"Dad slips behind the wheel. He likes to drive now. He'd stubbornly refused to get a license for years, insisting on riding his bike everywhere. Back when he played music, his ban on driving meant the his bandmates were the ones stuck behind the wheel on tours. They used to roll their eyes at him."(11-12)
Personally, this personifies a man who uses the environment as an excuse for his laziness, but who wants to go the the DMV anyway? What do you think about him? Do you think this passage is a reasonable representation of Mia's dad? Why or why not?
Next is Mia's mom. Her mom seems like the real rock of the family that will put her family before anything else, like any mother would. I think this next passage really creates a perfect vision of a mother figure; it is said just after the accident when Mia learns her mother was hit first.
"I can't think about that, about Mom seeping. So instead I think how fitting it is that she was hit first, that she was the one to buffer us from the blow. It wasn't her choice, obviously, but it was her way" (20)
The last sentence of that is the most well written in my opinion. What do you think about her Mom? Did she have as much personality as her dad? Do you connect with her mother as the rock of the family? Why or why not?
Mia's Dad: Mia's dad seemed like a really cool guy. He always knew exactly how to talk to her and motivate her. I do not think that he is using the environment as an excuse though. The passage only partly represents him because it only shows his rugged, stubborn side. It does not show his sweet and fatherly side.
ReplyDeleteMia's Mom: I agree with the statement claiming that her mom was the rock of the family because the part of the quote saying "it was her way" really expresses the love she shared for her family and all she would do to protect it. Her mom seemed very poised and always knew what was going on. Although she was the rock, I believe she did not have as much personality as Mia's dad. Her dad was fun and used to be in a band but she never mentioned anything outgoing about her mom.
I definitely think that Mia's dad is the laid-back one of the family, and I do think that fact that he wouldn't get his license and insisted on riding his bike everywhere seems like something he would do. While both of her parents seem encouraging, her dad seems more encouraging in a goofy way. On the note of riding his bike everywhere: Mia's dad seems like the kind of guy who would say that he was going to ride his bike everywhere, but never follow through if the trip is over a quarter of a mile. He seems like the kind of guy that if the family needed milk at the store and it seemed too far to ride, he wouldn't go. I think that the paragraph is a semi-accurate representation of Mia's dad because while he was more eccentric that Mia's mom, he was still caring and encouraging in Mia's time of need (both parents were encouraging during Mia's recital (22-27)).
ReplyDeleteMia's mom on the other hand, for sure was the rock of the family. I do think that her mom had as much personality as her dad (You can look back to her making pancakes on page 5, which is again referenced on page 11), but just in a different way. Mia's mom seemed more encouraging in the "You can do it!" kind of way. I do think that she is the most put together of the family, which makes me think: What if Mia's mom was behind the wheel instead of her dad? Foreman mentions that a semi-truck hits them, so it seems like it wouldn't make a difference because it wasn't their fault (it seems), but it may be just some food for thought.