Reader Response

                                                                           The Rabbi’s Cat

I absolutely loved the book the Rabbi’s Cat by Joann Sfar. It is a graphic novel that talks about the clash of tradition and modernity. The book fallows a cat who is owned by a Rabbi and his daughter. The cat can talk for awhile and he starts to learn to read some of the holy stories. The daughter gets married and the cat is no longer important in her life. In the end many of the characters who were traditional end up becoming modernized.

I think it’s very interesting because this book connects to a lot of things I’ve learned about in the world. I’ve read a lot of stories about colonization and the Rabbi’s Cat also talks about colonization. The Rabbi, the cat, and the Rabbi’s daughter all were traditional in the beginning. The cat was just a regular cat who couldn’t talk. Then, all of a sudden he could. He started to lean towards modernization because of colonization. The Rabbi was very traditional at first too. She didn’t eat anything that wasn’t kosher. He did everything that he was supposed to do. However, when he went abroad he ate a huge meal that wasn’t kosher. He broke a lot of Jewish laws abroad because he was starting to become colonized.  The daughter also was very traditional at first. She did everything her father told her to do. She followed all the Jewish laws also. She wasn’t very materialistic. Then, when she went abroad, she became colonized. She wanted her husband to buy her a bunch of new things.  She also defies her father a few times which defiantly isn’t traditional.

Personally this book was very interesting to me because we do see colonialism and modernity all over the news and in all different types of other media. I really enjoyed this topic and I thought that it connected well with another book I had read called Nervous Conditions. This is because the characters in both books are traditional and then they turn colonized.  Also, in both cases the main character(s) go abroad and that’s when things really start to change. In both cases the main character(s) also like the fact, in most cases, that they are becoming colonized.

I liked that the Rabbi’s Cat was a graphic novel. It was easier and faster to read. Sometimes it’s hard for me to be able to actually picture what is going on. The fact that the pictures were actually drawn out helped me a lot. I also liked that the pictures had symbolism in it. It made some of the meanings deeper and I really enjoyed that.  I’ve always really like graphic novels so I enjoyed reading this one a lot.

I did think that the story was interesting too because it focused on not just colonization and modernity, but also the Jewish religion. I could tell that the author had to be very careful when trying to right about it without offending anyone. The aspect of religion also made the story enjoyable.
I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I think that anyone who likes graphic novels, African literature, religion, or just a good story should read this book. I defiantly think that more people should read it and I would love to read more from Joann Sfar in the future.

Nervous Conditions

                                                        Reader Response 

           There are many critiques in the book Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga. All of her critiques are very interesting.  These include gender bias and European Colonization.

            First, Tambu who is Shona starts out very traditional.  She isn’t allowed to go to school because her parents can’t afford it. She sleeps on the floor of her house. Her brother on the other hand goes to school. He lives in the European lifestyle. He lives with a white family, he has a white girlfriend, and he kind of turns white. Then, Tambu’s brother dies. After that Tambu receives money for school from a white woman. Then, she leaves to live with her uncle and goes to school. Here she meets her colonized cousins. She finds out that her aunt is well educated, which is really weird for this time period and culture. Tambu gets to know her cousin Nyasha and realizes that she is trying to rebel against the culture. When Nyasha dances with a boy her father abuses her mentally, physically, sexually, and emotionally.

            All of these things are interesting because Tambu goes from being this very traditional poor girl to a better off more modern girl. She goes to school which many girls don’t get to do. This is because of gender bias. Boys are allowed to go school, but girls (in most cases) can’t or aren’t allowed. When she does get to go to school she ends up being colonized by European ideas. She starts using a fork, she sleeps in a bed, she starts speaking English, she dresses in a uniform, she goes to school, and she starts to eat English food like gravy.

            I see gender bias in the world around me today. First, one of my friends can’t go to College unless they pay for it. Her parents don’t think it’s worth it to educate their daughters, but they sent their son to college. I am against gender bias. I think women and men should be treated equally.

            I see English colonization in the world today because one of my friend’s moms came from the Middle East. She wasn’t well educated before, she didn’t speak much English, and she was very traditional. When she moved here she got better educated. She now even has a job. She doesn’t speak perfect English, but her English is a lot better. She is more modern now and not very traditional. I understand why she changed, so she could fit in, but I don’t think she should have changed all the way. She didn’t keep much of culture so she didn’t pass on that culture to my friend or his siblings.

            These things that I’ve seen in my life make this story even more interesting. I’ve seen it firsthand happen. I don’t believe in either, but I understand it happens all the time even in the US.  I really enjoyed reading this book. I would tell anyone who is interested in African culture, gender bias, or European Colonization to read this book.