Jonathon Franzen Essay

Essay #3
In My Father’s Brain by Jonathon Franzen, the author touches on many issues that we can identify in the story and also in life. Through different techniques Franzen is able to capture the readers attention and make them think about what he is trying to imply. It seems to be much more rhetorical questioning rather than asking a question and having an answer. What I mean is that he provides us with a question, and he answers, but then it is the idea that the question still remains there for us to answer for ourselves whether we can or cannot.
One of the key themes that are seen very much so throughout the story is the theme of relationships, mainly the relationship of the child to the parents. Jonathon Franzen gives us an idea of how his parents were with each other and how they were when they were talking to him as individuals. We see that his parents, according to him, were not much of a couple to agree on much. It never seemed as if they were in a real, deep-loving relationship. The mother and father never seemed to be in accordance with each other on many different things. They sometimes never looked as if they loved each other. Franzen’s parents’ relationship could be described as one of love for their son, but not so much each other. Now, I am not trying to say that they did not love each other at all; it just doesn’t seem to be that way through the words and actions we see of Franzen with his parents.
Through the process of his father’s brain becoming less functional, the relationship between husband and wife seems to weaken until the end, and the relationship between soon and parents strengthens to a certain extent. We see that the mother is writing lots of letters to Jonathon, explaining the situation of the disease and what the effects are from it and also the medications that his father is on. To be straight forward, in my opinion, I think that the deterioration of someone’s brain and health can bring a family together and yet at the same time bring them into turmoil. There is a lot of emotions that are being brought out and can conflict with being in the right state of mind to make decisions on what might be best for the sick person. That of course might conflict with what other family members are thinking. Family sicknesses that will result in death or no recollection of who we are, especially to those that are close, maybe and are probably the hardest dealings we must face in life.
This story also teaches and might give us as either parents or children a little in depth look at how relationships work in our families. We will always love each other, no matter what might happen in the one on one relationship. There are times that we need to be honest with each other and yet at the same time, not be fully honest for the sake of keeping everyone together and pulling through on the tough times. I know of personal experiences with myself and my family where I did not find out what truly happened with others in my life till later after it all calm downed a bit. Is it disappointing to find out later? Yes, of course it is, but then you look back on what happened and how your first reaction might have made the situation even more complex. It is sometimes the best to be dishonest with those that we love. Sometimes a little white lie is the best thing that can happen in the world of friendship. Although, the more you push it away with no explanation the harder it will be to explain why you lied in the beginning with the person.
With Franzen though, I think that he pushes the idea of always being forward with other family members, no matter how difficult it might be to be honest with each other. We can see this in his mothers, she does not hesitate to tell him what is going on in person, or even with the letters that she sends him. This, I think, is a good thing, because it is not a lie in which he will figure out when he comes to his father’s funeral when he eventually dies. It is essential that no matter how loose a family has ties with each other that they always keep in touch, because nothing is more hurtful and emotional than losing a family member because of conflicts or confrontations. It takes time to forgive and forget the past and move on at the same time. Most people find this difficult, but we can see this with the Franzen family. Although the relationships do not seem strong, they never lose sight of one another and always keep in contact no matter what.
Finally, there is a lot of emotion that is shown in this piece. Many times it might seem a bit confusing, but we have to look and stand back to understand what is going on and how it is to be dealt with. But then at the same time, we must understand why his reactions are the way they are. Many times though the emotions are very difficult to understand. Such as when the father is on his bed, he tells his wife that he has always loved her, but we don’t see it much during the story. He shows his emotions though in the end, and also throughout the story even if we might now see it so much because of the ways in which he words it.
In conclusion, Franzen puts much emotion and thought into his work. He seems to be able to put not only the actual information, but puts his thoughts and emotions behind that information that makes the story much more interesting and at the same time a lot more emotional and tough to follow. Tough to follow in the sense that not all of us have gone through the experience of having a father have Alzheimer’s disease. He is creative with his choice of words, emotions, and also the way in which he writes this piece.