Tuesday 25 September 2012

Reading Response #3

The Honor Farm
By: John Westermann
p. 31-67

Right now I am in the middle of my story and things are starting to get really interesting. At this point we have learnt a lot more about the characters by the retelling of past stories and flashbacks. As the story progressed these flashbacks basically filled the holes of Orin's life, and it was interesting to see how his past has come back to haunt him in many ways. One thing I noticed in particular in this scene was Orin's lack of acceptance for his past mistakes. He knows he has done bad, but for some reason he doesn't seem to accept it. This may be used to show us just how much denial Orin is in. During his time at the Honor Farm, it's almost like he is unwilling to put him self on the same level as the other prisoners, and he cant admit he's done wrong. By doing this however I think Orin has a smaller chance to solve the suicide case and he wont be able to gain the trust of the other inmates.
One question I have for the author at this point, is why it took so long for us to learn more about Orin and his character. At the beginning of the book, Orin seemed like a normal guy, and he was easy to relate to. We didn't know much about him and it almost scared me to learn about some of the things he had done in the past. My liking for Orin effeminately took a turn for the worst. One prediction I have at this point, is that Orin  is going to get in an altercation of fight with some of the other prisoners.
I was also able to make a text to world connection during this passage. Recently I watched a documentary about a man on death row. He was found guilty of the murder but he wouldn't accept what he had done. Psychology doctors even suggested he was doing this for belief that if he truly thought he hadn't killed his wife, that he was at peace and would go to heaven. The reason I made this connection is because Orin always wears a cross necklace, and maybe this symbolizes he is a religious man. Maybe he is unable to accept his past mistakes because he fears consequences and his own conscience. It's just an idea at this point, but I am interested to keep reading.


2 comments:

  1. Interesting post!How does the title connect to the book?

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  2. Personally I think the term "Honor Farm" signifies a place where Orin can regrow some of the honor he holds. It's definitely not a typical prison, and it's too cushy to be defined as one. One of the big questions Orin always asks himself if what honor he holds if any. So in a way it's almost ironic he is sent to the "Honor Farm'. To add, none of the crimes the convicts there have committed seem criminal in intent. So and idea is maybe there is some sort of honor in what they did, and by calling it a farm instead of a prison, it almost seems less severe. Society might not look down on them as much as inmates in a jail.

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