Overarching Themes in TTOTC

[Jeff]

In my reading of Fenn's TTOTC memoir (as a book, regardless of its relationship to the poem puzzle), I see a collection of amusing anecdotes of a life well lived and the lessons learned at the intersection of what Fenn describes as experience, hard work, logical thought, and imagination. The book is deceptively simple; the plain diction, scattered grammatical or spelling errors, large font, generally short chapters, and many illustrations in combination with the author’s self-deprecating description of himself in the Preface and first few chapters only serves to conceal the intricate construction of the book. Although described as a memoir, the book is best regarded as a series of semi-autobiographical short stories carefully arranged to relay Fenn's overarching messages (and, of course, provide "subtle clues" that will help solve the Gold and More poem puzzle).

Several major topics are addressed in the book, which form Fenn’s conception of the grand purpose of life. (1) Experiential, or hands-on, learning--variations of which may include terms such as imagination, bluff or hustle--is more valuable than traditional school or book learning-- what he refers to as "knowledge." This is succinctly stated by the quote inspired by Einstein "imagination is better than knowledge" inscribed on some of Fenn’s bronze bells. This theme, while prevalent throughout the book, is one of the principal reasons behind the consecutive chapters Blue Jeans and Hush Puppies Again and Teachers with Ropes. (2) Positively affecting other people’s lives is our most important purpose. This theme, developed most explicitly in My War for Me, is one of the principal reasons behind the consecutive chapters Tea with Olga and Father on the Banco. (3) As life is meant to be lived as happily or contentedly as possible, sharing the things that we love with others is how we can positively affect other people’s lives. This theme, introduced in the Preface, is one of the principal reasons behind the consecutive chapters Flywater and Gold and More. (4) As the passage of time leads to the dead--their lives and lessons learned--being forgotten, this sharing with others, particularly if done in a durable manner, is the best way for us to be remembered after we die, even though that outcome is not ensured. This theme is introduced in Important Literature, further developed in My War for Me, and is one of the principal reasons behind the consecutive chapters Gold and More, Dancing with the Millennium, Ode to Peggy Jean, and the Epilogue.

TTOTC is Fenn discovering his answers to life’s great questions: "at last, I know" and "I am at peace with it all." His memoir is a Bildungsroman wherein Fenn completes his "moral education;" this culminates in the events and epiphanies of My War for Me but I postulate that it chronologically crystallizes in his mind after his second brush with death at the hands of kidney cancer. The treasure hunt described within--the "chase" he created--is Fenn’s response to the fourth major topic outlined above, and one of several durable momentos of himself that he has created for posterity. The book’s title, and the related dedication found in the Preface, refers to Fenn’s contention that a good life is marked by continuous exploration--the "chase." This is expressed in Flywater through his love of fishing and in Gold and More through his obsessive collecting. The youthful excitement or innocent curiosity in this continuous exploration is the "thrill." These ideas are found explicitly in the Preface and Epilogue: “youth should always be wasted on the young.” We also possibly encounter it in the image of the Comanches “really having fun...in the chase” described in Me in the Middle.

In addition to the individual nature of the messages discussed above, TTOTC also contains a related commentary on the immense wastefulness of wars. This topic is plainly obvious in My War for Me; speaking of the Vietnam War, Fenn says, "all the frailties of humankind had manifested themselves in that beautiful place and terrible situation." The reason for these terrible situations--our history books full of futile, wasteful wars--remains unknown; people repeatedly and despairingly ask "why?" The ensuing condemnation "never again" is forgotten or ignored--"are we forever destined to the same old bloody waste?" Fenn's moral education approached its climax with the "mystical" events in My War for Me, when he quite literally stumbles upon the forgotten French Indochina War graveyard and he obscures Philadelphia with his thumb. The first event addresses the wastefulness--"bones rotting under the headstones of a thousand wars"--and the second personally ties Fenn to that waste--as an Air Force pilot he "sat alert with an atomic bomb under [his] wing" and so could effect the mass slaughter of millions of people with a metaphorical press of his thumb.

In a recent thread, CJ and Goldwatch have shared their thoughts that the illustration in the Epilogue is an environmental statement.  Although environmentalism is raised in the Preface--"all of us are environmentalists to some degree, and me more than most"--and Epilogue--"that both countries and people should...do a better job of protecting our planet"--I can't identify this idea as a well-developed notion throughout the rest of TTOTC.  Perhaps I'm missing the allegorical undercurrent.  Sometimes things need to be spelled out for me in flashing neon letters (and then explained to me again, in writing).

I'm happy to memorialize Fenn by participating in his game: you will not be forgotten (until something else comes along, I get bored of this thing, or Zaphod or whoever explains how their successful solution to the poem puzzle).  Remember that I lean toward the sciences by day and this sort of reading comprehension is not in my wheelhouse, so, if you must, just take it all with a facetiously smile and nod.  I don't warranty any of these thoughts--how's that for standing behind one's product?

[goldwatch]

Jeff, first of all, that's another fine post.
But I thought a bit about where Forrest' environmental statement might be defined in his stories.
The answer I came up with is that it's hidden. As a treasure hunt, we look for hidden meanings and how things might be used symbolically. Many of those things are natural, in the animals, the flowers, the trees, and even in the natural landscape of mountains, rivers, and valleys.
I've noticed that my mind turns often to the wonders of nature. And that in turn makes me think about it's preservation. I think that's how the environmental statement is hidden.

[goldwatch]

You know, "Teachers With Ropes" is a good reminder of how modern society tends to restrict us from nature. "Restrict" being the working word here.

[zaphod73491]

On the environmental front, it's clear to me that Forrest's opinions on this have evolved with time toward greater conservation. In Dancing with the Millennium, he writes:

"Someday, will all of the land in New Mexico be covered with houses and asphalt? Will there be no requirement for farmers because everyone will be eating food pills made with chemicals instead of eating real broccoli and squash? That might not be all bad.

"If those things really come about, what will people do for fresh air fun? With populations increasing so rapidly maybe there won't be room for a lot of things we enjoy doing today, like hunting and hiking and looking across the desert just for the fun of seeing nothing at all. It seems so sad to me."

In a MW Q&A (6/28/2014) Forrest was asked, "Your words and actions say you are a friend and lover of the environment ‘more than most.’ Do you follow Leave No Trace and did you while hiding the chest? Ie stay on established trails. ~Buddy”

Forrest replied: "Buddy, I think you’re trying to get me in trouble but that’s where I am most of the time anyway, so I’ll answer your questions.

"You may as well ask me if I love the air. I don't know but, I certainly am an appreciator of nature. “Leave no trace” is a rhetorical statement not intended to be taken literally. For instance it is not feasible for you to not leave a footprint somewhere or a dry fly snagged high on a tree limb, left by your back cast. But I agree with the philosophy of the phrase. I dislike seeing beer cans scattered around when I am fantasizing that I am the only person who has ever been in that spot."

I certainly wouldn't label Forrest a "Greenie," but I think it's fair to say he is a practical and reasonable environmentalist -- an everything-in-moderation kind of guy. As an example of his evolving opinion, in TFTW he tells the story of shooting a mountain lion for bounty when he was younger, a choice he now regrets.

[Jeff]

Ah, yes.  Lesson that I know: I've got to read the book again.

So my revision:

Environmentalism is raised as another topic in the Preface--"all of us are environmentalists to some degree, and me more than most"--and Epilogue--"that both countries and people should...do a better job of protecting our planet." Furthermore, in Dancing with the Millennium Fenn mourns an imagined future of extensive land development in New Mexico. The slim environmental vein in TTOTC seems to be more of a nostalgic nature and in line with the third message above (i.e. sharing things that we love with others) rather than an additional major theme threaded through the narrative.

Thank you Goldwatch and Zaphod.

[goldwatch]

It's interesting, I saw a list of Bildungsroman books and Hemingway's name wasn't among the many authors. That surprised me, I would have thought he would have written one, if anyone had. Maybe that just wasn't his style.
J.D. Salinger had "The Catcher in the Rye" of course.
F. Scott Fitzgerald had one titled "This Side of Paradise," but no Hemingway.

It's kind of funny that the number one ranked Bildungsroman title is "To Kill a Mockingbird." That just seems to fit in a self-deprecating sort of way.
There's a lot of famous books and authors in that list, though.

[CJ]

Mar 4, 2019 11:53:19 GMT -5 goldwatch said:

Jeff, first of all, that's another fine post.
But I thought a bit about where Forrest' environmental statement might be defined in his stories.
The answer I came up with is that it's hidden. As a treasure hunt, we look for hidden meanings and how things might be used symbolically. Many of those things are natural, in the animals, the flowers, the trees, and even in the natural landscape of mountains, rivers, and valleys.
I've noticed that my mind turns often to the wonders of nature. And that in turn makes me think about it's preservation. I think that's how the environmental statement is hidden.

Folks can read the other thread themselves, but it still makes the most sense to me that the lumberjack is the NY Times editor in the treasures galore story.

One quote: “The beautiful trees grow very slowly,” I said.



“But I am a patient man,” he held.



“You are destroying the delicate animal habitat,” I countered, “and winter is coming on.”

The dove had nowhere to go but the moon because all of the trees were gone....so why wasn't the story in the book?

Maybe the picture isn't linked to that story, but it makes a lot more sense if it is.

[Deleted]

Mar 9, 2019 15:18:18 GMT -5 CJ said:

Mar 4, 2019 11:53:19 GMT -5 goldwatch said:

Jeff, first of all, that's another fine post.
But I thought a bit about where Forrest' environmental statement might be defined in his stories.
The answer I came up with is that it's hidden. As a treasure hunt, we look for hidden meanings and how things might be used symbolically. Many of those things are natural, in the animals, the flowers, the trees, and even in the natural landscape of mountains, rivers, and valleys.
I've noticed that my mind turns often to the wonders of nature. And that in turn makes me think about it's preservation. I think that's how the environmental statement is hidden.

Folks can read the other thread themselves, but it still makes the most sense to me that the lumberjack is the NY Times editor in the treasures galore story.

One quote: “The beautiful trees grow very slowly,” I said.



“But I am a patient man,” he held.



“You are destroying the delicate animal habitat,” I countered, “and winter is coming on.”

The dove had nowhere to go but the moon because all of the trees were gone....so why wasn't the story in the book?

Maybe the picture isn't linked to that story, but it makes a lot more sense if it is.

CJ - I knew that long, long ago.  The drawing needed no caption. Such irony.  I could hear the dove saying "you can't touch me now!"  And then laughing.

[Jeff]

CJ, what a great thought about the bird having no place to nest now that the forest has been cleared...beautiful (in its depressingness).

I pulled TFTW, skimmed some, and read Treasures Galore.  Yes, "you are destroying delicate animal habitat."  The "animal habitat" is also Fenn's ("my national forests").  Forrest loves the forest.  Nice story.  "Tepid" bear and "unreasonable" owl?  Strange choice of adjectives.  Followed by "Least Chipmunk," which is "aptly named."  What is that about?  And the vocabulary--some big words there, which is not my recollection of the writing in TTOTC.  "Rancorous" and "impetuous" and talismanic" being the most striking examples.

Goldwatch, I pulled TFTW and in my skimming saw how Suzanne Somers compared Fenn to Mark Twain.  Reading TTOTC I was slightly reminded of Mark Twain, perhaps it was mostly Fenn - Finn that got me there, and I've been re-reading that classic (and coming of age morality story) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in my too infrequent moment to spare.  (My wife questions my choices, rightly.)  So many good ones on a Bildungsroman list, so little time!

[goldwatch]

Mar 12, 2019 9:13:49 GMT -5 Jeff said:

CJ, what a great thought about the bird having no place to nest now that the forest has been cleared...beautiful (in its depressingness).

I pulled TFTW, skimmed some, and read Treasures Galore.  Yes, "you are destroying delicate animal habitat."  The "animal habitat" is also Fenn's ("my national forests").  Forrest loves the forest.  Nice story.  "Tepid" bear and "unreasonable" owl?  Strange choice of adjectives.  Followed by "Least Chipmunk," which is "aptly named."  What is that about?  And the vocabulary--some big words there, which is not my recollection of the writing in TTOTC.  "Rancorous" and "impetuous" and talismanic" being the most striking examples.

Goldwatch, I pulled TFTW and in my skimming saw how Suzanne Somers compared Fenn to Mark Twain.  Reading TTOTC I was slightly reminded of Mark Twain, perhaps it was mostly Fenn - Finn that got me there, and I've been re-reading that classic (and coming of age morality story) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in my too infrequent moment to spare.  (My wife questions my choices, rightly.)  So many good ones on a Bildungsroman list, so little time!

Mark Twain seems obvious. When I first stared this quest I looked around for any comments about Twain.
I saw that someone had asked FF if he admired (I think that was the word) Twain, and the answer was a simple "no." (I can't say that I remember that right, though.)
My impression was that Twain was bordering on a thorny issue with FF, for some reason.

[Deleted]

"By ancient training and inherited habits, I have been heaping blame after blame, censure after censure, upon him, and have felt the things I have said, but when my temper is cool I have no censures for him. The law of his nature was stonger than man's statutes and he had to obey it. It is my conviction that the human race is no proper target for harsh words and bitter criticisms, and that the only justifiable feeling toward it is compassion, it did not invent itself, and it had nothing to do with the planning of its weak and foolish character."

You guys ever been to Yosemite? There's a nice resort there but can't remember the name of the town.