Spring Break Narratives!
After a whole semester of looking forward to the relaxation and pure bliss that is Spring Break, I am sad to say it has come and gone all too fast. One whole week of laying out on the beach and reading books with my best friends all day just to go home and binge watch Netflix series in bed with snacks and ice cream did me extremely well. Although I was on break, I was still able to assess the narratives I read and binged!
I read one of my best friend’s favorite books for the first time this break titled Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl. This novel tells the story of Greg, a high school loner who ties his best every day to not grow close relationships with any one group at his school to avoid social conflict between cliques. Greg and his only best friend, Earl, make amateur films and have done so since they were little. Later on, Greg and Earl discover that their neighbor, Rachel, has been diagnosed with stage four cancer, and Greg’s mother tells them that she could use a friend and to go visit her. Eventually they do go visit her, and grow very close to her throughout the film. The story is told from Greg’s perspective. This narrative is interesting because the story even though we as a reader are exploring Greg’s inner thoughts, through that it is also clear what others are thinking and gives us an inside perspective into their lives as well. The writer composed Greg’s inner monologue to so clearly depict the other characters that It shows their story so clearly as well. This narrative showed me that other characters can too have detailed feelings and characteristics that become apparent even with a first-person narrator, and this is something that I will remember when I use it in my own writing.
The show I binge watched over break was called Queer Eye, and it was really something else. Not only is the show AMAZING, but it is hilarious, motivating, educational, and just so darn good. The concept is a group made up of five gay men, that come into the life of a straight man and transform him and the way he lives day to day life. The men they make over are usually people that aren’t really taking care of their image, have shut people out, are a little bit lonely, and need a boost of confidence. The narrative of the show is shown through the Fab Five and their dialogue with the man of interest, explaining to him that it really is very simple to try a little harder in everyday appearance, confidence, and making your home look presentable. The narrative is very detailed with creative and fun yet easy tips and tricks to help make life a little more extraordinary. This narrative is something I can use in my own writing because not everything needs to be extremely detailed for it to be successful, and simple yet effective ideas may be more successful in the long run.