One reviewer made the following comment about the novel: “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.”
How do you feel about this statement as an insight to the novel? What is the relationship between humor and the story’s subject matter?
How and why is this a funny story?
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Humor to compliment sad subject matter is the writing style that this very unique book, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, is written in. It makes its appearance on the third page when we are still being introduced to our protagonist Oskar, who opens the novel by telling us about how he wishes teakettles could talk. In one instance he is rambling on in the normal fashion of his character, “Sometimes I think it would be weird if there were a skyscraper that moved up and down while the its elevator stayed in place.” [pg. 3] Although his comical rant seems irrelevant to the story, the author Johnathan Safran Foer throws us a curveball by inserting the words “that could be extremely useful, because if you’re on the ninety-fifth floor, and a plane hits below you, the building could take you down to the ground, and everyone could be safe.”[pg. 3] With that sentence we are given an insight into a very tragic event that has shaped Oskar’s life. I think that this statement shows the incredible skill the author has at conveying the devastating events of 9/11 and the loss that the main character feels because of it, in a manner which is both delicate and at the same time childishly blatant. The narrating style is certainly what makes it a funny book.
This brings up another point; the fact that Oskar seems to hide behind his humor to shield himself from the loss of his father and the challenges he faces because of it. This concept is demonstrated when Oskar is talking to the limousine driver, “I wanted to make him crack up, because if I could make him crack up, my boots would be a little lighter.” [pg. 5] Oskar appears to act goofy so he can distract himself and others from the sadness they feel. That is why he thinks it’s appropriate to talk about kicking French chickens on the way to a funeral. With this trait, I think that we are able to see the depth of the character in his childish and insightful take on the world around him.
I also think that the statement “Humour is the only way to tell a sad story,” is very relevant in literature. The first applicable example of this comment that jumped to my mind was the writing style of Mark Haddon in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. I think that Haddon and Foer both use ironic situations and humorous characters with a different take on the world to tell their stories. Christopher often says outrageous things to those around him just like Oskar does. Both characters also have a very lighthearted way of reflecting on the deaths of their parents. I’m sure the resemblance of these two humorous styles is one of the reasons Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was chosen for this summer’s assignment.
Humor-we all use it at some point in our life. However, it seems that humor can become a sheild for us in our dark times, as stated by Lauren.
However, i would like to point out that perhaps the use of humor has another equally important meaning to the story. Like the Curious Incedent of the Dog in the Nighttime, Extremly loud and incredibly close also deals with a tragedy in the life of a young boy. (granted, the difference is between the death of a dog, and the death of a father) But still, both christopher and oskar are grieving and through thier grieving they are trying to solve a riddle. This being said, Humor is a very importan thing to address. “Humour is the only way to tell a sad story,” i believe this is said because without humor where there is sadness and greif, there can be no hope for the future. Withoug laughter, life would have no meaning (atleast for me) Foer introdues humor to his story because without it, we would not be able to relate to the story in a realistic way.
The said relationship between humor and the whole story is very strong. I believe there are several reasons for this; the foremost being that our main character is a nine year old boy! Albeit, almost a unusually aware and mature one, he is still a child who likes to have fun. He has collections, enjoys quests, and talks with wlakie talkies to his grandma. As oskar flashes back through his life, remembering moments with his dad and mom, the young child in him is evident, from the random questions to his opinion on just what the world should be doing right at that moment, he reminds me very much of my younger brothers. As the story unfolds the hurt of losing his father so young becomes apparent. He is sarcastic, and sometimes rash, yet there are still sentences and scenarios that make you smile to yourself. Just like Molly R P said, without the humor to push through the grief, there is no hope for the future. Without those simple smiles, he couldn't have triumphed. One of these such moments, my favorite, is when oskar receives his first letter from stephen hawking. When you first read that responding letter, you would expect oskar to be upset, but the simple fact he got a computer letter back just makes his day, which in turn makes the reader smile (pg. 12). These letters continue to pop up throughout the novel, which is a good continuation of humor throughout the story from the readers point of view, and small points of happiness from oskar.
Books can be funny when things or more depressing. Oskar has gone through a tragedy and still comes up with some funny ideas or lines. I think humor is used in this book to show how Oskar and his father were close, and because they were so close, it makes it even more sad that they are not together anymore. This is how I think humor and sadness are mixed in this book. When Oskar talks of changing the universe by moving sand he shouts," 'I'm God!' " and his dad replies," 'You're an atheist'"(86). This funny memory of them laughing together shows they had a great relationship, but when Oskar is done remembering he has to realize his father is gone and they can no longer laugh together anymore. Not only does humor show good relationships, like Oskar and his father, it can show relationships that are not as close. Oskar is not close to his mother and he can come up with some funny lines to show it. His mom says Oskar is talking in a accusatory tone and oskar replies,"I don't know what 'accusatory' means, so how could that be my tone"(70). This arguement is incredibly funny, when usually arguements are serious. I think it is sad that Oskar cannot be there for each other in their loss, but it is humorous when Oskar talks back or lies to her. Humor is used to show different relationships and to relate to the more depressing side of the book.
I agree with lauren e on the fact that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is written in a humorous style. I also agree with molly on the statement that humor can become a sheild for us in our darkest of times. Humor is a very diverse emotion. It can become mean, a shield, or just used for entertainment. Lauren e also makes a good point with stating that the book starts out with somewhat humerous topics. This humor only shows us a bit of who Oskar is. It shows us his personality, a bit of his past, and how his brain works. He calls it "inventing", but really they are just ideas on how to fix problems that have happened or could happen to Oskar. These humerous "inventions" are also a way for Oskar to hide his true emotions, like when he "invents" about where his grandma is. This is really just a coverup for how worried Oskar is getting. This humerous style of writing also lets Foer give out the story of how Oskars' dad died in 9/11, but without it being to straight forward and harsh. It helps to lighten the mood and get a really good story across to the readers.
Everything in this world has an opposite. It's like Ying and Yang, if there was one without the other it would become off balance. This is true with humor and sadness. In life and in this book, humor and sadness are both needed. This book in my opinion needs both or else it would be off balance and fail to be a good book. Foer knows that if he were to just write an ordinary book about an ordinary child who lost his father in 9/11, it would be overly sad, dreary, and boring. Humor which is put in place with the wonderful character Foer has created named Oskar. Oskar's innocence and odd behavior create the humor in the story which counter-acts the otherwise extemely and incredibly sad story. It's like if I, or anyone, were feeling sad, we would try to do something to cheer us up, say watch a funny movie. Humor in anything is here to make us feel better and in a way distract us from the everyday sad and horrible things going on in the world. Not only does it do that, but if one was to ever watch a dark comedy, if placed in the move correctly humor somewhat mocks things that would otherwise be sad. It pokes fun at sadness. In the end, without humor, life would be dull and so would this book. This has been Stephen K W saying good luck and goodnight.
Three of the many ways I have seen Foer use humor in Extrememly Loud and Incredibly Close is the way the Oskar is so open to new people, and seems so unafraid of the world when he is face to face with it, how Oskar is while he is with his father, and also all of his Googoplex inventions.
At first I didn't see the humor in the fact that Oskar was on the way to his father's funeral, and I didn't see how he wasn't showing any signs of being sad. But once he kept talking to the limousine driver and telling us about how it was making him feel, you could see that Oskar was trying hard to forget about the sad things in his life, and find funny situations in the midst of everything. Like Lauren e showed when Oskar was talking to the driver, "I wanted to make him crack up, because if I could make him crack up, my boots would be a little lighter."
I've been wondering if he has always had these boots, or if they just started getting heavy when his father died. Whenever him and his dad are together, Oskar seems laid back and naturally goofy. Like on page 13, when he's asking his father about why he is his son, his father tells Oskar about concieving him, and Oskar simiply says "Excuse me while I regurgitate."
It's a humorous situation as you wouldn't hear many 9 year olds say something like this, or understand what Oskar's father had just said.
Oskar's inventions start the second you start reading the book, and I found it funny, but I didn't know if I should be laughing because they are so random, and I haven't heard anyone come up with things like a birdseed jacket before.
But like Katelyn h said, Oskar is only trying to invent things that could help what he has been through, and what he could be going through.
Humor is used in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close to contrast the dark side of the book, with a lighter, humorous side. Oskar is obviously burdened with his father's death in the 9/11 attacks, which he shows when he makes the reference to having "heavy boots", but the author was clever to weave in humor also because it really is the only way to tell a sad story.
We have Oskar who is on the quest to find the lock the key goes in to somehow bring himself closer to his father, and along the way, multiple humorous events occur. First you have to realize the humor in this 9-year-old boy , traveling boldly throughout New York, who sees no barriers when thinking and asking questions, but Foer shows that Oskar sees going up in tall buildings, and using public transportation as a huge barrier because of the impact the 9/11 attacks had on Oskar.
On the very first page of the book, we get a taste of Oskar's humorous imagination when he wishes teakettles could talk, and later in the book he actually has a business card which I found to be very humorous because what 9-year-old actually has a business card?
I think that by using humor in a sad situation, Foer handled the subject truthfully yet delicately, which is why I really like this book. A typical 9/11 book would be expected to be very depressing, afterall it was a devastating event, but with humor in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close it "lightened" the situation.
I disagree with the statement that “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” for the reason that other novels, such as The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, describe an immensely sad story in a very graphic manner, without the use of humor. In this case, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close uses humor due to the immature emotional development of the nine-year old protagonist.
My question is whether Oskar consciously makes the decision to use his humor as a shield or if he is doesn’t know how to express those feelings to others. Could he also be using humor to protect others from his pain or protecting himself to give the illusion he is mature enough to handle his feelings on his own? I am having trouble deciding why exactly Oskar wants to make people laugh in sad situations. One reason I am confused is because Oskar is resentful to his mom for laughing and smiling with Ron, but Oskar hasn’t cried or been as upset as he wants his mom to be. Is he trying to protect his mom?
Although the humor in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is not your typical everyday humor, it plays a large role in understanding Oskar's personality, and ultimately the way John Safran Foer writes. The context in which the humor is used in this book is almost identical to that in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, as Molly has pointed out. Both of these characters are put into sad situations, but the stories aren't about the sadness. We find humor through the adventures that Oskar embarks on, and the way that he narrates his story. What I found most humorous about this book is the way that Oskar thinks, and the thoughts that he writes down for us to read. Many of them have absolutely nothing to do with the book, and therefore when read they seem humorous. For instance Oskar states, "One weird thing is, I wonder if you could hear everyone's hearts would start to beat at the same time, like how women who live together have their menstrual periods at the same time, which i know about but don't really want to know about" (1). Throughout the book we find passages like this, and to me, it seemed as though like Lauren has previously stated, that Oskar is hiding behind this humor. Even though the story is about his journey to find out what his father's key goes to, his father is only mentioned a few times throughout the story. I'm wondering whether Oskar intentionally hides behind his humor as Katie said, or if he is unaware of the way he thinks and acts.
Elise brought up another good point when she said "I've been wondering if he has always had these boots, or if they just started getting heavy when his father died." I was wondering the same thing, and I think that he has always had heavy boots, but I do think they may have gotten heavier after his father died. Oskar titles one of the chapters in the book Heavy boots, but then crosses it out and writes heavier boots. (142) Although this shows that he is even more desolate, the fact that he left the title he crossed out instead of replacing it shows humor, and sorrow at the same time. This just goes to show that this book shows how Humor and sorrow are companionable when in reality they are complete opposties.
I really liked what Stephen K said about how humor acts as an opposite to the sad subject matter in the story. I think Foer really wanted to set out to write a very different kind of novel with a character that stood out. He said in an interview with BookPage, "Everything is personal and everything that is personal is universal. That's how kids experience the world, and that's how this kid in particular experiences the world. Through the force of his own compassion, Oskar eventually grows up."
I think by telling a sad story in a funny way, the book becomes something three dimensional and real feeling. It's an interesting twist on the coping with tragedy plot line that brings out the ironic humor of the sometimes too serious world that we live in.
To me, this book is very relatable and has a certain endearing honesty to it which comes alive through the humanity of its protagonist. I don't think Foer would have been able to create that kind of pull for the reader if he hadn't portrayed Oskar with the humor and underlying sadness that he did.
In reality many people deal with situations much like Oskar does, by making jokes and trying to stay light hearted. Like Molly said, "Without humor where there is sadness and grief, there can be no hope for the future." Although I believe that Oskar uses his humor as a shield, I also think he uses it in a way that makes him strong as well. He tries to move forward while not forgetting the past. When Oskar is asked why he does not cry a lot he says, "That wouldn't be fair to either of us." [pg 171] I think this shows the inner strength of the character.
I agree with the statement "Humor is the only truthful way to tell a sad story" because in "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" Oskar uses this to hide his insecurity and distract himself from what had happened.
Humor appears early in the book and throughout the rest; yet it only appears in his narration and not as much in his interaction with others. The reason for this is because in his narration he is searching for a better understanding of his father's life and death. Though he is speaking of something humorous it leads back to thoughts of his father.
Also, Oskar uses humor to tell this sad story because he seems insecure about his father's death and is somewhat confused. It seems he tries to portray the opposite of what he may feel by being very blatent and humorous in his narration and communication with other characters in this book.
Last, Oskar uses humor when telling a sad story because he may not want to show any real emotion. Throughout the book Oskar expresses his love for his grandma, mom, and Buckminster but not much more than that. It may just be his personality but a lot of the things he does do not seem very genuine or real. Oskar uses humor in this book because of his confusion and feelings he has about his father.
To Lydia and Lauren, when I first read those funny, random little sections on information that Oskar "knew about, but didn't really want to know about", I didn't know what to think of them either. Why have random, completely disconnected (though interesting) facts about life, the world, or inventions thrown in when this book obviously doesn't connect to them. But now, I interpret it as Foer's way of helping the people who really did lose fathers, sons, mothers, to step away from their grief and, for a split second, see that the world is not dead. As for Oskar, the reader can take these random rants and observations as a comforting hint that shows that even Oskar, who is so consumed in his grief, takes interest in the world, in life, in learning, and will keep growing, no matter how slow the process must be. I believe that the humor also, like many of you have been saying, is essential for the characters, but also for the reader as well. As Oskar seems to understand, humor, or laughing, helps people; it makes their day brighter. Many of you have already pointed out the humorous scene between Oskar and the funeral car driver as important, where Oskar says, "if I could make him crack up, my boots could be a little lighter" (5). I think this scene does not show that "Oskar seems to hide behind his humor to shield himself," as Lauren E P says, but to rather show that Oskar simply likes pleasing others. If anything, 911 and his loss have given Oskar compassion and a strong, emotional connection to others. This became apparent to me when we met the Black above the stairs, and how intuitively Oskar knew he wanted to hear again, and how, when Oskar found out how lonely he's been, he said, "If I had known, I would have gone up to keep him company" (163). It's as if the only way now for Oskar to feel any happiness at all, is to make someone smile. This I believe is how Oskar will ultimately heal and trust again. A world full of laughter is a safe world, where the world of planes flying into buildings and bodies dropping from the sky becomes only a past nightmare. The reader and essentially the American still haunted by 911 should embrace the humor in this story, and take Oskar's jokes as a reminder that if you make others laugh, perhaps the want to join in will also come back.
How Lauren E says, "humor to compliment sad subject matter is the writing style that this very unique book, 'Loud and Incredibly Close', is written in" is exactly true. it really makes the book so intresting. Like for an example when Oskar was in the limousine (5). Oskar would make the jokes and stuff to the driver. Maybe Oskar made the jokes to forget his saddness. To make others happy and not to feel the same pain. Oskar seems to use humor as a way to divert his feeling of saddness. Then I believe that Will J is also correct that humor has a way to show relationships between people. Then if one dies then they still have that memory of what it was like when they were alive. Like Oskar does after his father dies. Oskar remembers the times when he was with his father. Just like their little "arguement" about God and Oskar being an atheist (86). So even with the tragidies of some of the characters, I believe that Foer tries to lighten things up a little with the humor.
I agreed with Kate M F when she stated that not all "sad novels" must be told humorously, and she gave a perfect example when she stated, "other novels, such as The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, describe an immensely sad story in a very graphic manner, without the use of humor." Not having read the novel myself, I asked my sister what she thought that technique did for the story. She described it as the process one would take when one loses someone, which is what happened in Oskar's case, because his father was quintessentially "murdered, just like the child in "Lovely Bones." Yet, there was one difference she said, and that was that the so-called "process" did not give much sense of hope for life after such death. Foer could have done this as well; only America does not have to read about the process of grief, for written years after 911, we have already been through it. A lack of humor in "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" would have burdened the reader to relive "the worst day" and to feel again alone "in the middle of a huge black ocean, or in deep space" (36). This book is about scouring out a new existence without someone: not dwelling on one day. There must be comic relief, because we all know that 911 itself is humorless and empty, but that does not mean that every second of Oskar, or our lives, must be as well. Lydia B W makes a good point when she says," this book shows how Humor and sorrow are companionable when in reality they are complete opposites." Half of what she says is, in my opinion, true. Humor is a companion to many sorrowful people in this book, be it Oskar's mom and Ron, with their laughter, Mr. Black and his isolated, yet quirky personality that pushes Oskar to ride that subway, or climb those stairs, or the Black who lives on the Empire State Building, a woman who has "never felt more alive or alone" (254). Opposite feelings fluctuate throughout the novel, which makes me disagree with Lydia when she says such extremes are not companionable in reality. Opposite emotions can cause connections in real life. A person in pain can be comforted by a happy, funny person and thus, become companions. One moment, a child is sobbing, and the next moment, he is full of smiles. Thus, Foer uses humor as a much-needed buffer, even as a way to give the reader perspective, that even if you feel alone now more then ever, you can still feel alive. Yet, as shown in "Lovely Bones", this slightly humorous process Foer uses to create healing is not complete, for the only cause of this book was 911, and as Oskar faces the truth, we must too; humor is only a bandage and without 911, "we could have been..." (326) happier.
In my opinion I feel that this is a sad novel, but because there is some humor it makes it easier to read and takes your mind off of the sadness. But as both Kitty W and Kate M stated the novel Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold is an incredibly sad story of a girls murder, without the use of humor. When a story is very graphic, humor can not be used because then the novel could be very controversial in saying that a girls murder has become something funny and humorous. There is a certain context when humor can be used without it trying to cover up a "sad story".
In this novel humor can be used because the story is not graphic, it is simply a "sad story". The way humor is used in this novel is just a unique technique that makes it easier to read. The first few pages of the novel are very humorous. Because it was humorous it was easier for me to get into. Oskar starts off by saying, "What about a teakettle? What if the spout opened and closed when the steam came out, so it would become a mouth, and it could whistle pretty melodies, or do Shakespeare, or just crack up with me?" (1). Oskar is alway inventing funny little things. Maybe it helps him get his mind of his dad, or maybe its just the way Oskar is. He always seems to be able to make a situation funny and humorous and be happy even in times of sadness.
Kate does have a good point when she says that not all sad novels are told in a humorous way. But I also believe that all sad novels do have at least some humor or happiness at some point. The lighter side does not always have to come from the protagonist's emotions, but typically there is some other character or a situation that lightens the mood. The example that has been given so far is Alice Sebold's The Lovely Bones, which is told with a sense of extreme heartache and longing for life. Susie, who is the book's protagonist, says in the end, "The events that my death wrought were merely the bones of a body that would become whole at some unpredictable time in the future. The price of what I came to see as this miraculous body had been my life.” What I took from this was that in the end the character could make sense of her death and find some measure of peace/happiness. So while I think that humorous writing may not be the focus of other sad subject matter, I do think that there has to be some lighter emotions to contrast the darkness.
As I've read farther into the book I've realized that Oskar does not only hide behind humor to make himself feel better, he also uses it to make others feel better. Kitty has a point when she says "Oskar simply likes pleasing others." I think that Oskar tries his best to make others happy (While on the inside he feels the same sorrow they do.) but it seems he doesn't always know how to go about it. The best example of this is when Oskar and his mother are riding in the limousine "Even though it was an incredibly sad day, she looked so, so beautiful. I kept trying to figure out a way to tell her that, but all of the ways I thought of were weird and wrong." and "because making her happy is another one of my raisons d’être." [pg. 7]
When Krystle W W stated that " [Oskar] always seems to be able to make a situation funny and humorous and be happy even in times of sadness," I had to disagree. There is no happiness in him, only the want to be empty (290), because emptiness for Oskar would be a relief from his bloated pain. That leads me to my other point based off of what Lauren E P said: "I do think that there has to be some lighter emotions to contrast the darkness." She makes this statement for all sad books, and I completely see her reasoning. A sad book, all the way through, would be, well, more then just sad. It would be utterly depressing. I have read many sad books, one for example, being "Sophie's Choice," a book based off of a woman's life during and after the Holocaust. The lighter side to the book is her lover, a man completely mad for her, and in this case, I mean mad literally and metaphorically. But he was a charmer and a joker, and gave some comic relief to an otherwise devastatingly morose life that I could not put down. Yet, my point is, the lover's humor made the book, in all, even more complex and even more dark and twisted. This, I believe, is because it gave the man and the whole story real human depth and showed the reader, through some humor, how desperately unfunny everything was, and how the characters knew it too. This I believe is similar to Oskar and his situation. Yes, the book is funny because Oskar makes it so. His ideas that float through his head, or all the inventions he creates like the "kite -string bracelet," the skyscrapers with roots, or the teakettle that can talk (323) are all entertaining to the reader. Yet, they are not just simply inventions that little children imagine up and forget. They all have a purpose that relate to his heartache; his fears: ""we need pockets for boroughs and for cities, a pocket that could hold the universe" (74); that is Oskar's solution to keep us safe: " What if there was a special drain that...when people cried themselves to sleep, the tears would all go to the same place" (38); that is Oskar's solution to sorrow and unrelenting tears. The humor is only surface deep in this story. Again, Oskar is never happy, just like his mother will never "fall in love again" (325). Humor is only a momentary escape from life when it has lost all sense.
Kitty developed a great post on how the humor in this book "is only surface deep" (Kitty). What makes this statement so true is how Foer is able to develop that sort of desperate sense of needing the humor in order for characters such as Oskar to simply get by.
Foer successfuly accents his plot with realistic human features. There is the awkward "love" between Oskar's grandmother and grandfather that breaks away from the cliche love story, and then there is the humor that is only underlined by the presence of lingering loss. These things are true to the world we live in, and I am glad that Kitty brought up this aspect of humor. Yes, it does balance emotions out in the book, but it does not offer relief, as a thorough inference of a reader would tell.
When Foer has Oskar narrating himself, things may seem funny. But when other characters (or readers) pick up on his behavior, they are able to pinpoint his root of humor: sadness. In a letter to Oskar, his grandmother writes of the funeral for his father: "You made jokes with the [limousine] driver, but I could see you were suffering. Making him laugh was how you suffered" (232). It is imparitive that Foer places these other perspectives in his story because he wants readers to see how desperate things become. And as a reader, we find that this letter from Oskar's grandmother is a valid observation and perspective, for we have already read and experienced her awkward love story that labels her as someone that can notice such hidden suffering. However, Oskar tries to joke and laugh his way through his hurting. Foer offers us a true reaction to loss: desperate need of happiness to balance a hovering sadness.
In this unfortunately sad but very true book, there has been an extreme amount of humor expressed from the main character, Oskar. I personally agree to many of the other bloggers, Oskar likes to hide behind his humor. Then again, like Lauren E said, he doesn't just hide behind the humor, he likes to express it to make other people loosen up, make them laugh and be more comfortable with the situation that has taken place.
In the first chapter, Oskar, his grandmother and his mom were in the limousine drving to the cemetary and he's talking to the driver and everything he says has some sarcastic or humoris tone about it. In this way, the driver loosens up a little around him but then slightly gets annoyed with the situation and doesn't really know how to respond to everything thaht he says.
I also have to agree with Katty W though, even though Oskar expresses an extreme amount of humor, he really doesn't have any happiness about him. All of his humor is based off of tragic events that he relates to himself and he doesn't know how else to express himself. After most comments made by Oskar, the words "my boots are getting heavier" follow, in which i think relates to his sadness and how he can help other people around him.
While I agree that humor is an effective way to write a sad story, I do not think that it is always a completely truthful method. In Oskar's case in Extremely Loud and incresibly Close, he uses humor to cover up the huge void he feels from losing his father. For example, he thinks up something funny like,"If you were extremely excited your skin would turn green, if you were angry you'd turn red" (163). This is an extremely humorous idea.The interesting part of this, however, is that Oskar says this after thinking about an utterly depressing part of life. Loneliness. Oskar thought about " if there were people so lonely so close" (163). The use of humor directly after this makes me think that he is trying to distract himself from ever thinking about sadness. Oskar does not want to even ponder on thoses topics because he is afraid that it will remind him of his dad. To avoid any pain, Oskar pretends that everything in the world is alright by making it funny. This is why I don not think that humor is necessarily a truthful way to tell a sad tale. By using humor in cases like this, the main character of a book is really lying to themself. He/She pretends that the sadness does not exist and insists on covering it up. Instead of dealing with reality, he/she leads a false life through humor.
I love what Kitty W said, which is that "Opposite emotions can cause connections in real life." I totally agree. This book is full of opposites that work together, and not in just emotions. Verbal and nonverbal, old and young, right and wrong. These These all go hand in hand. This is one of the reasons the book is so believable. Just as Stephen K said, it makes me think of Ying and Yang as well. While both must go together, there is always that little circle in each symbolixing how nothing can be completely good or bad. Such is the case with the novel. If the book was totally about the sadness of 9/11, it would not make much of an impact on its readers. One could not get the full inpact of the sadness without its opposite to compare it too.
The reason that this book is so funny is, as Laura W. touched upon, the fact that it is told in a child's perspective. while adults watch what they say, children speak their mind. The result is usually very blunt and therefore funny. Also, children view the world differently. Everything is new to them, and they can not focus on one thing for too long, as Oskar tends to show. All of these come together to creat a funny story. Humor is a very tricky emotion. Without humorless situaions, humor in itself would not exist, hence the use of it strenghtens sad situations.
Being sad and being humorous are complete opposites, especially in this book where 9/11 is not a tragedy to laugh about. I agree with what Alex p said, when he mentioned the fact that without humor in a sad story, we would have nothing to compare sad to.
Grief is dealt with in many different ways, some ways not even explainable. For Oskar, it seems like his way of dealing with the loss of his dad is to humor himself in other things. Its a great distraction and though its still really hard on him, he gets through the days.
The relationship between humor and the story's subject matter is extremely strong. When something goes wrong, nearly every time it is followed by humor. Part of this being because Oskar is young. Another reason being because without humor, we wouldn't be able to comprehend the full extent of what the main character is going through.
9/11 was a tragic event for America, but for many it was even more tragic of the loss of their father,mother,brother,sister or friend. Without the humor in any sad story, many readers would not be able to comprehend the fact that losing someone is disastrous, but we need laughter and humor to get us through the days.
Now that I think the idea of the opposites of sadness and happiness being important for books to show contrast has been covered, I would like to move on to how Foer successfully makes us get to know Oskar as a character through some of the humorous instances, and how that makes the rest of the story easier to understand in terms of what Oskar is trying to live through.
Molly R and Lauren E touched on some comparisons between this book and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. However, it is the writing style that Haddon and Foer both develop that make a reader understand the main character on such a personal level. I remember reading that book last summer and first chuckling at a few things that Chris did as the main character. But you begin to learn how his autistic diagnosis is what makes him seem funny. When Haddon causes the reader to realize that, then the rest of the book becomes more serious, as one knows that what he does is not meant to be funny. This is just like how Oskar's childhood labels him as funny. But this is only due to how "children speak their mind" and how things they say can be "blunt and therefore funny" (Alex P).
To me I think it's evident that Oskar uses humor to try and escape sadness (like many have touched on) rather than it being spontaneous natural. When Oskar first finds out about Mr. Black living so close to him he says if he would have known about such a lonely person "[he] would have gone up to keep him company . . . Or told him hilarious jokes" (163). Foer develops how Oskar logistically thinks things through as a kid. If everyone cries at night, then there should just be one big drain connecting to everyone's pillows. Or if everyone was given a color for their mood, then everyone would know how to act with each other. That's why Foer uses humor through Oskar. He is showing that the funny things he says or does is not spontaneous, but it is to fill a deep, deep hole.
At first I think it is important that we laugh at things that Oskar does, because when that time comes where an experience is intended to be taken more seriously, then the story becomes more effective. Foer (like Haddon), I believe, wishes that we do take these first interactions as humorous. It makes climaxes and emotional ups and downs in a story more meaningful.
this is a test
Back to what Alex P W said, "Oskar does not want to even ponder on thoses topics because he is afraid that it will remind him of his dad." I feel that Oskar openly discusses his fathers death. He wants to remember his father for who he was and think of what his father stood for. Oskar shows this when he says, "Dad would want me to remember him" (171). His mom was the one wno did not want to talk about his fathers death. Oskar on the other hand seemed to almost torture his mom with thoughts of the fathers lost body.
Alex P W did make a good point when she said, "While adults watch what they say, children speak their mind. The result is usually very blunt and therefore funny." Oskar is funny not because he is trying to keep from thinking of his dad, but simply because he is a child who speaks his mind. Oskar says things whether they are rude or polite. An example of this is when Oskar asks Abby Black, "Could we kiss for a little bit" (99). This was humerous because Oskar speaks his mind whether it is tactful or not. Oskars mom uses humor to cope with her husbands death. She does not use humor to forget his death, but to help her and Oskar get through their hard time. Oskar's mom shows that she cope's with her husbands death through humor when she says, "Why can't you remember him and be happy" (171). Oskar's mom wants to share her laughter with him, but Oskar will not accept humor as a way to cope with his fathers death. According to the Nemours Foundation, "Laughing together is a way of connecting, but a good sense of humor also can make kids smarter, healthier, and better able to cope with challenges." Oskars mom wants to help Oskar overcome death and continue to live a normal life through laughter and humor. Oskar refuses to accept this method and uses his own method which involves having "heavy boots" all the time.
Collin V F says, "To me I think it's evident that Oskar uses humor to try and escape sadness." I think that he uses humor to escape situations where he might get in trouble. Oskar shows this when he gets in a fight with his mom and says, I tried to think of some way to be hilarions, because I thought that maybe if I was hilarious, she wouldn't be mad at my any more and I could be safe again" (170). I feel that Oskar uses humor to calm his mom. When his mom becomes happy, he is happy. He does not admit he is happy, he just says he is "Optomistic,But Realistic" (170). His mood will quickly change back to depressed, but for a brief moment, his mothers happiness brings him happiness. Because Oskar uses humor to make his mom happy, Oskar indirectly becomes happy from his own humor. Jonathan Safran Foer uses this to show that Oskar tries not to let humor affect him, but it does anyway. He also shows that humor does not affect his feeleing toward his father, but his mood.
I am going to have to agree with Lauren E P on this and say that Oskar tries to be humorous because it is his way of grieving. Everyone has their own way of grieving and showing their emotions when death is near. Some people cry, others become incredibly quiet, some people get really mean, and still others resort to Humor to help cope with their loss. Like Lauren E P says about page 5 in E.L.A.I.C., "'I kicked a French chicken in the stomach once,' because I wanted to make him crack up, because if I could make him crack up, my boots could be a little lighter." In saying "my boots could be a little lighter", Oskar is saying that if he could make the Limo Driver laugh, he could forget about the funeral and all his troubles and it would help him to mourn his father's death.
"Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story."
I have noticed this analogy of story telling in a variety of other books. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (book 7) to be one of them. J.K.Rowling's story of Harry Potter tends to get darker and darker with each book, but it reaches its maximum capacity in book 7. The book is very serious and full of death and despair, but Rowling manages to find a way to add humor here and there (usually by having one of the two lementable Weasley Twins say something completely outrageous)to lighten up the script. If a book is too sad or depressing, the despair tends to rub off on the reader and the reader may not want to read the book a second time if he (or she) even finishes the book. Humor really is the Only truthful way to tell a sad story.
This statement is a great analagy of the novel. The whole story relies on the relationship between humor and the story's subject matter. Oskar uses humor to tell the story and without the humor, it wouldn't be as great of a book that it already is. Even the first page of the book talks about humor. Oskar says on page one, "Another good thing is that I could train my anus to talk when I farted. If I wanted to be extremely Hilarious, I'd train it to say, 'wasn't me!' everytime I made an incredibly bad fart. And if I ever made an incredibly bad fart in the Hall of Mirrors, which is in Versailles, which is outside of Paris, which is in France, obviously, my anus would say, 'Ce n'etais pas moi!'." However immature this statement is, it is "humorous" and though it has absolutely nothing to do with the general plot of the story, it does set the setting of the story so that the reader warms up to the story and prepairs themselves for whatever lies next. It starts humorous to get you, the reader, into the story and then gets gradually more and more serious with each page so it can tell the story. It's like the "recipe for disaster". If you put a frog in boiling water, the frog will jump out, but if you put the frog in cold water and generally increase the temperature, the frog will boil to death without knowing it. You can't start the story off with overflowing seriousness and depression because the reader will "jump out". But if you start it off funny and gradually make it more and more serious, the reader will stick with it and read the intire book and get something out of it.
"Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story."
I think we've decided on
O whoops sorry about that last unfinished comment. Here's the rest of it:
I think we've decided on the fact that humor is used as a tool in this novel to display Oskar's grief. I don't think he avoids talking about his dad because as Luke A W said, "Oskar on the other hand seemed to almost torture his mom with thoughts of the fathers lost body." In that scene where he talks about his father so bluntly and straightforward, he makes his mom cry. However when he does talk about his father, he uses humor to cover his true feelings up so he himself is not sure what he is feeling. I think when you use humor to cover up grief, it can make it even more confusing to know what one is really feeling. Oskar says, "Dad didn't have a spirit, he had cells!" (Foer 169). When Oskar does talk about his dad, it's the facts, or what really is happening but nothing spirital. He simply thinks that his dad died, decomposed, and was recycled which does in fact happen, but he refuses to think of the greater meaning of death. The humor helps him think of it this way.
So humor can be an effective wayto write a sad story, but can it go the opposite way? Can sadness be an effective way to write a humorous story? It seems that would be more difficult to convey that the story is actually supposed to be funny.
AS molly G has said, we have all agreed that humor is a tool of grief in this novel. Also,i would like to ad something to when she says, "However when he does talk about his father, he uses humor to cover his true feelings up so he himself is not sure what he is feeling." In my oppinion, of course oskar does not know what he himself is feeling! He is a 9 year old boy who has just lost his father. There are many adults who are unable to come to terms with there feelings after the loss of a loved one. The way i look at it, oskar's use of humor is a more healthy way for him to deal with his emotions then most people would use.
Next i want to answer Molly g's question, "Can sadness be an effective way to write a humorous story?" I for one do not believe so. Like i said in my first post on this topic, humor is used to help us get through our darkest time, so if it were to be a funny, happy story, why would there be any need to bring in sadness?
I have to dissagree with Merrilyn K W when she says, "Oskar tries to be humorous because it is his way of grieving." I believe that Oskar uses a different method to deal with his fathers death. He does not resort to humor, but to memories of his father. Whether it gives Oskar "heavy boots" or not, he likes to listen to him fathers voice and remember what happened. Oskar shows this when he says, "I wanted to take a sad song and make it better. It's just that I didn't know how. After dinner, I went up to my room. I took the box out of the closet, and the box out of the box, and the bag, and the unfinished scarf, and the phone" (207). Oskar uses the old recorded messages of his dad to calm himself. He wants to make his sad life happier, and to do so he remembers his father and listens to his voice to calm himself. I feel that Oskar rarely, if at all, uses humor to deal with his father's death.
According to the Nemours Foundation, "[Children] deal best with death when given accurate, simple, clear, and honest explanations about what happened." Oskars mother seems to deny the truth when she fights with Oskar:
Dad isn't even there. Excuse me. His body was destroyed. Don't talk like that.
Oskar seems to accept the truth whether he likes it or not. His mother seems to deny the truth. This seems to be a role reversal
according the Nemours Foundation. The parent should tell the child the truth. Oskar deals with the loss by thinking logically, not through his humor. Humor is simply a part of his life because of his outrageous and blunt statements and his unique personality.
Oskar also experiences many other emotions other than humor during this hard time in his life. This is shown when Oskar tells his psychiatrist, "Right now I am feeling sadness, happiness, anger, love, guilt, joy, shame, and a little bit of humor" (200). Oskar is feeling so many emotions that he doesnt know what to think. He has never dealt with such a dramatic event in his life, so he isn't exactly sure how he feels. Although humor is a major part of the book, and Oskar constantly says something funny, he does not use it to cope with his father loss. He cope's with his fathers death through solving the mystery of the key. Humor is simply just a part of life that is involved in every story.
Another way to rephrase, "humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story," is to say that there is beauty in the breakdown. Agreeing with Lauren E P, Jonathan Foer created a unique novel with a character all of his own. Part of Oskar's charm is his original sense of humor, and way of handling his life problems. Everyone grieves differently, and Oskar's way of grieving is by ignoring his troubles instead of facing them head on. He shadows himself in his own pain and hides his feelings, "No matter how much I feel, I'm not going to let it out. If I have to cry, I'm gonna cry on the inside" (203). Oskar uses humor to tell his story through out the book, but when the topic of his father's death is thrown up in his face, he becomes serious and hostile. When Oskar's mother tells him that her way of dealing with her husband's death is through laughing he says, "I'm not trying to find ways to be happy, and I won't" (171). However, Oskar contradicts himself later in the book when he hears the radio sing Hey Jude, "It was true. I didn't want to make it bad. I wanted to take a sad song and make it better" (207). This is showing Oskar's optimistic side, although he rarely shows it, he does have one.
Foer uses humor inside of a tragedy as a different way to grab and hold the reader's attention. Hardly anyone would want to read a depressing novel from cover to cover, because then the reader would become depressed as well. In order to prevent that from happening, Foer tosses in some humerous sarcasm, jokes, and innocent moments to lighten up the story's mood and keep the reader hooked.
Luke A stated, "Although humor is a major part of the book, and Oskar constantly says something funny, he does not use it to cope with his father loss. He cope's with his fathers death through solving the mystery of the key. Humor is simply just a part of life that is involved in every story." I do, agree with the first half of this conclusion. However, I disagree with the second half because I do believe there can be sad stories without any humor at all. But as I am saying that, I am also, in a sense, disagreeing to the original post, and it's quote from a reviewer; "Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story."
The humor, as it has been pointed out from several other students before me, is a key way to keep this story from being too dreary and sad. If this quote is suggesting that the humor allows the story to be understood to the fullest, then I agree. The purpose of the humor used in this book is an extreme success. However, if it is suggesting the story couldn't have been told without the humor, then I disagree.
Either way, I am grateful Foer did decide to use humor to tell Oskar's story, because it can (as Sarah F said), "lighten up the story's mood and keep the reader hooked."
Oskar’s willingness to confront his grief reveals that his humor is not a way to shield this grief. Oskar, early on in his quest, makes the decision that he will be “as honest about [his mission] as [he] could outside home, because that’s what was necessary” (87). If Oskar was trying to hide away his grief with humor, he would make up a humorous story as to why he was investigating the key, not tell complete strangers his tragic life story. He believes his “mission” is of more importance than his own feelings, and is willing to do something very difficult if it means he can gain even the smallest amount of useful information. Oskar is not hiding behind his humor, but confronting the truth. Instead as a shield, Oskar is using his humor as a bandage—a way for him to begin to recover from the pain. In her post on 7/10, Kitty W comments that she believes humor is ”how Oskar will ultimately heal and trust again” and I agree with this. Oskar uses his sometimes humorous inventions as a momentary distraction; but more importantly, they are solutions to problems he sees in his life. A talking teakettle could be funny, but it could also read to Oskar in his father’s voice so he “could fall asleep” (1). Not being able to sleep without his father’s voice is a very serious and troublesome subject for Oskar, and a talking teakettle is, while unrealistic, a reasonable way to resolve his problem. Oskar’s humor, either in his inner monologues or in a conversation, allows him to take a small step towards learning what he must do to recover to his pre-9/11 state of happiness.
As for the broader scope of humor within the novel, there was one passage that addressed the effect of humor on the world around it. In her letter to Oskar, Oskar’s grandmother tells a story of one time her sister jumped on a bed so much that “the seams burst [and] feathers filled the small room.” She writes, “our laughter kept the feathers in the air. I thought about birds. Could they fly if there wasn’t someone, somewhere, laughing?” (78). Although her question has little literal validity, it is still very interesting. Birds often represent the freedom that their flight brings them, but what if that freedom was restricted by the laughter of humans? In a way, all of our freedom depends upon our ability to laugh and see the humor in a situation. I’ve heard before that the most confident people are those who can laugh at themselves among other things. The humor in the book allows Foer a freedom to explore areas he could not have otherwise. It opens alternate pathways for him to access the truth within the sad story.
I could not agree more with Lauren E when she states, "Oskar seems to hide behind his humor to shield himself from the loss of his father." Oskar has just lost his father in a terrible accident, and of course, he has no idea how to overcome it. To protect himself from being hurt again, Oskar uses his humor as a shield to protect his feelings. This is shown in many instances when Oskar asks people if they know about the lock. He uses his charm and his humor to talk to people about a very touchy subject. I know for a fact that most people in the real world would not be able to travel around New York City to talk to strangers about something extremely personal. But, the humor that Oskar uses allows him to push through the grief of his father's death, and without his humor through the sadness, he would not be able to do just this.
Humor is not only a part of life but is also a coping mechanism. This all seems to be very “one way or the other”, but maybe it is Oskar’s way of trying to get his life back to normal again, while still recognizing his father is dead. Humor is needed in any type of painful situation. I know this through my mother, who went through years of chemo when she had cancer. She was put with an outstanding doctor, but the doctor had no sense of humor. She was going trough a very tough time and humor is sometimes needed not to ignore something painful, but to keep on going no matter what.
Amanda B points out that “the humor that Oskar uses allows him to push through the grief of his father’s death, and without his humor through the sadness, he would not be able to do this”. This is a very important major point in determining why he uses humor. This humor that he uses also engages those who he is going around talking to into what he wants.
Humor is necessary in any life or story. Kristen W mentioned Oskar’s grandmother playing with her sister “‘our laughter kept the feathers in the air. I thought about birds. Could they fly if there wasn’t someone, somewhere, laughing?’ (78). Although her question has little literal validity, it is still very interesting.” The laughter is needed not only to keep the feathers moving, but also to form more of a bond. I know I joke with my sister a lot, but when we are mad at each other, we do not joke around, and that is when we seem to fall further apart.
In Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close there is humor but in a good way and there isn’t too much humor that it makes the story a comedy. I do think that “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” because you need to have any kind of laughter in a story even if it’s sad. Oskar had a lot of humor because he’s a little boy that has to have fun, even if his father died. You have many feelings as a child and I do understand what Candace and Elise and others are getting at by saying that Oskar makes the situation of the story more relaxing because he eases the tension by telling something funny or an interesting fact. For example when Oskar is talking to Abby Black and he tells her something interesting about elephants because there’s the picture of the elephant in her kitchen. After she starts to cry and he doesn’t understand why, so he tells her about how he wanted to go with a scientist with those elephants. “’I wrote a letter to that scientist who’s making those elephant recordings. I asked if I could be her assistant. I told her I could make sure there were always blank tapes ready for recording, and I could boil all the water so it was safe to drink, or even just carry her equipment.’” (96) Oskar tried to ease the tension by telling a funny story or an interesting fact however you look at it.
In my opinion there isn’t any other way to make a sad story and in this particular novel its humor makes it sad in a way. Like when Oskar is visiting Mr. Black in his apartment and how he found out how lonely Mr. Black was. “If I had known, I would have gone up to keep him company. Or I would have made some jewelry for him. Or told him hilarious jokes. Or given him a private tambourine concert.” (163). In life you have to have humor or you can’t get through it.
Firat off, I don't agree with the statement "Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story". the funny parts in this book are all on Oskar's story. And I have to say that it makes me feel less sorry for him when he has to throw a pun in the middle of everything. It makes the story much less heart breaking. However, the Grandparents story is a real tear jerker for me. i have to admitt i almost cried when i read about the Grandfather loosing his words one by one. the fact that they leave out the humor in their story makes it take to the heart more.
Also, i have to dissagree with Merrilyn about humor being used to distract the readers. Humor can take it's toll on the characcters in the end. (warning, possible spoilers for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows follow) As we might refer to this passage, "Fred's eye's stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face". The comidic dou (that i love to pieces) takes a toll for the humor. And the fact that this completely made most fangirls burst into tears shows that the real sad story is actually sad.
Molly G W's twist on saddness" as an effective way to write a humorous story" really made me consider the meaning behind that. For some reason, humor makes sad stories more believable. If it's true that opposites go well together in this story, then wouldn't Molly's idea be correct? Couldn't one use saddness to be funny? I did think of one example of this, which lie in the films by Tim Burton. burton uses usually depressing topics, such as death, to make his stories have humore. This use of saddness to result in humor is very similar to its opposite idea. Both are used to make a seemingly morbid topic a little brighter.
Luke A's statement that ,"I feel that Oskar rarely, if ever, uses humor to deal with his father's death," puzzled me a bit. If Oskar does not use humor to cope, then what emotion does he use? Truthfully, i cannot even place the emotion. I believe that Oskar does not have an emotion to describe how he deals with the loss of his father. Oskar, like Luke said, "Is feeling so many emotions that he does not even know what to think."
On the very first page of this novel, the reader sees that Oskar invents things in his head constantly. One idea of his is ,"What about little microphones? What if everyone swallowed them, and they played the sounds of our hearts through little speakers . . . ?" (1). Inventions, in my opinion, are one of the ways that Oskar deals with the emptiness he has. While Oskar "used to be an atheist, which means [he] didn't believe in things that couldn't be observed" (4), I think that somw of those atheist ideals stayed with him. Since emotions can not be seen or really observed in any way,Oskar tries to use inventions to cope with everything. Even though these inventions are strictly inside his head, Oskar can at least understand what he wants to invent. With emotions, he has no idea. Any emotion, be it humor, saddness, or so on, is very hard to understand, especially for someone as young as Oskar.
As I was reading the comments posted above I noticed that several people believe Oskar’s sense of humor to be a coping mechanism. While I agree with Lauren and her statement that humor shields us in the darkest of times, I also think that Oskar’s sense of humor is nearly unintentional. Granted that humor is an opinionated subject, Oskar rarely goes out of his way to bring attention to himself through jokes and laughter. One exception being that he told a silly joke to the limo driver on the way to his father’s funeral on pg. (5-6) about the “Oeuf” and the chicken. Other than that however, I have not had any evidence towards Oskar trying to conceal his emotions through humor. Humor, for me, in this book is more of the creativity, randomness, and how sporadic and naive Oskar tends to be. For instance, the fact that Oskar sees nothing wrong with giving the mailwoman a key shows his naïve tendencies. Also, the fact that Oskar wants to teach his anus to say “it wasn’t me!” when he farts, shows how creative he is. Obviously Oskar is not trying to be funny. He is just being himself which is what makes the book humorous and creates a bond with the character. If a reader is drawn to the personality of the character in distress it makes the book that much more meaningful. Hence why the reviewer states: “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” Humor and sadness are the realities of life; therefore it seems that a sad story can only be truthful with humor nearby.
Life is full of very sad and hard tests and trials. In fact, in most cases, more unfair things happen to people than good things. The trick is, though, making the good things count for more than the bad. I really appreciate Foer’s ability to incorporate such great humor into such a depressing story. There are times when we, as the readers, want to look at the glass half empty, but Foer then throws in a funny line that forces us to look at Oskar and his fellow characters’ glass half full. Rae N said that she thinks the story could have been told without the humor, and while it could have, I think it helps the readers get through reading such a vivid, real telling of life.
I agree with Luke A who said that Oskar doesn’t use humor to deal with his dad’s death, but rather, logic. I believe humor in this novel is more for the sake of the reader than a way for the characters to deal with loss. Sarah J said that Oskar’s humor is nearly unintentional and I agree. That’s why it seems to me the purpose of the humor is more for the reader’s sake. After all, who wants to read a novel that’s depressing from cover to cover? Carlin P says that the humor Oskar uses causes her to have less sympathy for him. I can’t really understand that. I mean, loss is loss. Just because somebody deals with it differently than you doesn’t mean they are experiencing any less pain than you.
Kitty W sais that humor is, “ how Oskar will ultimately heal and trust again.” I disagree completely. Time is the only things that brings healing to severe wounds, and even that sometimes isn’t enough. Take Oskar’s grandfather- he’s had over 50 or 60 years to get over his first love, but it is still very real and alive to him. I definitely agree with Kristin W who says, “In a way, all of our freedom depends upon our ability to laugh and see the humor in a situation.” Even the simple irony that Oskar’s dad worked far away from the twin towers and happened to have a breakfast meeting on the morning of 9/11 in a restaurant at the World Trade Center has to be appreciated.
Is humor the only truthful way to tell a sad story? I’m not really too sure. If that means that life is full of sad moments but also of happy, light-hearted, funny ones, then yes, I would have to agree. But, if it is stating that you can’t tell a sad story without being funny I totally disagree. There are plenty of people who have had terrible lives that do not offer much room for humor. But many times, sad times are when we crave laughter the most.
As I have repeatedly said, I do not believe that Oskar uses humor to cope with his fathers death. However, I believe that Oskar does use humor in a way that gets him attention by those surrounding him. Whether Oskar realizes it or not, his daydreams and wishes are very humerous. In the Hamlet scene where Oskar tells the story as if he beats Jimmy almost to death. Oskar wants to tell Jimmy, "Succotash my cocker spaniel, you fudging crevasse-hole dipshiitake" (145). This was very funny to me. What was even more hilarious was the fact that in the end that whole part of the story was just made up by Oskar. At the end of this fake story, Oskar is applauded by the audience for beating up Jimmy and they all say, "We'll protect you" (144). It seems that Oskar only wants to be understood by those around him and to be protected from the dangers of the world, but he can only accomlish this in his dreams. While on the other hand, this scene seems to be humerous because the reader knows that Oskar would never do that yet he tells it as fact. While Foer may have intended for this part of the story to be humerous, I believe that Oskar does not. Oskar so desperately wants to be understood that he has to make up stories in his mind. It may seem funny to read, however that is Oskars personality and who he is. Oskars life seems to be full of humerous events just because of his unique personality, yet from Oskars point of view, these dreams are seroius and never bring him to laugh.
From a different perspective, Catherine Lyon says, "Or is [Humor] something larger and
less specific – perhaps an ability to tolerate difficulties with good grace
and strength." From this aspect, Humor has a totally different meaning, and Oskar can be looked at under a different light. With Catherine's definition of humor, Oskar seems to be humerous at some moments and not at others. He has dealt with his fathers loss with great strength. For one reason he is a young boy and death is hard to understand, yet he keeps living his life and making new friends such a Mr. Black. However, Oskar has not dealt with his father death with grace. He is rarely compassionate and sensitive to him mother about the loss and only thinks of himself.
There are many definitions of humor, and each definition gives the reader a different outlook on the book. Whether it seems like it or not, humor is a part of every story.
The daydream mentioned by Luke A, where Oskar describes beating a boy named Jimmy “almost to death” is a peculiar place to incorporate humor, though clever and effective. Oskar’s daydream, though humorous at times is truly sad. He expresses much discomfort with himself and his life. It is even clear that he is embarrassed about his role in the school production. It becomes obvious when he gives his character lines and beats up a main character, making up his own role much bigger. In the end, the audience says, “Thank you! Thank you, Oskar! We love you so much! We’ll protect you!” (146). Oskar seems to make Jimmy a symbol of everything that troubles him in his life and by overcoming him in a way that is not common of him at all, he overcomes all social and communication problems that he has with the world. He is dreaming of acceptance from his environment and inner balance. He also projects what he is plagued with upon Jimmy’s character. He claims that Jimmy has “amyotrophical lateral slerosis” (146) and that he “[was] adopted” (146). Though Oskar was not adopted, he feels a similar void, his father’s death. By burdening Jimmy with these conditions, he is making the world feel the pain that he thinks sets him apart from them. The mood is kept more positive through the use of humor. Foer masks Oskar’s dream for an end to his suffering with humor. This relates directly to the initial quote of the reviewer, in the prompt. Humor brings Foers characters to life, providing them with realistic balance.
Overall, from what I've read of all of these other blogs have had these two opinions. One is that Oskar is using humor as a way to cope with his fathers death. Other people are saying that Oskar is just being himself and all the things that seem funny to us as the reader, are actually just the way that Oskar thinks and reacts. I think that both of these opinions are partly right.
When Oskar says that he wishes his anus said "It wasn't me" when he farted; i think that this is an example of Oskar trying to be funny. Although there are other times like when Oskar envisions himself beating up the other kid in his play; I do think that he is trying to be funny, I think that he is angry and upset and he is trying to keep his feelings inside. This is related to his father dying, because ever since then Oskar has not liked other people and started lying alot. So in conclusion, I think the two main points that are being stressed in these blogs are both partly right.
Alex P W said, "Oskar is just being himself and all the things that seem funny to us as the reader, are actually just the way that Oskar thinks and reacts," to explain the one of the ways humor is used by Oskar throughout the novel.
To branch off of this idea, I would like to compare this book to last summer's reading book, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time." Before ever reading this book someone mentioned how Oskar could be compared to the main character of that Mark Haddon novel. Besides just this character assimilation, there is also similarity to be found in the style of each book's humor.
Throughout blogs and discussions of last summer, it was determined much dead-pan humor was used by Mark Haddon. Similarly, parts of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, seemed to be created with dead-pan humor. This is what I would call the type of humor we are talking about when it was said, "Oskar is just being himself and all the things that seem funny to us as the reader."
Deadpan delivery of comedy is explained as when the information is expressed "deliberately emotionless."
One example supporting my idea is when Oskar is talking about his cat Buckminster, and says in a matter-of-fact manner, "I didn't know why he was asking, because I'd brought Buckminster to school for a demonstration only a couple of weeks before, and dropped him from the roof to show how cats reach terminal velocity..." I found this funny. The humor, however, can only be explained as an example of deadpan. This one along with, (in my opinion), many, many others of Oskar's thoughts and ideas.
Sorry my name didn't come up right on that last post. It's supposed to be, "Rae N P!"
Rae N P brought to my attention how dead-pan humor is used in this novel and that it connects to last summers reading assignment. I found that while reading this novel i could make many connections to the way humor was used in "The Curious Incident". It was used in a very similar style. Both characters are very blunt about everything and that is what gives it some of the humorous detail throughout the story. Both are also so curious that their questioning often leads to a humorous result if only in the readers eyes.
I also agree with Alex P W and many other students when its said that he uses this humorous outlook to hide his real anger and sadness. The old adage, "You have to laugh to keep form crying" seems to be of particular truth for Oskar. He continually gives people, places and objects a humorous outlook just by giving the audience a new perspective on which to view something. Like when he says he wishes his anus could talk. Personally, I never would have thought to come up with something like that, and I found that hilarious. He is always turning things humorous without really meaning to.
This is a sad story. There is humor with it of course but it is sad. As many have said, Oskar uses his sense of humor to cover up what he is truly feeling, make it seem like everything is OK. Like when Oskar got separated from his grandmother, he thought it was a funny game to try when in fact his grandmother was very frightened. Now he must say "I'm OK" every time she says his name. When there is a sad or scary story, we have to look past Oskar's humor to see what the story really is. Kenny N F said, "Oskar’s daydream, though humorous at times is truly sad." The daydream about beating Jimmy up, although funny at first, is truly sad and we have to look past the humor to see that.
In this way the balance of humor and sadness in the story is perfect. As many have said you couldn't read an entirely sad book because there has to be something to counteract it with. But stripped of all humor in this book or any other sad ones, this story is truly sad. It's about a boy recovering from his father's loss which is a sad subject but Foer balances it out with Oskar's humor.
I agree with Alex P when she said, "Oskar is just being himself and all the things that seem funny to us as the reader, are actually just the way that Oskar thinks and reacts". Most of the things in the story that seem funny to us are his inventions. but it's these bizzare inventions (such as the talking butt) that help Oskar cope the most with his fathers's death. I'd also like to point out that Oskar repeatedly say's "I used to be an athiest." I think he stopped being athiest after his father's death.
But anyway's, I found the scene where he imagines himself bashing that kid's head in very disturbing, and not at all funny. For a moment i thought it was real. I freaked out. i actually said, "someone stop him!" as I was reading it. I think that it's this scene that shows that Oskar is not intentionally trying to be funny. It's just the way he thinks.
I'd also like to point out that his real way of coping with his father's death, the inventions, usually revolve around preventing himself and oters from the same fat. Such as the Birdseed jacket that can save you from falling out of high places. Or the elevator that had the building's floors come to it instead of it going to them. It's all things he wishes he could have used to save his father.
I really like what Molly G has said about “the balance of humor and sadness in the story” being perfect, because it really is. There is just enough humor to make you laugh but enough sadness to bring out the deeper meaning and purpose of this book. The character of Oskar was created in this balance, and it gives this book an entirely unique ring. Oskar’s unintentional humor is shown through instances mentioned by Rae N speaking of his cat, Buckminster, (“I didn't know why he was asking, because I'd brought Buckminster to school for a demonstration only a couple of weeks before, and dropped him from the roof to show how cats reach terminal velocity...”) and also by Kenny N, about beating a boy Jimmy up. Oskar was entirely serious in these instances, but I am sure I was not the only one with a smile and a laugh when I read this. But both of these, especially how Oskar wanted to bring Jimmy within mere inches of death with the crowd cheering him on and protecting him in the background, were grim, and thinking now, were slightly disturbing. But the balance between grimness and humor made it so you did laugh a little when you read the passage.
This story is a funny story, indeed, but reading too about his grandfather’s and grandmother’s pasts was slightly depressing at times. His grandfather’s account of the bombing was horrible (208-216). During this chapter one horridly disturbing image was when he was walking in the street he “saw humans melted into thick pools of liquid…saw bodies crackling like embers, laughing” (211). Immediately the chapter ends and shifts into a piece of a story that Oskar’s father told him, which even was slightly sad in itself. But, nevertheless, Oskar repeatedly asking questions and interrupting is slightly humorous, but I was still shaken up from the previous chapter. This definitely counteracted.
Umm.. this is Alexandra Parsons. I guess there are two alex p w's and i just wanted to say i didnt write the one on july 16th @ 10:02. I will put that i am Alexandra on all of my others now. I have written two blogs(7/14/@10 am) and(7/16/@2:27 pm) in this one so far and three in nonvrbl..so? ya, i hope that clears it up. thank you
The more i think about, humor and its relationship to Oskar truly makes the book what it is. Without Oskers quirky rants about his immpossible inventions and his matter-of-fact attitude to telling it how it is, The novel would not be even a little bit appealing. When Marika said, "There is just enough humor to make you laugh but enough sadness to bring out the deeper meaning and purpose of this book." she really did sum it up pretty well! Also, i would like to point out that without the humor, i think this book would be totally unbearable to read. It would be one of those books that halfway through you just want to put it down if only to make yourself be happy again. This is why i believe Foer chose a 9 year old boy to be his main character. Its that crazy humor a child can bring that draws the line between a totally depressing book, to an uplifting, if sometimes difficult read. Think about it-dont we all love the humor that children bring to our lives. Look at the number of veiws on youtube for movies like "Charlie bit my finger again" We all crave the straight out hold nothing back hilariousness that is childhood! The way i see it, that is why Foer chose to write this way. Because he knew that if told from the point of veiw of an adult, his book would crash and burn. This is why humor is VERY important to the book!
This is Alexandra Parsons to start with. So I have noticed that most of the blogs have really been pretty similar. I want to see If I can spin this off in another direction to try and freshen it up.
Humor, as defined by The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language-1992, is a "Temporary fix to a problem." On reflection of this definition, I can see that it is a perfect definition of humor in the novel. Oskar's mom's use of humor is a temporary solution. While she sometimes uses humor to deal with her husband's death, that humor will not fill the void of her loss. Eventually, she will realize that she must accept the truth of the loss of her husband. To her, a laugh is a quick and easy fix to her problem. His mother is caught behind a shield. Because she uses humor to hide away, she neglects to notice cetrain things in life. Oskar points this out to her when he says, "I'm sad . . . about how you don't know who Larry is, even though you probably see him all the time" (42). HIs mom is so caught up with pretending she is ok that she does not notice anything else around her. It also seems like she does not understand anuthing about Oskar either. Oskar, on the other hand, accepts that his dad is dead and can therefore try to move on.
Upon coming across a quote in the book by Oskar,"Nothing beautiful is true" (43), I started wondering what Oskar would think about humor being the only truthful way to tell a sad story. Humor is usually viewed as a great and beautiful thing. Would Oskar consider humor to be an untruthful emotion?
All right, I agree with what Alex is saying about Oskar's mom using humor to hide how she feels and copes but I think she has no choice but to notice these things going on in her life because Oskar is always there to show her whats going on, on page 170 Oskar is telling his mother that he wants a mausoleum and they have that large argument but when they are making up he says, "I'm gonna need a little elbow room." and his mother laughs. Humor? I think so. From this his mother can come to a conclusion, or ask the shrink what to do about it and she will become aware of her son and maybe the events that are making him feel this way.
The humor in this book is so unique. I found multiple things to be funny in this book, but I was left wondering if Oskar was intentionally being funny, or if it was just an ignorant, funny childish moment. Molly R noted this too: "We all crave the straight out hold nothing back hilariousness that is childhood!" Perhaps this is why we find these things to be humorous. My favorite part in this book is so simple; I found it to be so clever and funny, but I was still not sure if Oskar was aware of his humor. "[Oskar] 'I changed the universe!' [Mr. Schell] 'You did.' 'I'm God!' 'You're an atheist.' 'I don't exist!' I fell back onto the bed..." (page 86)
The books sense of humor was dry. In almost a way my dad was talking. Maybe some of the things said wasn't even supposed to be humorous. I know I say things without thinking that people can laugh about for hours, and I don't understand how THAT one sentence could cause such a laughable uproar.
Humorous to tell a sad story? False. Sure humor will lighten the mood in a sad situation, but sometimes you aren't supposed to be happy. One of my best friends died, tragically like in this book, and I found no humor in it. Now we can all crack little jokes such as, "Stop crying. He is probably making fun of us for it." Then again, it's never really that funny to me. Because it's the truth. YES, this story HAS humor, but it's so basic and dry to me, I didn't really crack a smile. AT times, the humor got a little more because the kid is so young and innocent his silliness definitely adds a light mood to chuckle a little. But, all in all I just didn't find the humor. Oskar is obviously traumatically never going to get over what has happened to his father, neither his mother and they both take different approaches to getting over it. And personally, that just isn't humorous to me.
From what Lisa F's just posted I got a new thought about the humor inside of Foer's book. It is obvious that we can all respond to books, or just ideas in general, very differently. I guess our experiences are what change what we find humor. Saying this in a sincerely non-judgmental way, what Lisa went through changed her general perspective on the book. But I do believe she has good reason to find the book less humorous than most of us. However, not many have had that same outlook, and most blogers seem to have had a different reaction to the humor.
Now that I've focused way too long on that idea, I guess I'll move on to Alex P W's thought-provoking question, "Would Oskar consider humor to be an untruthful emotion?" (July 17, 6:44). Well first I think this is a hard question to answer because we are pulling it out of a somewhat sketchy idea that, "Humor is usually viewed as a great and beautiful thing," since this is more of an opinion. However, this statement still seems non-faulty enough to be used here. To be honest, it took me a while to comprehend what was being asked. Well, this question, besides the way it was formed, also threw me off a little because it must be somewhat hypothetical, saying as Oskar's character is not quite mature enough to determine an answer to something like this. Finally, getting to the actual answering part of my answer (haha), I would probably say that since Oskar is, (in most cases?), not intentionally being funny, and the reader is just able to pick up on that themselves, he wouldn't look at his humor so much as what it is; humor. So with this detail I think Oskar would have a much harder time assessing humor. However, since Oskar and his family are in a way resorting to humor as a cover-up of the pain and hurt. I believe Oskar could possibly look at it as an untruthful emotion.
Well, I can tell you right now I am definetly not in the mood for humor. (glares angrily at the pitiful Half Blood Prince trailer).
Anyways, I have to say I really liked Lisa F's comment about the reader's experiences affecting how they see the humor content in the book. I for one would like to point out that it's probably also a matter of the sexes. Boy's are intentionally going to pick up on the mainly rude humor of this book much faster than the girls. and when we do pick it up, it's mainly going to be this reacation, "oh... gross." or, "that is so like a boy".
such as the part in the book where Jimmy ask's about Oskar's cat. oskar, not intentionally trying to be funny, replies, "Buckminster is my pussy". ummm... that i have to say is something only a boy would find hilarious. and I also have to say that i was definetly not pleased with that little pervert jimmy's next snide comment about Hermione. he can go die for that.
But I don't think it's just personall experiences that can cause readers to veiw the humor differently. I think it might be the imaginative experiences to. And beleive me, I'm only saying this because I haven't had any real traumatic experiences. but i can tell you that i have cried for each and every book character who roots themselves to me. I don't especially find this story to be impacting on myself, so I can only find it as sad, and not xactly a tear jerker. But that can probably be because they don't go into great detail about the deaths in the book. you never actually see the dead. it's an empty coffin and a missing, presumed dead, Annna. I can't connect with that. Now throw me a book with a tragic death with the character's lover or dear friend bent over the body and sobbing his/her heart out. That's what'll get me.
Even a persn's traumatic past can get me. But the book doesn't connect right with me. the characters are what we don't usually expect, making them harder to grasp, and in such, harder to feel what they're feeling. It's the feeling of connection to the characters tat ultimatly decides whether the book will bring you to tears or not. Personally, as i've said before, i find the book very perverted and not exactly funny. the humor is mainly rude and perverted. I mean, why the heck are nine year olds talking about whether they want a blow job or a hand job from Emma Watson? There's something wrong with those kids. I was disturbed. But it's a kind of humor mainly played out by boys. That's the key word, boys. this is boy humor.
I find it hard to believe that no girl out there would pick up on the crude humor along with the the generally funny things. I'm pretty sure that everyone is exposed to the type of humor that (as carlin p said) is "boy humor". I for one take great offense to the fact that boys are being targeted as not mature enough to see the other funny situations in this book. One of my favorite parts in this book happens to be on page 86 when Oskar is discussing the reason for the excistance of humans on the earth. His dad makes him think that if he were to move only one grain of sand in the Sahara that he would have changed the universe. After his dad makes him think for himself he cracks up with him. It shows the sofistication of the humor Oskar and his dad share. The funny things are more in depth and take having some background knowledge to understand. I think that whoever reads this book (despite there sex) would be able to pick on both types of humor.
I disagree with Carlin P W; I personally enjoyed the crude humor in this novel! I found it to be a fresh splash of comedy in such an intellectual novel. I do not think “boy humor” is limited to male enjoyment only. I do think the other humor in the novel is funny on a deeper level, but I believe without the input of some crudeness this novel would be too heavy for a summer read.
On another note, in the original statement “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” I find to be absolutely true. When someone dies, what is the first thing you are told to do? Talk about the good things that happened of course! In the first chapter Oskar recalls the night before his father dies and he was perfectly content with his life. Since Oskar is an atheist, he cannot find humor in the life his dad might be living right now. Therefore he finds it in his life he lives now and the one he once lived with his dad.
Humor in this novel plays an important part in the healing process for Oskar. One of the many ways of dealing with situations is to laugh it off and move on. I believe Oskar uses this form of medicine to heal the broken heart he holds inside.
Are you absolutely joking me? (It's taking everything in me to not let out cuss words on this site, by the way) Crude humor only found by males? HAHA. I could quite possibly be the crudest girl around. I cuss like a sailor, and have no problem making the racist, or sex joke. Honestly, that is the humor that IS funny to me. Oskar is too young to be "for real" crude humor. He has the naiveness of not understanding what he is saying is crude. That's what is fantastic. It's funny when he doesn't know the crudeness is funny, but I do not think the sadness of this book is funny. In any way at all.
Back to my "life changing experience" about death. Carlin, if you have not experienced one of your best friends dying, or anyone, I honestly can not see the relation to the hurt you have in this book that I have. Or the connection with THAT topic. Maybe you connect to this book in other ways, but there is no way in hell I will believe you that you can relate to the death related side. I apologize if I seem rude, but when someone tries to think they understand what I've been through, or Oskar with his dad, it pisses me off. It's bullshit because you don't understand.
To me, that is humorous that you think you get it
“Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” This is a great quote. I totally agree with it because otherwise it seems cliche, and cliche stories suck. I think that people tend to feel less sorry for people who feel sorry for themselves, as oppose to people usually really pitty other people when that person doesn't relize how bad their situation is. I don't know if that makes sense, but that's the best way I can describe how sad stories need humor in them to be true. I like the way that the sadness in this book is portrayed because it's mot like all the other stupid books and movies where people cry a lot and pity themselves. Those type of stories have been redone over and over again and they really suck.
Iam sorry to change the subject so much but I have no way to connect with what Lisa is saying, and how she is connecting with the book.
I agree with what Lisa is saying about Oskar that he is to innocent and quite frankly to young to understand the dry, and obvious humor that repeatedly rambles out of his mouth.Which I think made the book hilarious. On page 197 Oskar and Mr. Black go tho see Alice Black.'Before she opened the door, she made us promise that we weren't from the Housing Authority. I said, "I suggest you take a look at us through the peep hole." ' That probably wasn't that funny, but I did.
Also, myself have never seen any crude humor, and I am not disagreeing that it is there, but if someone has an example, that would be cool.
Alex P said that without the humor in this novel, the story would have been cliché, I disagree completely. This story is so deep and real, unlike many stories and authors who sugar-coat everything. Gina H found it to be “a fresh splash of comedy in such an intellectual novel.” I agree with her. Many people have sad lives, or at least sad occurrences. So, if life was a story, humor would be the only way to tell it. Because nobody enjoys being sad, we would have to lighten up the mood with humor.
On the contrary to Lisa F who also lost a friend, she didn’t find herself joking around while she was mourning. I, on the other hand, found myself joking around about how I still owed my friend a dollar, and recalling happy memories of him. If we didn’t have humor in our lives there would be large amounts of Prozac in homes. As I have pointed out before Foer tells life, and because we use humor in a life that constantly disappoints us, “I’d lost count of the disappointments [Oskar]” (p 107), we are forced to find happiness in every nook and cranny that we can.
On page 190 Jimmy Snyder asks Oskar, “Hey, Oskar, who’s Buckminster?” To which Oskar replies, “Buckminster is my pussy.” ‘The kids cracked up in a bad way. I didn’t get what was so hilarious.’ Either Oskar did understand what was so hilarious and was just pretending he didn’t for attention. Or, he didn’t want to be more embarrassed than he already had so he tried to ignore the laughter. It’s possible he truly didn’t understand what was so hilarious, but Oskar is a mature kid and I’m sure he understood.
I think part of what makes the humor in this book so greatly refreshing is the fact that it, for the most part, is portrayed through the eyes of a 9 year old. One, extremely hysterical line, though crude, is, “For example, I know that you give someone a blowjob by putting your penis in their mouth. I also know that dick is penis, and that cock is penis, too. And monster cock, obviously. I know VJs get wet when a woman is having sex, although I don’t know what they get wet with I know that VJ is cunt, and also ass. I know what dildos are, I think, but I don’t know what cum is, exactly. I know that anal sex is humping in the anus, but I wish I didn’t.” (p 192). My annotation to this line was, “Ah, priceless.” Humor gives everyone something to laugh about in this novel, allowing us to take a break from the everlasting mood damper of Oskar and his Grandpa.
I agree completely with Jennifer M when she states, "for the most part,[the book] is portrayed through the eyes of a 9 year old." This is truly what makes the things Oskar says so funny. If a 40 year old man was talking about such sexual humor, I would be a little creeped out. But coming from a nine year old, the things he says are undeniably funny. Like Jennifer said in the previous post, he says such things like, "For example, I know that you give someone a blowjob by putting your penis in their mouth. I also know that dick is penis, and that cock is penis, too. And monster cock, obviously. (p 192) The fact that a nine year old boy talking about this in such an innocent way makes the book extremely humorous.
I also think that the humor Oskar is using is very unique because he says it in the sad situations that you wouldn't expect humor to be. An example of this is when Oskar is telling his mother that he wants a mausoleum, and his mother disagrees. But he uses his creativity and humor to say, "I'm gonna need a little elbow room."(170) Oskar is just being himself in his humorous ways, and he is using it to deal with sad things.
I agree with Amanda B. about how she says that the book is funny because the things that are being said are by a 9 year old. He's a very mature young man, and the fact that he talks about all these different things is quite funny, like when he talks to Abby Black and asks her if she would like to kiss him (page 99). No other 9 year old would have the guts to say that! Oskar is also funny when he talks to people, because he can have a mature conversation while the 9 year old in him sticks out a lot. He will be talking about one thing and go right to the next, like when talking to the limo driver on pages 5-6. Oskar is just being himself through the whole entire book, which is what i find funny numerous times throughout the book.
I don't think that Oskar trys to be funny with anything he says or does. The combination of being 9 along with the expancive knowledge leads him to be funny adult, trapped in a childs body. All the things he ever does pushes him to learn and to pick up on the funny (and not so funny) things that life has to offer. In a way he is like his grandmother. She always had her husband bring the papers and other pieces of english literature home. Even though she couldn't read all that well, she still wanted to know all the slang words and common termonology. In this way, she could grow and hopefully loose where she had come from.
I really enjoy the sense of humor portrayed in this book, and i think it is because it's not on purpose, or planned out. A huge part of this, is yes, he is a nine year old with an adult mind, like jeremy m p said, but another big part in this is the fact that he doesnt know he's being funny. The ideas and concepts he talks about are just that, him talking. He's not being sarcastic, or crude; yet there is still that dry, random snippets of crudeness, humor there. One of my favorite things about Oskar is that when he is telling us(the readers) something, every once in awhile a fact will come up and he'll say "which I know about, but wish I didn't.(11 is the first one)" I love this, because don't we all have those facts we really wish we had never learned. Haha, and yes, to disagree with Carlin p W, I think Oskars type of humor is something everyone can understand, and while boys are more stereotyped to the crude sense, this isnt really that type of book.
Jonathan Safran Foer’s use of humor in the novel is a tool that the reader can use to gain insight into Oskar’s life. A lot of you have said that humor is a way for Oskar to cover up his grieving and to fill the large hole that is the death of his father, and this seems to be true. For a side note, I thought the crude humor was a pretty refreshing and shocking addition to the novel. And what’s funny about the idea of a nine year old saying it is that Foer never had the intention to create a realistic character by the likes of journalists and critics. He tells us, “I mean . . . sometimes you have to tell certain lies of reality in order to tell certain truths of emotion” (Interview). With that statement, we can see that the root of Oskar’s humor is emotional, and therefore probably has a lot to do with how he is grieving with the death of his father.
The quote “humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” is not, however, something that I really agree with. In some light incidents, like embarrassing yourself in front of a crush from school or falling in front of your friends, humor is definitely appropriate and suitable for the telling of that story. But for painful and deeply sorrowful stories, humor is not a very fulfilling alternate to telling a sad story. In a culture that tells us to blend in with everyone, we find that we’re not always being real and honest with ourselves. For me, it’s always important to tell the story how it is because that’s me being who I am. Sometimes I find that it’s okay to return to a painful memory, even if it hurts, for the sake of coming to know thyself more intimately.
On the other hand, there is most definitely a path and call to obtain ever-lasting and profound joy throughout every incident in your life, and with that in mind, humor can, in some way, be the only truthful way to tell of a sad story.
Joe O W stated, "In a culture that tells us to blend in with everyone, we find that we’re not always being real and honest with ourselves." He is using this to describe that humor is a way to blend the situation into everyday life. I also agree with him about the different instances to use humor to tell a sad story. Like he said, using humor to cover up an embarrassment is way different than humor to relate to a death. The humor that is related to embarrassments is always light and can be laughed at and joked about. But the humor used in this story is crude, and it gets right down to the point. It is really the only way to uplift a sad story, and make it so that it is enjoyable to listen to.
I think that half the time, the humer that we think is just hilarious is horrible to Oskar. We think it's funny that Oskar talks about all the things he knows, like what Amanda B was talking about, when Oskar wishes he never knew about it. Laura W said, "A fact will come up and he'll say 'which I know about, but wish I didn't.' I love this." We find it funny that Oskar knows this, which makes this book even more sad because this innocent 9 year old boy knows so much, and carries it all on his shoulders, and wishes he didn't. It's all funny to us, but in its own way it adds to the sadness this book is filled with.
The humor element in the book Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close closely resembles the humor in the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time. The main character in this book has a very odd sense of humor, most things a normal human would find find very funny more insult this character. Oskar's sense of humor isnt exactly like this, but he does seem to use humor to lighten a situation or to make things less awkward instead of to make himself happy.
I think some of the humor in this book isn't as intentional as it may seem. I don't know what kind of person is, but I know he's a humorous person. When you try to write a first-person book, no matter how hard you try the main character somehow becomes you. This humor I think came from Foer when he was a kid, because if you're not that kind of funny kid it would be hard to write a book like this with the humor as perfectly blended in as it was. My guess was Foer once couldn't swear so he instead said things like "Succotash my Balzac, dipshiitake" (5). I also think some of these inventions of Oskar's might have been Foer's once, because how else could someone come up with things so whimsical out of nowhere just from writing this book?
I agree with what most everyone has said, humor is a way to cover up something, like an embarrassing fall, or uplift a sad story, like how someone was hurt. But, there is absolutely nothing funny about death. If you try to make a death look funny or try to lighten the mood with a joke everyone will laugh just to stop mourning the death, but no one will really believe it is funny. It is almost shameful to make death a laughing matter. Oskar does try to get out of trouble by making light of a situation. But he never really offends anyone when he makes his jokes. He usually makes himself have “heavier boots” and lighten the other person’s “boots”. This is a good quality to have, but doesn’t help Oscar’s situation. I partly disagree and agree with the quote “humor is the only truthful way to tell a sad story”. In some situations the only way you can really say what you believe, without embarrassing or insulting someone, is by lightening its meaning. But I do believe that a sad story has enough truth that is doesn’t need humor to make it better.
As mentioned by other readers, I have found that the humor in this book is incredibly sad and terribly disheartening. If you look at Oskar's actions in the book and why he makes the decisions he does, very much of it is centered around his incompleteness and lack of emotional contact. I believe that Oskar is similar in many ways to Christopher from "The Mysterious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime," because of his reactions and strange tendencies. For example his inability to wear any color but white. It's not because white is his favorite color, it seems to be an unwritten rule (similar to those of his grandparents) that wearing any other color is simply unacceptable. When Oskar recieves a t-shirt from Ringo he tells the reader that, "I didn't like the enclosed T-shirt. I loved it! Although unfortunately it wasn't white, so I couldn't wear it" (40). At first, even I found this oddly amusing, but on further thought, I found it reflects upon how bound and paralyzed Oskar is only because of himself. Time and time again the dry humor of this novel reveals more about who Oskar is and how he has been affected by the death of his father.
okay, just to make myself clear here, I didn't mean that girls couldn't pick up on the humor. I meant that it was definetly humor that boys would find funnier than a lot of girls. Beleive me, girls can pick up on it. But the perverted things that Jimmy in the novel says is definetly something boys are only gonna find funny. (most of the time). And I am also not implieing that I couldn't pick it up. (other wise I wouldn't have brought it up.) And I ead a lot of stuff, including fanfictions, but i still don't find that stuff funny. (And fanfictions... are way more in depth)
Anywho.... I also wasn't saying, Lisa F, that i understood. It's the fact that I don't understand that i don't find the book to be a tear jerker. I have a list of books I've cried during, and this isn't one of them. I was saying that I get more connected to characters in my fantasy books and manga. I thought the saddest part of this book was the part where the grandfather looses his words. so i don't connect with the death thing. The book's story is a little too realistic for me to connect with anything in it. I seriously freaked out last summer before Hary Potter And The Deathly Hallows more than anything ever before that. But I have had one of my good friends really hurt before, and i was scared silly then. He was hit by a car the month before school got out. (i think they sent an email to people about it...) but i was realy scared then. I'm sorry to have offended you Lisa.
So, I'd like to add that I agrre with how the humor in the book is "incredibly sad and terribly disheartening." (kate j) The fact that Oskar is always talking about things " I know about but wish I didn't" Is seen to be funny. But then we find out that eh learneed about all this stuff via the internet. . . That's sad. It's like he can't trust his mom to tell him about the "birds and the bees".
Although I agree that most humor is used to lighten the mood, I also agree with Oliva H that, "a sad story has enough truth that is doesn’t need humor to make it better." If a story is made of truth then it is easier for others to understand, even without the use of humor. Humor is used to cover up many flaws, but with a story that revolves around a death humor cannot be used so much. Using humor to a death is something cruel and not many people will be able to just laugh about it.
Some of the things Oskar says may be humorous, but I don't think he is trying to be funny. Before I said that Oskar always seems to be happy, but now I don't agree. I just think that his sadness is being forgotten by some of the things he says. Oskar is always inventing little things, like the microphones where everyone can hear each others heartbeats. Most all of his little inventions would be seen as something silly and humorous to evryone. But to Oskar they are something serious. He is not trying to be funny. It is just the way he is.
Oskar’s unique sense of humor in this book is a great way to portray many interesting topics in the book. I think with that the way Foer made the character Oskar, he made him seem like a funny kid, yes. Although, with the way he made Oskar use the humor, I could tell, like with what Krystle W said, Oskar is not trying to be funny. It is just that we are looking into the mind of a 9-year-old boy, and a lot of those things are picked up as humorous to us.
I must disagree with a lot of the posts made earlier though. I do not believe Oskar uses humor to cover up sadness or emotion. I believe that the way he uses it portrays the friendly way he want almost everyone to “warm- up” to him. I would like to bring to attention the quote on Pg. 5, “ I couldn’t tell if he liked me or not so I told him, ‘ your sunglasses are one hundred dollars.’” He goes on making jokes, trying to get the driver to like him. This passage shows that a lot of what he says is something that he wants to be funny to someone else, to get them to like him. This is shown a lot of the time when Oskar meets many of the Blacks, and when talking to his grandmother as well. As one can tell, he is a character that relies on the judgments of others throughout the novel.
There has been a lot of discussion focusing upon how the humor relates to Oskar, a fictional character. Yet Lisa F has reminded us that death is not restricted to the pages of novels. On September 11th, an astonishing 2,752 people died in the World Trade Center attacks alone (“New York”). To grossly underestimate, assume each one of those people had 5 immediate family members (parents, siblings, spouses, and children) and 5 close friends. This leaves 275,200 people just like Oskar—except every single one of them is real. What are the odds that one of these nearly 300,000 real people would pick up a novel involving an event that completely reshaped his or her life? Pretty darn high.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close came out in 2005, four years after the attacks. Four years is, after all, the same length as our individual high school careers. That seems like a long time right now, but “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close has been labeled the first 9/11 novel” (Pruett, Webb, and Friesen on Time blog), meaning no one else attempted to create a fictional story out of 9/11 before Foer. Not only did Foer break new ground, but he did it with a novel intended to have humorous sections. This might be more daring than we care to credit. Directly after the attacks, “professional comedians agonized over when it was safe to joke, and about what sorts of jokes were permissible” (Doniger). Foer had neither the experience of being a professional comedian nor the advantages of tone of voice and body language. Thus, his task to know when and how to joke was a daunting one. I believe he did an excellent job of incorporating humor in a way that does not offend or evade. Yet, I am not one of those 300,000 people. It’s nearly ten years later and I was not directly involved but I still do not think I would be inclined to read a humorous book involving the shooting at our school.
This results in my new questions. Is Foer’s use of humor appropriate in our real world? Was it too soon for him to intermingle humor and the attacks of September 11th?
Sources:
“New York reduces 9/11 death toll by 40” http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Northeast/10/29/wtc.deaths/
Doniger, Wendy. “Terror and Gallows Humor: After September 11?” < http://www.press.uchicago.edu/News/911doniger.html>
Every one has made excellent points on how “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” Yet I still am struggling with why humor is not the only truthful way to tell a sad story because every reader has his or her opinion on whether some parts are funny or not so funny in the novel. Like Carlin P. had said, “the fact that they leave out the humor in their story makes it take to the heart more.” That is very understandable, but to me there was some humor in that story. For example, “‘the thing that comes before your welcome,’” if I was hungry, I’d point at my stomach and say ‘I am the opposite of full…” (17). By that sentence it could mean two different things to two different people. One could take it as depressing or really heartbreaking or another person can think that it’s kind of funny that he uses the opposite of what ever he’s trying to say. So there are many opinions about how “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.”
I understand that there isn’t always humor but mostly there is humor. Like for instance in the movie, Penelope, it’s a very sad story because she has a face like a pig and she has to hide from the world, but it’s funny because her mother is crazy about fixing the problem. In this novel Oskar has made up funny things because it’s just human nature for someone to be funny and not sad all the time.
Almost all of the humor in this story is more like a "truthful" humor, because most of the parts we find funny are when people are either confused of they are doing akward things that are true, but they just seem funny to the reader. The whole deal on how the guy losses his words and has "yes" and "no" tatooed on his hands is funny, but it actually happened and it probably isn't funny to the man who lost his words. I think what I am trying to meen by "truthful" humor is that the parts are only funny to us as the reader, but the characters in the story do not see the situation as a joke. This book doesn't really have any "laugh-out-loud" kind of humor, it is more suttle. It's almost like I am laughing at the situation, instead of what the characters and actually doing and saying.
When asked, “How and why is this a funny story?” , I can’t answer that question because I do not think Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a funny story. I feel that it is very sad because this poor boy, who obviously has issues himself and with his family, loses his father in 911 and is trying so hard to reconnect with him. I almost find it pathetic that his mom knows about this but lets him torture himself and look for all these people. I know they don’t have a good relationship, but there are things she can do for him to help him through this. In a way it’s good that she is letting his do his own thing, but he is wandering around talking to strangers, not exactly safe. This book has so many graphic areas about 911 and it made me sad to think that this 9 year old knows more stuff than I do.
The family all has problems too, especially the Grandpa. He has such an awful life, and loses his desire to speak. He does not have that great of a relationship with Grandma, and disappears for years. The book is full of people who have such major emotional problems that I just felt bad for them, especially Oskar because he is so young and everyone around him can’t really help him. I think of this book as a depressing book more than funny.
I agree with Alex P when they say, “It’s almost like I’m laughing at the situation, instead of what the characters and actually doing and saying.” If we were actually in the story instead of merely being an audience, then I think it would not necessarily be humorous at all. But I think because we see it from an outsiders point of view, we do tend to laugh at some of the situations, not because this story is in any way “funny” but just because of some of the things that happen are humorous. This is just like real life, because even if you’re going through a terrible situation, you still find things funny and reasons to laugh. Without a bit of humor in this book, I don’t think that it would have been able to portray real life as well as it did.
I am going back to a previous comment made by Joe O W when he said, “Jonathan Safran Foer’s use of humor in the novel is a tool that the reader can use to gain insight into Oskar’s life.” I agree with this statement because Oskar’s sense of humor is not like any nine-year-old. Oskar uses lots of curd humor throughout the book, which is unlike any other kid I have ever met. Because there is so much use of humor in the novel, the reader better understands Oskar’s life, character and personality. Because the story is about 9/11 and talks a lot about Oskar and the relationship him and his father had, it is key that the novel uses lots of humor to lighten the mood of the book. The contrast of humor and sadness makes for a very depressing, yet interesting book to read.
I'd like to comment on what Kate M F said about how emotional all the characters in the book seem. I agree with her; this is a sad book, and the family issues are huge, but I think that that's not the only part of the story, it's not only a sad story. This book is a peek into someones traumatic life, but it doesn't mean that that's all their life is. It is a depressing book, but only if you look at it that way, instead of viewing it as someone who is doing the bet they can with the information given; looking at Oskar that way almost makes me proud. He doesn't shut down completely,he keeps going and he doesn't give up. Oskar's journey to find a lock for his key is necessary for him to heal, and while I don't aggree with his mom's way of helping him, I believe he really grew up a lot throughtout those months.
As for the grandparents, when reading through the chapters, and when you first find out about grandpa's loss of voice, I couldn't help thinking; maybe sometimes your life has to completely flip upside down to continue. From the time he looses his voice up until he meets oskar, things just don't make sense in his life. As soon as he meets Oskar again, the story changes around subtly.
I always think that it's easier to deal with things that are sad whent here is a little bit of humour involve. If someone is crying, typically people try to make them feel better. Obviously, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a sad story, but Jonathan Safran Foer tries to lighten the mood with some humorous situations and conversations. I still think that the conversation Oskar had with the limousine driver was the funniest. He was so blunt. This part was supposed to make you feel sadness, however. The image in our heads is that they are in a limousine on the way back from the cemetary at Oskar's father's funeral, this is an incredibly sad image, but the author makes us laugh with a funny situation.
I also think all the irony in the book is humorous. Throughout the novel Oskar is going everywhere imaginable to find the lock when it was close to him the entire time. He finds the person that withholds the lock 8 months before he actually figureed it out. Thereis also irony when Oskar meets his grandfather, but doesn't know it. There were so many clues to pick up on, but he didn't.
I think Foer's tehnique to use homour to compliment somehting sad is unique, but smart. Making people laugh is more entertaining. Also the irony we see is extremely humorous.
This topic has been an interesting one to talk about. Everyone has been talking about how they dislike the idea or like the idea of “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” I see the meaning of that statement and how it is the base of a story. In Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close it’s a sad story told in a funny way that only a human being can tell it. In a funny way Oskar has grown up since his dad died and tells jokes that only adults should understand and have meaning to a person that he is visiting because of the key that was left behind from his father. “ ‘I’m sure people tell you this constantly, but if you looked up ‘incredibly beautiful’ in the dictionary, there would be a picture of you.’ She cracked up a bit more. ‘They don’t.’ ‘Then you hang with the wrong people.’ ‘You might be right about that.’” In that little episode Oskar is making a little joke but it’s more of a pick up line and he’s a little kid.
Foer is a very, very talented writer, from the imagery he uses to the poetry of the Grandmother’s point of view. However, I believe that he is being credited much too highly for the incorporation of humor. As I have said numerous times, Foer tells life. Life has humor in it, so it would be unrealistic to leave out humor. Alexandra M says, “Foer's technique to use humor to compliment something sad is unique, but smart.” (I corrected the spelling errors.) Now, don’t get me wrong; Foer uses good sense figuring out where in the story to incorporate humor but, uses humor in the story went along with the theme of real life.
Alexandra M also said that when someone is crying, it is usual for us to try to cheer them up. This, of course, I agree with. No one enjoys being sad, so we try and obtain happiness through humor. On page 180 when the grandfather is leaving Oskar’s grandmother for the first time, they joke around. [Grandmother], “I got tired,” I told him. “Not worn out, but worn through. Like one of those wives who wakes up one morning and says I can’t bake any more bread.” [Grandfather] ‘You never baked bread,’ he wrote, and we were still joking. [Grandmother] “Then it’s like I woke up and baked bread,” I said and we were joking even then.
In this story, humor is necessary to give us, as the readers, a break from the mood damper, and also to make the story realistic. Laughter is the best medicine. (Proverb quote). When going through tough times, laugher is medicine to our darkened soul. After thinking hard about the quote, “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” I’m going to have to agree. Foer tells life. Life, though sometimes sad, is also full of humor and fun. Humorous is truly, the only truthful way to tell a sad story.
I agree with Lauren E when she says, "Humor to compliment sad subject matter is the writing style that this very unique book...is written in." This book in general is about a nine year old boy who lost his father in 9/11 but, the way that Oskar copes with his emotion can be seen in a humorious way. Personally, when Oskar was "inventing" it made me smile and sometimes even laugh because sometimes I also think like that. When Oskar says,"Sometimes I think it would be weird if there were a skyscraper that moved up and down while the its elevator stayed in place”(3), I could instantly picture a skyscraper moving up and down. Humor really added to the story for me. The "movie in my head" was very vivid and I could picture everything very clearly.
I also agree with Lauren E and Molly R when they talk about how Oskar "shields" himself with humor. When ever there is a sad moment he is constantly trying to lighten the mood. One example is the day that Oskar's dad's coffin is supposed to be buried. He wants to make the driver "crack up" so that he could have "lighter boots"(5).
I agree with Vinny and all the others who say that the humor is really well written in a book that you would think to be sad. This made the book really fun and enjoyable to read. The things that he invented were very easy to imagine.On page 193, ' I invented a postage stamp where the back tastes like creme brulee.' I've never licked a stamp, but I imagine it tastes like licking an envelope which is unpleasant.
I also think that Oskar defends himself with what we know is humor but I don't think Oskar knows that he is using humor. On page 192 he is getting picked on by Jimmy Snyder, 'Jimmy Snyder pushed my shoulder and said,"Say your mom's a whore." I said,"Your mom's a whore.
"'. I think that Oskar was being genuine in a way that he really wasn't fooling around with Jimmy Snyder.
I believe that Kristen W F has taken a rather interesting new path on this topic, and I would like to address it. This book is both sad and humorous. This book is also a story of healing for a victim of the attacks of 9/11. The conjunction of humor and the attacks of 9/11 may have come as a surprise to many, but the way that Foer presented the two allows for the process to be accessible to many audiences. This is because the two do not cross paths within the actual novel.
You will have noticed by now that Oskar is a rather comical character. He is a 9 year old child, and like many 9 year old children, he has a vast imagination. This provides the reader with many opportunities to chuckle quietly to themselves, or burst out with laughter. His quirks are especially funny to me (a child who wears only white is a troubled child) but there are many examples of his humor throughout the book.
You will also notice that Oskar is a heavily depressed child, with good reason. He uses his "heavy boots" metaphor throughout the novel to portray his sadness, and it is a consistent theme (Pg. 38). Oskar's heavy boots usually come around when he is alone, in his room. These are instances in which comedy cannot be created in a way that seems natural to the audience. For this reason, it is important that Foer allowed Oskar's true--depressed--attitude to shine through when nobody is around.
However, you will notice that the comedy and sadness will not usually mix with each other. This is one of the best decisions that Foer could have made about the concept of a humorous novel about 9/11. An overly humorous novel would have led to many hurt feelings and upset readers. On the other hand, an overly depressing novel would have turned people off, showing that we still haven't been able to break out of the sadness 9/11 put this country into. As many have stated, the humor that was injected into Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was a buffer to allow the novel to succeed. By allowing the humor and sadness to coexist, but not clash, Foer was able to create a successful novel that used a tragic event as its subject.
I like Jennifer M’s opinion about believing “that he is being credited much too highly for the incorporation of humor.” To an extent, if an author chooses a persona from the perspective of an autistic nine year old, incorporating humor seems fairly easy and simple to do. It doesn’t seem difficult to add some crude humor to the limousine scene early off in the novel, especially because the reader is seeing the wit of Jonathan Safran Foer, and not Oskar. However, the way he incorporates humor as more of a form of Oskar’s innocence is still very clever. For this reason, I still see Foer as an incredibly gifted author.
I also agree with Kyle S when he points out that Foer can create sadness and humor without making the two tools “clash.” The way that he is able to create the story with this in mind is extremely interesting and effective. A lot of the classics that we read in school are often shockingly tragic and satirical and speak to an audience that is sometimes deserving of the criticism that it receives. But by using humor and sadness to unveil a story that connects to 9/11, Foer speaks to a more general, and American audience that young adults to adults can enjoy and ponder. The feat of such a creation is actually pretty great, considering, as Foer said in an interview of his that America also has such a “black and white” factual approach, how easy it is for all of us to just keep the facts in mind, and not actually empathize with people. Like I said, his incorporation of humor and both despair without a tense overlap allow him to speak to a more general American audience.
I agree with Stephen K when he says that humor is needed to balance out the sadness in the book. As Stephen says people watch funny movies to cheer themselves up, i think Oskar is using the key like a funny movie. He is trying to destract himself from his sadness and cover it up with the hope of finding the key. The key is a representation of Oskar having something physical of his dad to hold on to. The movie and the key are related at the end also. When the movie is over you feel a little better but the sadness is still there. This is the exact way that Oskar feels when he finds out that the key has absolutly no relation to his dad. He is somewhat happy when he is searching for the lock, but when he finds it the sadness returns.
I think that Vinny S brings up a great point. Oskar is “using the key to distract himself from his sadness and cover it up with the hope of finding the lock.” And I agree with “He is somewhat happy when he is searching for the lock but when he finds is the sadness returns.” Oskar was so distracted with meeting new people and making friends with them that he starts to forget his real purpose for being there. Then when he finally figures out that the key wasn’t really his dads at all, he starts to feel sad that his journey has ended and that it didn’t bring him any closer to his father.
I disagree with some of the other blogs when they say that Oskar doesn’t know he is using humor. When he is with his mom and they are talking about after they die, whether they want to be buried or cremated and put in a vase, Oskar knows he is disappointing his mom when he doesn’t want to be buried with his mother and his father’s empty coffin. He starts to crack jokes about how he needs “elbow room” just to make her laugh and get out of trouble. He knows that he is purposely trying to make light of the situation.
I still disagree with the quote “humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.”
It seems that everyone mostly agrees that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a sad story but told with a humorous tone, and that these two opposites are a positive to the story as a whole because they balance each other as Stephen K W mentioned. I totally agree that humor is a definite plus to a sad story. However, like Kate M F, I cannot agree with the statement: “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” I think it is just the word "truthful" that doesn't fit in my opinion. I believe that a sad story can be told in a depressing and melancholy way and still be truthful. Kate M F even mentioned a book that disproves this statement, and I am sure there are many others. I believe it is just more enjoyable in an uplifting way to read/hear a sad story if it is balanced with the right amount of humor. So I would rewrite that quote to say "Humor is the best way to tell a sad story." As the story was a New York Times bestseller (front cover) it obviously was very popular and I believe it is because the humor helped readers relate, as all of us know the tragic even that is the base of this story. Foer takes this risk of adding humor to such a tragic event to lighten it and to bring up the questions of how we/Oskar can cope and get through such an event.
On the other viewpoint, perhaps the reviewer who made this comment meant that humor is the only truthful way to tell a sad story because, as everyone has said, most people resort to humor to cope with a sad or tragic event, making the story truthful that it would include humor. I think Jennifer M W says it best, “Life has humor in it, so it would be unrealistic to leave out humor.” So in that respect I can agree with the statement. One example that comes to mind is when Oskar fantasizes about an ambulance that would flash messages to those who see or hear it passing by that would notify that person if “IT’S NOTHING MAJOR” or if it was major. The idea seems childish and humorous at first, but then Oskar goes on to explain that if the person were going to die the message could flash “GOODBYE! I LOVE YOU! GOODBYE I LOVE YOU!” and that’s when we see the true connection of Oskar’s thoughts to his father dying in the 9/11 tragedy (72). It is the sad truth for this “invention”-how Oskar would have liked to know if his father was going to be OK on the worst day or if he could have at least heard him tell his son goodbye and that he loved him.
I like what Kyle S F said about humor being a “buffer” and helping the novel to succeed. I agree that when a story is about a tragic event and is too depressing, people might not want to read it because it gives the impression we cannot move on from that event, but when a story about a tragic event is too humorous, then it gives the impression that it wasn’t that big of a deal, which can offend a lot of readers.
It is interesting how Foer decided to use humor to tell a story about 9/11. A lot of different authors told stories about 9/11 from the firefighters or police perspectives, but Foer tells the story from a families view. I wonder how many families in New York City are treating a loss from 9/11 how Foer represents in this novel. He uses humor to tell a sad story about 9/11, but also to tell a story about a family that has a lot of personal problems that existed before 9/11 happened. Others said that he “mixes comedy and sadness,” and I think that mixing those make this story easier for people to relate to and less emotionally draining.
Simply put, humor is what Oskar needs.
Kate M F pointed out that “[Foer] uses humor to tell a sad story about 9/11, but also to tell a story about a family that has a lot of personal problems that existed before 9/11 happened”. A lot is going on in such a young boy’s life, and it must be very difficult for him. Any young boy’s life would be shaken up to the unexpected death of his father. Humor helps this story in that it would be very difficult to get through without the occasional laugh. On the other hand, though, as Jackie S W said along with many others who agree on this point, including myself, “I cannot agree with the statement: ‘Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.’ I think it is just the word ‘truthful’ that doesn't fit in my opinion”. Jackie S W nailed it right on the head when she reworded the quote “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story” to be “Humor is the best way to tell a sad story”. The 9/11 attacks effected countless people all across the nation, whether they were connected directly or through a friend or family member. I think everybody can agree that it was a heart-wrenching occurrence for everyone.
When I think about it more, humor isn’t just what Oskar needs, it is what all the readers of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close need.
When the point is made by Katie M that, “…when a story is about a tragic event and is too depressing, people might not want to read it because it gives the impression we cannot move on form that event, but when a story is too humorous, then it gives the impression that it wasn’t that big of a deal, which can offend a lot of readers,” I would have to agree with that. Humor is a sensitive subject, and in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close especially you have to have a really good balance of humor and seriousness.
If Foer had placed too much humor in this book, then I do think that it would have offended some people. But the humor that he uses is always used at the perfect times and in the perfect doses. I don’t think that it is anyway offensive and I think that without humor the book would not have been as interesting or as intriguing to read. Like so many other people have already said, it is much easier to relate to the book with the little bit of humor thrown in here and there. Like Katie M already said, it is told from a family’s perspective and I don’t think that Foer could have told the story using humor in any better way.
My thoughts on this novel have always been that Foer wrote it as to portray life as it actually is. 9/11 was a terrible, horrifyingly sad event, but just because it was sad doesn’t mean that the situations around it, don’t have some humorous moments. When something depressing happens, life does not continue to be depressing forever afterward. People tell each other jokes, or do something stupid, that make people involved with the depressing event, laugh. Life has its sad times, and it has its happy times. But it never, ever stays the same way all the time. Life is not always “happy-go-lucky” and it is also not always depressing. In the novel, Oskar loses his father, but even on the way to the funeral Oskar is being silly. Children are like that, even in the worst of times, they can find some way to make someone smile. Its just how they are. Foer knows life can have funny moments even during the worst times. He worked hard to show the humor through the pain and loss because that is how life really is. Humor happens.
As I said in my last post how humor allows Foer to speak to a more general audience, we should consider what the novel would be like without humor in it. The book would be sort of off-balance, and it would be written more like a tragedy—similar to the authors that came a hundred plus years before us. (Think The Scarlet Letter or As We Lay Dying). So, without humor, we have a tragedy. But with humor, what have we gained? Ultimately, we’ve gained some balance to a story that easily could be tragic from the beginning all the way through to the end, as most Americans would re-tell the event. But by adding some humor, I believe that Foer is also providing some relief to his readers.
Not only is he providing relief, but he is also illuminating a tunnel of hope for people to walk through. By adding humor, he is able to lift off some of that intensely heavy emotional weight that our country feels from the attacks. Obviously, the feelings towards the attacks will most likely always be bitter and resentful for some, but his incorporation of humor offers readers and Americans a new chance to empathize with a special kind of character. The book further extends and opens our eyes to some of the people that were hurt and effected by the attacks, and in doing so, readers can gain a new way of looking at the situation—and that’s through the eyes of an autistic nine year old. This is something valuable for us Americans, and it was surely quite a feat for Foer to write such a novel.
As I read the book I find it fairly difficult to find the humor in the story. On the occasion i do find humor it seems like a somewhat weak "camouflage", if you will, to cover up the dismal subject of the book. As lauren e stated there is humor in the beginning of the story when oskar rants about seemingly inapplicable matters, but not even these rants can cover up the tragic event of his fathers death. It seems that the humor in the story is more Oskar trying to accept his fathers than covering up the melancholy tone. Sarah J also makes a legitimate point when she said that Oskars humor is unintentional. Although Oskars humor allows him to reach his goal sooner, I feel only when he intentionally brings attention to himself does it make his "heavy boots lighter"
I agree with Joe O’s statement that Foer is using humor to “illuminat[e] a tunnel of hope for people to walk through.” While Oskar ultimately does not find exactly what he’s looking for, some great secret of his father’s that will forever connect them, he does complete his journey. He finds William Black and the lock, giving a slight sense of accomplishment. Along the way, Oskar meets very many Blacks and endears himself to them. At his first performance of Hamlet, Oskar notices “Abe was there. Ada and Anges were there . . . I saw Albert and Allen and Arnold and Barbra and Barry. They must have been half the audience” (143). Certainly, it was Oskar’s light demeanor and humor that made them like him enough to attend his performance, even when he has a small, speechless role. While Oskar may not know it, this connection formed between Oskar and different living people throughout New York is much more important that the lock opened by the key. The hope that people can continue to live, laugh, and find others to enjoy it all with is much stronger than any amount of death and destruction. Foer uses the humor in the book to provide this hope. Even when Oskar and his mom are at ends with each other, they are still able to incorporate some humor (170). This hope that nothing can break the bond between parent and child resonates throughout the novel. Foer carefully builds that balance between humor and tragedy to create an effective theme of hope.
At the beginning of the book I found Oskar to be rather comical and somewhat sarcastic. His humor and laughter were only shown and shared with his father, but now since his father's death humor has faded away in Oskar.
I think humor was a very large bond between his dad and him, it was something they felt the same way upon and did often. I think as his father's death sunk in just a little bit more, his humor started to leave, not necessarily in a bad way either. Oskar is dealing with his father's loss by learning to except the fact that the things they shared were sacred and could possibly never be shared again.
When people tend to be very funny or humorous, it is one of either two things. One, they are trying to submerse their real feelings and outlooks under the humor or two, they are just naturally funny and I believe that Oskar is the perfect balance of the two.
Looking back on Joe O's comment on how he thinks without humor in the novel there would be tragedy, I completly agree. Without the humor tied into this huge loss of a father, the book would be talking about some normal american teenager who lost a parent. Oskar is very much diverse from any another american teenager, that's for sure. Foer made that clear when desiging Oskar's character to be so remarkably unique. If Foer would have left humor out, the book would be another cliche' World Trade Center novel upset. Like every teen, no matter how unique you are, loosing a parent is devastating. Unless, they leave you something behind.
I agree with both Joe O and Emily K about the fact without humor portrayed, the novel would be a tragedy. With the book being published only a year after the collapsing of the twin towers, I think it was the only way for Foer to write about the event without the book being offensive or hurtful to some readers. I believe that Oskar could be using humor to cover his emotions up, but I also see him using the humor as a device to get people to like him, as mentioned in my last post.
I would like to expand on what Vinny S said about “He [Oskar] is trying to distract himself from his sadness and cover it up with the hope of finding the key.” I strongly agree with this statement, because even though Oskar shows some very sad emotions throughout the novel (such as “giving himself bruises”), the searching for the keyhole for the key is his way of grieving (which I think Foer portrayed by having the key next to Oskar’s heart all the time).
Kristin's point that "While Oskar may not know it, this connection formed between Oskar and different living people throughout New York is much more important that the lock opened by the key. The hope that people can continue to live, laugh, and find others to enjoy it all with is much stronger than any amount of death and destruction" deeply resonated with me. Granted, much of the humor in the novel is subtle, dry, and situational, the humor is still there. This odd presence of humor in the novel is much like that in real life, there is always something funny if one is willing to accept it. Kristin's point ties into this thought, being that there is always a silver lining if one is willing to embrace it. Oskar has clearly undergone a deep loss and is trying to keep his father alive through searching for the key. His grief is stopping him from recognizing the great leaps he has taken in society and how many great and different people he has forged bonds with. As morbid as it is, one cannot create a closer relationship with a person who has passed away than he can have with another living person. It might be easier to be friends with a dead person, but it can be much more rewarding to have a close relationship with someone who is living. Much like the main character in the movie "P.S. I Love You," Oskar finds that hunting down a path is a way to stay close to the one he lost rather than to become closer to those he still has. But how does this relate to humor? Oskar is too busy trying to find the lock that he cannot realize the often funny situations he is in, like that of the Blacks who had museums of one another, or when he is "tricked" into saying, "Buckminster is my pussy" (190). Granted, the later might be attributed to immaturity or simple naivety, it is still an example of humor that Oskar cannot partake in because he has suffered a deep loss and is not fully present mentally.
But by adding some humor, I believe that Foer is also providing some relief to his readers.(Joe O W) I completely agree with Joe O. To much sadness is deadening. This is an extream example, but it's like what Ellie Weisel once said in an interview with Oprah. I can't quote it exactly because i saw the video last year in Mrs. Voigt's class, but Ellie talked about how there was so much death that when they were freed that they had to adjust to being sad when someone died. They had so much death, death was so entirely constant, that they didn't even blink when a life ended, making less of a stir than a candle flickering out in the night.
I guess another way to put what I'm trying to say is that humor is the yang to sadness's yin, and they need each other to be complete and full to their maximum power.
I very much agree with Keaton F on almost every point he has made in his last blog. “The hope that people can continue to live, laugh, and find others to enjoy it all with is much stronger than any amount of death and destruction" This quote left me speechless, I love it. I agree that Foer is trying to prove this point by adding humor into his novel. Which, like has been stated before, makes “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” different than other books on the 9/11 topic that are very tragic. A lot of the humor can be taken as immaturity, like Keaton said, but almost all humor can be taken as immaturity depending on where you stand on the topic. Keaton says “It can be much more rewarding to have a close relationship with someone who is living” I think that Oskar realizes this at the end of the book when he partly lets go of his dad by talking about it with his mom. Jackie C says that Oskar is grieving by looking for the key and that is why he keeps it over his heart. I agree, I think that Oskar keeps the key close to his heart because he feels closer to his father that way. It also symbolizes his love for his father. He comes to find that even if he enjoys himself and lets new people into his life he can still be “incredibly close” to his father.
As mentioned by other readers, I have found that the humor in this book is incredibly sad and terribly disheartening. If you look at Oskar's actions in the book and why he makes the decisions he does, very much of it is centered around his incompleteness and lack of emotional contact. I believe that Oskar is similar in many ways to Christopher from "The Mysterious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime," because of his reactions and strange tendencies. For example his inability to wear any color but white. It's not because white is his favorite color, it seems to be an unwritten rule (similar to those of his grandparents) that wearing any other color is simply unacceptable. When Oskar receives a t-shirt from Ringo he tells the reader that, "I didn't like the enclosed T-shirt. I loved it! Although unfortunately it wasn't white, so I couldn't wear it" (40). At first, even I found this oddly amusing, but on further thought, I found it reflects upon how bound and paralyzed Oskar is only because of himself. Time and time again the dry humor of this novel reveals more about who Oskar is and how he has been affected by the death of his father.
Also, I really enjoyed Jackie S's comment on how sadness and humor are both necessary to reap any emotion from the reader and totally agree.
Imagine this novel without humor... this is the story of a unique nine-year-old boy who lost his father in the 9/11 tragedy. The story is about his search through New York City to find someone who knows about a key he found in his father's closet. In his search he meets up with a variety of fascinating people who each have their own story. The story also features the boy's grandparent's past.
I don't see complete sadness in this story without humor. Humor greatly changes this story's mood, but it doesn't change much else. I know that humor is necessary for this book to be as unique and amazing as it is, but without humor it's no tragedy. As often said in the "TIME" blog, this book is not about 9/11, but about a boy and his adventure. Humor only affects Oskar's side of the story, (which is sad at times, but not too sad without humor) but not his grandparent's story. I imagine this book's mood without humor to be sad at times but not like what everyone else says that it would be only sorrow. It's an adventure, not a tragedy.
Humor is a way to cover your true mood, which is sometimes sad, sometimes happy. Happiness, for me, is the yang for sadness’ yin. (Going with what Jacklyn S said)
True, this book would be somewhat dry and sad without humor, (and I do love the usage of humor in this book) but in all honesty it's not a tragedy without humor.
I loved what Joe O said about why humor adds depth to this novel, "By adding humor, he [Foer] is able to lift off some of that intensely heavy emotional weight that our country feels from the attacks." I agree that the humor in this book really acts as a way to try and lighten the mood while dealing with very recent events that have affected us all in one way or another.
I think Foer really has a lot of courage to write about the touchy subject matter that he did. Like I stated previously, he tells it in a way that is delicate but very real; if the book had been written with no comic relief, it would not be approachable. We have to also remember that 9/11 is not the focus of this story; this novel is about how a young boy learns to cope with life after horrible events, 9/11 merely acts as a dramatic backdrop. I also believe that by using a humorous tone through the majority of the story, the deeply emotional parts that deal with love and loss (such as the letters Oskar's grandparents write) shine even brighter in the reader's mind then they normally would if Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close had been written as pure tragedy.
I agree with Krystle W when she said that this is a sad novel but the humor in it makes it an easier read.
When I first heard the two novels were between the 9/11 attacks and the Holocaust I wasn't excited because they are both tragedies but Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close isn't a sad book. While the 9/11 attack was very horrific and depressing this story isn't so much about the actual attack as much as it is one boy's story of dealing with a death due to 9/11.
Some of the stories and parts in the book where he talks about heavy boots and giving himself bruises is definitely disturbing but I don't think Oskar is depressed. Is he on a mission and he is still energetic and his personality is very strong and bold which almost always leads to him being humourous.
Reading this book didn't make me sad. I didn't cry or laugh but I could feel all the emotions all of the characters were feeling and all the emotions the author was trying to make you feel when reading this.
Although the novel has a sad story surrounding it, I don't think that it can be classified as a sad novel. The humor in it makes it seem lighter and easier to read, but it also gives us a perspective on the whole 9/11 situation that no one has ever really shown. Oskar doesn't focus on the sadness of his father's death. When they go to the funeral for instance, he doesn't really understand what is going on, or why they're burying an empty casket. This would not usually seem funny, but its just in the way he writes his story that makes it funny. I also love when he talks about his heavy boots. One passage says, "My boots were so heavy that I was glad that there was a column underneath us" (163). Even though his boots are heavy because he is sad, he takes it literally. I guess that is what makes this book humorous. Oskar doesn't understand metaphors and such, so in his litrary mind, we find humor.
I love the idea that Laura W. brings up when she states, "and when you first find out about grandpa's loss of voice, I couldn't help thinking; maybe sometimes your life has to completely flip upside down to continue." This seems to be that case for not only Oskar's grandparents, but for Oskar as well. In the event of his father's death, Oskar ends up searching for answers, and finds out information about the people around him, and ultimately himself; Information that he probably would never have even thought about if the events of 9/11 had not occured.
Contrary to what Will J said about books being more funny when they are also depressing, I believe that this book has it's humor and it's depressing parts completly seperate from each other. Most of all the humor in this novel is invoked by Oskar himself. All of his memories and confrontations with other people are where the humor can be found. The most depressing parts are found in the minor characters such as Oskar's mother and grandmother.
The reviewers insight to the stories humor in my mind is completely false. I think humor and sadness are completely seperate in writing a story. A sad story can have humor but the humor is limited to certain times and parts. That same idea can apply into a humorous story with sadness.
When Brittany W said, "I think humor and sadness are completely seperate in writing a story. A sad story can have humor but the humor is limited to certain times and parts" I would have to agree. The sadness and humor in the novel are used seperate from each other. If you use both at once that is when it becomes a sad story that the author is trying to cover up with the use of humor. Foer did not use humor to cover up anything. Just to lighten the mood. Without some humor the novel would not flow and not be so easy to read. It's hard to read a sad novel, but some novels are just to serious to use any humor. But this novel is not really serious. Oskar tries not to dwell on his fathers death but grow stronger with it. Ultimately Oskar's journey to find the lock for the key was to become closer to his father. It is not a novel that should be seen as something serious. You cannot help but laugh at some of the stuff Oskar says. When Oskar says, "And bigger mencils that are easier to hold, in case your fingers are fat, like mine, and you could probably even train the birds that save you to take shittakes in the portable pocket" (71). This along with many other things Oskar says, is what makes up the humor in this novel. Even if he never intends for it to be something humorous.
It has been mentioned that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is not necessarily a story about 9/11, but that it is a story about the healing of a nine-year-old boy who was affected directly from the terrorist attack, and that because it was written so close to the tragic event, it is supposed to help heal America and help cope with grief by adding humor to the story. I do agree with these statements but I also have to add that I think another reason for Foer writing on our recent tragedy of 9/11 is to also help those Americans, and even foreigners, to better connect, understand, and to maybe feel more of the true grief that was the result. It seems that no one in this blog actually experienced a direct effect like the loss of a loved one. So I believe Foer is trying to help readers who may not understand what it was/is like to have a life truly affected by 9/11, and how hard it can be to deal with such a loss in their life. So by also adding humor to the tale he is making the tragedy not as depressing so that his novel can still be enjoyable. But the humor is also a tool to make the sadder parts stand out—Lauren E P says it best when she states that "the deeply emotional parts that deal with love and loss (such as the letters Oskar's grandparents write) shine even brighter in the reader's mind then they normally would if Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close had been written as pure tragedy." I couldn't agree more.
For example, when Oskar has his fantasy of beating up Jimmy Snyder and ruining the play it really touches the reader's heart. At first it seems humorous because, first of all, Oskar gives the reader the impression that this is actually occurring because he gives the lines being said and all of a sudden Oskar has lines when he told us before that he did not have any. And secondly because he is saying strange insults and shocking statements, both in front of an audience. But the scene gets violent and seems unreal as Oskar is smashing Jimmy's head when Oskar is a pacifist. Then the scene finally gets to its real point and purpose, to show the effect that losing a very dear and loved one can have on a nine-year-old child (or anyone for that matter). Oskar keeps hitting Jimmy because the only thing that made any sense was smashing Jimmy's head:
"I keep smashing the skull against his skull, which is also RON's skull (for letting MOM get on with life) and MOM's skull (for getting on with life) and DAD's skull (for dying) and GRANDMA's skull (for embarrassing me so much) and DR. FEIN's skull (for asking if any good could come out of DAD's death) and the skulls of everyone else I know. THE AUDIENCE is applauding, all of them, because I am making so much sense. They are giving me a standing ovation as I hit him again and again..." (146)
This scene was one that "shined" brighter because the humor of it lead it into it's powerful point and meaning, and therefore, I think humor really balances and adds to the subject matter of the 9/11 tragedy.
As a major part of human existence, humor is often a way to connect people and unite them under a common banner. People go see comedians to relax and have fun; to enjoy themselves with other people. It takes the audience's participation for a comedian to truly conjure up that comedic magic. Without that active participation by others, comedy (and humor in general) becomes quite insignificant. For example: who would want to tell a joke to their friends that didn't make anyone laugh? And it is this common tie for humor in all of us that is what Foer taps into, manipulates, and uses to create a very likable and persuasive character.
I would also stipulate comedy is a "well known" remedy for depression. People seek out humor when their down, look no further than Hallmark for proof of that. We seem, as humans, to favor humor over depression because, face it, you would rather be happy than sad.
Specifically in this novel, Oskar is funny whenever he becomes particularly emotional or irrational. Prominently displaying this fact are the play scene and
Oskar's wild invention streaks whenever he shows outward signs of desperation. He creates ridiculous scenarios that might have saved his father if they had existed, but we as readers can only see the as funny. It simply creates catharsis within readers to see such futile attempts at resolution for Oskar. We are driven by humorous means to feel for Oskar, and it is that feeling that connects us so easily to him, whether it be by humor or apathy, we feel his plight.
When Jackie S said that Foer wrote this book for everyone, even those who aren't American or didn't lose someone in 9/11, to understand better the grief felt by those affected by the 9/11 attacks. I didn't think about this until she mentioned it and I totally agree with her statement. I thought I understood what 9/11 was all about and what meaning it had to our country, but reading this book my eyes were opened.
Nothing about it is funny or humorous. During the book I thought, yeah this isn't a boring sop story but after I finished I saw the bigger meaning to this book than being entertained by a nine-year old boy. While this is part of the the plot I don't think Foer's goal was to make you laugh but possibly the humor was really meant in a way to see that a death doesn't always cause someone to become silent and depressed.
While there have been many examples of humor used in this book, overall Oskar is much more sadistic and depressed than funny. Brenna's comment that " death doesn't always cause someone to become silent and depressed" seems to resonate here. Oskar's antics are more of a realistic portrayal of a person dealing with tragedy, but overall he is still a very sad person.
Take, for example, Jackie S example of Oskar punching (no, pounding into the ground) Jimmy Snyder. She finds it funny as the lines are written as a play and because of the random insults, etc. but later concedes that the bigger truth about the scene is one of a very violent and angry person, angry toward "RON's skull (for letting MOM get on with life) and MOM's skull (for getting on with life) and DAD's skull (for dying) and GRANDMA's skull (for embarrassing me so much) and DR. FEIN's skull (for asking if any good could come out of DAD's death) and the skulls of everyone else I know." Ultimately, there is very little humor at all in this scene. Using it as a play and being shocking hardly makes the scene any more real or poignant. What little bits of humor in Oskar's random antics or inventive escapes, etc. only reveal a deeply emotionally scarred person trying to come to grips with his pain. And there is nothing funny at all about that.
Humor is used as an interesting literary device in this novel it tries to keep a mood that stays light hearted even when the story is sad. Such as when Oscar is in the limo on the way to his fathers funeral and instead of crying or pouting his way to deal with it is by telling jokes to the driver. This unique style helps to take on a very tender subject in a gentle fashion. I also feel that the statement that the reviewer made about the book “Humorous is the only truthful way to tell a sad story.” is a correct insight into this novel it lets potential readers realize that this books style tackles a sensitive subject in a unique way.
Also in context this story is funny in a number of ways, one of them being that the protagonist is merely a nine year old child and that this child is being blunt and hilariously honest throughout the story such as when he visits the locksmiths store Frazer and Son and says "I have a question that I was just Wondering" "Shoot" "Are you Frazer, or are you Son?" this helps to show the simplicity and humor with which a complex and sincere story can be told.
This story's relationship with humor is interesting because the fundamental opposite of humor is tragedy and the sadness that comes along with it and together this ends up making the story easily readable and light hearted along with an accent on intellect.
Alot of the humor in the book comes from Oskar. He tries to act so grown up, but sometimes the little kid in him shines through, like what jason said about the locksmith. that's something a little kid would ask but he says it so seriously.
another interesting thing about humor in the book is the grandpa. He still has a sense of humor, even though he cant speak. Like in the airport when Grandma comes to find him, he cracks a joke instead of getting mad or sad.
I think the book shows that if you keep stuff light, the hard stuff wont be so hard. It's a good thing.
Humor in this book flourishes through the characters and in the tales that they tell and it seems interesting that Oskar deals with pain through telling jokes. He uses it as a mask at times so that he wont affect others around him,and as a nine year old Oskar being subject to tradgedy has made him go through life inventing. What is interesting about his inventing is that it is unrealistic thusly being funny but also hides its true nature. Such as the time he talks about his bird seed shirt which although is childish and funny is also referring to the tragedy indirectly, because he thought of that idea to save some one from a burning building and eludes to his father who he just wishes he could have saved.
This helps to realize that this novel although talking about tragedy is subtly told through humor and goals that only a child would have.The whole journey that Oskar goes through is seemingly hilarious because of all the people he meets that are strange and interesting, but at the same time he is slowly growing and healing from his loss which it seems that this is what makes the novel unique and entertaining.
I love Jason's thought, "but at the same time he is slowly growing and healing from his loss which it seems that this is what makes the novel unique and entertaining." Oskar's entire journey leads him to a better place, and on the way he learns about himself, and about the world around him. Foer creats these humorous scenes that Oskar finds himself in, and we forget all about the sorrow of the past. I think this guides us away from the way the media portrayed the attacks, and allows us to see that there is always two sides to every story.
When Molly says, "I think we've decided on the fact that humor is used as a tool in this novel to display Oskar's grief," I don't think that it is a tool at all, but rather just the way in which he knows how to handle his emotions. Eventually though, you would think that the sorrow would have to come out, but for Oskar humor is the way he sees everything, and this gives his story a unique touch.
I would like to comment back to Lydia B's comment. You were saying how there is two sides to every story and how humor leads him to a better place. I agree in many ways but then again, a lot of the book isn't even about the attacks. I mean it starts there but from there on, it could be just like his dad died from anything else. A lot of the story that is being told is about his grandma and grandfather, which is all about the past and how everything ended up to how it is now. But I guess that is kind of what the entire story is about, making bad things apart of your past and finding ways to make a good future, which is where I think humor comes in.
The roles that come into play become humorous and the way Oskar handles a lot of things are humorous, which is how I think he gets threw life and makes things turn out good in the end. He gains a lot by doing this.
To me humor in this novel is used to cover up all the sadness and anger. There is nothing funny about the situations that take place. The character of Oskar uses humor because it is part of his character and that cannot be changed. He did not view his father’s death as humorous, which shows that a part of him is not always humor. The idea of pessimists and optimists has to do with the way you think. Oskar says that he tries to be an optimist but that pessimistic thoughts always run through his head. I could relate to that because I believe I am an optimist but I always do get pessimistic thoughts in my head, and they are hard to get out. Things can be viewed as optimistic or pessimistic, it is just the way you see it. A glass can be half full or half empty theoretically speaking either one works. So he could have viewed his father’s death as a good or bad thing. In the good way it could have meant that he was glad to have known his father than never even getting to know him. In the bad way he could have seen it as if that was what he had and it was gone in a flash. I agree with Candace W W that humor is used to contrast the dark side of the book with lighter views. The book could have turned out all pessimistic and depressing and would make the idea of 9-11 even worse. Dr. Fien asks Oskar if anything good came out of his father’s death Oskar replies, “No! Of course not, you fucking asshole” in his mind (203). Really no good came out of his death, but what he should have asked was did anything good come out of his life? Something good did come out of his father’s life and it was that he got the chance to know such a great person.
I agree and disagree with “humorous is the only way to tell sad story”. I agree because if the book is sad then it should be told in that format. The sadness should not have to be sugarcoated if it is sad. The true feelings of the book should come out by the way the story’s feeling is intended. With all the sadness it brings out more emotion to the person writing it and the person reading it. I disagree because for one it worked out fantastically for Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. As I said before the story should be told the way it is intended, and if it is intended to be humorous than good. Sometimes the humor in a sad story may be a way to see something sad as something not sad at all, but in a good way.
I disagree that “Oskar simply likes pleasing others”. If that were true then he wouldn’t be mean to his mother. For example on pages 170 untill the end of the chapter he is incredibly mean. Even though he realizes he was wrong he still made her feel really bad. He makes her feel as though she did not care for her husband. Oskar makes her feel guilty for trying to move on. Then I think about one of his raisons d’etre is to make his mother happy. I now believe that he does love pleasing other, but sometimes he fails to. Of course he would never be a failure in his mothers eyes.
To sum it all up, I would say that the purposes for adding humor to this story are:
1) To help lighten the tragic event of 9/11. In JasonM's words, "Humor is used as an interesting literary device in this novel it tries to keep a mood that stays light hearted even when the story is sad."
2) To make the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close more realistic (life is full of sadness AND HUMOR, everyone still has humor in their life after a tragedy whether it's as a way to cope with the sadness or just from the people around that person). As Ethan R (W) puts it, "Oskar's antics are more of a realistic portrayal of a person dealing with tragedy."
3) To make Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close a more enjoyable novel and easier to connect to (rather than making it as depressing and sad as the tragedy that provided its subject).
Lydia B W mentions an interesting point that is connected to purpose number one which I think is one of the bigger purposes of the novel, she states that “Foer [creates] these humorous scenes that Oskar finds himself in, and we forget all about the sorrow of the past. I think this guides us away from the way the media portrayed the attacks, and allows us to see that there [are] always two sides to every story.” This is definitely a goal of the novel, to show the other side. By lightening the sadness with humor, Foer gives the readers the other viewpoint of this tragedy, instead of the media’s portrayal with the focus on the terrorists, the loss of thousands of Americans, and the loss of the World Trade Center buildings, the reader gets to see what the real effect(s) of having lost someone is like and how one (a child in this case) learns or attempts to deal with it. Oskar tries to deal with it by “Looking for [the key]” because it will allow him to “stay close to [his dad] for a little while longer” (304), but he knows that he will have to move on eventually, he is just not ready yet. The novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close even ends before Oskar is able to fully accept his father’s death, possibly to also give America more time to grieve as this book was published only four years after the tragic event.
I agree with Jackie S W her three reasons do sound like a good reason to add humor to this story. There could also be other reasons to why there is humor in the story. As JasonM said he uses humor to mask off his real emotions. He keeps all of his emotions locked up inside of him. It could be so that he won’t affect others. He keeps it all to himself and in the end he has a breakdown and realizes that he should move on. This reminded me of the novel The Catcher In The Rye; Holden is also going through a crisis and does not know how to handle it. In the end he too has a breakdown and learns form it.
I would disagree with Jordan B F that keeping it light and not harsh makes it better. Sometimes people need to hear the harsh and dark side of things. Or when they encounter something harsh they will not know what to think of it. The sadness of the story brings out so much emotion. But the story works because you realize that something bad is not necessarily bad, but may be good. It may be sad that his father died so soon, but that’s the reality. It is better to have known someone than not to know them at all.
Oskar should not hurt himself because he feels sad; he always says that he will give himself a bruise. Sometimes the humor helps, like when he wants to bruise himself but is too happy to do so. It can also be bad because the humor does mask off something that should get attention. Hitting himself is not going to help and if people think it is funny that he bruises himself then that’s wrong. If his emotions were not masked off then his mother could have seen what was happening to her child. In the end though he learns to coupe with his loss and the humor does add interest.
The humor does add interest to the novel; there are some things that you have to laugh about. Humor does lighten the story and I guess that there are a lot of ways to picture it. I am not just going to agree with myself that people need to see the harsh parts; some people do not need to see that side. It can be good for some people and bad for others. The way I think is that they need to see the darkness, but not everyone has to. Some people think differently and they do not want to see the darkness, and I can see why I may not agree but I still see why.
The humor is used to cover the reality, and it worked for this book the humor did make me like the book. I am glad that I can still see the darkness behind that layer of humor. To me it makes sense both ways and being able to see the darkness and the light I can understand it well. I agree with Alex P that the humor is added because that is just the way he is.
The relationship between the humor and the subject matter is that they are opposites. The relationships bring the story together in a way where many different people can read the novel. People that want to see the darkness can see the darkness if they want to, and people that do not want to see the darkness could see the light in it. This book was created like this so that it can have a bigger audience.
I have to disagree with Jackie S with how the humor lightens the 9/11 tragedy. The sadness of 9/11 is crucial for the motif of the story. It needs to be there in order for the readers to see the tragedy that Oskar has to experience. Humor is necessary for the story but I do not believe it is for the canceling out of 9/11.
I believe that the humor in the book is only put there to show what is in everyone's life. There is always humor in even the darkest of situations. This is just human life, nothing more. Foer did not just put in the humor for kicks or to make a dire situation, the humor is there because that is human life.
Every person no matter what terrible event has happened to them always has something to laugh at in the end. And that is what makes this novel so much more relatable to readers. Foer does a great job by making the novel more than just the tale of Oskar Schell; its a tale of society.
There has been this ongoing discussion of whether or not humor lightens or does not affect the portrayal of September 11 in the novel. Nothing can really dilute the sadness of a tragedy such as September 11. The events are so unspeakable and spawned so much sadness, as seen through the character of Oskar, that September 11 in and of itself must still be the worst kind of tragedy. What the book does do, as Jackie S. noted, is show that, even in light of such a dark moment, laughter and some sort of happiness still exist. Christophers wild inventiveness and crazy thought's such as his reversal of time after page 326 are rediculous and comical in many ways. Although they do not make September 11 less of a tragedy, they do, as Jackie said, lighten the mood and show the possibility of happiness after a tragedy. In this sense, humor is used in the book to portray September 11 as tragedy that can be overcome, rather than something so absolutely sad that nothing good can come of it. In this way, the book does use humor to dilute that sadness of the tragedy of September 11.
I love how Ethan G says that humor is a way to unite people all under one banner. How fitting when we talk about 9/11. Not the humor part, mind you, but how people can be united. I also have to disagree with Jackie S when she says humor is used to "lighten the tragic event." More or less, I think that humor in this book is used because it's a part of life. The way Foer has written this novel makes it realistic and down to earth which makes me think that it's just a part of the reality. It keeps the story believable, and readable.
It is hopeful to think of humor as showing that a tragedy can be overcome, and a nice touch on Foer's part. Overall, humor has been another level to the book and widens the possibility for a more diverse audience.
Ethan R W is really Ethan R F. I apologize again.
In the most recent post, Ethan R said "Nothing can really dilute the sadness of a tragedy such as September 11." I think this statement is true in the sense that it's impossible for there to be a lighthearted way of thinking about the tragedy of 9/11 itself. I really do think that what makes this novel so wonderful though, is how it can have its basis in a horrible tragedy, but still tell an inspiring story of how a 9 year old boy and the people he encounters are learning to cope with the darkness in their hearts, and all the while it is told with unexpected bursts of black humor. This book is bigger than a typical coming of age story; it makes profound statements about life, death, war, and all manner of other important issues. This is demonstrated exceptionally when Oskar plays an interview with a Hiroshima survivor who says, "That is what death is like. It doesn't matter what uniforms the soldiers are wearing. It doesn't matter how good the weapons are. I thought if everyone could see what I saw, we would never have war anymore." (pg. Pg189) These incredible truths are what fill the book, but the humor in it also amplifies the complexity of human emotion and the ability that we as a society have to bounce back from unthinkable horror.
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