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Complete your journal reflection from class--"To what extent is Mom heroic (or not)?" Post your reflection to the blog; no response required but do read your classmates' entries. Be prepared for culminating discussion on your reactions to the characters, as well as your self-reflections.
Forum Post Due: Sunday@10PM
In order to answer this question, we would have to ask what exactly does being ‘heroic’ mean in both the context of the book and from the perspective of the reader. Judging from what Mom did in the book according to the characters; her actions brought an eye-opener of each of the family member’s own personal thought on not just Mom but also each other. Yet, by assessing at the development of Mom, and as a reader, one could argue Mom deliberately chose to wander off, whereby creating the disturbance throughout the family. Through Mom’s disappearance, not only was the characters affected Mom, it also affected the readers as, according to the class discussion, our attitudes likewise changed when dealing with our elders.
ReplyDeleteFrom that angle, one must credit mom for how she achieved to change our minds, yet limited to her intentions of committing such an act. As the book progresses, we could see Mom’s fragile health slowly diminishes as constant headaches and nausea strikes at different times. By the time of losing herself in the subway station, she completely failed to recall what Hyong-chol asked her to do: to stand still so that they can find each other. On the surface, Mom’s disappearance only intensified the relationship within the family as they blamed mostly each other for losing Mom.
Just by looking at how the book progressed as a whole, I would consider Mom as heroic because of her actions lead to a greater cause in discovering another perspective of everyone’s relationship dynamic, whether if it was intentional or not. However, as with every ‘hero’, she has flaws that make people flinch and shake their head in disappointment, either if that was the result of her own actions or the treatment from others.
In this novel I think mom can be considered a hero from the perspective of her children, but if you were to try and pinpoint what exactly mom did that was heroic I’m not sure you would be able to do so. I think almost every child views their mothers as a hero. This is because in your childhood your mom does everything for you. Reading Hyong-Chol and Chi-Hon’s perspectives, mom is portrayed under such a bright light because as a child your mom is your hero. For many people, there comes a point in your life where you start to realize things about your parents which make them seem less perfect. When you get older you realize that maybe your mom didn’t do everything perfectly. This is the point where you decide to accept things that you didn’t want to see before. Reading both Chi-Hon and Hyong-Chol’s perspectives, this never once happens. Never do they hit a point where their mom becomes less of a hero to them as she was in their childhood. But despite her kids seeing her as a hero, mom has all these other things about her which her children don’t know, or never chose to see. How heroic is it really to perform your duty as a mother? She isn’t doing anything special and at times she is doing her role begrudgingly. Mom does not know how to deal with her emotions, she isn’t comfortable with sharing her feelings with anyone close to her so she chooses to share them with a stranger. I see a hero as someone who everyone would strive to be like and sure from the eyes of the children mom is someone who everyone should try to be. Sacrificing her life for her kids. But mom does not see herself as a role model; she has no confidence in herself. I think you simply cannot see her in a heroic light if she does not see herself in the same way.
ReplyDeleteMom is quite heroic. She was especially so after I saw how sister describe Mom in her letter to Chi-hon, saying how Mom sacrificed her entire life for her family. Sister emphasized that she, personally, would never be able to be as good of a mother as Mom was, because she would constantly want to have a life of her own apart from her children and could never fully commit to her family. When the family was poor, Mom chose to give up her health in return for food to keep her family alive. An important characteristic of a heroine, which mom clearly demonstrates, is being able sacrificing herself for the good of others. For example a warrior fighting on the front lines to protect his city from being destroyed.
ReplyDeleteDad’s chapter in particular made me feel sympathetic for Mom, because she was never treated very well, yet she never complained. She always faced her obstacles with great dignity, never losing herself in the process. For example when she accidentally let the man with the bicycle take her food, she kept looking for the rice until she finally found it. To me, this is a striking characteristic of Mom’s that makes her particularly heroic.
Though Mom had a weakness that eventually took her life, she didn’t let it stop her from doing what needed to be done. Both her children and her husband never even realized that she had health issues until they were looking back. A heroine would not be a heroine without having to face death. The majority of heroes do not die of old age, Mom was no exception. Although Mom was older, her death/disappearance was sudden, which left her a name that people looked upon with respect.
Mark Chua
ReplyDeleteMr. Franklin
Honors World Literature (B1)
April 11, 2014
I feel that Mom was heroic in the stories that we’ve seen based on the characters points of views and I feel that throughout the story, mom sacrificed a lot for her family and gave up her own personal interests in order to achieve those of her family. In my idea of heroism, I feel that the idea of a hero needs to sacrifice and be able to put oneself down to help others which is why Mom was heroic to me in the book, Please look after mother. Since young, my parents were both my role models which is why most young adults grow to show similar patterns to their parents. What we see, we can become. Although this isn’t true for all cases, there are similar patterns that are seen with association and behavior. I feel that in this class blog, everyone will say that Mom was heroic because since young, we have all been exposed to our Mother’s care through the rough times and the good times and that we all associate Mom with comfort and protection. This is why, in most cases, Mom would be viewed as hero. Mom is also viewed as a hero because of her disappearance or death, the catalyst which is really interesting in this case. I feel that without her suggested death or disappearance, she wouldn’t be viewed as much as a hero because her children and husband would most likely never realize how much Mom meant to them which is a really sad case. Similar to Michael Jackson’s case where his death brought him back to the title of the King of Pop. Prior to his death, he was accumulating bad reputations and bad rumors and ratings of his music which suddenly changed through his death. The most that we can take out of this is to realize that we don’t deserve the blessings that we have and to live with open eyes and to notice the smallest of blessings and gifts and to share them.
Mom from PLAM, in my opinion, is a hero from the start to the end. Although her 'heroism' is overlooked and often times underappreciated by those who are ultimately affected by her, it is revealed to the readers that Mom had the biggest heart ever.
ReplyDeleteShe is a lone hero who took all of the weight of burden to hold up the family. And even though everyone leaves her, she still followed though just the same as before, fulfilling her duty: taking care of the family. Her heroic journey, although does not have a certain destination, has the objective of being happy and that is, seeing her children grow up healthily and living their life. Mom's source of happiness, like most mothers, stemmed form her children. If her children succeeds and are happy, she is happy. 'Motherly' is what ultimately characterizes her when we look at her from the perspectives of her loved ones. Mom fulfilled her motherly duties not only to her children but more--her husband, Kyun, and Eun-Gyu--through her kindness and sympathy for other people, she gave all her heart to her family, a friend, and even a stranger.
Perspective is very important for this novel for this whole novel is unfolded through difference voices and perspectives. For strangers on the street Mom is merely an old woman in blue sandals, unfortunately for most of the time the lives she touched, especially her children, thought her as the old nagging Mom. After she went missing, everyone is forced to see things from another light and began realizing that Mom had problems and hopes and dreams. That is when Mom is shown as a hero to those whose life she touched.
It's these little acts that people often overlook, most of us are selfish and often disregard the acts of sacrifice and kindness of another person. Mom's whole life is compiled of self-sacrifice and sympathy for others yet it went unnoticed until the end when she is gone. This type of heroism could be attributed to the tragic hero for she is unheard of until she is gone. For Mom, helping others and seeing people she cared about happy is equivalent in fulfilling her duty. Death and pain was never a force against her, her will power was stronger than all the obstacles thrown in her way and that is where he true heroism is shown: her selflessness and kindness for others.
It's important to consider whether Mom lived the way she did out of a "Set routine" or whether she chose such a lifestyle among many options. It certainly makes a difference if Mom actively sought this life style because as a heroic character, she must be given many tough enticing options, only to choose the more unfavorable option.
ReplyDeleteThe insight we read throughout the story seems to the point to the fact that Mom's family did not come to fully appreciate her contributions and character until her disappearance. Knowing this, Mom can be seen as more heroic as she continued her lifestyle regardless of the reciprocal emotions and actions or lack of. We then find out that the novel is written by Mom which I find heroic. This act is heroic not because Mom chose to document the story but because it shows Mom as one who understands her previous neglect and yet is still at peace with such a realization.
At the same time, Mom could be considered un-heroic especially in the view of Western culture. She chose a lifestyle of devotion to her children but in doing so, she welcomed many health issues resulting in an earlier death. By choosing an early death, she chose to deny her children, a mother, and grandchildren, a grandmother. Therefore, Mom is a selfish character that chooses a lifestyle that satisfies her personal value of dedication to the family instead of a lifestyle that would benefit her kin in the long-term aspect.
Throughout her entire life, Mom was selfless and rarely complained. She would rather suffer in silence than to call for help. Everything she does is for others and even as a reader, we see little of what Mom truly wants. It may be selfless, but I am not too sure if this is heroic. Mom loses herself completely to the role of mom and forgets her other wishes. It makes me wonder how this is the same person that didn’t want to get married those many years ago and what she must have given up on. She becomes a mother even to her husband, who accepts her as the role along with the children. The youngest sister, the one that received the most attention, felt like she knew Mom the least. Somewhere along the way, for the better or worse, Mom gave up her past self to serve others. I guess there is some heroism in that as well. After all, Mom ended up leaving with a profound impact on the people around her.
ReplyDeletePerhaps Mom’s heroism is more clearly realized by the younger sister by the epilogue when she finds out that Mom wasn’t any ordinary mother. Mom was something different and somehow reached a level of selflessness that others could not. While it could be argued that it was a cowardly endeavor for Mom to throw away her own aspirations completely to fit into a set role, I think she managed to do something that was quite incredible. Mom had so successfully played her part that her children never questioned her humanity or the possibility that she was an actual person with actual dreams. Now that I think about it, this also provides Mom a kind of “more-than-human” status among the characters. Perhaps that is what makes Mom so heroic.
From my perspective, a hero should be someone who puts others in front of him/herself and also impacts others in a positive way. I would consider Mom from Please Look After Mom as heroic beyond the life she had. She impacted the world around her. People remembered her for what she has done for others. For example, the orphans from Hope House always remembered Mom for the kindness and love that she would bring with her when she visited them. Another example would be the two girls from the neighborhood, who would always remember Mom for her generosity when she offered food and a place to play. One last example would be how the disappearance of Mom made the family realize Mom’s importance. No one continued the hard jobs that Mom has been doing all her life. Mom’s disappearance really made the family think and reflect upon what Mom has done all her life and appreciate Mom more.
ReplyDeleteThe character Mom did sacrifice her whole life for her family. She never got the attention when she was not feeling well; instead she had to put up with it all by herself. She also never got to pursue her visions or tell anyone else about the dreams that she had. Mom would put herself in front of anything for her family. She also learnt how to be a better mom based on her own experience of taking care of her children. A lot of the times, parents are not the perfect parents, but they try to be. I think it really is the action they take or the thought they put in that makes them heroic and perfect to us. Even though, there really is no such thing as being perfect, one can still be perfect if they try hard enough and that others ignore the flaws that one has. I think children should definitely take a step back and see the amount of love and energy our parents put in and appreciate how much they do for us, before we even question why they do it that way. I can definitely see similarities between Mom and my own mom, because my mom never really pursued what she wanted to do, but instead she took great care for the family, especially for her children. I think that is what makes my mom so amazing.
I see the character Mom as being heroic although a different type than what we've discussed in class the past semester. She is heroic not through any superhuman or supernatural deeds but because of her attention and focus on the mundane and commonplace. Her complete devotion to doing the duties she and her family set for her is unwavering with the small exception being the time her husband brings home another man and she sees her position as mother being taken away from her. It is not despite but perhaps because she is a character that lives so much in the everyday that she is a hero. And this type of heroism runs quite contrary to any other type we've studied; many of which were considered heroes only for performing such unique deeds that they and only those individuals could ever perform.
ReplyDeleteMom, in contrast, is a character that lives and thrives on what would be considered less important and sensationalized tasks such as cleaning and cooking. But she, as did all these other heroes, performed her set tasks to her utmost ability and had only sadness and regret for not being able to do more. It is for this inherent selflessness she exhibits time and time that I really have come to see her as a hero for. She is completely devoted to her every task and it wasn't until I read this book did I realize how wrong it was for us to value and udge the trait of heroism based upon the sophistication and vigor of their accomplishment. I think perhaps because Mom was so devoted to these tasks that anyone else could do that made her all the more heroic.
Mom’s character is unique in that she does so much for others and so little for herself. In some ways she is comparable to the hero type, Hero as Forefather, such as Aeneas from Ancient Rome, because the heroic figure’s main goal is to protect and provide for the family/nation/people they care about the most. However, I think Mom is less like a character on a mission, especially since she is not looking for any rewards or specific outcomes, besides keeping her family alive and healthy. If we consider mom’s character as heroic, then we should probably consider every mother in the world as heroic. Though Hyong-chol and Chi-hon’s mom is slightly more special in the sense that she is so extremely generous and nurturing to everyone around her, all mothers essentially care for and raise her children in the same way that Mom had done.
ReplyDeleteI believe that from our classes’ perceptions of heroic qualities, Mom in this novel is not a truly heroic character. We consider a hero as someone who has either a purpose-driven or goal-driven motivation to do what he or she does, and the end result usually is about the hero/heroine. For mom, I don’t particularly see how she got the ending she wanted or would have wanted, but rather I saw her as sacrificing her entire life for her children/family. Despite her sacrifices, her motivations to do what she did throughout her life were never truly for herself, or for her own personal happiness.
Mom is heroic because of her dedication and effort she put into her family. She was able to sacrifice her own needs and spend time on making sure every single family member had something to eat and every single family member lived a comfortable life at home. Throughout the novel, each character finds out that their mother couldn’t read but realizes that she never bothered to tell them. We are able to perceive how mom cares for others and refuses to give other people burdens. Through my perspective of the “idealistic hero” I believe mom is definitely a hero because of her sense of selflessness and willingness to do good. As we read in the novel, the family members did not truly appreciate and understand the extent of hard work and dedication mom has given to the family. Nonetheless, we see how each memory they bring back from the past depicts the comfort and protection she provides for each family member in life. Without her, the children and the husband seem to be lost in life, and as they dig deeper into their memory, they come to understand that everything mom has done in the past was for their own good. On the other side, mom hid countless of things from her family such as visiting and donating money to the orphanage. Although this was an act of kindness, mom failed to share this important act with people she brought up and lived with for years. This brings me to question how truthful mom really is when it comes to being a heroic motherly figure. Yes, mom has done plenty of good and has demonstrated true kindness and commitment towards her family that reflects heroism. But, on the other hand, it is hard to gain appreciation from your loved ones when they don’t even know who you truly are.
ReplyDeleteI believe mom is a hero because of the sacrifices she makes and the love she gives to everyone. Within all the individuals we’ve studied throughout the course, there is a common theme: sacrifice. Whether it is Medea who sacrifices her children or Odysseus who sacrifices the time with his family, Mom similarly sacrifices her dreams for her children. Mom devotes her entire life to raising her children and helping others. Although some may disregard mom not as a heroine because she doesn’t possess any superhuman strengths, I believe the way she loves and show gratitude for everything in her life is something difficult for many to accomplish and is much like a superhuman strength where the strength allows the possessor to accomplish something many can’t. This can be shown in the last chapter when the daughter includes in a letter realizing how difficult it raising children and how selfish for them to think mom didn’t have dreams beyond raising the children. Much like other heroes who have weaknesses, Mom is sick and doesn’t like to reveal that she can’t read. Mom, like any other hero, has a certain amount of pride that can’t be harmed. Although there are many characteristics of mom seen in other mothers around the world, mom acts as the ideal motherly figure, just like how Atticus is the ideal fatherly figure or how Achilles is the ideal warrior.
ReplyDeleteI think that Mom would almost perfectly fit the mold we created for defining heroes in the first semester. She has a journey of learning to love her kids and her family as well as learns to love her husband. She undergoes a great deal of suffering as well as struggles with her flaws (physical and emotional). However, putting my sympathy for her aside I do not see her as a hero. When reading this story I did not pickup the focus of the story to describe a heroic woman. Rather I saw the story to highlight the story of those around her and their ignorance. Mom was the central figure that allowed us to judge and relate to those around her.To me mom seems almost above the level of heroism that we studied previously. Our previous heroes fought towards a goal for their own personal reasons. Mom didn't have any goal rather than to simply serve her family as best she could. Even when she was near death she could not stop but to think of how she couldn't help her family if she died. Mom was saint-like. Instead of being a heroic piece of literature, "Please Look After Mom" allows us to reflect internally on how someone important to us can be suffering and not be noticed. Instead of learning about a heroic woman and hoping to follow in her footsteps, this book reflects a image of oneself taking important relationships for granted.
ReplyDeleteOn the surface level, mom is not heroic. Before her disappearance, everyone thought of her as a burden to live with and take care of. Her departure and lack of attempt to return home also shows her skewed sense of responsibility. Although everyone blamed themselves, it was still mom’s fault in the sense that she did not go back home but roamed around familiar places. Were mom to have fully loved her husband and family, she would have tried harder to make herself less of a burden. However, upon looking into everyone’s memory of mom, it can be seen that mom has actually made an attempt to better everyone’s lives. Most of her efforts went unnoticed, which made me see mom as more of a guardian angel rather than a hero. What confuses me the most is how mom showed no signs of attempt or struggle to return home. Comparing to Miller’s idea of a hero, mom is not a hero. She is, however, a very selfless individual.
ReplyDeleteMom’s heroism comes from her endurance, kindness and sincerity. The character “Mom” is heroic in the sense that she excels in her virtues, of being a mother, just like war heroes like Achilles excel at being a warrior. I think that the children in the book and other characters in the novel realize that Mom was exceptionally good at taking care of others. She acts as the role of the mother not only for her children but for Kyun, Tae’s Children, Father and many more. This nurturing capability isn’t necessarily found in all mothers (as we can see through the characters that fall upon Mom to be their mother, because they tend not to have a mother figure in the family). Mother also fits the definition of hero is current times because her virtuosity in kindness and selflessness. Her character has sacrificed much of her individual desires and focused her entire life on being a good mother. Her humble devotion towards societal/familial benefit over her own benefit is an admiral trait that many would consider necessary for modern day heroes. At first, I didn’t identify Mom as a hero because the role she plays of being a mother isn’t a role that most people in society praise. Society do praise the fact that mothers are supportive caretakers but people do not admire them in the same way people admire soldiers. But through this book, I have a greater appreciation of the roles mothers have. They shape and influence much of their children’s lives and also sacrifice much of their lives to provide happy lives for others. Though washing dishes is not as action filled as fighting in a battlefield, mothers like the character Mom, are everyday heroes.
ReplyDelete