Chang Rae-Lee's "Aloft"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, in Chang Rae-Lee's "Aloft", the protagonist Jerry Battle may seem lucky with a girlfriend who has been with him for years, two smart and successful children and a family business; however, as the narrative unfolds, Jerry is avoiding many problems. The center of Jerry's crisis, the author relates, is the death of wife Daisy, which took such a toll on him that he never seems to get his life back together. The paper concludes that Rae-Lee's most poignant thesis is that, for any individual or family, the natural course of life, which possesses crisis, pain and suffering, is a continual battle through these elements to earn the joy of the good things.

From the Paper:

"Jerry acknowledges fully that he tends towards the lazy and would rather not be heavily involved in the pain of life, both for himself and the people around him. When he sees that it is pushing his loved ones away he still acknowledges his faults to a degree, but ignores it. This is why Daisy serves as a confirmation to continue down that path; when she descends in to madness and ultimately dies, Jerry abandons the business to his son and his father winds up in a rest home."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Chang Rae-Lee. (2004) Aloft. New York: Penguin.

More papers on Chang Rae-Lee's "Aloft":

• Analytical Essay # 12553 : "Native Speaker" ( Chang-rae Lee ) & "The Manchurian Candidate" ( John Frankenheimer )"
• Book Review # 148433 : "False Speaker of Language"
• Essay # 50680 : "Language as Tradition and Experience"

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