Setting: I’m writing this blog post on a Sunday afternoon in downtown Los Angeles at The Conrad hotel on the “larboard” side of the 27-story hotel, while my date preps for the Dua Lipa concert he’s taking me to for my 33rd birthday. Still, before I go, I relayed to him, I MUST post a blog post before my professor castrates me since I have not posted in two weeks. I have a supportive reason behind my lack of posting, but I know that won’t get me out of the harsh reality of getting a big fat goose egg (0) on the weekly assignments, but you can’t cry over spilled milk, so here we go.
Plot: As I read the assigned reading for the week, I still couldn’t stop thinking about Chapter 9, “The Sermon.” For me, this is the climax and foreshadowing of the entire novel. I’m not sure if anyone has written about this exact chapter, and if they did, frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn because Frank, this chapter is so relevant to what is going on in this sad, depressive state we call America. Farther Mapple is the equivalent of the pitiful human being we name Mike Johnson. Let’s begin, shall we? {insert the biblical story of Jonah and the whale} Jonah repents and is not begging for forgiveness. Still, confirmation of the life lived, and therefore whatever fate God (the whale) gives him shall be justified, regardless of personal opinion. If you sin, you have to repent. You have to apologize and ask for forgiveness, even knowing that some horrible fate may await you. This is one of the sins that Jonah commits; he defies God and then, on the ship in the storm, refuses to repent. That is why he’s swallowed up and taken to the depths of the ocean, until he finally admits his wrongdoing. And then, even from those same abyssal depths, God hears his plea and has mercy upon him.
“Shipmates, God has laid but one hand upon you; both his hands pressed upon me.” (p.53) Oh, so Mr. Mike Johnson, you think just like Mr Mapple, you’re holier than thou? It’s this use of religion to pray/prey upon the souls of those just willing and wanting to do good. The exact moral of this sermon is that our fate is predestined, and if God wants to consume you in the form of a whale, you must let him because your life is just that. A stepping stone for the rich and powerful to prosper. The chosen ones, as they call themselves. Mr Mapple diminishes the character of Jonah for the well-being of himself and those who would benefit from the prosperous tale. Because of Jonah’s ultimate martyrdom, he is seen as a beloved saint. Looks like Jonah and Charlie Kirk will have a lot to talk about when or if they meet.
I’ll leave you with some incomparable words from the “give us nothing” queen of Dua Lipa,
“I be like, “Ooh, it’s amusin'”
You think I’m gonna fall for an illusion.”
This blog post shows your dedication and improvement to close reading (and to your class grade!), I’m very glad to see it. I too, cannot get over the sermon chapter and think it is a rich site for further exploration, perhaps even for a midterm essay… I think you are very right to note that the sermon is actually about capitalism more so than the individual Jonah: “Mr Mapple diminishes the character of Jonah for the well-being of himself and those who would benefit from the prosperous tale. Because of Jonah’s ultimate martyrdom, he is seen as a beloved saint.” Should you be interested in turning this into a thesis statement, I would push you to ask what actually the sermon is doing for the novel in presenting this paradigm shift.
I hope you enjoyed the concert. and, Happy birthday!
Hello Brock! I enjoyed reading your blog post! That sermon was truly something, and we can see so many ideas behind it. I hope that we might get something like this again in a later chapter. I think one can interpret the sermon from a different point of view can be interesting as well, and can have a new view of it! I think this could be a good short essay that you could write on as well, and you can expand on how the sermon can affect one who might not know the Gospel!