Part 1:
Although Littman presents both Catholicism as well as Judaic religious environments, there is room for discussion as to whether each was presented equally and free of biases. Does Littman provide an accurate depiction of both Catholicism and Judaism – is it possible that she may be favoring one over the other? This concern stems from numerous in class debates centered around this notion of authentic authors verses those who may not have first hand experiences. This on-going insider outsider debate is indisputably controversial and should be approached respectfully and open-mindedly to avoid assumptions as well as oversimplifications.
Part 2:
In the face of adversary from her family, Justine decides to investigate a different faith. On page 3 Justine explains that she wants to be like her best friend, Mac, who is Catholic. Again on pages 20 and 21 Justine presents rationale for desiring to become Catholic, “Weekly confession was just one of the reasons I decided to become Catholic. Here are some of the others: 1) I get to celebrate Christmas […] 2) I like the music […] 3) Catholic families are more normal than Jewish ones.” Pages 11 through 14 depict Justine’s first closet confession experience. She investigates Catholic practices on her own in her closet with her own representations of symbolic items from this religion. While wearing a cross necklace, Justine pretends to “look like a nun” with a white napkin on her head, participates in communion with grape juice and matzos, confesses her sins to “Father Ted,” her teddy bear, and recites Hail Mary on her rosemary. While this practice may be valid, I question where Justine learned these activities – what source is this information coming from? Justine attends mass with Mac which serves as the first factual representation of the Catholic faith. Due to her lack of knowledge concerning the events of mass, Justine walks away with a possibly skewed image of this faith.
In terms of Jewish culture and religion, Justine is influenced mainly by the lifestyles of her grandmother Bubbe, and the Weinstein’s. As mentioned previously, Justine is exploring the idea of being more committed to her faith; becoming more connected with her Jewish roots. It is clear that Justine receives information about Judaism from her Jewish family, which makes these ideas more authentic as a reader. The text is packed full of references, information, and even Yiddish and Hebrew terms that further influence readers view of this culture. As Justine compares and contrasts Catholic customs with that of her Jewish ones, it is debatable that readers are generally exposed to more authentic representations of Judaism in light of the family’s rich surplus of information and experiences.
Part 3
The issue of accurate representations, in this case in reference to religion, is not an easy matter, nor does it have a simple solution. Jacqueline Woodson’s article “Who Can Tell My Story?” emphasizes the importance writers experiencing events they write about. In reference to her partner’s religion she explains, “It is not my house, nor will it ever be, but there are elements we share” (44). No matter what stand you take on the insider/ outsider debate, as teachers it is unavoidable that we will face the task of discerning quality writing from poor writing. We should concentrate on universal ties that we share instead of the differences that pull us a part.
6 comments:
I feel you have a very solid post. I think she got some of her Catholic cues from TV. I think I remember reading that but I could be wrong. To add my input to your question, I feel that each are represented equally but in different context's. I feel that her Jewish religion is represented by her family and those influences, and her Catholic religion is represented by her actions, her friends, and what she experiences with that religion (going to mass with Mac.). Do you think that the Jewish religion is represented in a bad way because of the way Jussie is trying to move away from her religion and become Catholic?
I don't think Littman represents Judaism as necessarily "bad," but it could be argued that it is somewhat negative. I thought about including something to that effect, but I avoided it in my paper because I'm not sure how I feel - I guess it seemed like Justine's rebellion was more against her family and not directly against her Jewish heritage. After all, she initially hopes to keep kosher - but is ridiculed by her family for this idea.
I agree that the two religion's are represented in two very different contexts. Because of the influences of Justine's family on her religious experience, I feel like we see more negative representations of the Jewish faith than Catholicism. Also, I definitely think there were certain parts of her use of religion that were questionable. In the part where Justine does want to keep kosher, she is ridiculed. I almost felt like at that part that Littman was ridiculing (through the family's views) those who do practice that aspect of their faith.
In regards to Julie's blog, I think that you present a great question that is indeed important to think about in regards to this text. As far as my prior knowledge about Judaism goes, I honestly do not know very much. I think that this helped to produce how easily it was for me to believe the information that was being presented about the culture and the faith. In response to the other posts, its hard for me to know if the information presented was necessarily negative. I think that this issue coincides right with the issue of Justine's search for identity. In the beginning she is very concerned with trying to fit in. Mac's family and her lifestyle seem ideal, and part of her lifestyle includes her Catholic faith. I had some issues in the way this was presented at the beginning of the book. It seems as though most of her information about Catholicism comes from her experiences with Mac's family and going to church with Mac. Because she hasn't been exposed to a variety of perspectives, it is inevitable the misconceptions will come up. I just thought that some of the ideas about Catholicism were quite ridiculous. As far as I am concerned I have been going to a Catholic church since I was a child. I don't ever remember having a nun at my church. I don't like the way that Littman goes about describing the depiction of the nun when Justine first goes to the closet for confession.
Also, in response to Marie's question, I don't think the Jewish religion is presented in a negative way just becuase she is trying to move away from her religion. I think like I stated previously, part of her reason for doing this is her search for identity. She definitely struggles with her religion, especially at home. She wants to be more traditional, and her family pushes her away from behaving in such a way. She is trying to find a place where she feels comfortable, and so I believe that is why she is questioning her faith. I agree with what Julie had to say about this. I don't think its necessarily bad, but it could be negative. I also think that she was more so rebelling against her family and not her Jewish heritage.
I wonder if it would be helpful to think about the difference between bias and perspective? Although I thought that the representation of Catholicism was odd (it makes me think Littman was drawing on memories of how it was practiced in the 1960s), I can also imagine how from Justine's perspective, nuns, confession, etc. would look like they do. (I hope that made sense.)
As far as the representation of being Jewish, I like the complexity of different families practicing in different ways, the tension between continuity and change, and the way in which Justine eventually understands her identity in relation to family, history, and relationship to God.
Need I say that people don't need to agree with my read? Maybe one of my attachments to the book is that it reminds me of my own struggles with Catholic confirmation as a teen...
I also feel it is important to think about how some children view religion in general. I think there are many children who question certain aspects of their own religion. Some children view religion as things you have to do such as attending church, synagogue, temple or even still only attending these facilities at certain times of the year, like major holidays. I don’t think it is unreasonable for children to have minimalist view of religion. Children are young and learning and understanding ones faith takes care and time. Given this, I think it is understandable Justine would have these questions and would only focus on “popular” images of Catholicism.
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