soul which is why I find it very symbolic and important that his moment of epiphany occurs at the top of a hill for it seems often in literary work the hill is a very strong symbol for resolution. I also think it is ironic that in John's moment to decide to take control of his life, he is on a hill making him closer to God as if God wants him to find a sense of peace and belonging.
DeleteMokolo points in the right direction of John's fantasy and his harsh reality. His parent constantly remind that the other race( white people) try to kill their family and society. John un-subconsciously disagree with that due to his religion about being a Savior and Hope. John also see many white people are kind to disagree with his family forethought.
DeleteIn this section of Go tell it on the Mountain, John is faced with many thoughts about life. He using a profuse amount of imagination throughout this section but one major part in the book when he uses the most imagination was when he was in Central Park and he climb up the hill. When John climbed up the hill he could look over the city. He felt like he was almighty. The book states, "He would be, of all, the mightiest, the most beloved, the Lord's anointed..." John imagines himself as one who trust in God and lives more prosperous life. John wants to better himself as a person and grow to stop the wrong-doings he has been encountering. As he looks over the city, he also comes to the realization that the people and things that surround the city is full of sin and 'predition'. It is hard for one to live a better life when all they are surrounded by is sin. John wants to escape all of that and be in a better place.
ReplyDeleteI didn't quite understand that section and I appreciate your interpretation. I thought John might be running away to the city and his parents pull him back for their own fears of what would be come of him, but it makes more sense that John would rationalize his aspirations of wanting to lead a better life and have good future as conquering the city and his fear of living a life of sin as being saved from the city by his parents.
DeleteJohn's imagination repeatedly consist of the holy and sinful life. He combines his father's life with his fantasy in order to create a life where his family and his future family will see him as a great providers and maintain his status as a religious man. He places himself in the same position as his father's picture from the living room; John sees himself "looking out on sun-filled fields" with "his beautiful wife and children inside" his "great and very new house behind him(35)." He then adds features to his life by accomplishing things his father was unable to do for them. John wants to be able to "buy his children electric trains at Christmas" and have "a closet filled with whiskey and wine (35)." Unfortunately, John constantly comes to a standstill. John's standstill illuminates the heavy burden placed on his shoulders by his father. He begins to think of the shortcomings, that are commonly possible, to achieve in his future life by questioning whether to teach his children religious beliefs and attend church. He thinks of the white children with social status who are kind to him at school and he finds it "hard to think of them burning in hell forever(36)." This uncertainty of being able to live the great life while fulfilling religious commandments exposes John's sorrows. He desperately wishes to live in the gray area between sinful and holy and for his family to understand him.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your post. John's imagination produces polar ideas. One image that you mentioned is his dream of happiness when he has a family of his own and the other is about his his anger/sadness towards his father. I love how you incorporate my thoughts into words especially when you wrote about John's wish to live in the gray area religiously. I think that the author is trying to tell his audience that John fears that there is no happy medium between living extremely religious and extremely sinful.
DeleteI agree with your response because John is constantly being reminded that he will grow up to be like just like his father. You did an excellent job in your explanations about what John wants as his future. When John is day dreaming he always trying to escape the realities in his life looking for a way out. The last two sentences you wrote sums up this entire reading section perfectly.
DeleteThough there are countless examples of how John’s striking thoughts add to the complexity of his character, one instance that stood out the most to me was when John began to think about his father’s late first wife. He travels through these thoughts and wonders how life would be if the lady, Deborah, had not died. He recollects sayings from his aunt describing this distant time before John was born and when his father “was a right young man” (Baldwin 23). John believes that because Deborah knew his father when John was “nothing, nowhere, dust, cloud, air, and sun, and falling rain,” she is the only person that knows the real Gabriel Grimes and could reveal what John sees as the secret formula to earning his father’s love (23). I have also noticed the fascination John seems to have with people’s faces appearing older or younger in various situations. For example, when John finally reaches home and finds out that Roy has been stabbed, he looks into his father’s eyes and the face that peers back is one that John has only experienced in “his own vindictive fantasies,” so frightening and unreadable that it seems youthful in addition to appearing “unutterably older and more cruel” (37). These images stem from John’s deepest yearning to be accepted in society, but especially acknowledged by his father.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteIn this section of the book, John seems to be at somewhat of a cross roads. John is fearing going to hell, but wishes to live his life in the manner in which he desires. When John goes to the top of the hill signifies him reaching his climax in frustration of dealing with his dilemma of living the life he wants versus the life his parents want him to live for God. In his epiphanic moment on the top of the hill John feels at peace to just think about his life-giving him a sense of power over his own life as he wrote "there arose in him an exultation and a sense of power"(p. 27). This signifies how John wants to execute the necessary strength and courage to to take a hold on his life despite all others. Although John wants to take control over his life, he too often thinks about the perception of others and wants to be liked by all which he demonstrates in stating "the inhabitants of the city had told him it was his; he had to but run down, crying, and they would take him to their hearts and show him wonders his eyes had never seen" as his desire(p 27). John realizes that in order for people to truly be accepting of him, flaws and all, he must be able to accept him self and take control of his own life and not live the life he find will be unsatisfactory that his parents want him to pursue.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Gabbrielle because he is unhappy with his life now and sees he will unhappy with his future life as well because he feels as though in senses everyone expects him to be and when John was on top of the hill he was able to feel powerful and over the world for that one moment in his life. When John is day dreaming he always trying to escape the realities in his life lookin for an way out.
DeleteInteresting perspective of this scene in the novel. I can definitely understand how you can take this from the reading. So far, throughout the entire novel we see the struggle John has between the two choices he thinks are available to him. His constant fantasies are just that and nothing more. Its as if when he day dreams he falls into another world.
DeleteI agree with this perspective John is really struggling with finding himself in this point of his life. He is not really sure what he wants to do with his life in the future. When he was on top of the hill he was filled with so much anger and his imagination made him feel like he was on top of the city. And as he ran down he felt as if he could get back to the top if he wanted to.
DeleteJohn's imagination does in fact cause him to go to a different place in his life. This is true for any individual that is faced with trials or tribulations that they are trying to get through and even understand. There is one instance that I feel John experienced that caused his imagination to take him to another place. This incident occurred when John went to the top of the hill. Earlier that day his mother gave him some money for his birthday which was a shock to John because it I something rare that she did. I feel like one of the reasons as to why he went to the top of the hill was to reflect on that particular interaction between him and his mother. I think he was trying to truly understand the meaning behind everything she told him. He leaves to go to Central Park, and stops by one of his favorite hills,"he did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and a sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine or a madman". Prior to this description of the hill, it describes it as being a steep path overgrown with trees and a slope that stretched upward. I feel like he chose the hill because he could compare the steepness and upward slope to his life. It was very difficult sometimes to climb the hill but once he got to the top he felt a relief, just like he has been through so much in his life that climbing that hill signifies a release of some of the hard times. Once he made it to the top, his imagination causes him to envision a conquest of his life on earth. He doesn't want to go down the path of his father and experience the glory that will have him in the afterlife. He wants Broadway, so he runs down the hill fairly quickly and runs into a "life" of which he would prefer to live. He imagines his life living in the city with a wife and kids and even questions the different individuals religions. All John has ever learned about life came from his father and his expectations of John following his footsteps. John doesn't want to live that life and finds trouble trying to please his parents and himself. He also goes to see a movie, and a specific character within the movie, causes him to think about Hell and redemption and the choice between a religious life and a life within the world. These two instances on the hill and at the movie theater all cause John to think of what his life could be like if he were to live as he wanted, yet I feel like he doesn't have the courage to tell his father how he truly feels.
ReplyDeleteJohn seems to have conflict within him. He wants to grow and better himself, but when he tries to do something different, he stops himself. He is worried about what people are going to think about him. He is concerned about what is parents want him to do. His parents and the members of the church want him to become a pastor like his father. John does not want to be a pastor but is too scared to disappoint his parents. John shows that he is not happy with his father and is scared of him with the quote “He lived for the day when his father would be dying and he, John, would curse him on his death-bed” (Baldwin 23).
ReplyDeleteJohn often day dreams a lot because of his wanting to escape reality such as Johns trip to the movie theater when his mother gave him money for his Birthday. How he knew him being there watching the movie was an act of the Devil as it is and then John chose to have sympathy for the antagonist of the movie who was a heartless, gold digger with no feelings or remorse for the things she did to different men in the movie. It says “ John’s sympathy was given to the violent and unhappy women (Baldwin 33)” because he was able to relate to the women and why she was so angry and unhappy “ He understood her when she raged and shook her hips and threw back her head in laughter so furious that it seemed the veins of her neck would burst (Baldwin 33)” as though his unhappiness with his life could be identified with her story and it seemed as though a little piece of him lived her life so he could be free and experience different things instead of living in a box as he does now “ He wanted to be like her, only more powerful, more thorough, and more cruel: to make those around him, all who hurt him, suffer as she made the student suffer and laugh in their faces when they asked for pity for their pain (Baldwin 33)” as though he felt powerless in his life with no excitement; where people expect things of him that he doesn’t agree with and how he feels his father doesn’t love him because he’s always hurting him or his other family members. Him coming to see this movie gave him the opportunity to imagine what his life would be like if he was in her shoes. It was as though he was imagining another altenative life in which he could possible live.
ReplyDeletei completely agree with you christian, i think that he found a way to live through the movie by relating completely to the woman in the movie. i think he admires her ability to break away from being so unhappy, and fine solace in telling the world to "kiss her ass". maybe john hopes for the day to at least show those who hurt him or feel low, how it feels to treat others the way you wouldn't want to be treated. never-the-less i think he connects with the character, wanting to show that "cold-heart" attitude towards his father or maybe everybody else who tries to tell him how to live his life.
DeleteEveryday john experiences these thoughts about venturing away from a life he is forbidden to live, by being the son of a preacher. every day he tends to day dream about living "that" life. whether its living the life of a young boy who is able to leave the house whenever he feels free to do so,a boy who is able to play in the streets with his friends and scream whenever he feels an rush of excitement.Or he dreams of life after adulthood, being able to walk the streets of downtown, and window-shop about the stores planning to purchase his next fur-coat, luxury beds, or thinking about a life where he could buy his beautiful wife amazing diamond necklaces. these dreams of a finer life or doing these that he enjoy are often interrupted by the thoughts that the teachings of his father has encoded in the back of his mind. for as long as John can remember his father has always been there to remind him or teach him that "these thoughts were not of God, and their way was not of God's way."(Baldwin 30) John tried so hard not to have these thoughts, that even when they were interrupted with thoughts of him going to hell because of these thoughts an that if he was to live a life of all of this enjoyment he too along with all the other faces of Satan he see downtown will stand nakedness in the presence when judgement day arrives, is the very reason why John grows to despise his father even more. this unreal hatred that john has for his father becomes reality when john's imagination once again interrupts his reality of his brother being wounded laying on the couch and father is there by his side "in such a different voice so sad and tender" (38). "john watched and listened hating him" (38) john knew that his father loved Roy much more than him and some how he knew that his father hoped that perhaps it was John lying on the couch to what seemed so close to death." in his own vindictive fantasies: a kind of wild, weeping terror that made the face seem younger, and yet at the same time unutterably older and more cruel.And john knew, in the moment his fathers eyes swept over him, that he hated john because John was not lying on the sofa where Roy lay." (37) his imagination is like a inner voice that tells him through his thoughts his deeper fears, which he already knows but he himself is just too afraid to admit that he does.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you are saying here. John so much wants a life of luxury and something that is better than he has now that it causes him to sin and walk the "broad" way of live even when he knows it is wrong. Being such an outcast in his family and feeling that sense of not belonging can only make someone question their beliefs and surroundings. I think John is struggling to come into his own and find his identify as John and not the son of a preacher.
DeleteI agree, John just wanted more out of his life. He wanted to uphold christian standards on one aspect but had hard times finding a common ground with out sinning. Many people experience the same temptations and thoughts everyday, its just John wanted to figure out a better place of being other that guilty questioning his belief.
DeleteOn page 27 of the text Baldwin vividly describes what is going on in John's mind as he climbs up his favorite hill in Central Park. The text states " he did not know why but there arose in him and exultation and a sense of power as he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman.." (27). This excerpt signifies John's wish to be free from his father's stronghold. John also imagines himself as a "giant who might crumble the city with his anger; he felt like a tyrant who might crush this city beneath his heel" (27). Additionally, John goes on to say that he was a stranger in the city and at home his father and his mother had outstretched arms to save him from perdition. The second quote from the book signifies John's extreme "dislike" and anger towards his father. After reading this section of the book I believe that John yearns freedom and happiness but he is afraid that if he turns his back on his father he will be sent to the fiery pits of Hell.
ReplyDeleteAs John comes out to Fifth Avenue and sees horse-drawn carriages, he begins to construct this wonderful life he could have, with a beautiful wife and children, around a horse “he would call Rider” (29). John fantasizes he has a nice house on a sizable piece of property where he could have “turkeys and cows and chickens and geese, and other horses besides Rider” (29) and the luxury of having liquor and cars. His fantasy is interrupted by his true fears that have manifested themselves into the form of two questions. The first question: “what church did they go to?” (29) emphasizes John’s unending battle with his faith, because this question is not read “did they go to church,” one can be led to believe that John imagines that his faith will win this battle and that the only remaining question for him is do they attend church in the same church he was raised in or does he go on to find another church that is more in line with his beliefs and ways of worship. And the second question: “what would he teach his children when they gathered around him in the evening?” (29) is even more telling than the first. John establishes both fear and hope in this question. Since he uses the phrase “gather around” one can infer that John believes he will be very close to his children and they won’t harbor the same hatred for him that he has for his father. The fact that these questions are raised together insinuates that his faith or lack thereof will influence how and what he teaches his children.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Lauren on John's interruption of his fantasy. John's poor to none relationship with his father makes him want to behave the opposite ways of his current father meaning to be kind and watching. Lauren gives vivid and in depth detail of John's fantasy of wanting to have a family he cares about. This fantasy is ironic in the future of his terrible home life.
DeleteJohn imagines himself in the future, with a horse, a wife, a house, nice clothes, fabulous jewelry, whisky, wine and kids. At the end of his imagination he asks himself "what church did they go to and what would he teach his children when they gathered around him in the evening?" i think this expresses John's true wishes and fears. He wishes for a life unlike the one he lives now. He wants the city life with the nice clothes and the nice jewels but his father tells him that this people are evil and that they will rot in hell. His fear is that no church he knows will accept them if they (his family) lives this way, it is an "unholy" life. This is significant because it shows that John thinks about a life other than the church, other than what his father lives. It shows that he is beginning to question what he wants for his future and that he is surely maturing because he now can think about more than what others (his family and church members) want him to do.
ReplyDeleteThis section of the novel is very interesting and really seems to highlight the internal conflict that John is having, trying to decide the life that he wants to live. At one point John seems to make his experience in the movie theater the deciding factor on how he would live his life there after. Throughout the movie John's imagination was very active in imagining himself in the main character's place, and what consequences his actions would bring if he were in her place. The women described in the movie was an example of the type of person John wanted to be. The woman was full of pride, she was cruel and her sins were unforgivable, but "John could not have found in his heart, had he dared to search it, any wish for her redemption. He wanted to be like her, only more powerful, more thorough, and more cruel." John wanted to be evil. He didn't mind taking the "wide path" that so many take and avoiding the narrow path to eternal life. He was so hurt that he just wanted to see all that caused his pain suffer like the boy in the movie suffered. He was seeking revenge. But the conflict arises when he sees the woman's end. As the tears fall from her eyes he is able to empathize with her. He probably realizes that he doesn't want an end like that.He even tries to find a compromise between "the way that led to life everlasting and the way that ended in the pit." But John was not able to find the compromise. There wasn't one. At that moment he realizes there is a choice to be made, the trouble is he doesn't know which one. He wants to live the life like the cruel women and make everyone suffer for his pain, but at the same time John wants life everlasting.
ReplyDeleteIn this section of “Go tell it on the Mountain” John's imaginations consist of a holy and sinful life. He tries to combine his father’s life with his fantasy in order to create a family where he would be viewed as a provider and a religious man. John sees himself with “his beautiful wife and children inside” and “great and very new house behind him” (Baldwin 35). He goes onto add accomplishment in his fantasy of things that his father wasn’t able to do for his family. Like “ buy his children electric trains at Christmas” and “ a closet filled with whiskey and wine” (Baldwin 35). Eventually John comes to a standstill weather to teach his children Christian beliefs and to attend church every Sunday. He thinks of the white children who are kind to him and the white teacher who brought him medicine when he was sick. He finds it “hard to think burning in hell forever” (Baldwin 36). His uncertainty of living a great life and fulfilling religious duties shows John’s unhappiness. He wants to be able to live in-between both of them and for his family to understand him better.
ReplyDeleteJohn's wishes and fears do show through his imagination. It seems that he is at a big decision in his life because he wants to live life how he chooses and enjoy it, but he does not want to go hell. When he is at the top of the hill it signifies that he is at a crossroads between the life his family wants him to have and the life he wants to have. He feels empowered of his own life at the top of the hill. He said "there arose in him an exultation and a sense of power"(p. 27). He feels like he has complete power of his life.
ReplyDeleteI agree, John wants to live holy and righteous, but he also wants to live his life for himself. He wishes if only the two lives could mix, he could have a fun fulfilled life,and still make his parents proud of him.
DeleteIn the novel "Go Tell It On The Mountain", John has a complex with his actual life and the life in his imagination. Throughout this section of the novel, John is realizin what he wants out of life but is afraid to go after it. At the hill in Central Park is and example of such. "But when he reached the summit he paused; he stood on the crest of the hill, hands clasped beneath his chin..." (Baldwin 27). Conquering that hill was a step into the futuree for John. He felt a sense of freedom. A place away from judgement. "He stood for a moment...then began to run down the hill, feeling himself fly as the descent became more rapid..." (Baldwin 28).
ReplyDeleteJohn's imagination often seems to leave him feeling trapped and confused. Just as he feels that he is finding himself through his imagination it closes in on him. A perfect example of this exact happening is when in one of his many daydreams he began to find power in himself, "he did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and a sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him" (p. 27). This quote shows just how vivid his imagination was and how it made him feel that he had the strength to undertake this hill without haste. Later in the novel he imagines himself with a wife and family with “great and very new house behind him” (p. 35). This time his imagination is somewhat misleading because the reader knows John is struggling to find out his sexuality but imagines a life that his father would want for him because he is also very focused on impressing him. This is an example of his imagination leaving both him and the reader confused.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this because John is very much confused. Although his imagination is an escape, it gives him a false sense of hope as to how his life will really end up. As you said, I am too confused because his imagination is sort of misleading his actual intentions in life concerning his sexuality.
DeleteJohn's imagination reveals his true thoughts on his current life and future. In one aspect, his imagination is like a positive, because he is now "willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed before him" (27). This signifies a sense of hope for his future, however it also seems that his parents thoughts and regulations overtake his positivity. His parents have always told him to stay clear of white people, stay involved in the church, and etc, but these many rules just make it hard for him to see his own personal goals and aspirations. For example, "he remembered his father and mother, and all the arms stretched out to hold him back" (27). Even though he sees a life of how strong of a person he can become, he still feels held back from the all of the hesitations of his parents. The imaginations he has are signals of which life he can/will choose; the life of high power and exaltation, or the church boy life where he does not seem fit.
ReplyDeleteJohn is at a point in his life where he is thinking back at the meaning of his life. He has an undiminishing fear of being sent to hell. His imagination leads him into a temporary euphoria of his wanted future. When John is on Fifth Avenue he imagines his future really being able to own a horse, a house, and have a perfect family (Baldwin 29). This brief point of appearing to be the perfect life symbolizes what his current family is not, which only tries to appear like they are actually functional. When John questions how religious he would be and if would teach his children the bible in the evening, the answer he did not know. But when he comes back to reality he realizes the people he sees in street are doing well in fur coats “looking into the windows that held silk dresses, and watches and rings”(29). He questions if they go to church, or if they read the bible once they go home. Even though they were worldly people destined for hell, they were good people. For example when John sick, one of John’s teachers brought him something to relieve his sickness, she even made the usually nasty tasting cod liver oil taste better with adding syrup. And he thought that this had to be a Christ-like act (30).
ReplyDeleteIn this section of the novel "Go Tell It On The Mountain", John's wishes do show through his imagination. throughout the section, john feels a great power through his imagination that can make all his dreams come true. he feels he can write his own future and his own life at the same time, it is as if he has complete power over his own life. There is a lot of confusion towards the reader throughout the chapter, as his desires change and the effects of the writings change on the reader. He shows how he wants his life to be which can be misleading to the reader as many different assumptions can be made.
ReplyDeleteJohn's wishes and fears manifest through his imagination in a couple of instances in this section of the novel. One instance was were he took a walk to his favorite hill in Central Park. There he imagined a perfect world in which there were "the marks of Satan...in the faces of the people who waited at the doors of movies houses (Baldwin 27). John's mind allows him to imagine a world with sin yet feel no remorse. He imagines this as a way to cope with his decision of not wanting to follow in his father's footsteps as a minister. He realizes that what he is imagining is wrong in many ways, but feels good to him. John's imagination is a preview of the life he is leaning towards, which involves sin to feel ecstasy.
ReplyDeleteWhen John is thinking about who his dad's first wife was is kind of a ying and yang situation. On one hand he is relieved that his dad moved on because he would not exist if he hadn't. On the other hand, this mysterious woman had saw a man John can only dream of. A glowing, happy man who loved unconditionally. "She could have told him-- had he but been able from his hiding-place to ask!-- how to make his father love him" (Baldwin 30). He admired the courage she had to be able to love his father back unconditionally.
ReplyDeleteA scene in the this section that I believe best exposes the vivid degree of John's imagination in the time he spends on top of the hill contemplating whether or not to go down into town. I thought that entire section was almost completely absurd how he allowed his thoughts to over signify the degree of the actions he makes. I actually thinks that this is just another way the author chooses to exemplify the serious of the inner turmoil he found himself facing. On page 28, when John finally decides to run down the hill, the only thing he is thinking is, " If it's wrong. I can always climb back up." I feel as though John's upbringing has caused his to complete pervert reality in ways that it should not. I almost feel as if John thinks that if he even touches a thing in the world that he's doomed into Hell for all of eternity. John shows early signs of his doubting religion in this section and I fear as I pour more into the novel the debate of his faith is only to increase. My favorite line is definitely when John looks at his mother and says, "I'm going to try to love the Lord."
ReplyDeleteI feel that during pages 22- 43 John is trying to discover who he is and determine what he believes in. Through his imagination John goes through the various scenarios he would want to happen in his life and also the consequences of his actions within those scenarios. These scenarios can be seen as a manifestation of his wishes and fears. John tells his mother that he is going to "try to love the Lord," (Baldwin 26) which emphasizes his indecisiveness about his beliefs. From there John begins to compare roads to heaven and hell. John thinks that, "the way that led to death was broad.... but he did not long for the narrow way, where all his people walked" (Baldwin 28)John longs to experience the "broad way" but is still unsure about himself because he says, "I can climb back up. If its wrong, I can always climb back up" (Baldwin 28).
ReplyDeleteGood point! It seems like John want all these amazing things to happen to him, however, it is not his that "narrow way". Since his family follows that path that he no longer wants to take, I feel that he fears of taking that "broad way" where the most of the things he wants are in that "way".
DeleteIn this part of the novel, John's fears and wishes show through imagination as he fears the sins he has sinned as well as becoming just like his father. Baldwin states, "there awaited him only humiliation forever...a house like his father's, a church like his father's, and job...where he could grow with anger and toil because he saw his father as an unsuccessful man (28). Johns also fears from his sins as he imagines a city where he felt like a stranger, but imagine his "father and mother stretching to hold him back from a brutal city (27). These imaginations run across John as he is maturing and realizing that he doesn't want to live a life of sin anymore. He wants the best for himself not like his father's life. Even though, his parents taught him religious values, John feels somewhat at unease and that he doesn't belong with the people of the church.
ReplyDeleteJohn is afraid of failing his father, and when I say father I mean it as in his dad and God. He is in the middle of two parallels, the religious life and the life of fun and no worries. When he goes to the movies, the movie leaves him thinking about those two parallels. When he goes to Central Park he climbs the hill, he sees a life that HE wants not the life that his father has promised him. His father's path isn't broad enough for him. His father's path is straight and had no detours. The significance is that he doesn't want to follow his father's narrow path. He want to explore more before he reaches the end of his path.
ReplyDeleteIn the novel "Go tell it on the mountain" the main character John is struggles to fit in with his family and their expectation of what it means to live a life according to God because of this John begins to feel like an outcast in his own family. "He decided to see this, for he felt identified with the blonde young man, the fool of his family..." Pg 37 . Although John is taught and believes that his family is living the right way according to God he does not like his family's lifestyle and surroundings leaving him wishing that he could lead a life walking down the broader path instead of the narrow path that most Christians are suppose to take. " Broadway the way that led to death was broad, and many could be found there...but the narrow was the way that led to eternal...but he did not long for the narrow way." pg34 Here we see that John is really struggling to live right according to his family although he wants to fit in and feel the way his family does he just doesn't and wants a life that can offer him more than what he sees around him daily.
ReplyDeleteThroughout Go Tell it On the Mountain, John has a lot of visions pertaining to how his life will be in the future. He wants to live the righteous way, or in other words holy, but he can’t figure out how. “He would be, of all, the mightiest, the most beloved, the Lord’s anointed (Baldwin 27)”. It angers John by the way he is living because he wants to change for the better. He does not want to wait until it is too late and end up in hell. In a sense John wants the best of both worlds. He wants to take a different path than his father which everyone feels is the right path, but he does not want to be punished for what makes him happy. In the end the decision is Johns, will he choose his ultimate goal to live a glorious life or will he remain “sinful”.
ReplyDeleteAs John reached the summit in the book on page 27 he pauses for a moment as he began to imagine himself as a giant.He became a giant all at once created to solve no purpose other than to conqueror as the text states. John had been awaiting a moment in life to be wanted or in a since worshiped so bad although he could never grasp his hands around it. So he would daze of to feel the strength and might he believed God had entailed.
ReplyDeleteHe later in-visioned a since of dislike from the city leaving him at a fork in life similar to what he was experiencing he was unsure whether to go down the road to Christianity or dwell amongst the world of sinners he wanted to be closer and nearer to God but just had hard times getting his path straight and narrow.
“…the inhabitants of the city had told him it was his; he had to but run down, crying, and they would take him to their hearts and show him wonders his eyes had never seen” (pg. 27). When I read this section of the story I continued to go over the above sentence because it caught my attention. It reminds me of the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden when Eve ate from the forbidden fruit tree. The serpent cajoled her into eating the forbidden fruit and Eve did because it looked promising and it was something she never had before. Just the idea of having and doing something new is what made Eve jump at the opportunity. John is standing on the hill in Central Park looking and thinking about seeking new experiences, just like Eve. He hears the city speaking to him telling him that all he had to do was come to them and he will have exposure to so much more than he has now. By him knowing that there was something out there other than the church and God and family is what lead John to the temptation, just as it did Eve. I am also reminded of a movie I saw called, “O’ Brother, Where At Thou” which is based on ‘The Odyssey,’ an ancient Greek poem. Basically in “O’ Brother, Where At Thou,” three men escape from jail to find a 1.2 million dollar treasure so they may too have a better life and have and see things they have never seen before. On their journey they come across three women who represent the sirens in ‘The Odyssey’. They seduce the men with their singing. John is being seduced by the city saying that they can show him more. John’s wishes and fears manifest through his imagination because he is imagining himself doing something other than the usual and he wishes to know more than the people in his life are showing him. Olivia Sherman: Week 3
ReplyDelete"But when he reached the summit he paused;he stood on the crest of the hill, hands clasped beneath his chin, looking down. Then he,John, felt like a giant who might crumble this city with his anger; he felt like a tyrant who might crush this city..."(27). This is symbolic because it show John as being a conqueror and the writting says the city, but maybe he trying to conqueror his fear and climb above the mental world.
ReplyDeleteThis post is interesting!I liked how you said that John is trying to conquer his fear by climbing above the mental world. It seems as though John is trying to get past something and that John has to continue and try and climb until he reaches the very top. Perhaps, once John climbs above this idea of the "mental world" maybe his named and un-named sorrows will no longer exist.
DeleteIn this section of “Go Tell it On the Mountain”, John is yet again faced with thoughts that is difficult for him to handle. Once he is at the top of the hill, his imagination expands and he explores many things, one of them being his ability to be sovereign. He takes an even deeper approach in looking back on what he wants his life to be versus what others like his father, wants from him. Although he is taught to be stern in his morals and values, they are extremely different from what his father believes which creates a lot of mental confusion and causes a challenge in making decisions that could change his life. Daphanie Bibbs Wk: 3
ReplyDeleteBlog 2
ReplyDeleteJohn wishes of what a family should be manifest in his imagination. He see a horse and wonder what it would be like to own one one day. John also imagines himself as a well off man with a wife and kids who calls him Papa (Baldwin 29). John is describing the type of life he wants through his imagination. He secretly wished he had a family that is understanding and supportive of him. He knows he could not have this if he continues under his father’s rules and plans for his life.
John’s vivid imagination as we already saw in the first section (the yellow stains transformation), entertains him and fills his mind quite frequently. While John is in the room dusting his is looking at all of the pictures of his family and he goes on to image how people feel about him after they see his naked baby picture and thinks people laugh at him when they see it. Also while he is looking at these pictures, he looks to a picture of his father. There in the picture is his father when he was much younger. John then begins to think of a time when he wasn’t born and who his father was. John’s imagination is telling him that his father doesn’t love him and he daydreams about a time when his father was young and had a different wife besides his mother who died and what his father was like back then. He wishes that he could know that father, the one that existed before he was born.
ReplyDeleteJohn also has another moment when he walks to Central Park and with a burst of energy funs up his favorite hill and then begins to image himself destroying the city for a lack of a better word. He becomes angry at his life and the people in it and how they treat him and he wanted his parents to sort of save him. He also wanted to sin and he wanted people to do it with him. He was tired of waiting for a good life, he wanted it now and didn’t want to wait for God to give it to him in the afterlife.
John describes his fantasy at a certain place and time. The timing of his fantasy was perfect because he escaped his current situation at home. His fantasy's timing also state the thought of John free will and stubbornness. To leave his home, to view a movie, and to interact with white people are some rebellions of his parents wishes. John really care about his religion though. In his fantasy John question his fantasy religion like “what church did they go to?” (29). This states that John does care about religion and does not question his attendance of it. The place of his fantasy states about John's faith and hope. John place of fantasy is at a hill and him being all alone. His altitude gives him a higher experience with God and faith. The isolation gives him no expectation and a breath of clean air. To conclude his fantasy is a fantasy like every man and women in the world. To have a higher experience and to have a breath of freedom and no expectation.
ReplyDeleteOn p. 35 (in the white book) John's imagination goes to living a happy life with a farm, family, cars and a horse named Rider. The horse, country like lifestyle, and the reference to a "closet full of whiskey and wine" (p.35) represent freedom from the world including religion. When John debates in his head "but what church did they go to and what would he teach when they gathered around in the evening?"(p.35), John did not appear too concerned about living without religion which I believe is one of his "un-named sorrows". The lifestyle John imagines is also apparently different from the one he is currently living. The house John describes seems very prosperous unlike his the poor house he lives in, he enjoys the breakfast made by his wife unlike the breakfast made earlier in the novel that made him "want to cry like a child" (p.23), and the children received electric trains for Christmas that contrasted from the small amount of coins John's mother gave to him for his birthday. The differences between John's imagined life and actual life, represents that he wants freedom from his family and wants to live a life that brings him happiness.
ReplyDeleteBlog 2:
ReplyDeleteIn the middle of my readings I came across this quote on page twenty seven “…the inhabitants of the city had told him it was his; he had to but run down, crying, and they would take him to their hearts and show him wonders his eyes had never seen” (pg. 27). It struck out to me because it showed John in deep thought and was a perfect example of John’s vivid imagination. It demonstrates how he has momentary glimpses of escape then snaps back into reality. That quote alone manifested John’s fears and thoughts all in one. The meaning behind this is that it showed up the reader his fears and his strengths behind his decisions!
For a fourteen year old, John has an unique imagination that is based on his deepest desires. Some of his desires includes causing pain onto those who had caused him pain. For example, on page 33, John sees a movie based on this blonde, evil woman diagnosed with tuberculosis, and uses a cripple student for his money and went our with other men. Instead of feeling sorry for the foolish student, who was in love with the woman, John had sympathy and understanding for the woman. Baldwin writes, "He understood her when she raged and shook her hips and threw back her head in laughter so furious that it seemed the veins of her neck would burst"(33). While watching the woman on the screen, John sees her as an untamed, unkind woman who was not loved. He imagined that she was too prideful to even get on her knees to ask God for forgiveness. Baldwin adds, "He wanted to be like her, only more powerful, more thorough, and more cruel; to make those around him, all who hurt him, suffer as she made the student suffer, and laugh in their faces when they asked pity for their pain." This power that he craves reveals how unhappy he is with his own life. He is not satisfied with what he has, and he wants something different. John shows this rage when he sits at the window watching the other children play in the snow on page 24. In addition, it also reveals how he has a deep desire for revenge on those who had cause pain to him. And the fact that pain among his enemies, is not only sad to think that this is a thought of a fourteen year old, but it also goes against what God wants Christians to do as peacemakers, to "turn the other cheek."
ReplyDeleteChristianity plays a big part in John’s imagination. He seems to seek God’s favor but also to rebel against religion. He wishes to be the “mightiest, the most beloved, the Lord’s anointed” but he is also unsure of “the way of the cross” which has only brought “a belly filled with wind and had bent his mother’s back” (27-28). This causes him to imagine himself leading a richer life as he admires the men and women who do not fear God. He wishes for unimaginable glories but he fears for his soul when he stands “naked before the judgment bar” just as he fears being “naked under his father’s eyes” (28, 35). John’s wishes and fears are tied to his relationship with his father. He fears his father but he wishes he had his love – the love he knows his father has for Roy.
ReplyDeleteIn the second half of the book you definitely began to see John's wishes and fears. For example, when John walked down Fifth Avenue and makes and observation. He states, " What church did they go to ?.. .... They were in the world, and of the world, and their feet laid hold on Hell". At that very moment John is questioning the people and things he sees while walking down the street. He's always been told that white people hated black people and there was nothing but sinners on Fifth Avenue. But he's simply questioning all of this , in a way John is using his on person imagination to answer his own questions. He also does this when he goes to the movie theatre. In all, John is having a hard time choosing between his father's desire vs his desire.
ReplyDelete"He did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and I sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him" (Baldwin 27). His vivid imagination only manifested a yearning for an escape and evoked in him a sense of power. “…he felt like a long awaited conquer…” (27). On this hill John sees a brighter future for him. A future where the world embraces him and shows him “wonders his eyes have never seen” (27)
ReplyDeleteI agree that John is torn between what he desires and what his father desires. It must be really hard to grow up in such a sinful world with so many temptations and have a parent who is so religious. I'm pretty sure his father is only doing that for his own good but it is only pushing him further into negative influences. He is experiencing many complexes with this situation.
DeleteJohn and his family have a Christian background. It consumes most of his imagination because of this. He his fearful of his sinful self. In Central Park, John ponders what life is like in the natural world. John sticks to the values his father instilled in him and looks at those in the city as dark and unwelcoming. He's always thought that people like him were hated. When he goes to the movies hope people watches and these thoughts are always with him. I don't think he wants to be viewed this way. On the hill that day, John saw a brighter future. He saw a future where the world would embrace him and show him wonders he had never seen. I do believe that John is torn in between what his father wants for him and what he wants for himself. He is simply using his imagination to answer these questions.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this analysis. John is at point in his life where he wants to escape from the life his father wants him to live. A lot of time parents even in this decade have desires for their children but at some point they allow their children to make their own decisions. I dislike the fact that Johns father tries to make his kids believe that people outside the church is evil. I also agree that he can only turn to his imagination for escape from this life he no longer wishes to live.
DeleteIn this novel Baldwin gives great detail on how exactly john feels about himself and life current circumstances. While John was walking in Central park on his birthday he came across his favorite hill which was in the center of the entire park. John had a certain feeling of power that arose in him and he couldn't really explain it. “He did not know why, but there arose in him an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed before him”(27). This quote in the novel show how john really wants to be worldly instead of constantly being so involved In the church.
ReplyDeleteAs John reaches the top of the summit he imagines his overwhelming power he could have. "He did not know why, but there arose in him an exultation and I sense of power, and he ran up the hill like an engine, or a madman, willing to throw himself headlong into the city that glowed for him"(27). John imagines himself as unstoppable and able to achieve everything, and he even envisions himself on Broadway. This is John’s desire to becoming something other being a “church-man.” John soon comes to realize that he wants to be acknowledged by the “white” people for his accomplishments like how his teachers praise him. It is as though John is at a crossroads of life in choosing the path of God or “reality.”
ReplyDeleteWhile walking through Central Park, John reads the signs advertising Broadway. He talks about how Broadway is the way of the devil and "broad" way that lead to death (28). His dreams and wishes manifest in his imagination when he imagine and desires to follow that broad life. John wishes to escape the life his father wants him to live. His whole journey he takes when his mother allows him to leave and get something for his birthday is based on his imagination of the life he wishes to live. The narrator spends these few pages speaking on the life John wishes to live and how his father has particular hatred toward white people because he feels they hate him. John is essentially at point in his life where he is trying to decide the "narrow" way to intercity, or the "broad" way to his basic freedom.
ReplyDeleteEven though John's imagination takes him to a place where his dreams becomes a reality, littte does John know that his fears become evident in his world as well. Despite being taught that sin runs the streets of downtown, John dreams of obtaning power and to rule the city with a mighty force. " ... he felt like a long-awaited conqueror at whose feet flowers would be strewn and before whom multitudes cried, Hosanna!" (Baldwin 27). One could observe that he wishes to be somewhat like jesus as his imagination feeds off the comments of his greatness made unto him years ago by his peers. However, uncertainty arises as his wishs also leads him to the fears that frighten him the most. Within the city upon the sins of th people and the marks of satan exists "Narrow way", the way that led a few select people who find it into eternal life. He clearly fears of finding this narrow way as he believes that this road will lead him into living the life his father lived. Thus, John learns more about himself because of his vivid and rapid imagination.
ReplyDeleteJohn climbs a hill in Central Park and while sitting on the hill, John begins to day dream and has all sorts of vivid imaginations. John’s vivid imagination causes him to believe that he has an enormous amount of power. Through his imaginations we are able to see how John views himself. John sees himself as this powerful person who can destroy the entire city and crush everyone, “Then he, John, felt like a giant who might crumble this city with his anger” (Baldwin 27). Upon sitting on the hill, he sees himself as the king of the hill. He sees himself as this man who holds all the power, but John is uncertain what to do with it. Moments after this rush of excitement he begins to question himself. He almost feels some type of remorse for imagining himself with all of this power to be used for evil instead of good things. With that being said, his imagination really only deepens his named and un-named sorrows. For John feels as though he should be seen as that person who holds all the power for the use of good instead of evil. John wants the world to see him and what he is capable of, but it does not happen because of the lack of attention he receives from his parents. John’s ultimate fear is that he will end up like his father. John has no desire to be anything like his father and he does not want his life to end up like his father’s, “There awaited him only humiliation forever; there awaited him, one day, a house like his father’s house, and a church like his father’s, an a job like his father’s, where he would grow old and black with hunger and toil” (Baldwin 28). This quote shows how John desires to escape the current life he lives and get away from everything that reminds him of his father. Because John is so terrified that his life will end up like his father’s, John desperately desires to do anything to change his fate so that he will not end up like his father.
ReplyDeleteAt this time in the novel, we see John in yet another sight. On this hill which happens to be his favorite, he seems to have somewhat of an epiphany about what heaven would be like. Now we know that John seems not to care too much about the knowledge of God but, here we see that he actually does think about it and wonders what it would be like. This shows us that John is not as heart hardened towards God and religion as he makes it seem. John uses light to further show his unwanted presence in the city, "And how their lights, unceasing, crashed on and off above him, and how he was a stranger there" (Baldwin 31). The significance of the lights are important because it further explains how light reveals or exposes realities.
ReplyDeleteJohn's wishes and fears as he was walking through the park manifests through his imagination by making him believe that he has more power than he actually has. An example is when he said he would be able to crumble and crush the whole city, that shows that his imagination is much bigger than reality."Then he, John, felt like a giant who might crumble this city with his anger” (Baldwin 27). And that shows that he thinks that he could possibly rule and run everything under his hands.
ReplyDeleteJohn has a very distinct imagination. His imaginations are important because they take his dreams and turns them into reality. He learns that the streets of downtown are not a safe place to go and is filled with sin. Even though John doesn't have power, he constantly dreams that he will one day have the power to conquer his city and rule it like no other. Yes, you can conclude that he's trying to somewhat be a leader because of all the greatness he did for his peers and people around him. John has all these wishes which ultimately lead him to fear. He is frighten that one day he might take the road down a “narrow way” just like his father did which is not the right way to go. In the story as we go on, John starts to learn a lot more things about himself just from his unbalanced imagination.
ReplyDeleteIn this section John's imagination is left to dream and wander.The point that comes across in pages 22-43 is the fact that John is trying to get a better understanding of who he is and does this through his wondrous imagination. He longed to be like the other boys and be "unfrightened ".Johns wishes and fears begin to manifest when he is thinking or dreaming of the day when his father could love and wonders "how to make his father love" (Baldwin 26). His mother reassures his confusion with the fact that God will help him throughout life. He tells his mother that he will " try to love the Lord" (Baldwin 30). Another instance is when he is on his favorite hill with "the city glowing before him". He imagines himself as a giant who can destroy all that comes in his path. I believe he feels this way because in reality he is the one being trampled over by the giant (aka: the world).
ReplyDeleteWhen John goes his favorite hill and gazes out to the city he conceives his first wish which is to find glory on earth, by becoming a preacher as his father was, rather than finding glory in the after life. Then when John goes to the city and begins looking at the white people entering and exiting the stores he begins to think about the conflict between his people and theirs. Through his personal experiences he believes that they will treat him justly and kindly, however, he then thinks back to when his father who told him that white people were evil this put him in a conflict concerning whether or not he should associate with white people or not.
ReplyDeleteThis section of the novel really seems to highlight the internal conflict that John is having, trying to decide the life that he wants to live. Throughout the movie John's imagination was very active in imagining himself in the main character's place, and what consequences his actions would bring if he were in her place. The women described in the movie was an example of the type of person John wanted to be. The woman was full of pride, she was cruel and her sins were unforgivable. John wanted to be evil. He didn't mind taking the "wide path" that so many take and avoiding the narrow path to eternal life. He was so hurt that he just wanted to see all the things that caused his suffering like the boy in the movie suffered. But the conflict arises when he sees the woman's end. As the tears fall from her eyes he is able to empathize with her. He realizes that he doesn't want an end like that. He even tries to find a compromise between "the way that led to life everlasting and the way that ended in the pit." But John was not able to find the compromise because there isn't one. He realizes there is a choice to be made, he is just not sure which is the right choice. He wants to live the life like the cruel women and make everyone suffer for his pain, but at the same time John wants life everlasting.
ReplyDelete