Hello again! This week I chose to write about the fiction story that we discussed for a bit in class, and tell a little about what I took from it, and why I chose to write about it. The story that we read was called "The Falling Girl". This story was about a girl who apparently fell from her roof top, whether voluntarily or not, I cannot say for sure, thought the connotation surely suggests the former. Upon falling, this girl seems to take in her surroundings and notice all of the people, places, buildings, and scenery that fill her view. The colors that are attributed to her clothing and surroundings are described as "glowing" or "bright", and, as I understand it, many people who decide to take their own lives develop a sort of peace-of-mind about their decision. Perhaps this is paying homage to that? The beauty in the colors might reflect the beauty that she finds in death. But this is just one possibility.
On her way down, she passes many people who are of higher status, socio-economic class, and wealth than she is. These people seem to absentmindedly shrug off the fact that she is falling, almost as if it is something they see often. It is as if they could care less that this girl is falling from a building and will soon hit the ground in what will surely be a bloody mess. Alas, they seem to be almost eager for that end to come. The connotation suggests that these people take pleasure in watching the less fortunate fall, literally or figuratively. On the flip side, it seems that this falling girl revels in the thought of these rich people falling as well. This is all strictly speculation based off of my own assumption that the "falling" in and of itself if a negative thing, almost in relation to death.
Another thing that I noticed was a certain guilt that seemed to arise within the falling girl. At one point, she passes a bystander who asks "where are you going?", and to this she replies simply "please do not make me say...". To me, this also suggests a hint of suicidal imagery. The girl has jumped from her building and feels guilt over the thought of the people she may have hurt in doing so, or the thought that she has given up on her life. Of course, these are strictly guesses.
This is a story of fiction, so I have to take into consideration that this girl is simply a magical being who can more or less fly, and that is my she has the time and ability to speak to all of these by standers as she falls. She seems it take in so much around her as she falls, where I would think one would have nothing but the thought of the hard cement below them on their mind. Still, she seems to remain calm, almost contemplative. It is as if she uses this time to reflect on her true thought about her life and the lives of those around her. Do these people care if she is falling? Would they join her? At one point there is another girl falling, and time seems to change as this girl falls at a different rate of speed than her. This seems to reflect how quickly some lives can move in comparison to others, and how different the paths of ones lives can be.
My final thoughts upon reading this story were about myself, and what I would think of if I were falling through the air. Would I find time to think of where my life has gone? Would I judge others for what they have done, or be bitter that they took pleasure in my downfall? Why would I be falling in the first place? These are all of the things that I took from this story, and these are the reasons that I was drawn to this story.
No comments:
Post a Comment