Critique an adolescent book that portrays a right of passage. - Kelli Childers
Pretties by Scott Westerfeld.
When presented with the assignment to critique an adolescent book that contains a solid lesson on the 'right of passage,’ I chose the second book to a sequel written by Scott Westerfeld called Pretties. As well as an intriguing story, this book contains lots of made up words and a unreal way of life that would be hard to understand and easy to take the wrong way. Although this story is a work of Fiction, I feel that entwined in all the ‘make-believe’ is a lesson to be learned for young adults.
From beginning to end, this book is focused mainly on the Pretties who were once ugly until medicated and surgically perfected by the Government. After being transformed, the Pretties are the typical definition of ‘perfect.’ They never fight, never argue, always obey rules, and never stumble or stutter a word. They are also perfected physically. You would never catch a single Pretty with a scar, pimple, blemish, not tan, or with an ounce of body fat. If there is anything they are unhappy about on their body, such as eye color or lip fullness, it’s as simple as a quick and scar-less surgery to change their appearance to whatever they please.
As the book goes on it focuses in on one girl named Tally. Tally is a new Pretty - but seems to find her place quite well in the world of Pretties. With the most handsome boy on her arm and voted to be head of the clique everyone wants to get into, many new Pretties envy her. As Tally tries to embrace her new life of being perfect, things start to become more and more imperfect for her. Although completely infatuated with her hunk of a boyfriend, she continues to miss the hideous boy from her ugly days; and although Tally is accepted into the Pretties’ world, all she can think about was what was beyond the perfect town of perfect people – so she runs away.
With each step of the way, Tally inquires a rebellious mentality to everything. Although her flawless face is now stained with blood and her priceless clothes are torn and tethered, Tally has never been happier. She no longer has to fit a perfect image or follow incredible amounts of rules to help form what everyone feels is the ‘perfect’ society.
I feel this book portrays an important lesson to young adults, but only if they are able to read between the lines. On the outer surface of the pages in this book simply lie words that project a Fictional story. However, if you are able to read something and untwist its outer shell into something much deeper – you will walk away with a valuable morality. Along the way you learn the lesson of freedom with Tally. You learn that in order to be happy, you need to be human. As well as feeling happy, and loving, every human being must feel hate, and sadness. There is no light without dark and no happiness without madness. Without the ability to express the negative emotions, you will never fully feel 100% positive.
Pretties by Scott blah blah blah is a great example of perfect in its finest state of ultimately being imperfect. There is no such thing as perfect, because everyone has their own idea of what is and isn’t perfect these days. Since you can’t please everyone, the first step to feeling your perception of happiness and perfection is to be pleased with who you are, and where you are. Just like Scott has written a story that on the surface is much different than the one you can comprehend by digging deep into what is in between the lines - you can perfect the cover of yourself to be flawless and perfect, but hide something much deeper and different inside as well. If what is inside is bitter, angry and all bottled up just so that everyone see’s you as perfection – well, doesn’t that simply make you imperfect in the end?
I haven't read this book but I really like how the author has honored adolescent rebelliousness as the saving grace against constructed identities and mores. Parents, teachers, ADHD meds, Dr. Phil, other know-it-all authorities do what they can to diagnose and restrain the rebellious spirit. This author has shown how rebelliousness is the key to a young person's sovereignty and transformation into adulthood. Neat.
ReplyDeleteBiologically, we are at present living in a world of "The Pretties." We have the capability to design our off-spring so as to avoid "imperfection". We are presently wrestling with the ethics of this capability.
American girls and women, especially and unfortunately,suffer the fallout of a warped collective perception of identity and beauty. Today it is as common for a teenage girl to receive a Quinciera or car for high school graduation as it is for her to receive breast augmentation...and typically it is the mothers who are sharing this illusion. I have nothing against plastic surgery in general, or women making decisions to own and decide how to exhibit their sexuality, but this sort of independent-mindedness does not seem to be what is taking place in the recent rash of "rite-of-passage" breast enhancements. Just whose idea of perfection are mothers and daughters wrapped up in attaining? (In Coos County I worry that a girl's idea of beauty is becoming the mud flap girl!)
Stupendous that a man wrote this book! Good Work, Kelli