Paul Auster, "Brooklyn Follies" - "Purgatory" (chapitre 3), de " No one grows up? " a " would have remained in this purgatory "

Résumé du document

This passage is an extract from the third chapter of 'Purgatory' from the Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster. It's after the first appointment between Nathan and Tom. In this chapter, the story is focused on Tom's recent past, since his arrival in Brooklyn, and that's why we notice the disappearance of Nathan in the passage. We are lead to wonder what part Tom plays in the story and in what way he appears as being the real hero of the story.

Extraits

[...] As a romantic hero, he doesn't correspond and manages to live with his time. That's why he's as a romantic hero alone : He's at the beginning looking for relationships (“meeting new people” l.71) but there's such a deep gap between him with his way of thinking almost religious terms, speculating on such questions as spiritual strength and the importance of finding one's path through patience and humility, and this confused them and made them fidget in their chairs” l.87-90) with the others that he excludes himself : began keeping more and more to himself” (l.102). [...]

[...] (l.4-10) But which is impossible : “mourning the collapse of this most cherished ambitions” (l.3-4) . He doesn't manage to finish his dissertation : after three years of struggling to write his dissertation , Tom finally understood that he didn't have it in him to finish. Or, if he did have in it in him, he couldn't persuade himself to believe in the value of doing it anymore” (l.12-15) he gives up. Desillusions in his life so, in his work and environment as we have already seen. [...]

[...] They were all of them believing in him. Conclusion Tom is here far from his first aspirations and has known a real desillusion, marked by the fate of destiny. This chapter is an echo to the poem Tom told at the end of the precedent chapter telling this desillusion and unhappiness, and the title “Purgatory” refers also to this transition between Tom's ex life and the new life which is going to begin, symbolized at the end of the passage by Harry Brightman. [...]

[...] This difficulty which is quite important for Tom is introduced to us since the first line and constitutes one of the main problem (‘'disadvantages [of the work]'') (l.33) in Tom's life, and presents many disadvantages: ‘'the long hours, the low pay, the physical dangers, the lack of exercise - those were the bedrock givens'' (l.36-38). He's condemned l.56) to this work, because he doesn't manage to find another one searched for several weeks, but all the teaching jobs in private schools were filled just then [ ] The temporary began to feel like something permanent” l.20-24). [...]

[...] Therefore, he's now far from reality, as shows the fact that he has forgotten his own anniversary (l.105), and lives in his own world. II Tom, an extraordinary hero out from reality and from time 1 Theater into theater, another life into another one His theory of non-existent world becomes true, except that the non-existent is the real world (paradox). Tom lives in a world apart, and that's why he doesn't have the same regard to reality : “disquisitions on the nature of reality (l.95-96). [...]