This is not a book about Mormonism. This is not a book about extreme American life. This is not a book about living in a dysfunctional family. This is not a book about facing mental and physical violence and economic dependence. This is a book about a young woman who got over all these things, who became educated and made her new life − a book about almost everything.
„Educated” is a memoir by Tara Westover, a young American scientist. She was the youngest of seven children in an isolated family in Idaho. The kids didn’t have birth certificates and didn’t go to school. You can’t be a person without a birthday, said her grandmother, but Tara’s parents didn’t see the problem in living behind the modern world. Tara considered her family as a pack of wolves, or human beings who roam the mountain like savages because they were separated from civilization.
Collision of rural religious fanaticism and urban heritage in the United States
In the novel, we will read about the efforts of a girl to overcome her difficult childhood in Idaho and save herself from the fundamentalism of her family. The first part of the novel brings us the story from the perspective of a girl who is raised by religious fanatics. Her life takes place in the rural part of the USA, the economic and social periphery of the most powerful country in the world. We are presented with the characters of the desperate and the poor, who, in addition to the initial empathy, cause the readers to be appalled by their brutality and superstition. On the literary pages in front of us, it’s as if Lars von Trier’s heroes from Dogville come to life. The main character in the novel – Tara, was born into one such family.
Transcending Boundaries: A Postmodern Reading of Alienation and Awareness in ‘Educated’
In her compelling memoir „Educated,“ Tara Westover transports us to a world that is seemingly removed from the pinnacles of civilization. This world exists not on a distant continent but within the heart of the United States, a nation synonymous with progress and enlightenment. Westover’s childhood tale, characterized by ignorance and estrangement, proffers a vivid illustration of a life lived at the fringe of modernity. This unique portrayal incites a profound examination of our understanding of modern civilization, its outreach, and the psychological and philosophical repercussions of existing within its periphery. To dissect these complex dimensions, we shall lean on the theoretical frameworks provided by prominent thinkers Jacques Lacan and Jacques Derrida.
Između nametnutog i izabranog
Knjigu memoara možemo čitati na različite načine, a knjigu Obrazovana – kao jednu iskrenu i tešku priču o odrastanju i uspehu. Jedan takav utisak podelio je sa nama Milan Filipović i mi ga objavljujemo u celosti.
Kolizija ruralnog verskog fanatizma i urbanog nasleđa u Sjedinjenim Američkim Državama
Ljubiteljima anglo-američke kulture i njene literalne tradicije odavno je jasno da je nešto trulo u državi Danskoj. Ta trulež je transcendentirala u univerzalne pojmove koji se odnose na sagledavanje opšteg stanja čovekove svesti u modernom dobu i pokrenula moderne literalne teorije i perspektive čitanja. Ukoliko svoju pažnju usmerimo na sagledavanje američke literarne tradicije još od kolonijalne književnosti, uočićemo da su se glavni motivi u romanima bazirali na koliziji sukoba između urbanih i ruralnih područja SAD-a. Ovaj sukob dao je plodno tle za nastanak mnogobrojnih remek-dela i variranje motiva kroz sinhronijsku i dijahronsku osu posmatranja celokupnog literarnog nasleđa Amerike. Ukoliko krenemo od prve američke pesnikinje En Bredstrit, preko Meri Roulendson (autorke prvog bestselera u SAD, Suverenitet i dobrota Božja), preko Emili Dikinson, Vile Kader, Hemingveja, Foknera, Idit Vorton, Toni Morison, preko Keruaka pa sve do Frenzena, suočićemo se sa mnogostrukim variranjem motiva ruralnog i urbanog