Summary:
In “The Involvement of Art with Craft” Frank F. Mathias talks about his life as a young soldier during war in the South Pacific. He was really excited and eager to start writing his book. At first his writing was adequate but lacked character. He was now impaled on to what he calls Pogo’s “insurmountable opportunity.” Frank realized that the only way to grab people’s attention was through art with craft. In order to make his writing come alive he had to construct his personality and those of the men and women from the past. He used his memory as well as old letters he had written to his mother and his mother to him to help him remember. Frank also used dialogue to really bring out his writing. With his quotes he created amazing imagery that made you feel as if you were him and you could see his experiences happening before your eyes. His third book, GI Jive, An Army Bandsman in World War II, was written on his own time. Frank is one of the few veterans that can say he has actually written and published a memoir of his time at war.
Reaction:
My reaction to his writing was I thought it was very interesting. He definitely made me visualize and feel like I was right there with him. His writing was very carefully and well thought out.
Questions:
1. What really made Mathias want to join the army in the first place?
2. Why did the board not give him anytime to write his third book like they did for his first two?
3. Why did he have such a great urge to write a memoir of his time in World War II?
3 comments:
I like the question that focuses on his "urge" to write. Why do you think he has this urge?
I like that you mentioned “insurmountable opportunity” and Mathias’ initial struggle with his writing. He needed to focus less on the importance of giving the reader facts, and more on fully engaging them in the setting and mood of the story, and capturing the personality of the characters involved. I also agree with you on the FSU readings, “Sing with Me Somehow” was my favorite as well and I like that you touched on how aptly it describes the bonds between families. Good work, I look forward to reading more of your posts.
I appreciate your comments, I feel like we are on the same page on many of our postings. We seem to agree on a lot of things, yet offer each other new perspectives at the same time. I like the way you summarize your points in a simple and understandable way, and ask relevant questions that make the reader think twice. Keep up the great work and I look forward to reading more of your postings and comments.
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