As I was reading Zeitoun, I kept on imagining a dystopic futuristic place. The kind of thing that would happened in a sci-fi movie or novel. There is no electricity, water shortage and limited modes of transportation. No human life was surrounding Zeitoun for a while. I got the end of the world vibes and Zeitoun being the last man in the world who had to look for any live remnants of the wreckage. Zeitoun is left to fend for himself and the people around him. I was wondering if you guys felt the same way with this depiction of New Orleans? In class, we discussed how Zeitoun’s experience could be a representative of people of New Orleans. I was wondering why the author decided to pick a minority family such as the Zeitouns. An immigrant and Muslim family with very diverse cultural backgrounds. The story would lose a significant part of it. I know the fact that the story is not about a stereotypical white family leaving in New Orleans has kept me reading and enticed. There is a whole different feel to the family and the author makes us fall in love with characters in book. Have you felt the same about the book?
Happy reading.
I definitely agree that the description of New Orleans in this passage seems somewhat apocalyptic. It is eerie to think about a city that has been abandoned by most of its inhabitants, and all of the buildings and infrastructure that have been there for so many years are suddenly destroyed in a matter of days. One scene in particular that stood out to me was when Zeitoun found the burning block of houses near his office building, and some of the residents who had remained in the city gathered silently to watch the flames spread from building to building. It must be so devastating for longtime residents of New Orleans to see how everything that they have known can be taken away in such a short period of time. Unfortunately, there is not much that people can do in the face of a natural disaster other than try to find safety and shelter and hope that everything turns out OK.
I think that Eggers’ descriptions of post-Katrina New Orleans is intended to provoke outrage. To a certain extent, there will chaos right after a major disaster, but I think only admitting that ignores the inaction of the government at the time. Surely, there is a better way to handle the damage than National Guard members with huge guns waving them randomly at people seeking assistance, as happened to Zeitoun when he was looking for a way to evacuate his neighbors. Under these circumstances, it becomes increasingly common for people in places of authority to abuse their power, or maybe, put more mildly, people in positions of power allow themselves to dehumanize people in a more fragile and subservient role. This kind of reminds me of the Stanford Prison Experiment.
I agree that the description of New Orleans seems very apocalyptic, which to those who stayed Orleans it probably was. What really stood out to me though was Zeitoun’s reaction in the face of this destruction and violence, especially in the beginning. In the face of massive floods and rescuing people on the brink on drowning, he seems to enjoy his role as a savior and the eerie tranquility that results from the flooding. He seems unaware or indifferent to the violence happening in the Superdome and poorer neighborhoods until it is directly in his face. I think most of the Katrina narrative comes from the super dome and the poorer areas of New Orleans, so to see the perspective and initial reaction of an upper middle class family is an interesting comparison, especially in thinking about how quickly things went wrong.
The post-apocalyptic feeling to the book is definitely there for me too. I think that it’s obvious from plenty of movies and TV that Americans specifically have an infatuation with the what-ifs of the end of the world. What would the end of the world be like? Who would be able to survive? We like to ask ourselves if we could survive, what we would do in life or death situations, drawing on the typically American ideals of self-reliance. I think having a family like the Zeitouns as the centerpiece of such a question makes an already engaging story all the more possible and easy to relate to.
I see what you mean by the end of the world scene. As I read about the murky water and freed horses, I didnt really see a natural disaster but an apocolyptic scene. This lead me to think about the struggles of not only Zeitoun but others that were affected by the hurricane. It was incredible of him to feed the dogs and rescue elderly people. It is unbelievable that Zeitoun served in prison for domestic violence. I think it goes to show how traumatic Camp Greyhound was. That experience changed him forever, it was something that may have been the catalyst for his life choices after. I think people need to think about the affects that a natural disaster can have physically but also mentally for victims. This should be something more researched and acknowledged by the media.
Those apocalyptic parts of Zeitoun reminded me of The Heart of Darkness. The chaos present and the feeling that civilization is no where near is very present in the areas of Zeitoun. What is interesting about the apocalyptic aspects in Zeitoun is that it is America in the 21st century. We pride ourselves on having evolved and become more civilized, but we see that a hurricane can deprive of us these traits. I think it says something important about human nature.
I think that the most apocalyptic, and the most ethereal, moment in the book was when Zeitoun came across the horses. The magical and biblical symbol juxtaposed against the desolate landscape seemed too unreal for an autobiography. However, knowing that it was an autobiography forced me to accept my disbelief later in the book. The horses seemed impossible, but so did the wrongful and violent imprisonment of innocent men.
I think the notion of Katrina being portrayed as this apocalypse in Zeitoun is interesting and accurate. Especially when considering the way that other recent American novelists have portrayed apocalypse, as caused by nuclear war, and providing a reason for the abandonment of morals. This localized apocalypse of New Orleans, which was caused by global warming, and lead to a moral reinvigoration of those subjected to it casts Zeitoun in a whole new light.