"We had been searching together for six and a half months when Mr. Black told me he was finished, and then I was all alone again, and I hadn't accomplished anything, and my boots were the heaviest they'd ever been in my life."-Oskar Schell
The protagonist in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, Oskar, constantly uses the term heavy boots. When I first started this book, I had trouble depicting what it meant. Now, towards the end of the book, I think I can imagine what it means. From what I understand, heavy boots describe pressure, guilt. Like a heavy feeling that Oskar must carry with him.
When Mr. Black said he was done helping Oskar search for the key, he had given up hope. Just when he thought his search was getting somewhere, when his boots were light and airy- failure loomed over him. Heavy boots are stuffed with disappointment. To Oskar, it makes him feel "EXTREMELY DEPRESSED" and, "INCREDIBLY ALONE." But I see it as the thing that is weighing him down. If he loses hope so easily, he will never get to were he wants to be.
I've had the feeling of heavy boots. In all forms really. Anger, guilt, annoyance, frustration and desperation. And like Oskar, I always let it weigh me down. For the future, I know now that I can't let anything weigh me down, and if something does, something needs to be done to lighten that weight. I know that sounds cheesy, but that's what I felt every time I read that Oskar had "heavy boots". It makes me feel even more sympathy because that's what he felt ever since his dad died. His death weighed him down. Finding the key's owner was the only hope he imagined finding. If Oskar doesn't want heavy boots, he needs to let go.
Great post-- I really liked how you went into a specific part of the book and expanded on it. I too read the book and had the same feeling that heavy boots are the regrets and frustrating moments in life that take us down. You organized the piece well and I loved how you connected it to your life at the end. Nice job Haydon! ;)
ReplyDeleteWow. I really liked how you used this quote to talk about the rest of the book and your own life. This is a really nice post.
ReplyDeleteAmazing post, Haydon!I especially loved the last sentence you wrote, about how if Oskar no longer wanted heavy boots, he needed to learn to let go. I also agree that many people have probably had the feeling of "heavy boots" and we all let our negative feelings weigh us own in some sense or another, which is why we should learn to lighten the load that we carry and focus on the positive rather than the negative.
ReplyDeleteThis was amazing Haydon! When you first mentioned the quote I was a little confused, but I began to think about what it meant. I have never read this book, but this quote seems like one that could be described in lots of people's lives. As you described the details of Oskar's life, I began to see how that excerpt from the book really matched the situation. Great job!! <3
ReplyDeleteHey Haydon!
ReplyDeleteI happened to have just finished this book and I thought a lot of the same things. "Heavy boots" was a really interesting metaphor that the author used repeatedly and I could relate to. Everyone has experienced it, when you feel really down and depressed. I like how focused your blog post was (just on a couple words--wow) and how you connected to it.
Nice post!