As Libra has started to come to a close, looking back on the journey of Lee Harvey Oswald has been intriguing. We have seen him since his beginnings as a young child to his end as a so called murderer. As a child, we see Lee as a “different child” who is different compared to his peers. At a young age, we see subtle hints of him wanting to be remembered, but it is not until he gets older that we see him try hardest.
Out of all the things Lee does perhaps the most significant is the keeping of his diary. Throughout his military career and beyond, Lee writes in his diary to document his experiences. In one instance, for example, he talks about his encounter of telling a young woman he wants to apply for Soviet citizenship. In another, he describes slashing his wrist, attempting suicide. Though these accounts seem personal, as he continues to write we start to see otherwise. Lee writes about the occurrences in his life as if other people will be reading his diary. He writes in a way that he knows someone in the future will look back and read the diary as something written by Oswald. Obviously, the purpose of the diary is not for others to read. Diaries are meant to keep information from others, but Lee goes against that and does the opposite, revealing his want to be looked back upon by history.
Not only through his diary but also through, for example, the picture he takes for Junie. In the back of his yard he holds a gun and asks Marina to take a picture, and when asked why he responds “it’s for Junie to remember me by.” Even though he claims his intentions are for Junie to have the picture, it goes back to his obsession with the future and how he wants to be remembered.
Where Lee ends up in the end complicates his desire. Ultimately, he accomplishes his goal, but was it how he had hoped all along?
Where Lee ends up in the end complicates his desire. Ultimately, he accomplishes his goal, but was it how he had hoped all along?
I like this thought that you're building here. I think that so much of Lee's confusion, side switching, etc. is based on him just wanting to leave a legacy and be a part of history. He does everything he possibly can, even if it doesn't make sense and is idealogically conflicting. He's so centered around the future and his mark on the world that sometimes I feel like he doesn't even focus on the present.
ReplyDeleteI think Lee would have been happy with how his narrative turned out. There's this cool paradox where the nature of DeLillo's book would immensely please the character he created. For us to be diving this deep into every tiny aspect of Lee's life proves that he made a mark on history. And it's clear from how much he flip-flopped that HOW he made that mark didn't really make a difference to him.
ReplyDeleteAlthough it might've pleased Lee to know how deeply he's studied, being one of the most hated figures of the 21st century likely would've been pretty disappointing. We see throughout the novel that Lee specifically wants to be remembered for his greatness, and that when other people don't respond to said greatness in a way that he feels is appropriate (i.e in the Soviet Union) he responds negatively. So I think that Lee might've been happier than if he'd just died into obscurity, the specific response to him and his actions would've hurt.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure that Lee would be happy to see all the controversy that he created and how much he is mentioned by news outlets and in conversations because even today Lee is referenced constantly and basically every American knows about him. He met his end goal and that's all that matters to him.
ReplyDeleteI like this post. Everything he is doing is to create his own history or to be remembered by. Because he's been so manipulated by Ferrie and crew, he doesn't realize he's going to be remembered for all the wrong reasons until too late. Maybe this novel has done too good of a job making me root for the assassin of the president.
ReplyDeleteI really like this post. I'm not sure how Lee would have reacted to the way his story has been told. It feels like something he would appreciate whether or not the narrative was negative, because Lee seemed always like the person who sought attention, and didn't really care whether or not it was positive or negative attention. I think he would like the mystery clouding the entire event, because he was also someone who kept his own feelings somewhat of a mystery. I'm really glad you made this post because it's really interesting to think about!
ReplyDeleteNice post! I think that in the end, all Lee really wanted was to be remembered. He just wanted someone to acknowledge all the work and things that he had done and gone through. However, people took advantage of this, and he ended up becoming an infamous name in American History.
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