As the book progresses, we are learning more about Ray's girlfriend back home, Jan. Although he thinks about her a lot during the Long Walk, it's hard for me to figure out how he actually feels about her. In the very beginning of the Walk, Ray passes a teenage girl holding a sign for him. He runs up to her and starts making out with her. He spends a fair amount of time feeling her up and even gets himself a warning. His actions would make it seem like he is not very serious about Jan. But he constantly revisits old memories with her and thinks about how much he misses her.
In chapter 6, Ray "thought about Jan. He needed her. I love you, Jan, he thought. He wasn't dumb, and he knew she had become more to him than she actually was. She had turned into a life-symbol. A shield against the sudden death that came from the halftrack" (207).
Sorry for the long quote but I felt as if it was fairly significant. Although he claims to love Jan, I don't think that's the case. I think he longs for simpler times and regrets volunteering for the Walk now that he realizes the harsh reality of it. And remembering times with Jan reminds him of life before the Walk and how much simpler things were. He describes her as a "life-symbol." I'm not sure what that means. But I think he loves the memories of her, especially in comparison to the current situation he is in now. And although he thinks about Jan more and more throughout the book, I don't believe he loves her.
Ray's thoughts about his girlfriend reminds me of Gatsby and Daisy. Much like Gatsby, Ray is sort of obsessing over Jan. He is comstantly thinking about her.
ReplyDeleteBecause the writing style is in Ray's perspective, you see all of the thoughts that Ray is having, and you can see how frequently Jan pops into his head.
It seems like every other page there is a different paragraph about Jan.
I would've never thought to compare those two couples. Interesting thought.
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