Discussion #2
What is your opinion about Julie? What does her "place" (p. 18) reveal about her? Why is she attracted to Abdu? Write a short response either to this question or your classmates' responses. Integrate page references if possible.
posted by Randy Barnett @ 9:34 AM
6 Comments:
Wow, I don't know how much kent has left unsaid here. I think Mr. B said we were going to wait with writing an essay until we finished the book? Well anyway, I agree that Julia is attracted to Abdu because he is everything that she is not. He is the opposite of everything her bourgeois parents represent. I feel like he is almost a token for her, proof that she is, in fact, not like her parents, and that she is not racist or prejudiced. He also presents an adventure to Julie. He is the unknown, the possibly dangerous, exotic prince she has been longing for since she decided to distance herself from her parents(See Disney's Aladdin). Julie likes the mystery surrounding her man.
I respect Julie for allowing herself to so freely grow independent from her parents. However, like Sasha I think se is confused about the position she has put herself in. Pn page 38 it is stated that "she is distanced and distressed...she is ashamed of her parents; he thinks she is ashamed of him. Neither knows either, about the other." Even though she is distancing herself from her family, I think that she worries about how they judge her. Her reluctance to bring Abdu to see her parents (5 months) could be expalained by her uneasines of crossing social boundaries. She even has to endure the people around her who think this relationship is a bad idea. Abdu's employer tells her directly that he's "bad news" (p.32) and that she deserves better. She is very confident, and she disregards any obstacles that get between her and Abdu.
hello
I don't know whether I like Julie or not. On the one hand, she seems like an easy-going person, devoted to Abdu, and trying not to flaunt her wealth unlike some of the other members of the South African society (such as her father).
However, I don't know how much of her "love" for Abdu is real, and how much is infatuation. Sometimes it seems like Abdu is a project for her, a way to prove to herself and others that she does not belong with the upper-class society. I don't know if she likes Abdu for who he is, or for his social status. It seems more like the latter because she doesn't know who he is.
Also, even with all her talk about how she rejects her father and his lifestyle, she is unable to escape the presumptions that come with a privileged childhood, such as having a bath in her apartment.
Overall, I think that she is doing a good thing by trying to bridge the gap between her world and Abdu's, but I think she should do it because she wants to be with Abdu, not because she is trying to prove anyhting.
(my last comment was test to see if it worked)
Julie's lifestyle is a rebellion of her parents and the life her parents lead. Thus, in some respect I have a lot of respect for Julie. It takes a lot of courage to step out of the confining bubble of what is familiar, especially the protection, comfort, and stability offered to her in her old life. On the other hand, I feel that Julie's current indentity is merely a facade and not her true self. Julie and Abdu's relationship is based on the desire to find a new life. Therefore, I feel that as the relationship grows they will be separated by boudaries they both are unaware of.
umm...so I guess this is kinda late but here it goes... I think Julie is trying to find herself through her friends and Abdu. However, this search has been unsuccessful because she's trying to be who she isn't. If that makes sense. She's searching for a new identity, whish is impossible because you can't avoid who you really are. She lives a life so deifferent from the way she grew up but she still has the luxuries that she wants. She is still who she was but with a different exterior. Abdu is part of this exterior image and she uses him to try to get away from who she really is. Boo on Julie...she bothers me.
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