First, read the following essay by David Eggers, author of What Is the What:
http://valentinoachakdeng.org/essay.php
This will help give you some context for the novel and an understanding of how it straddles the fiction/non-fiction world.
After you have done that, think for a moment about Valentino's journey & consider the journeys of other characters you have read about before (e.g. Odysseus). How does Valentino's journey compare? Is he on the "hero's journey" as other characters in literature have been? If not, where does his journey differ in significant ways?
In the novel Whirligig the main character, Brent Bishop, is on a journey that is different in several ways from Valentino’s in What is the What. Bishop’s journey is one of redemption because he killed a girl while driving drunk, and her parents asked him to go around the US and make whirligigs for their daughter. Valentino is on a journey to survive which in his case is far more difficult than Bishop’s task. However, in both books Valentino and Bishop evolve and change their personalities. Valentino becomes more adult and learns to look at a situation in a more adult way. Bishop changes as he learns to forgive himself and move on with his life. Neither of these characters are on a “hero’s journey” because they don’t travel for glory or to be a hero, but they travel because they need to move on with their lives in some way.
ReplyDeleteWhy are all these questions about comparisons to the Odessy? Hah. Anyway, I don’t think it’s correct to refer to Valentino's journey as a hero’s journey because nothing about it was heroic. Sure he went through a lot of difficult circumstances, but it was all in the name of pure self-preservation. The way I see it, a journey can be defined as a hero’s journey one of two ways.
ReplyDeleteThe first, most obviously, is that it is a journey undertaken by a previously defined hero. The journey itself need not be impressive or trying, since it is defined by the person and not the substance of the- (Hold on, I’m sick of saying journey. Let me get my thesaurus. Okay.) It is defined by the person and not the substance of the quest. For example, Superman getting another beer from the fridge could be a heroic journey. (Assuming Superman can be considered a hero, but that’s a topic for another day.)
The second way is that the journey somehow qualifies the journey-er as a hero, in which case it fulfills the requirements of the first instance. The question here is what the makings of a hero are. Personally, I believe that in order to be a hero, one must have made a sacrifice or endured an ordeal in order to benefit others without expecting any reward. (What defines a hero would be a cool essay topic, by the way.) Someone jumping in front of a car to save a puppy could be considered a hero, because they sacrificed something, perhaps their life, depending on how our scenario ends, for another entity without asking for payment of any kind.
Therefore I believe that while Valentino's journey certainly has been arduous, and I have loads of respect for him for surviving through such tragic circumstances, it cannot be considered ‘heroic’ because it was not undertaken with the intent or result of bettering the lives of others. However, an interesting concept is the idea that the journey he is taking now, traveling across the United States spreading awareness, could be considered a heroic journey because it meets the requirements of the second method. What do you think?
Also, I realized I didn't really mention the Odyssey. I think that qualifies as a hero's journey because Odysseus was a previously recognized war hero. Although he didn't do much to better the world or the lives of the people around him on the journey, huh? If I recall, he let quite a lot of them get killed.
Since my original blog post I have learned more about the definition of a “hero’s journey” and it does not involve someone previously being a hero as Lizzie suggests. Instead a “hero’s journey” is a plot structure (also called a monomyth) created by Joseph Campbell where the main character, the hero, is pulled from his world by some conflict, survives a great challenge, and then is given the option to return to his world with a boon(gift) to make his world better or stay in this new world. Valentino’s life follows this plot structure and that means the Valentino’s journey is a “hero’s journey”. Valentino lives in Marial Bai which is the hero’s normal world for this book. He is then pulled out of his home by the rebellion which is the conflict in the hero’s journey. Valentino is then forced to survive years living as a refugee which is his great challenge. He then goes to the US where he receives an education and money from the book What is the What. He then brings back his knowledge and money to Marial Bai, which is a boon, and he uses them to make his old home a better place. While Valentino is not a hero, which Lizzie says, he does live through a “hero’s journey”.
ReplyDeleteThat’s interesting, I didn’t realize we were talking about a literary device. After doing a little research, I could see how Valentino’s journey fits into the monomyth format, therefore classifying his exodus as a ‘Hero’s Journey’, but I stand by my original statement that in the more literal sense I described above, his journey does not qualify as heroic.
ReplyDeleteJourneying through the desert and surviving a time which saw many, many of your fellows killed isn't heroic? Serving as a touchstone for members of your diaspora in a new land isn't heroic...albeit more subtle? Tough crowd...
ReplyDeleteI just think although his travel through the desert was hard, what part of it was exactly heroic? He didn't save any lives, he didn't fight off the attackers, he ran and ran and hid and ran, and all out of a selfish desire of self-preservation. It was incredibly difficult and I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but just because something is difficult does not automatically qualify it as heroic.
ReplyDeleteAs for being a touchstone, as I mentioned in my response, I could see how is actions upon coming to America could be seen as heroic but since these actions took place after his journey was over, they do not retroactively qualify it as a hero's journey.
Some may argue that he is still on the journey he undertook when he fled Marial Bai since it is still affecting his life is profound ways, but for this moment, assume that coming to America was the start of a new phase in his life and therefore a new journey.
Augh, I don't mean to sound like a jerk, I'm just trying to prove my point! Sorry!
My answer to the question will follow, but here is a question I would like to pose: If one must be a hero to go one a hero's journey, does it not fall to the proposed hero to defines himself as such? I am almost certain that Valentino would never call himself a hero, his mindset is too self deprecating, his head in pain from judgment and possibility. He questions his own purpose, his own worth so much, that he would feel unjustified to be termed a Hero. But he might not question his own bravery, but rather his ability to take action on it, and weather those actions weigh too heavily on others. Odysseus plunders and sleeps with EVERY woman he encounters and lives out consequences in the end, and he would no doubt label himself a hero. Achack is taken by girls they experiment with him: his own sexual role, in a cultural sense, is turned upside down. In a broader sense, he is constantly subjugated, by his own thoughts especially. Achack takes actions which might be considered heroic, but that too does not deem one a hero. There is a quality of super-humanity that a hero posseses. Achack's life, while no doubt incredible is also incredibly human, intensely human.Also, one might consider triumph a commonality between heros. Achak hardly triumphs. He might stagger over his self ate and find purpose and peace in his thought. In the end he finds awe in being human. I find him almost the antithesis of the common hero ( not in the sense that he's a villian), and admire him all the more for it. I also would love to have a discussion about the meanings of the pain in his head so feel free to post about that.
ReplyDeleteI have looked at some the ideas above in more depth in this paragraph
ReplyDeleteTo answer this question one must first define what a hero’s journey is. As the Odyssey is our comparison point, I will define a hero’s journey based on Ody.’s quest. Firstly, the man on the quest is preordained a hero. He overcomes adversity in quest, defeating monsters and personal desires. Ody. is pursued by position, an enraged god: the villain in this tale. Both of these stories are epic in scale. One might also look at the literary definition proposed by nick. I propose that to be on a hero’s jourey one must be a hero. Lizzie has given us a thorough definition of what a hero is: a person who acts selflessly, putting oneself in harm’s way for the sake of others. There is also an element of super ability, something past the norm. I argue that the definition of a hero, ultimately, is for the hero in question to decide. Achack fails on many of these counts. Again and again he falls prey to his own self-deprecating thoughts. He would not define himself as a hero, for fear of the judgments of others, and the worth of his actions. He acts selfishly over and over to preserve his life. Finally, and I think most notably, he is so very human. His whole journey is in the dregs of humanity, his very mind fracturing his soul being wrung out. War and its circumstances dehumanize Achack; however his quest is to reclaim it. He strives to unlose himself. Val over and over takes selfish action to preserve his life. No action is more human than self-preservation, the act of continuing life. His extreme consciousness over what others give him, what he perceives he takes, is an extension of this humanity. It is not guilt, but rather a worry that he might again lose human contact, as he did with himself. A hero is superhuman, but Achack protests to himself that he is something below humanity. This difference is what separates Achack from a hero. The very pain in his head is an indicator of the worth he puts on himself. The pain in his head is a value of “goodness”. Whilst visiting Nairobi, Val’s head bursts into pain upon sitting in his hosts apartment: “I had a crippling headache. I thought I was alone in the room so I dropped my head to my hands and tried to massage my skull into some kind of agreement that this was all good”(456). He is sitting in relative luxury yet he cannot come to terms with it; he does not feel he deserves it. He questions his worth. So much so that it is ingrained in his body, each headache is judgment. His skull must agree with his brain. A protective casing of deprecation and hate keep him from happiness, from the world. A hero is valiant, and more often than not “good”; to be rooted for. But Achack views himself as a child would: he is polarized, his world so very good and bad. By looking at the cover art of What is the What one sees the prevailing black but still white in his self-judgments. In his extreme selfishness, his own self-deprecation , and his valuing of himself Achack cannot be defined as a hero, and thus is not on a hero’s journey.
(Oh man, I had this whole thing typed up and then it got wiped when I tried to post it. Rrgh.)
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree with Jeremy’s post in most ways, there is one thing I have to dispute; I believe that he has chronic migraines caused by malnutrition in his childhood rather than any lingering emotional guilt. The less-than-ideal conditions he was raised in, coupled with the stress and trauma he has been through, are enough to bring these head pains to the surface quite frequently, making it a medical condition rather than a mental one. As a matter of fact, as I was reading through the book I kept making notes; “He should see someone about that.”
I would not phrase it as emotional guilt, but rather his own judgment of himself, his own qualms with being human, as opposed to being lost.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, I don't think that his 'qualms with being human' could trigger a migraine. While he certainly is struggling with these ideas, I don't think they manifest themselves in his headaches. A simple search of 'migraine' results in this definition; "Migraine symptoms include a pounding headache, nausea, vomiting, and light sensitivity." These are all symptoms described by Valentino in the book. Furthermore, WebMD says "Physical triggers include, but are not limited to;
ReplyDelete- Physical or Emotional Stress
- Alcohol
- Skipping Meals or Fasting
- Allergies
- Bright Lights and Loud Noises"
Valentino has been experiencing many of these since early childhood, most notably stress and malnutrition. He also says that, under pressure to do well in the US he turned to alcohol, which you'll see is another possible trigger. Therefore, while I agree that he is struggling with the issues you mentioned, his headaches are not related.
As for 'being lost', could you clarify? I'm not exactly sure what you're referring to there.
Ill strengthen my argument with some quotes later, but as to "being lost", I am referencing the title of lost boys. I equate being "lost" to losing ones humanity and mentality. Valentino makes it very clear in his self deprecation that he, at times, believes he is less than human, he is referenced to and references to himself as an "insect" several times throughout the book. Its not as though the emotional stress and circumstance of his upbringing is unrelated to his current mental state and the onset of his migraines. I am not arguing that his migranes are only a product of his self-hate, but rather that he consciously, and earlier in his life, subconsciousness relates them to that self judgement. Scientifically I'm sure that his migraines are caused by malnutrition and the like, but they still plague him like some sort of moral judge, or illness.
ReplyDeleteWe never truly know what lies beyond, we can only have faith in ourselves, who we love, and what we believe is right. Valentino learns this priceless lesson as he bravely marches on through the scarring experience that was growing up in the midst of the Sudanese war. In my opinion that’s what What is the What is all about; managing to put one foot in front of the other, and having faith that what lies ahead is better than what was left behind.
ReplyDeleteValentino’s journey differs from Odysseus’s journey is the sheer desperation that prompted it. While Odysseus was reluctant to fight in the war that preceded his journey home, Valentino was born into a hellish world, and his option was simple: flee or be killed. There is an obvious age difference; Valentino was still a child when his journey started while Odysseus was a full grown man with a wife and child. I think that the contrast here is interesting; the difference between Valentino’s longing for his parents and Odysseus’s longing for his son. In a way both of them were desperate for the same thing: A world that could never be theirs, a world where there was peace, and they were not required to be heroes.
I disagree with Lizzie in that I do think that Valentino is a hero. He didn’t stab a dragon or fight Poseidon, he battled evils that can be seen as worse than mythical creatures, because these evils actually exist. Maybe he isn’t a hero in this way, but he survived unbelievable circumstances, and managed to come out a decent human being. He also battled through all of this knowing that he'd have to live with these nightmares for the rest of his life, in the same way that his migraines plagued him as an adult. In this case, dying would almost have been the easier option. However, simply lying down and accepting that fate wouldn't have done anybody else any good. Valentino's parents never would have seen him again, they would have sacrificed all that time with their son in vain, for the end result would have been the same.
In the essay that we read, I was particularly amazed by the part in which Valentino and Mr. Eggers go back to Sudan and visit Valentino’s village. His parents greeted him and hugged him, and it must have been a very emotional time for everyone. The fact that he and all of the other boys managed to get to America must have meant so, so much to that village. Just like Saddam Hussein being captured gave them hope, the Lost Boys finding home gave those poor people encouragement that somewhere out there, people were going to help. I think that that’s what defines a hero. Managing to overcome hardship, emerge from it a better and more aware person, and using your own experiences to help others.
Literature is rich in heroes in search of their own personal Holy Grails. In the Odyssey, Odysseus’s goal is to return home to Ithaca. A Hero’s Journey is a quest for a specific goal and all of the events in the story revolve around the search. Ultimately the Hero returns home triumphant. In What is the What, Valentino is not on a Hero’s Journey. He is a bystander to and a victim of the events that take place around him. Valentino does not have a set goal, nor does he ever return home to Sudan.
ReplyDeleteValentino is a common citizen of Sudan forced to flee his home in search of refuge. Nothing about his story is unique in comparison to any other Sudanese victim of the Mujahidin. Valentino is simply a member of the Lost Boys, he is not their leader. When they march single file, he simply follows the child in front of him; Valintino is just a young boy blindly moving with the crowd. He is not at the head of the line, displaying the actions of a leader. Even though Valentino goes through extreme hardships such as dodging bombs from planes, other boys he encounters on his journey have gone through even more brutal ordeals.
Unlike a literary hero, Valentino’s journey does not have a set goal; his trip is not a quest, but a forced trek. From the moment he is compelled to abandon his home, his trip is about what he is running from, rather than where he is running to. For example, Valentino thinks his journey is at an end when he reaches a refugee camp, only to be evicted again when the camp is attacked. This is unlike Odysseus's journey because Odysseus always had a goal and continued towards it even when he was temporarily set off course by other characters.
Finally, Valentino never retunes home to Sudan a transformed man. Even in America, Valentino is a victim of violence that he is unable to change. Much like the attack on his village when he was a little boy, Valentino is assaulted in his own apartment as a grown man. His own arrival in America is delayed by the terrorism of 9/11. His entire life is marked by the violent actions of others. He never escapes it and is never triumphant.
Valentino's journey is not unique and it does not have a set purpose. He never returns home triumphant. Although he did experience extreme ordeals, Valentino is not a literary hero. What is the What is not the Hero’s Journey of one single boy, but perhaps it is the beginning of the Hero’s Journey of an entire people.
Oh man Gabe, you said that really well. I just want to point out one thing though; it says in the essay that he does return home, just for a short while, to see his village and family, after he got settled in the US. Just putting that out there.
ReplyDeleteThere are many different types of literary heroes. There are the heroes that outwardly fight the evils that plot against their goals of achieving some sort of victory, but there are also the ones that fight a battle within them. In a sense, Valentino is not a hero. He is forced by others to follow crowds, run and hide, and resort to the lowest of lows to survive. Valentino becomes only one of a number as he is herded and hunted down like the cattle that his people hold in such a sacred light. Valentino spends over a decade of his life in fear that his life will all fall to pieces and soon enough there might not even be a life to speak of. In this aspect, Valentino is not a hero, but in other ways, he is a hero. Valentino is born into a society where he lives a harsh life where he is constantly having an internal battle with his own conscious. He crosses the desert battling hunger, exhaustion, dehydration, pain, and death all around him. If Valentino were a weak person, he would have given up from the very start. He would not have fought to hard to keep his life and strive for a better one. He would not have ran away from Marial Bai that first day that the murahaleen ravaged his family and town. Instead of giving up and letting his life be taken, Valentino constantly fought. He fought the oppression that was forced upon him. To me, that is one version of a true hero. A hero can be a hero within himself. Heroism is not always an outward expression or action, but can occur within oneself. Odysseus battles gods, storms, battles, and many other outward forces. Odysseus does not always take the heroic route. He gave into the temptation of the sorceress Circe and lived on her island for many years. When women or wealth tempted Odysseus, his will was weakened and at times failed. He lost sight of his goal of Ithaca many times, but Valentino never gave up on the hope that his family was alive and that he would see them again. In this aspect, Valentino is a hero. Not a hero to others, but a hero within himself.
ReplyDeleteGabe, I really like what you said about What is the What being a Hero’s journey of an entire group of people. After reading the essay, the realization that this book was not only about getting out Valentino’s story but raising awareness of what things were really like struck me hard. Valentino might not always be a literary hero, but the people of Sudan are taking their own, real life, Hero’s journey. That point that you brought up is not only true, but something that hasn’t really been addressed yet. What is the What isn’t only about the extraordinary story of an ordinary man, but the incredible story of a group of people struggling for freedom.
ReplyDeleteLizzie, I know that the real person returned to Sudan, but Valentino did not. While I think the real people are heroic, I was really focusing on the story presented in the novel.
ReplyDelete