class presentations week 2

last blog! so sad! :(

Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris [Group 4]

I like how this group had a lot of different topics about the same book. Some of the theses overlapped a little bit -- but overall I was impressed with the various paths the group members decided to explore.

The first thesis presented about rampant depression in the American office is a really interesting one that is very applicable to America's situation right now. There are so many first hand testimonials in all forms of media documenting these feelings of workers across the country in all sorts of fields.

Also, the fact that the book is in the "we" format is a component that is unique. I've never read a book written like this, so I think that exploring the two different "we's" is cool idea. The corporate world is so multifaceted and I think that by looking at what this "we" stands for, a lot can be discovered about not only this book, but big business in general.

The middle section of the novel - the part about the boss with breast cancer - seems to humanize and personalize this corporate "we" that is the basis of the book (not that i've read it, this is me merely making random connections that i see). I think that it is easy to hate bosses of large corporations since they are notorious for greed and corruption. But this section of the book (from what i've gathered) seems to allow the reader to have a connection with a higher-upper in this corporation. Readers are able to sympathize with her and see her as a human being with all of her flaws and fears.