Rebirth is an over arching theme in the book, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, written by Jamie Ford. One of the main symbols of second rebirth is the ever-present Oscar Holden record. The records symbolizes not only Henry and Keiko’s relationship, but how it can be renewed. From when Henry and Keiko buy the record, to Henry finding it 40 years later, the record always has a strong significance in the book. Though not the first mention of the Oscar Holden record, the story of the vinyl started with Henry taking Keiko to the Black Elks Club. On that night Oscar Holden dedicated song to them, and it became “their song”. Later, Keiko gave Henry the record as a thank you present for their exciting night at the Black Elks Club. The …show more content…
When Henry got to her apartment, he found out that Keiko was married and widowed, just like him. Like the two halves of the record, though apart, still the same. Ultimately meeting after 40 years, Henry and Keiko picked up where they left off. They were like an old married couple, finishing each other's sentences. “They stood there, smiling at each other, like they had done all those years ago, standing on either side of that fence. “Oai deki te…” She paused. “Ureshii desu,” Henry said softly. (pp. 285) With this shared sentence, Henry and Keiko were mending their relationship, putting the parts back together to create a new bond, one that was never broken. Their old relationship could never be truly fixed, but they started a new one with the intact record. The record, and Henry and Keiko’s bond, was finally renewed in this meeting. The book, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, shows many themes through a simple vinyl record. One important aspect of the record’s meaning is rebirth, but it also stands for second chances, love, friendship, and of course, Henry and Keiko. In the end, Keiko and Henry are not the same people, and their relationship is a new one, one that was waiting for all the years they were apart. The Oscar Holden record holds its significance in the book from the beginning to the
It is quiet tragic for Holden, for he has to act composed and “cool” despite his somber resulting from the destruction of his symbol of childhood memories, which essentially contribute to his real identity.
To neglect society's long-established views of how one should portray one another we should d rather embrace who we are. Focusing on Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, which has the main protagonist who is named Henry, Henry is an American ordered to live in a Chinese community and to Chinese standards. His father is a Chinese national and has very strong believes against the Japanese, and even though his father has such strong feelings toward the Japanese Henry ignores him. This was shown when Henry fell in love with a Japanese girl, Keiko. Throughout the novel Henry would face challenging decisions which would shape his relationships with his family creating his identity. The theme that ones identity is formed through individual reflection,
The hotel also acted as “a placeholder that would be there for him sometime in the future (252).” In the beginning Henry thought, “his own broken heart might be found there,” but when Henry decided to explore the hotel he found Keiko
Holden doesn’t want to talk about his life, or go into any personal details. Salinger tried to avoid any interaction with the media, and didn’t want to talk about his life. In 1987 Salinger inhibited the publication of his biography by Ian Hamilton. He didn’t want his biography published, nor talked about, like Holden.
Much of Holden’s inner turmoil comes from the lack of closure he had from his brother’s death. Regarding Allie, we can see that he struggles a lot with death and depression in general and we are shown this multiple times throughout the book for example in chapter one he describes himself as "wanting to disappear", introducing the reader to a first glimpse of Holden's frustration, saying, "I don’t even know what I was running for- I guess I felt like it. After I got across the road, I felt like I was sort of disappearing. It was that kind of crazy afternoon, terrifically cold and no sun out or anything…" This quote is important to the theme of unresolved grief because it reveals the fragility of Holden’s mental state. Salinger often uses second-person narration that addresses in the novel to show us that Holden is trying to disconnect from his problems and emotions by addressing the reader, proving that Holden has fallen negatively to the impacts of unresolved grief This also helps to make him feel less lonely and alienated. The personification of the "crazy afternoon" is a subtle nod to Holden’s damaging mental state about the effects of Allie's death. The windows are mentioned often and symbolize a barrier between himself and the people and world around him. Salinger was competently able to address the theme of unresolved grief, creating a novel that is untouched by any other in terms of quality and messages
History is something that we all have knowledge of. It may be family history, or even your own but we all know of an experience that happened in the past. These experiences make us who we are, and they determine how we think. Not only that but they determine our emotions towards certain topics. Through characters in the book, "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, " written by Jamie Ford, we learn that American identity is based on ones history and if we want America to become a stronger more united place everyone’s history must be accepted.
For all of the ups and downs of Henry Lee’s life he makes his life good with his love and friendship. Jamie Ford wants to get the reader's attention on friendship by writing Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. Henry’s life was a wild, crazy, and hectic he was shunned out by his family just because he was being a good friend. Friendship is something that people can not live without. Just like Henry did a lot of things just so his friend can be happy, he showed that his friendship meant a lot to him knowing there was consequences.
Power and control plays a big role in the lives many. When power is used as a form of control, it leads to depression and misery in the relationship. This is proven through the themes and symbolism used in the stories Lesson before Dying, The fun they had, The strangers that came to town, and Dolls house through the median of three major unsuccessful relationship: racial tension between the African Americans and the caucasians in the novel Lesson before Dying, Doll’s House demonstrates a controlling relationship can be detrimental for both individuals and The Stranger That Came To Town along with The Fun They Had show that when an individual is suppressed by majority they become despondent.
In the book Everything I Never Told You, there are many different elements and techniques used within the book. The technique that I want to go into more depth on is the use of symbolism. I specifically want to focus on the symbolism in regards to Lydia, Hannah, and Nath’s love of astronauts and space.
Holden’s loneliness was a more concrete manifestation of his alienation. It is both a source of great pain and a source if his security.
Holden lived in a time of rebound and, for many Americans, a time of anxiety, that being the 1950’s. With World War II just coming to an end a new challenge was brought to the plate of the United States of America. This challenge being the Cold War. Fears of the idea of Communism, and a war fought with deadly
As Holden enters the Museum of National History, his fears change into difficulty. He likes everything easily understandable. He is afraid to admit fear but only admits it in a few instances such as “Sex is something I just don’t understand. I swear to God I don’t.” Instead of facing adulthood, he traps himself in his own little childhood world thinking about his dream job, catching little kids that are about to fall off a rye cliff.
Jerome David Salinger’s only novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is based on the life events shaping main character, Holden Caulfield, into the troubled teen that is telling the story in 1950. The theme of the story is one of emotional disconnection felt by the alienated teenagers of this time period. The quote, “ I didn’t know anyone there that was splendid and clear thinking and all” (Salinger 4) sets the tone that Holden cannot find a connection with anyone around him and that he is on a lonely endeavor in pursuit of identity, acceptance and legitimacy. The trials and failures that Holden faces on his journey to find himself in total shed light on Holden’s archenemy, himself.
Retrieved Reformation is a short story about a man named Jimmy Valentine. In the beginning of the story, he is being released from prison for his crimes of robbing banks and cracking into safes. After being released, he realizes that he wants to live a life of no crime. He becomes a dynamic character because he begins to dramatically change after meeting the love of his life, Annabel Adams. He wanted to begin a new life.
I have recently read a book called Hotel on the corner of bitter and sweet. I will be telling you what I had liked or disliked about the story and what I thought about the book. This book was written by Jamie Ford who developed the character Henry, who was Chinese American, which went through a time of world war two. Overall I liked the book I found the book to be a really good story which was what I liked about the book.