More about Authenticity

There has been much talk in class and on the blog of authenticity and how we measure it. Some have proposed levels of authenticity, others have found certain standards for authenticity or reached the conclusion that no one object or idea may be more authentic than another. Personally, I believe our quest for authenticity closely parallels our probing for absolute truth. I think were better off accepting that we not going to find anything of the sort in the near or distant future. In The Man in the High Castle, Tagomi shares a thought that efficiently argues the point I want to make. “We really do see astigmatically, in fundamental sense: our space and our time creations of our own psyche” (233). Its all about perception. Whats authentic to one person is not neccesarily authentic to another. Take Tagomi's Colt .44 for example. He fires it and kills several members of the SD. I think this is enough to warrant its authenticity, no matter its date of manufacture or “historicity”. Interpreting this quote more broadly, the malleability of reality allows us as readers to understand how several narratives in this novel that contradict each other can simultaneously exist. The end of the novel reveals the truth of The Grasshopper Lies Heavy as a distinct facet of the reality of the novel but we must not discount the initial reality we are introduced to. We know from Tagomi's experience with the piece of jewelry that he can move from two very different reality. Which one is true? That's really not important nor is it possible to answer. I guess there both a little true and a little false. What's important is that they seem to exist in the novel and that's enough to satisfy me.