On page 96, Lily says, "The last thing I wanted to be like that [May's behavior], but I didn't want to be like T Ray either, immune to everything but his own selfish life. I didn't know which was worse."
What do you think is worse, feeling everybody's pain or feeling no pain but your own?
I don't think that she meant feel only your own pain when she said that she didn't want to be like T. Ray. Rather that she did not want to live a life think only of herself and not other people. Like she wants to feel the pain of others and not live a live of selfishness.
ReplyDeleteGreat question JoJo! I really love your way of thinking. I believe that feeling only one's own pain is worse than being overly empathetic. I believe this because a person can only gain so much wisdom from their own experiences but when a person can live through another persons pain they can live a broader life.
ReplyDeleteJoJo and Aiden stayed after class today to chat about this a little bit. I love this question. As I told JoJo, I have never really thought about this before in all of the times I have read the book. Here we are with two characters on completely opposite ends of the spectrum. On the one had, we have May who cannot live or function in her own life because she carries the load of all the pain in the world. Then, on the other hand, T-Ray can't live a broader life because he is so consumed with his own loss, misfortune, and pain.
ReplyDeleteIn the end, I believe Aiden and JoJo are saying the same thing. This is a great question. I think you need to exist somewhere in the middle on this. Moderation. (I know what an easy, cop-out, answer). What do the rest of you think?
It is just so hard to decide T Ray and May who is worse. They are both very poor, May need to feel pain for everyone and T Ray only care about himself.
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