The reason that I have really enjoyed this novel is because it isn't an ooey-gooey love story. Normally with romances, the reader can follow a plot formula and predict the ending. However, with this novel, there virtually isn't a plot, so the reader must divulge themselves into the characters and their reactions to others.
The novel, for me, doesn't have a "good guy" and a "bad guy". At first, the reader is leaned to liking Aloma more; however, throughout the rest of the book, the faults of the characters arise, and it is made clear that these people are ordinary people living a life similar to the reader's. Aloma tries to be a great life but isn't entirely realistic in the way that she has to live her life. She constantly wants things that she cannot have because she and Orren do not have the time or money for those things. Orren is a simple man, trying to live survive and provide for Aloma. However, through this process, he loses the romance and the love he feels for her and become very apathetic towards Aloma.
During the novel, the reader may find themselves asking, "Well, why don't you just leave him, Aloma?" But that doesn't prove to be entirely simple. When Aloma ends up marrying Orren and not running off with Bell, she says she has fallen in love with the normalcy that is Orren. "When I have you, when I have you like that even, it's not enough and I still want more of you. When you say something, I want to hear you say more and when you go someplace, any place, I want you to come back more than anything" (194). Aloma doesn't make any remarks toward Orren and how she loves him as a person; she says she's fallen for his position in her life and doesn't want him to leave.
The couple also fights on a very daily basis. They fight about important things, such as where each other goes during the day, and they fight about non-important things, like which soap to use. Although they do fight more often than a normal couple in today's society, their disagreements are also what makes them normal. In many love stories, there is the one "climatic fight" that sets up the main characters resolution in the end. This isn't the case in real life, and it isn't the case for Aloma and Orren. They argue often, but that shows just how much they rely on each other daily. It's almost as if they didn't have the person to squabble with, they wouldn't know what to do with themselves. Their resolutions are easy to relate to, as well, as they always seem mad for a couple of days but then work it out seamlessly.
This is very important, because many people today live these lives as well. Stereotypically, young couples go through a happy "honeymoon phase" and then face the hardships of lack of money, business, and a working life. Aloma and Orren aren't the stereotypical love story couple, but they are realistic to everyday life, and this is why people may find this novel to be relate-able in more ways.
I agree that this is an extremely grounded and realistic “love” story. I parenthesize love because despite the Aloma and Orren never explicitly saying that they love each other (at least not that I can remember/find), they meet, court, grow, and marry. It projects some of the problems with young love and relationships in general, without the Hollywood movie, Notebook-style, sappy ending that everyone expects and is used to. This is what makes the book worth reading for me. I would have been disappointed if everything miraculously changed at the end of the story for no reason other than to end on a fairytale note.
ReplyDeleteThe struggles Aloma and Orren share are typical relationship problems, such as trouble communicating and feelings of being stagnant. They also have the we-want-to-marry-but-have-no-money scenario, which to me was the only part of the story that felt dramatized. Aloma initially insists that “things aren’t exactly in order” (185), to which Orren replies that marriage will make him not feel so alone. Aloma’s consent comes from the fact that she has grown to accept the routine of her life and aspirations, and knows she can only remain in this state if she stays with Orren. Despite never being two lovebirds, Aloma and Orren go through the business of love in a much more realistic way than anything else I’ve ever read.
Aloma and Orren's love story is disturbingly realistic. I think that Morgan writes this story without a plot to simulate real life. Most relationships aren't going to have a plot. Their love story shows more of a day to day struggle just to survive and even though both character's have different aspirations, they seem to be stuck with each other whether they like it or not. I think Morgan is attempting to simulate the flaws in a modern relationship and show how people have to decide between being in a relationship and being alone. Both have their own pros and cons. Aloma isn't able to find a relationship where she can explore her own interests, yet being in a relationship seems to hold some form of security for her. I think that if Aloma were to try and live out her dreams that there are a lot of unknown factors and it's a scary thought to go out and try and live alone without a proven way to make money or feed yourself. In this aspect I think that her decision to marry Orren isn't so surprising. It is the less risky thing to do even though it way not be as rewarding if she were to succeed elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteI really like what you said here about falling in love with normalcy. I think that, good or bad, that is the fate of the modern man or woman, especially when other aspects of life drift from normalcy or predictability. I also agree with Jasper and his comment above about this being "disturbingly realistic." Perhaps we can blame Hollywood or Nicholas Sparks, but I think deep down, everyone wants the kind of love depicted in the movies or in traditional romance novels. More often than not, though, this kind of love is a complete work of fiction and breaks the binds of real life. I think you're right that Aloma and Orren's love is not full of these kind of Hollywood frills, and that makes the book and their relationships relatable. In a particular scene on page 66 and 67, Aloma and Orren are shown having a very typical conversation. The passage states,
ReplyDelete"I was thinking.... Aloma said, still aiming. He looked at her.
Maybe we could go do something sometime... away from here. She thought of Hansonville and the road that passed the church, the road that went north and kept on going.
Bad time, he said without hesitating.
Bad time... she repeated."
This particularly unromantic exchange demonstrates the realness that defines their relationship. They cannot afford to go on cute dates or into town; Orren doesn't sweep Aloma off her feet on the weekends. Still, the two are comfortable together and therefore stay- a disturbingly realistic love story.