Blogpost#1 for OARTOFĀ āGenesisā
PT#I: For Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, first chapterĀ āGenesisā, I found the book to be very religious and not really understanding a lot of metaphors the author uses. After doing some research on the author beforehand, I know that she grew up in a strong religious household and started reciting sermons at a young age. I wonder if she used her past experiences as a young child in the book. Iām also curious to see how the story proceeds with the character development of Jeanette.Ā
I felt that the story placed me back in the 1800ā²s where religion and your familyās namesake was the only thing people were concerned about. Winterson would use a lot of biblical references in her work, and I kind of wish I knew what stories she is referencing to, so I can see what the actual biblical story is. So I can interpret it. But I did have flashbacks, every time the author would use a biblical reference, I was brought back to the days I would go to church and hear the sermons of my pastors. Going to church was not my favorite.
I also had to look up to a lot of words throughout the chapter. There was a lot of vocabulary, that made me guess the meaning at the moment, so I would notate it in the book. I was confused when the author jumped into a story in the middle of the chapter without warning, it made me think I was reading a different book. But overall I wondered if Jeanette the character had a positive or negative relationship with her mother.
PT#II: I thought imagery was the main focus of this chapter, because there were a lot of details that the author would use to describe people, objects or the scenes around them. I also loved how the author would use the power of her words to describe a scene. I thought that every time Jeanette would describe something with beautiful words, it was always a Bible analogy attached with it.Ā
āThe Missionary Report was a great trial to me because our mid-day meal depended upon it. If it went well, no deaths and lots of coverts, my mother cooked a joint. If the Godless had proved not only stubborn, but murderous, my mother spent the rest of the morning listening to the Jim Reeves Devotional Selection, and we had to have boiled eggs and toast soldiersā (Winterson 4).Ā
^The narrator Jeanette made a point that he meals depended on the daily Missionary Reports that were announced! It gestured just how much religion played a huge part in her motherās life. Jeanetteās mother decided her mood based on the news she heard for the day, and that will affect the food that Jeanette would be having.
āOur house was almost. At the top of a long, stretchy street. A flagged street with a cobbly road. When you climb to the top of the hill and look down you can see everything, just like Jesus on the pinnacle except itās not very temptingā (Winterson 5).Ā
^Jeanette made a very interesting analogy when she was describing the way to her house and I wonder what she meant when she said it was like Jesus on the pinnacle. I wonder what type of Bible analogy she was talking about.
