Author's Note: This piece is my response to the short story Teddy. This story was a bit of a process to truly explore and understand. There was tons of symbolism within Teddy, and I was determined to uncover most all of it in order to compose a meaningful response. Once I had gathered all my thoughts and made some detailed pre-writing notes, I realized that my focus was way too broad. After a few attempts at the actual composition of my response, I realized, with some guidance, that I needed to narrow the scope of my response. Once that was completed, it was a bit easier for me to write. However, I did have to remind myself more than once that it takes time to put out a worth while response. I realized that covering one very high-level, in depth topic was clearly worth more than trying to cram lots of different ideas. My goal was to create a response that made the reader really think about and study Teddy's personality, and realize that there is so much we can learn from a mere ten year old character within this short story.
"Nicholson took
out his cigarettes again, but without taking his eyes off Teddy. "How does
one get out of the finite dimensions?" he asked, and gave a short laugh.
"I mean, to begin very basically, a block of wood is a block of wood, for
example. It has length, width --"" (189) As perplexing as Nicholson's
question may be, to Teddy, the answer is quite simple; one must rid of logic.
Too often, we answer with logic, when logic is the first thing that must be
forgotten when escaping the finite dimensions. One must think outside of and
beyond conventions -- erase labels and forget what we think to be facts. Teddy
says life is a gift horse in his opinion, and that it is. We must not take our
existence for granted and make use of our time on earth by looking beyond the
finite dimensions.
Teddy makes use of
his time on earth with every word he speaks, with every thought he thinks, and
with every action he performs. Literally, he is constantly sticking his head
out of the portal and scanning the sea rather than emerging himself in a contained
swimming pool. When he is forced to respond to the simplistic ideals of such
overly simplified people, he does it in such a way that perplexes them -- makes
them question their thoughts all together.
"It hasn't.
That's where you're wrong," Teddy said. "Everybody just thinks things keep stopping off somewhere.
They don't …" He … took out an eyesore of a handkerchief -- a gray, wadded
entity -- and blew his nose. "The reason things seem to stop off somewhere is because that's the only way most
people know how to look at things … But that doesn't mean they do."
How does one get to
this point? How does one begin to have the mental capacity to explore the world
in such a way that is so rare, if existent at all, in today's society? The
complexity of how Teddy's mind works bewilders everyone around him; he is a precise
example of thinking outside of our labels. Outwardly, Teddy is a mere ten year
old boy. However, inversely, his mind is greater than that of a college
professor. The notion that age is a convention in itself is thoroughly
recognized within the short story and represented by the character of Teddy.
If we never take
time to look at things in a contradistinct way, we will always have a singular,
narrow view of the world and its inhabitants. We must stress the importance of
being aware -- exercising our minds to the fullest in order to live to the fullest.
We must empty our thoughts and notions and then conceive of everything around us adversely. For if we live so
lazily, so simplistic yet horribly complicated at the same time, we will lead
utterly mundane lives.
"Colors are
only names. I mean if you tell them the grass is green, it makes them start
expecting the grass to look a certain way--your way--instead of some other way
that may be just as good, and may be much better . . . I don't know. I'd just
make them vomit up every bit of the apple their parents and everybody made them
take a bite out of."
And maybe Teddy is
precisely correct. Maybe it is time for us to vomit up every bit of conventions
we obtain, and leave our minds hungry and eager to search for the pieces of
life that matter.
