One interesting thing that we discussed is the underlying importance of literature in this text and the different ways in which Bechdel thinks about literature and books in general. For Bechdel, it seems like reading is a way for her to escape from reality. As we talked about in class, people can use literature as a way to cope with their problems. We learn that Bechdel was an avid reader growing up. She also describes her father’s affection for literature, and how one of the most notable ways that they could connect throughout her childhood was through their shared love of literature. Thus, literature took on many different meanings for Bechdel. She could use her books as a way to escape from the reality of her family situation, where her father created an unpleasant home environment. Yet at the same time, literature could also be used as a tool to transcend this unhealthy home environment and try to bring some positivity into her relationship with her father. In a relationship that was largely marked by unpleasant interactions, Bechdel could gain the attention from her father that she craved through their shared love of literature.

Furthermore, Bechdel also uses literature as a tool for self-discovery. As she is beginning to come to terms with her queer identity, Bechdel turns to literature as a way to explain her experiences. This struck me because it almost seemed like she had removed herself from the reality of the situation, and she was doing research on queerness as if she were a case study. It seemed like she was almost trying to study herself through an objective and unemotional lens, and through this approach, she partly removed herself from directly confronting her queer identity. Additionally, I was interested in the way that she used literature to try to understand her father’s life. Bechdel constantly alludes to pieces of literature throughout the novel and compares these stories to the experiences of her parents. Maybe her comparison of her father’s life to various works of literature demonstrates that she does not think that her father lived in reality. Maybe literature marked a way for him to escape from all of his problems in the real world, and like her, he used it as a coping mechanism to escape from reality. However, he might have also used literature as a point of self-reflection, like she did, to try to understand more about his queer identity. Overall, literature undoubtedly played a critical role in the lives of both Bechdel and her father. Although they were very different people, they might have used literature as a lens through which to make sense of the world.

Today in class, we had an interesting discussion about Wright’s narrative and the ways in which he has changed so far over the course of the book. One point in particular that I found interesting was Hallela’s comment about how Wright’s education also took place outside of the classroom, in the form of learning how to interact with his peers. Wright realized that on the first day of school, he often had to get in a fight in order to prove his worth and strength to the other boys. Also, Chloe noted that Wright also learned more about his position in society as a black man, and how he was supposed to be natural enemies of the white boys.

Overall, as we realized in class today, this idea of “education” can take on several different forms. Not only did Wright prize his education in the classroom of learning how to read and write, but he also placed great worth in his social education. Each of these different forms of education helped him to navigate his way through society. In our own lives, we can all probably relate to Wright’s experience with education. Each day, we learn new things, whether that be academic or social. We are constantly learning how to approach different situations or interact with different people in addition to our work in the classroom. Is there any type of education that is more important than the others? For Wright, he seemed to value both fairly equally. He took great pride in his success academically, and noted that he planned to take advantage of his academic success to pursue a career in the future. He also talks about how important it was for him to figure out his place in society, especially in the broader racial context of the time. As Wright shows us, education is fluid and can take on many different forms. For Wright, his “education” serves as both a means for survival in a social setting as well as a step towards social mobility and an exciting future career. It will be interesting to see how Wright’s education continues and takes on different forms through the rest of the book.