I have to say, I'm a little surprised at how Macon handled the call from the civil rights worker. It seems like he very easily blows up at people who question his ideas and it usually makes him look even more ridiculous. Being able to hold back his anger and answer the man respectably caught me off guard because it's so contradictory to the Macon we've seen thus far.
Macon Detornay is an interesting character for a hero narrative because he actually considers himself as a hero. I don't necessarily think there's anything wrong with believing you're a hero (I'm sure the Avengers consider themselves heroes) but Macon doesn't seem to be anything very heroic in the beginning. In fact, reading about his muggings that he declared so heroic really annoyed me. It bothered me that he thought he was doing the right thing because his ideas gave him an excuse. With the cab muggings he was inadvertently making things worse, but he was walking around before thinking he had done a great deed and helped change the world. His arrogance is really too much for me. I would understand if he thought of Malcolm X as an idol, but thinking that they're at the same level? Seriously Macon? It's not that I don't think his ideas are valid, but the poetry reading should have been an indicator that he's being a little...much.
Ok rant over.
The interviews have been... slightly different though. I'm still not a huge fan of Macon because he seems to be basking in all the attention, and it's not really helping his ego. But, he actually managed to bite his tongue? For the first time since beginning this novel, his ideas seem logical and he actually seems quite logical. I think some of his ideas still aren't great and kind of weird, but now I can actually see some potential for him to be a hero. I'm still not thrilled with his personality and all that, but maybe we'll see him blossom into a hero.
(Then again, like someone else pointed out today in class, the prologue doesn't seem to show that he becomes this amazing guy, so we'll see I guess)
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I agree that Macon's arrogance masks his heroism. Given his overconfident personality, I think it's impressive that Macon can think before he speaks in front of the press. I guess that shows that he may be arrogant and radical, but he's not stupid.
ReplyDeleteI was also impressed by how Macon acted when he got this call! He definitely had the potential to blow up and make a fool of himself, but he came off as respectful. Overall, Macon has impressed me in most of his interviews. He seems like he can tone it down when he wants to, to some extent.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most compelling aspects of this novel, for me, is how Macon's insecurities and uncertainties sit so prominently next to his bluster and overconfidence: his style doesn't necessarily reflect his actual feelings, and the call from an earlier version of a white man who put his safety on the line in the name of an ideal is an interesting moment, where we see Macon consciously suppress his hip-hop-influenced need to dis an opponent and actually think about how to make this caller an ally and not a critic. We see him play out his doomed and crazy heroic impulses in public, in real time--he never really thinks any of this through, and that's both his major flaw AND a big part of what makes him interesting and endearing. The reader literally never knows what he'll say next once he's live on the air, and I enjoy reading these sections for that reason.
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