Push by SapphireKnopf Doubleday, 1997
192 pages
Date completed: July 18, 2010
This novel does exactly what its title promises: it pushes. Pushes at social boundaries, at language limitations, at readers' comfort levels, and at the invisibility of those who live lives like that of Precious Jones. Bravo.
Precious is an illiterate, vulnerable teenager who has been abused by her mother and is pregnant with the second child she will bear for her father. Although she has attended school for her entire life, she has been waved through her classes year after year, and at sixteen still cannot read or write. Although she yearns for deeper understanding and equal footing with those around her, Precious has not been given the tools or attention she needs in order to thrive. Luckily, her school principal recommends Precious attend an alternative school where she is able, finally, to learn.
Many have criticized the graphic nature of the novel's descriptions of sexual violence, arguing that these passages are difficult to read and uncomfortable to be exposed to. While I do agree that the passages elicit discomfort, I applaud Sapphire for throwing convention to the wind and for giving Precious a voice that feels completely authentic and honest. To Precious, the sexual and physical abuse she has endured from her parents throughout her entire life are simply facts. She has never known anything better, and she has certainly never known a life of comfort and safety. In fact, she does not even realize until halfway through her narrative that what her father has done to her is considered rape. The way in which she bluntly describes sexual encounters with her father are natural for her character and background (she has not been trained to write in a manner which waters down the truth; on the contrary, her writing teacher, Ms. Rain, has always encouraged Precious to tell it like it is). I could not be more enthusiastic that Sapphire has given voice to a teen like Precious without giving way to traditional ways of writing about horrific acts.
The more attention paid to subject matter like this, the better. People like myself who have grown up in more privileged lifestyles find it uncomfortable to occupy the shoes of the battered and less fortunate, but I think this is essential to mental growth. Stepping outside of my comfort zone has been the best thing I've done (literary-wise) in months. Precious's strength, perseverance, and determination to gain literacy, independence, and control of her life show that no matter what the adversity, it is possible to move forward. In the face of constant abuse, Precious opens herself to knowledge and love, and her journey will never cease to amaze and inspire me.
Date completed: July 18, 2010
This novel does exactly what its title promises: it pushes. Pushes at social boundaries, at language limitations, at readers' comfort levels, and at the invisibility of those who live lives like that of Precious Jones. Bravo.
Precious is an illiterate, vulnerable teenager who has been abused by her mother and is pregnant with the second child she will bear for her father. Although she has attended school for her entire life, she has been waved through her classes year after year, and at sixteen still cannot read or write. Although she yearns for deeper understanding and equal footing with those around her, Precious has not been given the tools or attention she needs in order to thrive. Luckily, her school principal recommends Precious attend an alternative school where she is able, finally, to learn.
Many have criticized the graphic nature of the novel's descriptions of sexual violence, arguing that these passages are difficult to read and uncomfortable to be exposed to. While I do agree that the passages elicit discomfort, I applaud Sapphire for throwing convention to the wind and for giving Precious a voice that feels completely authentic and honest. To Precious, the sexual and physical abuse she has endured from her parents throughout her entire life are simply facts. She has never known anything better, and she has certainly never known a life of comfort and safety. In fact, she does not even realize until halfway through her narrative that what her father has done to her is considered rape. The way in which she bluntly describes sexual encounters with her father are natural for her character and background (she has not been trained to write in a manner which waters down the truth; on the contrary, her writing teacher, Ms. Rain, has always encouraged Precious to tell it like it is). I could not be more enthusiastic that Sapphire has given voice to a teen like Precious without giving way to traditional ways of writing about horrific acts.
The more attention paid to subject matter like this, the better. People like myself who have grown up in more privileged lifestyles find it uncomfortable to occupy the shoes of the battered and less fortunate, but I think this is essential to mental growth. Stepping outside of my comfort zone has been the best thing I've done (literary-wise) in months. Precious's strength, perseverance, and determination to gain literacy, independence, and control of her life show that no matter what the adversity, it is possible to move forward. In the face of constant abuse, Precious opens herself to knowledge and love, and her journey will never cease to amaze and inspire me.
