Impressions on Libra and Lee Harvey Oswald
Before reading this book, my impression on Lee Harvey Oswald is not as bad as other people. I felt kind of sorry for him for being a social outcast, and I thought that Libra would reveal more interesting facts about Lee. Libra did accomplish my expectation, in the wrong direction.
To me, I think Lee is a depressed, "almost-suicidal" young adult who doesn't care about his life. On page 91 when he shot himself in the arm, he just smiled, and when someone saw him he said "I believe I just shot myself" in a smug tone. Even though people argue that he is just an attention seeker, even if the motive behind this "act" was to stay in Atsugi while the rest of the Marines move somewhere else, I still think that he really doesn't care about his life whatsoever.
That being said, I also believe that his fellow students/soldiers should take blame for why he is this way. When he shot himself in the arm, no one even thought of the idea that he needs professional help, and instead they just court-martialed him and let him be loose instead of considering the possibly that he is depressed from people bullying him and just wanted to get out so badly that he wanted to harm himself.
To me, I think Lee is a depressed, "almost-suicidal" young adult who doesn't care about his life. On page 91 when he shot himself in the arm, he just smiled, and when someone saw him he said "I believe I just shot myself" in a smug tone. Even though people argue that he is just an attention seeker, even if the motive behind this "act" was to stay in Atsugi while the rest of the Marines move somewhere else, I still think that he really doesn't care about his life whatsoever.
That being said, I also believe that his fellow students/soldiers should take blame for why he is this way. When he shot himself in the arm, no one even thought of the idea that he needs professional help, and instead they just court-martialed him and let him be loose instead of considering the possibly that he is depressed from people bullying him and just wanted to get out so badly that he wanted to harm himself.
Yeah. It almost feels like he's making a point that killers aren't just born, they're also molded by their environments. Like maybe if someone had gotten Oswald help, he wouldn't have assassinated Kennedy.
ReplyDeleteI think it's actually the exact opposite. The more I read about Lee's backstory, the more I actually feel like his actions appear to be rational and sane, as opposed to wild and unstable. I don't think there is anything anybody could have done to "help" him because I don't think his "issues" are actually fixable.
DeleteI think that this is interesting. I've always thought about Lee's actions as being part of how his brain works. Like when he smiled after getting beat up. But I think that the environment he grew up in definitely could have contributed as well.
ReplyDeleteCould it also speak to the fact that Lee is intensely mentally disturbed, therefore making him more terrifying?
ReplyDeleteI feel like early on in the novel, Lee is a pretty sympathetic kid. He's idealistic and a persistent reader who doesn't let his reading disability affect him. His personal philosophy is basically born out of his circumstances, and I think this is the case with his "almost-suicidal"-ness. I think that his circumstances in his formative years and his fellow students and Marines are even more to blame than Lee himself is.
ReplyDeleteI think that Lee didn't only harm himself by shooting himself in the arm because he felt he wanted to get away from his war buddies that were mean to him. Also there is the aspect that he wants to stay in Atsugi so that he can pursue his dream of defecting to the Soviet Union.
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