Hope- Jamie Peters

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... I don't even know what is going to happen in this blog post. There was so much packed into the last 129 pages that it is hard to rifle through it all. Let us start with the basic synopsis: Allende followed the exact history described in the supplemental reading given to us by Dr. Berry, with the Presidential election of the leftists groups, the coup on September 11, 1973, and the silent, ignored oppression that followed. In addition to this factual accuracy, all of the different viewpoints- Blanca, Alba, Senator Trueba, Miguel, Sebastian Garcia, Jaime, Amanda, Esteban Garcia, Ana Diaz, and Pedro Garcia - to name a few - provided a deeply personal look into the lives of the freely imprisoned.

Above all, Allende used this last section of her book to connect every premonition and action of the Trueba and de Valle family. Alba reflected on this at the conclusion of the novel. Everything that had happened from the beginning to the end of the book seemingly followed a repetition of history- All the women in the family both writing and expressing through art all of the horrors of their lives, all of the men constantly going after other women (or men) in the midst of their relationships. These are just two of the many occurrences in this book.

I am always going to remember this book, not just because of the overwhelmingly graphic descriptions of love. There is such hope among the women of this family that even though everything awful and sinful in this world has happened to them, they will still survive to tell the tale.

I commented on AnnaKate's and Ezra's posts.

Comments

Rebecca Belew said…
I very much enjoyed this book, and although strange I did find some connections to the class so far, especially with the descriptions of Alba's torture. And yet, the book has this ring of hope to it throughout the entire thing that I found rather captivating. The foreshadows of the deaths were almost the least of the worries of a reader because of all the good things people would do for each other: Jamie's clinic, Clara's kindness and generosity to the poor, Alba's willingness to jump in with Miguel and fight whenever he needed her. The destruction was only a distraction for all the good that was still going on through it all.
March 30, 2020 at 8:40 AM
Moriah Nelson said…
I do see a determination to thrive in the members of Alba's family. Esteban wanted a secure future for his nation's government. Clara desired to be prepared for the spiritual afterlife. Blanca desired to be free. Alba desired to preserve her family's legacy and live and fight for love. I think Allende may have resonated with this aspect as she thought of her family's exile and her grandfather dying without them. The family adapted or resisted change (as Esteban did) all with the belief that their present circumstances couldn't be the end. I think it's a very interesting and hopeful trait and love that you pointed it out!
March 30, 2020 at 2:47 PM
Addison Zanda said…
The strength Alba had in the near end of the book is something to truly look at from any type of standpoint in life. She loved her grandfather enough to be a sacrifice for him to be put through terror... kind of reminds me of someone we Christians look up to.
March 30, 2020 at 4:49 PM
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