Epilogue

"'An epilogue,' Garp wrote, 'is more than a body count. An epilogue, in the disguise of wrapping up the past, is really a way of warning us about the future.'" Pg. 567

Like most school related reading assignments, I wasn't too thrilled when I learned about the blog project and the 600 or so pages I'd be required to read. I assumed that the book would be boring and tedius, I couldn't have been more wrong.

I can easily say that The World According To Garp is one of the greatest books I've ever read. It's hard to put my finger on exactly what I loved about it, but some odd combination of factors in the book made me enjoy reading every page.

Garp's cynicism and dark sense of humor provided an enjoyable experience throughout the novel. His pessimistic views, his paranoid and irrational fears, his witty thoughts, and his outrageous actions made him one of the most believable fictional characters I've ever come across. John Irving omits no detail, no matter how small or seeimingly insignificant, and when the tiny details from chapters before are brought into play and the sudden realization of why they were included strikes you, the feeling is indescribable. The World According To Garp isn't some fantasy world inside a man's head; it's Garp's fears, your fears, my fears, and the fears of the human race all bundled together in a truthful manner, with no flashy attempts at glamorizing life for entertainment. The World According To Garp, is an honest one.

Irving also manages to delicately balance the seriousness and depressing themes with sarcastic humor, so that the emotional conflicts within the book don't overwhelm the reader. And with multiple accounts of rape, assassinations, and death in the novel, it's a good thing Irving is as talented as he is.

Now that I've finished the novel, I wish there was more of Garp's story to read. I have no plans of casting this book aside to some miscellaneous pile of junk in my room. This book is truly among my favorite pieces of literature, and I plan to read it through again in its entirety.

I've been searching for a way to wrap up this final post for quite sometime, but I suppose the best way to do so would be through Garp's own words. Garp described a novelist's job as being a "doctor who sees only terminal cases." And with coming to the conclusion and end of both the blog and the novel, I feel like I've taken on somewhat of the same role a novelist possess; Garp was a terminal case, every character in the novel was one, the aging John Irving will be one, and all the work put into this blog is soon to become one, but all in all it really doesn't matter, "for in the world according to Garp, we are all terminal cases."

The World According To John Irving

I'd like to focus this blog post on the afterword in the novel which consists of a short message to the reader from John Irving relating to his novel. Below are some of the final few paragraphs which hold the most importance.

"'No, my dad isn't Garp,' Colin replied, 'but my father's fears are Garp's fears--they are any father's fears.'

So that's what The World According to Garp is about--a father's fears. As such, the novel is and isn't 'autobiographical.'"

"When Garp was published, people who'd lost children wrote to me. 'I lost one, too,' they told me. I confessed to them that I hadn't lost any children. I'm just a father with a good imagination. In my imagination, I lose my children every day."

I smiled when I read this, partially because I felt a sense of confirmation that I had accurately understood one of the themes, and partially because this is why Garp's character seems so lifelike. Garp always spoke of how a writer's job was to observe the surroundings and capture life onto paper, and Irving succeeds. Through Irving's own flaws, fears, joys, interests, and life, Garp is created.

It's become very evident how many of the events in the book are based directly off of John Irving's life. The fear for children, the fear of death, the fear of lust, and the fear of the dreaded "Under Toad", a being that consists of all the dangers and threats combined. Even the sinister "Under Toad" and the story of Walt's experience with it comes straight from John Irving's son, who mistook the undertow of the ocean for a terrible monster that looms over the life of everyone.

And lastly in closing, we see John Irving clinging onto his children through fear even in the final paragraph of the afterword; just one last sign that Garp and Irving share the same fears, the same fears that every human being is all too familiar with, but also the very same fears that unite us and bring us together to overcome any challenge.

The Themes According to Garp

Throughout the World According to Garp, I‘ve picked up on many reoccurring ideas and themes that Irving has spread into the story.

Women’s Roles in Society

One of the most obvious appearances of this theme is in Garp’s mother, Jenny. Jenny is a feminist, and quickly becomes the leader of an entire revolutionary movement of independence for women. She’s so independent and fact, that she goes through the drastic measure of raping a hospital patient, just so she can have a child without dealing with any men. Women are constantly mistreated in both Garp’s stories, and his real life. Multiple characters in the story are taken advantage of by their husbands or boyfriends, and while they hate it, they don’t seem to have the motivation to break free from the abuse. At the point in American history when the story takes place, women are yet to have full rights, and still serve as second-class citizens to men. Jenny and many of the people Garp meets in the story, serve as leaders of a rebellion against the oppression of men.

Parenting

Garp’s fears as a parent surface several times throughout the book.

“There was so much to worry about, when worrying about children, and Garp worried so much about everything; at times, especially in the throes of insomnia, Garp thought himself to be psychologically unfit for parenthood. Then he worried about that, too, and felt all the more anxious for his children, What if their most dangerous enemy turned out to be him?” Pg. 275

Garp shares the fear that every loving parent in the world does, a fear for the protection of his or her children. With all the violence, sex, and destruction in the world, how can a parent possibly ensure that their child grows up in the right environment and in the right way? Garp’s fears seem to reflect the author’s, John Irving, fears, but also the fears of Americans. People want to take comfort in the knowledge that the next generation of humans will live well, based on the way they raised them.

Lust

Among the most prominent themes in the novel, is lust. Every human being on earth has lust in some shape or form. It drives humans to commit atrocious acts, many of which are evident in Garp’s life. Garp damages his relationship with Helen by repeatedly cheating and sleeping with other women, and even when Helen confronts him about it, he is still tempted each and every day. Even Helen herself lusts when she gets involved with Michael Milton. Had it not been for this horrible selfish need, the car accident would not have occurred, and the Garp’s son, Walt, would still be alive. Lust is the subject of many of Garp’s novels he writes. His most successful book, The World According to Bensenhaver, focuses its entire plot on it. But the awful happenings in the book don’t even begin to compare to the lust Garp faces in every day life.

“’I think it’s shabby,’ Helen said. ‘It’s really beneath me; it’s beneath you. I hope you’ve outgrown it.’

‘Yes, I have,’ Garp said. He meant he had outgrown baby-sitters. But lust itself? Ah, well. Jenny Fields had fingered a problem at the heart of her son’s heart” Pg. 217

Garp’s mother, Jenny, had not only found a problem within her son’s heart, not only found a problem within men’s heart, but within every human being on the planet.

Grief, Garp, and Forgiveness

I’m about three-quarters of the way through the book now and so much has happened over the course of the last few chapters. Characters have died, relationships have been tested, and new lives have developed.

One of the reoccurring themes in the novel is related to cheating in a relationship. Earlier on in the book, Garp had several experiences with various women with whom he slept with, or a came closer than he should have. Garp would typically be scolded, but Helen would easily forgive him most of the time. However, when Helen decides to cheat on him, things are drastically different, and the events that followed Helen’s actions lead to the death of the Garp’s young son, Walt.

Helen was a college teacher who taught writing (One of many writing related traits possessed by characters in the novel). A young male student began flirting with her from the first day, and she couldn’t help but find him alluring. Helen clearly stated to the student, Michael, that she had absolutely no interest in a real relationship, only a sexual one. Ironically the lust that Helen gives into here was the focus of one of Garp’s previous books. This coincidental irony that someone close to Garp is participating in one of the actions he writes about is not the only situation of its kind. Garp’s literary work may seem hypocritical at times, since it tends to reflect his personal inner struggles and the problems of those around him, but Garp writes negatively about these issues with a great perspective and understanding of where they stem from.

Helen immediately becomes racked with guilt about cheating on Garp, but her lust makes it difficult for her to stop. When Garp begins to piece things together, he tells Helen that he’s taking the kids to the movies, and instructs her to cut off her relationship with Michael right away. Garp, being the paranoid person he is, gets up in the middle of the movie and calls the house to talk to Helen, when she doesn’t answer, Garp assumes she and Michael are having intercourse again.

Garp rushes home with the kids and drives up the driveway using the dangerous method he uses throughout the book; turn off the headlights, and coast up through the darkness. Through the thick layer of snow on the windshield, Garp cannot see Michael’s car parked in front of the house, with Michael and Helen in it. The crash is violent and several consequences occur, some of which are quite graphic. The most important one however, is the death of Walt.

Irving was certainly conveying a strong message here. Had it been an accidental and unavoidable car accident, Garp and Helen would still be filled with grief, but it would not be nearly as severe as what they endured. The car crash, and death of an innocent child was caused solely by lust, selfishness, and mistrust. Had the situation between Michael and Helen never occurred, young Walt would still be alive. Despite the horrible causes of Walt’s death, Helen and Garp quickly forgive each other. This suggests that beyond selfishness, beyond greed, and beyond our betrayals lies forgiveness, a force so powerful that even in the most emotional and desperate times, it can sweep through and heal the self inflicted wounds of humans.

“’I’m so sorry,’ Garp said; he hugged her.

‘No, I’m so sorry,’ she said.

‘No, I’m so sorry,’ said Garp.

‘I am,’ Helen said.

‘I am,’ he said.” Pg. 397

In the midst of a conversation between Helen and Garp, their feelings and grief break the surface. Rather than a heated argument about who’s to blame, and who was responsible for the passing of Walt, both parents hold a complete sense of understanding for each other, and exchange sincere apologies. No matter how destructive human nature may seem at times, there is an opposite side of the spectrum with emotions and passion so strong they can overcome anything.

Image Study

“Garp hit the bottom of his driveway at about forty miles per hour. He came off the downhill road in the short uphill curve. He held the car in gear until he felt what grip he had of the road it was good enough, and he popped the sharp stick shift into neutral—a second before he killed the engine and flicked oug the headlights. They coasted up, into the black rain. It was like that moment when you feel an airplane lift off the runway” Pg. 374

Previously in the novel Garp used somewhat of a dangerous method to get into the driveway while entertaining the kids. He would turn off the lights making it nearly impossible to see and would coast up the pavement until he reached the garage safely. Garp had performed the maneuver countless times, but on this particular snowy night an unexpected obstacle awaited in the driveway. The chilling and ominous view of the snow covered windshield would be the last sight the author would described to the reader before they learned of the fatal car accident that resulted, and took the life of Garp’s son Walt.

“Later, there was still the body of a man in a hunting coat lying in a dark puddle of what looked like oil. Later still, there was a closeup of what the newsmen would only identify as ‘a deer rifle.’” Pg. 485

The excerpt above describes the dark, but important image Garp views while watching the news on television. Garp’s mother Jenny has been shot and killed, and he can only watch helplessly as the news station broadcasts their perspective of the assassination. Suspense is built by starting both sentences with “later” to slowly give details to the reader of what Garp is seeing.

“Garp tried to imagine it with him. Would it ever surface? Did it ever float? Or was it always down under, slimy and bloated and ever-watchful for ankles it coated tongue could snare? The vile Under Toad.” Pg. 474

After Walt’s death, Garp reminisces of Walt and his overactive imagination. Recalling when Walt mistook the “undertow” for an “Under Toad” dwelling in the ocean, Garp attempts to picture the world like his son did. A series of questions pass through Garp’s mind as he struggles with the fact that his child is no longer with him. The “Under Toad” soon becomes a symbol for when an ominous feeling encompasses either Garp or Helen, a situation that occurs often throughout the novel.

“Like a gunman hunting his victim, like the child molester the parent dreads, Garp stalks the sleeping spring suburbs, green and dark; the people snore and wish and dream, their lawn mowers at rest; it is too cool for their air conditioners to be running. A few windows are open, a few refrigerators are humming. There is the faint, trapped warble from some televisions tuned in to The Late Show, and the blue-gray glow from the picture tubes throbs from a few of the houses. To Garp this glow looks like cancer, insidious and numbing, putting the world to sleep. Maybe television causes cancer, Garp thinks; but his real irritation is a writer’s irritation; he knows that wherever the TV glows, there sits someone who isn’t reading.” Pg. 280

The description and insight into Garp’s twisted and pessimistic view of the neighborhood is fantastic. The environment is dark and lonesome; Garp’s only company being the faint pulsing glow of the poisonous device known as a television. This image is significant because it let’s the reader into Garp’s head and allows them to comprehend Garp’s outlook on the world around him. What might appear as a simple neighborhood and television set to the average person is portrayed as a sinister and evil set of surroundings.

Garp's Lessons on Writing

Writing is a major subject matter within The World According To Garp for several reasons. Obviously if you’re reading a book it was written by someone, and for that reason tips and techniques on writing can be learned simply from reading the text, regardless of what it’s about. So far, there are three characters with a strong focus on writing, all of which contribute to the lessons Irving was trying to give to the reader. Garp, Jenny, and Alice all focus on writing and provide numerous insightful quotes and opinions on the process of writing, here are a few I’ve found, along with a brief explanation of my thoughts.

“‘And you’re always telling me,’ Helen said, ‘that autobiographical fiction is the worst kind.’” Pg. 225
This quote doesn’t specifically say a lot about writing as a whole, but I found it quite humorous considering how ironic it is. While Garp is a fictional character, after doing some research I discovered that many of Garp’s traits and actions are reflective of Irving’s, making The World According To Garp somewhat of an autobiography itself.

“…he would learn all his life, nearly everything seems a letdown after a writer has finished writing something.” Pg. 170
Another pessimistic point of view from Garp, this serves as a letdown from the temporary high provided by completing a writing project.

“You only grow by coming to the end of something and by beginning something else.” Pg. 223
While this could easily be taken as a negative lesson, I like to look at it with a sense of optimism. It’s like trial and error, sure you may have to fail a few times, but it is determination and willpower that will eventually push you past the failure and into the success you’ve been seeking all along, and those are both traits evident in Garp’s character.

“But he bitched about the reviews of Procrastination, and he moaned about the sales. He carped at his mother and roared about her ‘sycophantic friends.’ Finally Helen said to him, ‘You want too much. Too much unqualified praise, or love—or something that’s qualified anyway. You want the world to say, ‘I loved your writing, I love you’ and that’s too much tow ant. That’s really sick, in fact.’” Pg. 196
“’What do you expect?’ John Wolf wrote him. ‘If you want to be rich and famous, get in another line. If you’re serious about it, don’t bitch. You wrote a serious book, it was published seriously. If you want to make a living off it, you’re talking about another world. And remember: you’re twenty-four years old I think you’ll write a lot more books.’” Pg. 195
Both of the above quotations go well together, and suggest a similar point. Writing isn’t about others loving your work, it’s not about praise, and it’s certainly not about money. If you’re seeking those you’re likely in the wrong profession. Writing is about doing what you want, and being proud of your own work. Focus on what you’re goals as a writer are, not how the public views you. More importantly, don’t forget that your first efforts are likely to not be perfect, remember that you’ll have several more chances to prove yourself.

“It is only the vividness of memory that keeps the dead alive forever; a writer’s job is to imagine everything so personally that the fiction is as vivid as our personal memories.” Pg. 167
One of my personal favorite quotes from the book, in my opinion, this near perfectly depicts a writers task. This proves to be a daunting challenge for all writers, but serves as an excellent goal for the writer to one day successfully reach.

“…but writers, Garp sadly knew, were just observers—good and ruthless imitators of human behavior.” Pg. 225
This excerpt shows an extremely pessimistic view on writing, but one with great truth behind it. Writers gather their inspiration from their observations, and spend their careers attempting to capture the essence of human behavior onto paper. The melancholy tone also fits well into Garp’s general characteristics.

A Brief Style Analysis

While reading The World According To Garp, I’ve seen and learned a lot of things that I’ve never found in other literature. For this post I’d like to focus on a particular technique that is used several times throughout the book.

“Cushie Percy, whose young life would terminate in childbirth while she tried to deliver what would have been only her first child, saw Garp bleeding on the Steering family heirloom; the remarkable rug.” Pg.61

“Stewart, Jr., who was called Stewie Two, graduated from Steering before Garp was even of age to enter the school; Jenny treated Stewie two twice for a sprained ankle and once for gonorrhea. He later went through
Harvard Business School, a staph infection, and a divorce." Pg.65

These are just two small examples I’ve picked out, but the method used to write these passages is used on multiple occasions throughout my reading so far.

Notice the first excerpt, which takes place when Garp and Cushie are both children and the dog Bonkers has bitten Garp. Why would the author include the information about Cushie’s death in such a strange place? It’s far too blatant to be foreshadowing of any kind, and yet the fact is placed in the sentence with a purpose that puzzles me. Perhaps as I progress through the book I’ll discover the reasoning behind some of the sentences like this.

The second excerpt uses a similar technique, but it seems slightly more logical in this case. All of the Percy children are being described, but upon reaching Stewart, the description extends beyond his childhood and reaches into the future and informs the reader of events that are yet to happen. I believe that this is done for two reasons. The first appears to be to use the signature dark sense of humor that is so often presented in the book. By listing the things he went through as a child, and continuing through some of his negative adulthood experiences, the author pokes fun at Stewart Jr. The second reason seems to be to enhance the pessimistic tone that both Jenny and the author seem to possess, and further demonstrate the general dislike of the Percy family.

During my recent reading I’ve also noticed many quotes about writing as Garp becomes more interested and begins to pursue his career as a writer; I hope to soon incorporate them and dissect them in one of my blog posts in the near future.