Binx's philosophy of life

I think that Binx searches for his own personal meaning in life, through the lives of others. He goes to the movies to detach himself, but also to continue his search in an artificial world, in one that is essentially not real. He seems to recognize the fact that his physical place in the world has nothing to do with any outcome of his search, and he even seems to somewhat recognize the fact that his compulsive romantic relationships are not the answer either. However, he cannot break the cycle of his own monotony, which he is ultimately seeking to do. I think that while Binx seems like an interesting, eccentric character, he's simply a human being, and we feel different from him because we cannot see our own thoughts written down in a novel. Perhaps if we could we would recognize that Binx's search is every human being's search; that going to the movies is his alternative searching medium, while for some it's drugs or alcohol or food or relationships or shopping or being obsessed with finding some ultimate truth, etc.

Binx's philosophy

1. Binx Bolling is an alienated, anxious young stockbroker, who is seeking meaning for his existence. His philosophy in life is to just pass through his lifecycle without making any meaningful interactions with anyone. His philosophy resembles that of a critic, standing on the sideline watching people and judging them. He judges most the people he interacts with, and describes them in his own point of view, yet he never describes himself very often. But compared to critics he doesn’t think that he is superior, but instead he feels he is inferior especially from his families’ point of view.

2. In order to cope with his alienated self, Binx goes to the movies as an escape of real life. He escapes the realities of his life through engulfing himself into the story of the movie. He somehow wants his life to have meaning just like all the characters in the movies. He also uses his critics’ philosophy into judging the characters of movie which give him a sense of connection into this fantasy world.

Binx's philosophy of life

1. Binx's philosophy for life is similar to that of any movie patron. He sits back and watches, analyzing life while being detached from it as much as his mind will allow. He seems to only get involved in family issues when more or less forced to do so. He completes his responsibilities then enjoys his own past times like reading, going to movies, and enjoying days away with his lady friends. In this way he's like most people.
2. I think going to the movies has helped Binx feel more normal when everything else around him makes him feel different. The movies, like for us, provide a picturesque view of life and Binx's inability to obtain a life similar makes the theater a perfect getaway. Early in the book Binx accounts a movie he saw about a man losing his memory but how that experience allows him to basically start his life over and settle down with a nice lady. I think this particular movie description depicts his desire to forget his responsibilities and ties in this world. The fact that the author chose to describe this movie early in the story leads me to believe that Binx wishes he could be the one starting over.

Binx Blog

1.
Binx does not really have a set philosophy in life. The entire novel speaks about how Binx is on a search, even though the search is never reveiled in the novel, I belive that it is a search for purpose. Binx is looking for a reason to exsist, and so his philosphy is not yet discovered. The most important element for Binx is a purpose. If I was to make up some catagories for which Binx may be aimnig for (not knowing for sure) i would guess that he is aiming for: pupose, love, religion or a notworthy object.

2.
In my opinion, Binx goes to the movies to get away from his own life. I think that going to the movies enables Binx to partake in adventures that he would not have in his own life. I think one interesting part in the novel was when it was mentioned that your city or town is important when it is mentioned in a movie. Perhaps this is what Binx is looking for also, for something relating to him be found in a movie. An example that I found in the text was when it was mentioned that Binx goes to different movies with his secretaries and gives him a chance to get away from the norm of his life.

Philosophy & Movies

1. I don't really think I'd say Binx has found his philosophy yet. His whole search is to figure out what there is to life. Can someone who doesn't know what they're looking for have a solid philosophy? Maybe that's a philosophy in itself, I just don't know what it's called. Binx is searching for something to search for, and that just might be his philosophy... what's life without a search?

2. Binx gets a sense of contentment out of going to the movies. He isn't content in his life. The movies though, clearly state a search, clearly state the journey, and clearly state (usually) how the search ended, if at all. It's probably easier for him to live in the intense joys and hardships of fake people than to face the mediocrity and ho-hum-ness of his own life. He enjoys the escape the movie gives, and the promise the people at the movies give.

Binx and Movies.

1. Binx is on a search throughout the whole book. It is the way he lives his life. Contrary to what I thought after my first read through the book, looking back, I don't think Binx is trying to discover what path he should take with his life, but what path, he is set on. What is the reason for his existence? Is there meaning, or importance to anything he does? He has tried money, and women but both seem to lack substance. Binx refuses to believe in God under any circumstance, even though he acknowledges that God might be the answer to his search.  Binx is very aware of the fleeting nature of life. He lives a life of minimalism, he has a bare apartment, he is not very social, he has several flings with women he knows, he goes to work, goes to the movies, and goes to his apartment. Binx view on life seems to only skim the surface, I feel he thinks he is owed something by the world, some permanance, and because thats not the way things work, he is having a hard time coming to terms with that.

2. The example in the book that spoke most to me about who Binx was as a character, was the example where Binx talks about a movie where a man loses his memory and has to make it through life in his "new city".  To me this is kind of what Binx's journey is. He has this awakening that he is on a search for something greater than himself, and is trying to learn to cope with what is happening on this search. Binx has a great emotional connection to the movies. He finds a deeper meaning in them than most people. I think he wishes and tries make his life like the lives he sees on the big screen.

Binx

Binx lives his life by taking the path of least resistance. That is to say, he doesn't so much seem to live his life as to float along through it, carried along by the expectations of his family, his job, and his status as a well-to-do bachelor. Binx's philosophy seems to fluctuate between the search for some kind of meaning, or rather, some kind of permanence, a way to impact the world, or if not to impact the world, to at least experience the world's own impact, and the sort of simple fortune-building that many can identify with. Essentially, I believe the both to be a search for the same thing-- Binx wants to exist, and keep existing, he wants to be sure that his actions have a reason and purpose greater than the banal routines of the every day people he's known throughout his life. Because he cannot yet find his meaning in the search, he is defined by his skill with money. The women he chases after are momentary distractions, self-assuring conquests that he quickly grows bored with and discards. Many people hide their true intentions, their true fears and dreams and disappointments in plain sight-- Binx just does this by appearing so normal as to be practically invisible. He fights with no one, he doesn't argue, rarely talks about himself, does not have strong convictions that he voices, has very little responsibility, etc. Binx isn't married for the same reason his apartment is bare-- the prospect of living a life requires a "thereness" and cohesion he hasn't yet attained.

Moviegoer~April 26

1. Binx is on a search for normalcy. The book never specifies if his search is for himself or a life partner, but all I know is that he is indeed searching for something. I think after the war he started to realize that the things that once made sense to him like an education and a job, just did not matter anymore. The troubling thing that he's battling with is the fact that now that he knows what's not important, he has to wonder what is important. This search for normalcy is making Binx question his sense of belonging. Nobody in his family can truly relate to what he has been through and what he has physically seen in the war. Binx puts on this facade as to say everything is ok, but it's not and the only person that can see that is Kate. Although Kate may not be able to completely relate to Binx, she is quite familiar with the troubled look that Binx has and that no one will notice.

2. I think that Binx gets a sense of carelessness when he goes to these movies. He gets to sit in a room where he has full access to someone's life and he can pick-and-prod his way through the character's issues much easier than his own. But when the movie is over, I feel that Binx tries to make certain moments of his life exactly like a movie scene. For example, in the beginning you find out that he is a stockbroker who often dates his secretaries. There were a lot of movies that came to my mind when I read the first couple of pages such as "Someone Like you" starring Ashley Judd and Hugh Jackman; "What a Woman Wants" starring Mel Gibson; and "What's the Worst that Could Happen " starring Martin Lawrence and Danny Devito. In all of these movies some male character ends up treating females really badly and the female character makes them pay for what they did. But in the end someone eventually finds their happiness with the right person. At the end of the Moviegoer, Binx does end up marrying "a girl for him", but it does not exactly correlate with the movies that he has seen. Another example is how Binx always seems to take long strolls on the beach either by himself or with one of his flavors of the month. Now, there are people in the world that actually like to take strolls along the beach, but most of the time they do this every once and awhile. Binx does it all the time and I just figured that maybe this particular activity is either one of his favorite scenes in a movie or if this is just a recurring scene in the different movies that he has viewed. Copying or reliving these is movies is how Binx makes sense of the world that he has left to live out. This after-war life is very new to him and I feel that the movies are teaching him how to live out the rest of his life.

Binx's Outlook and Movie Importance

1. Binx certainly has a very existential outlook to life at times. Existentialists focus most of there attention to the concrete and less to the abstract or supernatural realm. Binx fits the part on many occassions but one in particular stands out where he shows of his angst and malaise. "On its way home the MG becomes infested with malaise...Thousands of cars are strung out along the Gulf Coast, whole families,and all with the same vacant headachy look... A beautiful boulevard, ten thousand handsome cars, fifty thousand handsome, well fed and kind-hearted people, and the malaise settles on us like a fall-out"(Percy 166). The Korean War more than likely played a large part in fueling this outlook, as well the loss of his older brother Scott and eventually, his half-brother Lonnie . The author's vernacular and syntax and imaging also ensures existential feel to the book. Binx's search also plays a role in his existential mindset. Binx states, " The search is what anyone would undertake if he were not stuck in the everydayness of his own life... To become aware of the possibility of the search is to be onto something. Not to be onto something is to be in despair". Ultimately, Binx's fascination with all that he can be concretely aware of is finite and will be appeased, focusing his search back to the supernatural answers, or in his mind, questions.
2. Binx's infatuation with the movies is his drug, escape, and coping mechanism. It enables him to see past the visible, touchable, thinkable part of his life and dream a little. The movie's give Binx a reason to dream in a entirely existential world he has created for himself. It allows him to have hope despite a somewhat hopeless outlook on life. By relating his own life to the movies he can help realize his dreams, or at least fantasize. His dreaming is very evident on page four when he talks of a movie about a man who lost everything including his memory and had to make a "fresh start" in a "strange city".

Binx

1.What is Binx's philosophy of life? List his categories/elements and elucidate their importance.

I agree that Binx’s story is based in existentialism and I believe the event which catalyzed it was his near death experience during the Korean War. Afterword he is often stuck searching for himself in an “absurd and meaningless world.” Binx tends to try and make himself feel more human in order to escape the absurdity of his life. He doesn’t feel he fits in so he tries to make himself more like everyone else. For example, he begins a search, not for a certain object, but just to have a search like everyone else. Binx is just looking for something to start making sense for him in the world due to the fact that he finds it so hard to re-immerse himself into society.

2. What does Binx get out of going to the movies? Use an example to illustrate your point.

Binx uses the movies as a remedy for his problems in the real world. While watching a movie he is able to enter what he calls, a heightened sense of the world, where he actually feels free. Binx is always combating “everydayness” or normalcy. He is always seeking to step outside an average day in order to fully experience it. The movies are somewhat of a coping mechanism as they allow him to not feel overwhelmed with daily life. For example Binx takes his dying half-brother to the movies in order to deal with the situation of his condition (spinal problem) and at the same time, escape to his own world, the world where he feels a heightened sense of self. In a way it allows him to deal with the pain and accept it as it seems only half real.

Binx: philosophy and the movies

1. Walker Percy's work "exhibited a unique combination of existentialism, southern sensibility, and deeply-felt Catholicism" (www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Walker_Percy) so I am guessing that his main characters' philosophy are parallel to his own. Binx is most probably an existentialist. Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of the individual experience in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards human existence as unexplainable, and stresses freedom of choice and responsibility for the consequences of one's acts. Even if Binx is somehow living life as people usually do, he still deviates from the norm. His aunt tells him what is expected of him or what he has to do in terms of being part of their family but he does what he chooses to do. He'd rather live in Gentilly, he'd rather sit and enjoy the movies, he'd rather live a relaxed life wherein he moves in his own pace. His search according to him is "what anyone would undertake if he were not sunk in the everydayness of his
own life" which proves that he is not the kind of person who is sunk in the everydayness of his life. He is obviously free.

2. Binx enjoys watching movies because he says that the movies are "onto the search but they screw it up". Maybe watching the movies makes him reflect on his own life and his search. He also learns alot from going to the theater to watch a movie. In one point he says that before he sees a movie, it is necessary for him to learn something about the theater or the people who operate it. I like what he said that he learned from talking to the theater's manager, "I have discovered that most people have no one to talk to, no one, that is, who really wants to listen." I think this is very true and this only shows how people are so caught up in their own lives that they do not slow down or have time to think and even listen to other people just for the sake of listening.

Binx The Movie-Going Existentialist

1. I think Binx's philosophy is most inline with existentialism. Existentialism was a 20th century philosophical movement which embraced diverse doctrines but concentrated on the analysis of individual existence in an unfathomable universe and the plight of the individual who must assume ultimate responsibility for acts of free will without certain knowledge of what is right and wrong. An Important quote that for me was on page 109 Binx, claims that he "Believes in the freedom and sacredness of the individual." Another fact that makes me believe this is how Binx does not align himself with any major religion. Through out the book he says that he is not religious. One example on page 14, Binx talks about how he does not want to say that a god exists or that he doesn't but that in America there is "not a single percentage point for a seeker". Binx, like a true existentialist is more concerned with his journey then if there is a supernatural power. Another thing that makes Binx an existentialist in my eyes is how he is always searching for the right way of life. Since Binx returned home from the Korean War he has dated different women, become a successful broker and attended a lot of movies but he never really feels alive. He has never found the purpose that he had as a lieutenant in the Army. His new battle he does not find himself fighting for mortality but fighting to avoid the malaise. He continues on his search with not much care for an uncomprehending god, or the rest of the world but he continues to look with in himself and his life to make things better.

2. I think that since Binx's combat experiences in The Korean War he can no longer relate to the normal civilian life that he has returned to in Louisiana. After having a job where his life and the life of his solders was on the line he just doesn't feel alive anymore being a successful businessman in Gentilly. However, Binx does find a life in the movies. He compares his experiences and explains his life through the events in movies. Movie's were obviously something Binx enjoyed prior to his enlistment. We all enjoy movies. However, to a person who is not satisfied with reality will look for fullfilment else where and this is where Binx has found it.

Nick and Binx

I think there were a few similarities between Nick Adams and Binx Boling. The main similarity as well as the theme for our class is their search for self. Nick continually searches for his place in the world through his adventures. He has one foot in one world and through the course of events he realizes he doesn't belong in that world. He is constantly looking for his place. The way that he breaks from his reality is by separating himself from the world and imerssing himself in nature and fishing. Binx is searching for his place in the world. He feels like there are bigger and better things for him to accomplish and achieve. He's searching for his purpose. His way to break from reality is by secluding himself from reality in the movies. He forgets about the world when he's in the movies.

Binx Bolling and Nick Adams

There are numerous similarities between Binx in "The Moviegoer" and Nick Adams who is a character in Hemmingway's short stories. The primary similarity that I found was the "search" that was found in both stories. In "The Moviegoer", Binx is searching for himself, he wants to put himself back into the social world after returing home from the war. At the same time, Nick Adams is also searching forhimself. Both Binx and Nick Adams use different methods to come over their isolation and aid them in their search. Binx seems to endulge in watching numerous movies and while Nick Adams turns towards nature to help him. Another similarity between Binx and Nick Adams is that they both try to go outside the normal ways of society. I found that both of the characters used different methods to aid them in their search for self, through movies and through nature they both found peace in what they were doing.

Similarities of Binx Bolling and Nick Adams

Binx Bolling and Nick Adams are two men with one major thing in common: they are both searching. Thier searches are both large-scale and have an objective that isn't well defined. Binx Bolling searches for he knows not what, he just feels an overwhelming urge to search. Nick Adams may not even realize that he is searching, but he is searching for where he belongs. Both men may never complete their searches due to the non-specific nature of them. If they do not ultimately feel that their search is over, that they've found that unknown something they search for, it will never be over.

Another thing that Binx Bolling and Nick Adams share is that they seem out of place in their lives. While everyone seems to be a part of the story, the events of the day as they take place, they always seem off in a separate place. What I mean is, Nick Adams always seems to not have much stake in the conversations he's having and the people he's with. He may have friends or meet strangers who threaten to harm him, but he just always has a sense of detachment. The stories detail what's going on when he's near others, and what they are saying, and normally not much of anything about Nick Adams himself. In The Moviegoer, when Binx Bolling is having conversations with someone, it most always veers off into him thinking about something mostly unrelated, sometimes for pages, before a line of dialogue from the middle of a conversation pops up to remind you that he's talking to someone. This makes you feel like he is detached from his surroundings, and doesn't belong, just as Nick Adams feels out of place in the stories of his own life.

Binx Bolling vs. Nick Adams

Nick Adams is very distant from reality and very naive in his daily life. Binx Bolling is isolated from his life and unable to reconnect with his home life after his return from the Korean War. Both try and use outside sources to make sense of their isolation from society. Binx Bolling uses the movies or movie theater as a place of escape, while Nick uses nature. Binx commonly enters into superficial relationships with his secretaries or visits the movies in order to distract himself from his issues re-inserting himself into society. Nick chooses a less social route by taking long isolated fishing trips. The similarity between both is that they seem to both be searching for themselves. Nick is seeking maturity and the feeling that comes with adulthood while Binx is simply trying to reinsert himself into society.

Hemingway vs. Percy's character

Binx and Adams share a desire to get away from the norm of life. Nick seeks out nature and seclusion to cope with his insecurities with life. Binx uses movies to find the same sense of seclusion and to forget the rest of the world exists. Binx and Adams both suffered traumatic war experiences which they both do their best not to remember. Nick and Binx both have no friends outside their family (Binx has Sharon but she's barely a friend). They are both loners searching for purpose in their life.

Nick and Binx

The main similarity between Nick Adams, Ernest Hemingway's character, and Binx, the main character in the novel The Moviegoer, is their lack of social proficiency, and the measures they take to compensate. Each character uses external pursuits to cover their inner turmoil and a sense of social inadequacy. Binx uses the movies he attends, the secretaries that he has affairs with, and his concern for Kate to mask his sense that his life is meaningless; later, he uses “the search” to attempt to gain a sense of fulfillment. Nick uses his communion with nature to mask his lack of social proficiency, and later to block out the memories of the war that he participated in. Both characters are constantly running from their problems, and attempting to obtain their own versions of the “perfect” life, which in the end is hopelessly idealized and unobtainable. Each strives to belong, even though they are unsure what it is exactly that they want to belong to, or how to ensure their acceptance.

Binx & Adams

Personally, I found both of these characters to be boring and lifeless.  I guess that was the point of the stories though.  They are both looking for something more.  Binx is a guy who loves movies and seems to put everything after that.  He ends up being his own worst enemy.  In the same realm of things, Adams is on a search for something more than the home-from-war man with seemingly nothing left.  They just kind of roam around.  Honestly, I missed a lot of the meaning and symbolism because I was so lost in the emptiness.  There are two ways to read these stories-- read into its symbolism and connect to it, or feel distant and lost, only to discover that in that way, you are connecting to it.  By the end of the stories, I felt just as lost as they did-- for them more than with them.  They both make the reader question what they're doing in life.  It all goes back to the point of all of our books this semester- where is the meaning and what is it?

Similarities Between Binx and Nick

There are many similarities between the two main characters in our latest reading. Binx, from The Moviegoer, And Nick Adams from Hemingway's many short stories. It seems like their biggest thing in common is their lack of direction. Both are disillusioned, by what most people see as important. Things like family, friends, war, love, money and power, have a decreased sense of importance. Nick finds immediacy and importance in nature, it is where he retreats when he hits rock bottom. It was where he went as a child and as a young man to find himself and relax. Binx, on the other hand, finds immediacy and importance in movies. He is on a search for possibility, allowing things to come to him as they please while he finds importance in movies. They both have a bit of disdain for societal norms, and are trying to find peace. For  Nick it seems as though it is through Nature, and for Binx it is through the cinema. Both of these characters are multileveled, deep characters, who are on a search for self.

Similarities between Binx and Nick

Binx Bolling and Nick Adams are similar characters in multiple ways. Of course one can say that they share a common quest for self-actualization or self-recognition, but then again who is not looking to find who they "really" are. Both men go through life trying different things and experiencing life in multiple facets; from boyhood, to fighting wars(Nick has a bad experience in WWII,Binx serves in the Korean War but comes out less fazed) , and finally adulthood/living and contributing to society. Ultimately, I think both men fail to "find" themselves completely, or make sense out of life in general. However, both men use defense mechanisms that not only distract their attention from their own lives, but also enable the men to relate and reminisque their life storys. For Binx, this comes in the form of a modest movie theater. For Nick, this manifests itself when he is fishing on the water. Both men also share similar views on love. In the MovieGoer, Binx states that when nothing is said and there are long pauses of silence between sentences that the relationship is over. Nick ends his relationship with Marjorie in a similar way after an unusually quiet day of fishing. Normalcy, something both Binx and Nick fight for and against is a common theme in both stories. In the MovieGoer, Percy uses symbols such as the different secretaries that Binx has over time at his branch of his uncle's brokerage firm. All the secretaries have affairs with Binx, and he states all have names that are very common such as Linda, Sharon, and Marcia adding to the normalcy, or commonality theme that is employed by the author.

The main character similarities

The main characters of the Moviegoer (Binx) and the Hemmingway short stories (Nick) share many traits in common. One of the bigger focuses is their search of self (And so is every other character in this course). Even though it is never clearly stated the purpose of their searches, we understand that somehow through these searchers they will grow and change. There sense of confusion in life is what drives them toward this search. They are both trying to figure out a reason to live or simply to belong. For Adams, he is trying to figure out what he wants from life. He came back from the war and is now trying to cope with his new learned experience. He tries to find peace in the forest with nature all by himself. Blinks went through a war as well, but weren’t dramatically changed from it. Binx is also trying to find peace; he moved from this New Orleans city life to live in a peaceful suburb all by himself. In that sense both the characters are trying to isolate themselves from their societies. Thus they both have their life escape habits. For Nick it is fishing, he always loved fishing whenever he had the chance, even when in the company of other he would go fishing. Nick’s ultimate wish is to go fishing with his idols. The same is true with Binx with movies. He loved to escape from reality by engulfing himself in the movie’s fake reality. He enjoyed watching the actors act out their roles in the movie. But on the contrary he did not wish to act out through his real life, but rather just live in his old routine.

Nick v. Binx

Nick Adams and Binx Bollings are two young men that have very affluent backgrounds. Nick's Dad is a doctor and Binx is a stockbroker. Each man struggles with an idealistic view of how they should live their lives. Nick struggles with the woes of becoming a young man with boyish characteristics. At one point, Nick is living a wild life hopping from train to train thinking that he can take his life into his own hands and do as he pleases. Then on another note, he ends a relationship based on his friend's jealousy/advice as if his friend has all the answers to love and life. Letting a friend Binx has this view of life that is only seen in movies i.e. having the beautiful (almost perfect) women, taking long strolls on the beach, and having a happy ending everyday of his life. Both men have conflicted views on love and relationships. Nick's problem was listening to a so-called friend and ruining a good thing. After his break up, Nick really didn't know how to behave or feel real emotion towards the break-up. Binx on the other hand, is in search a good thing, the one woman that'll make him fill the empty void in his life. He goes out with a lot of different women thinking that they are potentially the one, and somehow down the road, the scene changes and he is with a new catch of the day. One symbol that Percy uses in his book that relates to Nick, is how Binx does not want to get caught up in "everydayness." My interpretation of everydayness is that same old routine/ song-and-dance of life. You go to school, get a job, find a mate, and settle down. Neither one of these characters want to settle for less or settle for the same expectations in their environments. I feel that Nick does not want to fall into his father's footsteps of being a cold doctor/Dad. At some point, I feel that Nick looked to his mother for some kind of guidance and affection, and he never received it. So now, he's on this journey searching for change, love, and direction with no where to really turn to. Binx does not want to fall into the trap of becoming a researcher. Everyone around him is saying that he is this hot shot stockbroker with a calling to be a researcher. I feel that Binx's choice in his occupation was to avoid being held up to what he was expected to do. But at the same time, his life is being pulled into everydayness. He always seemed to be with some beautiful woman (that just so happened to be with his secretary), he always wanted to take long strolls on the beach, and he always used some scene from a movie or some actor/actress to relate to events in his personal life.

Binx and Adams

The characters of Nick Adams and Binx Bolling share several interesting similarities. Both are "men in search of..", though neither seem to be able to succinctly define what it is they're seeking. Nick seems to seek a sense of comfort, or nostalgia; a place and time where things made more sense to him. Binx, on the other hand, seems to seek a reassuring distinction of himself with respect to his surroundings. In other words, Binx believes that without a uniqueness to define who he is and where he is at all times, he could simply dissolve into the ether. Neither man finds exactly what they seek, but both seem to reach minor mile-markers on the road to themselves. Nick finds his comfort in nature, as well as a way to work through the trauma of the Great War. A bit at a time, he is able to slowly realize the effects of the war and how it has changed him. With time, he can perhaps come to terms with himself and the society he felt compelled to leave. Binx is able to BE discovered, to have his life reexamined by those closest to him and be accepted on those terms. He, almost without conscious effort, follows a path that he must know will lead to conflict with his Aunt and great change in his personal life, but follows that path nonetheless, even so far as to marry Kate, a woman he may have always loved, but avoided because of his (and her) commitment and stability issues. Both men come from upper class families (Binx by his father's marriage into the upper class, Nick because of his father's position as a doctor), and both have fought in a war (WWI in Nick's case, the Korean War in Binx's), and both are single men without children of their own. Interestingly, both also stand hidden in the shadow of their fathers achievements, though neither seem to bear any grudge against their fathers. Both men also seem emotionally distant, not necessarily by choice, but by a confusion or misunderstanding of how human interaction works. It's interesting to see the significant changes in Binx's life, and one can guess that Nick's life could take a similar turn in his future.

Binx and Nick

Some of the similarities of Binx Boling and Nick Adams are:

a. Both witnessed and experienced wars - Binx, the Korean war and Nick, the World War II -but the wars were not the ultimate struggle in their lives but their search of who they are.

b. Both are uncertain of who they are and where they belong. In The Moviegoer, Binx constantly talks about his aunts, uncles, and cousins but it seems that he is not emotionally attached to them which is ironic because usually, people feel belongingness in their family/home. Also, he considered it important to identify himself with a fraternity when he was a freshman. He became a part of one, was happy about it and in the year book, that was the only known thing about him. It seems like he doesn't have his own identity. Also, he states how he prefers riding buses than cars because riding a car makes him invisible to people. He feels so proud and happy having an identification card and such documents, "...so to speak, one's right to exist." He seems overjoyed that somehow he has been identified. As with Nick, the biggest influences in his life, his mother and father, have contrasting beliefs which makes it hard for him to identify himself with them. He follows his friends advice about Marge and have second-thoughts on it. He goes to places to search for something he cannot find within himself.

c. Both find comfort in activities they usually do. Binx enjoys watching movies because he says that in movies, the actors are usually in search for something which could mirror him in search for something as well. He frequently attempts to answer questions and to explain things as if he was the director of her life - he seems to enjoy doing so. Nick enjoys fishing so much. He fished with Marge, with Bill, and by himself. Fishing seems to take the problems in his life off his mind, at least for a while.

d. Both prefer to search for "something" by themselves, or alone and they both find peace in nature. Binx decides to move to Gentilly all by himself. Gentilly is a middleclass suburb and it hardly resembles the modern New Orleans. The place, according to him, is a peaceful one which is why he prefers to live there are do business there. In the Big Two-Hearted River, Nick comes back to Seney after the war. He camps out all by himself and then goes fishing. Reading his thoughts, especially his detailed observation of the littlest things in nature, it is as if he was searching for peace, comfort, and freedom from nature.

McGoddess: Big Macs, Karma, and The American Dream

The show was definitely worth seeing/watching. Reading the title, I had an idea of what the stand up comedian would talk about but her focus was not really on how fast food has affected her life.

She spoke American English really well, she looks so much Indian, and her clothes was a combination of both cultures - her top was an Indian traditional one and she had jeans on.

She (okay, I don't know how to spell her name. It is something like "Viji") was Indian and came from a Hindu family. She was born here in the United States and has two older sisters. For Hindus, animals are very sacred for it might be the reincarnation of people they knew who has passed away. When their family came her, their dad instantly loved McDonald's Big Mac and her family embraced the fast food instantly. Her mother kept on reminding their father of their religious/cultural belief but he just insisted that it was old-fashioned. She talked about her long hair (which is really pretty) and how her sisters envy her hair. How at a certain time, Hindus are to offer their hair (yes, they should cut it or shave it off) to their gods. How she didn't cut her hair because it was pretty and how karma acted upon her - her hair was stuck in this certain ride at Chuck-E-Cheese. Her dad had to cut it. So one part was long and the other was chopped off. She had to have a hairstylist fix it. The hairstylist fixed her hair. The funny part about this is that the gay hairstylist's name was Jesus (pronounced Hesus because he was Hispanic) and he "saved" her from the Karma. Jesus is then considered her Savior - double meaning here. There are some parts which may sound funny because of how she delivered it (she sometimes had this weird English accent which was intentional) but there are parts which makes sense and has deeper meaning - their family questioning God or their gods or Jesus' existence, their religious beliefs and cultural traditions, immigrants adjusting to the American way of life. I was expecting on the last part, when her dad got sick that he will be treated and joke about it being tax payment day or something or him having two lives left (he believed he was a cat with 9 lives and has used up 7 of it) but he didn't make it through.

So the show was about her family's life here in the United States as immigrants; how India's and America's culture clashed.

In the end, when questioned, she actually said how she loves McDonald's - how it has become "home" to her and her family. Also, she said that until now she is still uncertain about her religious and spiritual beliefs. She said this line which I think is a good one, "I think it is a good idea, believing that you have someone like God behind your back but I believe that here on earth, it is your family."

Schlosser blog

The speech that was given by Schlosser was i think extremely interesting. He stated points that I would have imagnied, but i expically enjoy the WAY that he gave the speech. I think that he is a interesting nidividual and even though he has these strong viwes and opinions, he tries not to pass off his opinions onto others. I liked the point he made about "making us think" instead of telling us "what to think", which arouses ones own personal feeling and decisions about fast food.

When we had the round table, i think that we were more ablr to see Schlosser as an individual. Throughout the whole question section, he seemed very calm and confident in his answers. He also discussed alot about the book that he was writing about prisinors which i think kind of went off topic from fast food. There were many interesting questions asked throughout the round table and I think that there was a lot of important and knowledgeable information shared by Schlosser about what he feels. Overall, Schlosser seems like a realistic and down to earth individual and I think it was a great expereince hearing him talk.