Ware's use of symbols is quite extensive and at times I feel that I am unable to truly grasp the underlying messages a particular page is attempting to convey. One of the symbols which is present throughout most of the book is Jimmy's crutch. After class on Monday I realized I couldn't remember why Jimmy needed the crutch in the first place. At the very beginning of the book Jimmy doesn't have a crutch and his foot isn't wrapped. Jimmy's foot injury first appears when he wakes up on the airplane (26). Jimmy appears to be faking his injury. When his dad asked him what happened to his foot he doesn't really give an answer and Jimmy is using the crutch on the wrong leg (34). After Jimmy is hit by the truck the doctor examines Jimmy's foot and nothing appears to be injured . The doctor said it is a minor sprain at the worst and doesn't even need to be wrapped (124). However, Jimmy uses the crutch and appears to have a foot injury throughout the rest of the novel. Something may or may not have happened to injure Jimmy's foot but by the middle of the novel it is apparent that he longer needs the crutch.
The injury serves as a symbol about Jimmy's psychological issues. His greatest fear is that people won't like him, but this fear causes Jimmy to act in a way that makes him unlikeable. He thinks that people don't care what he has to say and that everything is his fault. If Jimmy could simply get out of this mindset, he would be a lot more likeable. Much like Jimmy's foot injury, Jimmy's social problems are imaginary. Jimmy perceives the problem as himself, but this isn't actually true. The real problem is that Jimmy believes there is a problem, a mentality which Jimmy is never able to break free from.
I agree that the crutch Jimmy uses carries a lot of significance throughout the novel. It seems to be the physical manifestation of many of the psychological issues he experiences. Like many events in the work, the crutch gives more insight into Jimmy’s mental reality rather than objective reality, and demonstrates the way in which Jimmy often struggles to divorce the two. A few traumatic events Jimmy experienced in his life seem to have knocked him down, and he is never able to right himself. The constant worry and recurring traumatic daydreams that Jimmy experiences are nearly paralyzing for him in his daily life. Physically Jimmy doesn’t need the crutch, but the fact that he thinks he does demonstrates his cripplingly negative self-image. For Jimmy, the negative interactions he regularly experiences are just confirmation that he deserves no more, and he finds himself trapped in a self-fulfilling cycle negative feedback from others and himself. His self-pity is astonishing and pitiful in and of itself. I think the crutch also points to the fact that there are a few people who are trying to help Jimmy out. If Jimmy simply allowed himself to enjoy and lean on the kindness of others he might actually be able to make some progress, but he doesn’t believe that anyone would have any feelings toward him. But perhaps Ware thinks this is wise. It seems like all the Corrigans in this novel have become accustomed to neglect and being disappointed by others, to the point where they come to expect that. Lastly, I think the crutch refers to Jimmy’s relationship with his mother. He relies on his mother for emotional stability, despite how unhealthy the relationship is.
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