Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Foreshadowing?
Just something I came across as I was looking back into our reading: When Paul says, “An entire new world is pointed to, by this [the pin]” (p. 176). Is this foreshadowing of how the pin will later point to a “new world” (actual reality) when Mr. Tagomi tries to connect to it, or am I reading too much into this?
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Paul says this quote he has just finished explaining the object’s “wu,” which Childan defines as “wisdom…Or comprehension” (p.175). When Mr. Tagomi studies the pin, he comprehends a different reality, our reality. I would even add another quote from Paul during that same conversation. Paul gives the piece of jewelry back to Childan and tells him that he “must face reality with more courage” (p. 177).
ReplyDeleteThe jewelry is supposed to be one of the few truly authentic artifacts in the novel. It is “the new life” (p. 225) of the U.S. I think it could represent what America would have been had Japan and Germany not taken over, or what America is in a reality in which the U.S. was a winner in World War Two.
This piece of jewelry is all about authenticity and understanding and causes Mr. Tagomi to see a new world, so yes I believe Dick meant for this to forshadow Mr. Tagomi’s experience.
Agreed. This is an important piece of evidence, one of many that you can trace in the novel that points us to Juliana's epiphany... and thus, perhaps, the novel provides us w/ a choice at the end: do we follow Juliana into the sunset or remain shaken and disturbed like Tagomi and the Abendsens?
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