The murder of a young girl named Hay Lee intrigues Serial investigator and speaker, Sarah Koenig. Accusations, assumptions and decisions were made before the truth even existed. Personally, I think that this series of unfortunate events are very tough to put together and probably have been looked into, numerous amounts of times.
To start off, I think Adnan Syed is guilty of the murder of Hay Min Lee. When Koenig would speak to him on the phone, he did not sound like a typical person
in jail, for something they did not do. Also, he was not fighting for her to keep investigating. At one point, he basically told her not to pick a side. Koenig mentions the fact that it would be silly for him to agree for her to investigate the crime if he knew what he did. I think that if I were in jail for committing a murder, I would not care if someone asked to revisit because there would not be anything to lose.
One of the suspects they came across during the end of season one was a rapist and a murderer named, Ronald Lee Moore. I think for investigators to turn to Moore for a suspect, it shows that they have no other evidence to support Syed. According to the FBI, “54.3 percent were killed
by someone they knew” in 2011, therefore I do not think it was a stranger who committed the crime. If Moore did commit this terrible act, why would Jay make up a huge
story about Adnan. Someone would have to be very sick in the head to make up a story, even placing themselves in the story, to throw someone under the bus for it.
The constant lying and hiding that Adnan, Jay, Asia and everyone else, did was very unsettling as well. Everyone would not have been so disturbed if none of them did it and it turned out to be some stranger. I think the constant flip flopping of stories between them all only points to the fact that inaccurate stories come from lies.
Overall, this investigation is full of lies, “murky”-as Sarah said- water , and a lot of suspects. I think the tough part is, Sarah Koenig is biased. She fills the podcast with people saying how great Adnan is and that he was just a regular teenager. She brushed aside actions of him but had no problem telling the world about Jay’s tendency to buy weed and go to “thug streets”. At one point, when Asia called her, she was so excited about it because she thought that would be the end and save Adnan. I think all the multiple calls outgoing from Sarah to Adnan made her emotionally attached. She talks about him emotionally crying and talking to her, which is a technique used by many killers.
The lying, running, emotion and fear led Sarah and her team to become utterly stumped and confused. Spinning circles in their heads and flipping their brains over, these suspects have been playing games. As I said above, this story is complicated, and only time will tell the truth in the episodes to come. I will definitely be listening to the next podcasts to find out the truth.
Personally, I loved the podcast on Serial. I love horror movies and different types of crime investigation stories. I will definitely be listening to the other episodes in my spare time! I think presenting this type of story in this way is super effective because music and
actual speech can be added to make the story so much more intriguing!
If I was Adnan’s family, I would feel invaded. Something so tragic and scary for me would be used as entertainment and interest for someone else. For me, listening to text is way more effective than reading it to myself. I think some benefits of listening to a story include, getting a better visualization and a proper view on the story. Although there are many benefits, one disadvantage is that you could miss some information due to the speaker talking fast or in a different way than what you are used to.
Sometimes I do prefer to read text because that way I can re-read information if I get lost. Sometimes if I read for too long though, my eyes start to hurt. By listening to a story, the option of not being focused while listening is available. You could listen while doing dishes, walking your dog or doing homework!
In my opinion, remembering things from my past is hard to do. I have times where I see my friends at work and they ask me what I did that past week and I can only remember a little. Like Sarah said, we only remember things on days that important and exciting things happen. So, if there is nothing exciting happening, I more than likely will not remember it. This proves that most people do not remember most things that happen in full detail. When asked about a previous event, it is very likely that the exact story will not come out because some details will be forgotten.
Sources:
“Season Two.” Serial, serialpodcast.org/. Accessed 21 July 2017.
I really loved reading this novel and it definitely points out significant views on feministic literary theory! I would most certainly recommend reading this book!
The novel, “The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls is about a journey and many issues that many people go through on a daily basis. The author tells the true story of her dysfunctional, unhealthy family that was challenged with many obstacles they had overcome, to get where they are today. With an alcoholic father, and an indolent mother, Jeannette and her three siblings
are left to fend for themselves and grow up on practically nothing. The Walls family was always on the run. They would sleep in their car, vacant and shabby houses, and sometimes even outside in the middle of nowhere. None of these places were ever considered home. When Jeannette’s father, Rex Walls took a break from booze, he would be so loving and caring towards his children. For years he worked on plans to make a giant Glass Castle, where him and his family would live. Throughout the book, Rex became more and more addicted to alcohol and would come home drunk more often than not. Rex’s wife, Rose Mary was an aspiring artist and spent most of her time painting and creating. She never got far in her career, which pushed her into using her teacher’s degree to educate in the local schools. Since not many teachers had an actual degree, she got jobs pretty easily. Rose did not keep those jobs for too long, not only because they were always leaving, but she simply just did not want to work. The Walls finally ended up in Welch, West Virginia and tried to make a home there. Over time, things slowly began to fall apart, until a new plan was made. The children looked into a new life in New York with newly found hopes and dreams.
When analyzing “The Glass Castle” from an archetypal perspective, it becomes clear that Jeannette Walls plays the significant role of the hero. She is faced with many problems and tough situations, but always stayed true to herself and who she is. Jeannette obtains the same characteristics that a hero would, such as her willingness to let go of a grudge and stay warm-hearted. For example, on the first day of attending Welch Elementary school, Jeannette was bombarded by a girl named Dinita Hewitt and her friends. These girls teased and bullied Jeannette because she had “no buttons on her coat!”(Walls 276) “All three girls started kicking”(Walls 276) Jeannette and continued to beat her up everyday after that until one day Jeannette rescued Dinita’s neighbour
Welch Elementary School, where the Walls went to school
from a nasty dog. Eventually, the two girls became friends and Dinita never spoke of the bullying. This just proves that Jeannette was willing to forgive and forget, which is something only true Heroes can do. Jeannette Walls reminds me of Annie from Annie the Musical, because of her positivity. Annie is known to sing “tomorrow, tomorrow. I love ya. Tomorrow. You’re only a day away” (Annie 1982) which connects deeply into how Jeannette always tried to be positive. For example, this relates to when she was excited for her sister Lori, and kept telling her that “in exactly, two months and three weeks,” (Walls 452) Lori will “be living in New York.” (Walls 452) I think that Jeannette was so excited for Lori because she knew that life would be better and filled with more opportunities there. Also she knew that once Lori was gone, she could go next.
Rex Walls played a huge role in this story and firmly illustrates the archetype of control. Rex loved to be in control. He did not want to be treated like a charity case and given free clothes and money. When Rex felt in control, everyone was to obey what he said and what he wanted. Lori, Brian and Jeannette saves money in a little pig they named Oz, to prepare for when they could escape to New York for a better
Emerald City in The Wizard of Oz
life. One day, Jeannette came home with some bills to stash away, but found Oz smashed on the ground. The money they had saved for nine months was gone. They knew Rex, their father, took it but they did not think he would do such a terrible thing. (Walls 456) Oz was their only hope of getting out of Welch and finding a new beginning. I think this is why they named him Oz. That money was going to be used to take them to a magical place that would hopefully change their lives forever. Therefore, Jeannette connects to the character of Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, because they were both searching for a place to call home and a place to feel secure.
Another one of the many archetypes in this novel that stood out to me was the use of colour. When it got warm in the small and depressing town of Welch, beautiful flowers popped out and Jeannette’s spirit was obviously lifted by them. One afternoon Rex “brought home a five-gallon can of
93 Little Hobart Street
house paint left over from some job he’d worked on.” (Walls 314) Jeannette took it upon herself to brighten up the house and make it more aesthetically pleasing. She started by painting the house yellow, but only ended up painting half of the front because she could not reach the rest. Even though her family did not appreciate her hard work, it still made her happy. I think that the colours symbolized Jeannette’s way to create positivity because Welch did not have a lot.
Earlier I described the plans that Rex had made for years, to build a castle using only glass. This illusion of a glass castle that Rex never eventually built, symbolizes the plans in the Walls family’s lives. The glass castle is empty and transparent, just like the plan for having a healthy life turned out. Their plan for a happy and stress free life is invisible, just like a glass castle. As I know anyone can tell, this family was not traditional and did not have a strong caregiver role. In my opinion, this unreasonable plan to build a massive glass castle only proves that Rex often picked up more than he could carry. This was an unreasonable plan because in a report on Using Glass as a Material for Building , they talk about how glass is overall, very brittle and expensive to use. Therefore glass is probably not the best and cheapest way to build something, like a castle.
The last archetype that I feel is very important is the use of alcohol, especially by Rex. His overuse of booze slowly damages himself and his family over time. This is why I know that alcohol plays the role of the weapon in this story. Rex typically leaves for days at a time and returns home drunk, only to tear the place up. The Walls family’s first Christmas when they arrived in Phoenix was destroyed by a fire catching the christmas tree and leaving the presents burnt to a crisp.(Walls 234) This was all because Rex went home and decided to “thrust the lighter into the Douglas fir.”(Walls 234) On one of many occasions, Rex had a rapid outburst of hurtful things to say to the youngest daughter Maureen. This included calling her a “sick puppy, runt of the litter”(Walls 546) and even that she “should have been drowned at birth.” (Walls 546) Rex said a lot of hurtful things to his children and his wife while intoxicated and personally I think that it tore the family apart like a knife.
Overall, the outlooks on life and the impact that this story had on each of the children eventually led them to be the strong, caring people they are today. Although they had many setbacks, they found their new lives and made a living out of what they most loved to do. They all overcame their obstacles and made a perfect, stress free life away from their parents.
Construction, Understand. “Glass as a Building Material.” Understand Building Construction. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 July 2017.
Schenk, Brina. “What I Thought Of : The Glass Castle By Jeannette Walls.” Small Town Social – Living In Fernie BC. N.p., 13 Apr. 2015. Web. 12 July 2017.
Walls, Jeannette. The glass castle: a memoir. New York: Scribner, 2006. IBooks.
Tucker, Ruth A. “River-Rat Reflections.” 93 Little Hobart Street. N.p., 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 12 July 2017.
Site Title 