Does Bone Become Part of the Superstructure, or Does He Rage against the Machine - Research Paper Example

?Rule of the Bone Think about Bone's culture and how his social status plays upon his development. How is represented? How are the beliefs of society manifested by Bone and confronted by Bone? What social ideas or occurrences help shape Bone's development? Basically the question being examined is,"Does Bone become part of the superstructure or does he 'rage against the machine'? Introduction “Rule of the Bone” is an interesting novel for a number of reasons. It concerns a 14 year old protagonist coming of age, experiencing a number of controversial subjects such as marijuana and methamphetamine use, sexual abuse and teenage rebellion. Written in 1995 by Russell Banks, the book has come to occupy an important place in modern literature, perhaps in part due to the coverage of controversial topics. The novel itself is said to build upon the tradition of Mark Twain set in “Huckleberry Finn” (Herron, 1996). One important part of the novel concerns culture, class and social status and how these elements play a part in shaping the individual. The novel also covers important elements of how the environment affects personal and social development. The purpose of this essay is to examine how the culture and social class of Bone shape both the novel and the character development, as well as how Bone becomes incorporated into the social structure that he is surrounded by. Transformation As the book is considered to be a Bildungsroman, it is important to note the transformation of Chappie (or Bone) throughout the novel. This development happens alongside a changing environment and is a reflection of the culture and class that Bone appears to be involved in. The first chapter of “Rule of the Bone” concerns introducing the reader to Bone. In this chapter, the reader can see that Bone is not typical of a general culture but seems to be heavily involved with the punk subculture (Holt, 2007), which is evidenced by his mohawk hairstyle and nose ring. The first chapter also sees Bone heavily involved with guns and stealing, which again suggests that Bone is outside of what could be considered typical culture. In many cases, this section of the novel can be seen as an introduction to Bone’s character and how it is a rebellion against both society and an abusive stepfather (Holt, 2007). After this initial introduction to Bone and his interactions with petty crime, he becomes more involved in drug culture and illegal activity. He begins to get properly involved in drug dealing (mostly to the bikers who play a large part in the initial parts of the story) and shoplifting, until he gets caught. Again, we can see that Bone here is involved in a very definite subculture (also known as the drug culture), which in part may define his actions and his needs. This subculture, as is typical, is definitely outside of mainstream culture and therefore can be seen as a representation of Bone’s inability to become subsumed into typical behaviours and norms (Holt, 2007). Alienation Another interesting aspect of the novel is the way that Banks describes a feeling of alienation common to many adolescents: “They were totally alone, those kids, like each had been accidentally sent to earth from a distant planet to live among adult humans and be dependent on them for everything because compared to the adult humans they were extremely fragile creatures and didn't know the language or how anything here worked and hadn't arrived with any money (Banks, 1995).” This quote shows how the young characters feel that the elder generation is somehow separate or apart from their own lives. Whilst this is not a direct reference to culture and class, it can be evaluated as such for a number of reasons. Firstly, there has long been a tradition of adolescents inhabiting separate cultural spheres from their parents, particularly in the modern day (Herron, 1996), as a reflection of the evolution of culture. Additionally, it shows fragility in the nature of culture and how it changes from generation to generation. Another observation that can be made about Bone and his interactions with adults is that they seem to be predominantly negative in the early sections of the novel (particularly with his mother, father and step-father). This can be seen as a rejection of adult values as well as the culture in which he was brought up. His interactions with adults become more positive as the novel goes on, alongside Bone growing up and becoming more comfortable in his social environment and finding his own culture. Bone also mentions “the only three people I'd chosen on my own to love” (Herron, 1996), two of which are portrayed as being of an older generation. Much of the literature focuses on how Bone becomes involved with an elder Rastafarian man named I-man, and how Rastafarianism plays a part in Bone’s growth throughout the novel (Somerson, 1999). Interestingly, I-man takes Bone to Jamaica, which is where his father Paul Dorset also fled to (Holt, 2007), which suggests that Bone feels some kind of inherent connection with Jamaica and a need to become part of the Jamaican culture in some way. Cultural Environment The most interesting part about Bone’s later connections with Jamaica and a return to the drug trade is a feeling that Banks portrays of a “coming home” feeling (Holt, 2007). As with many adolescents, Bone initially becomes part of a rebellion but then can be seen as having similarities to his biological parents (Herron, 1996). Additionally, his earlier behaviours were at odds with the typical culture found in New York (where drug-taking is illegal) but more comfortably compatible with the Rastafarian movement in Jamaica. Bone’s development is shaped by the surrounding environment, but his behaviour can also be seen as an important part of why he chose his surrounding environment (Holt, 2007). Another interesting part of Bone’s development with respect to culture is that he initially seems a rebel, with many of his illegal actions being at odds with “good” culture in New York City (despite being part of a very definite sub-culture). In this sense, Bone rages against the machine, which is written by Banks as a very typical adolescent behaviour. However, through the development of the character from Chappie to Bone, his actions also seem to become more typical and more culturally relevant to his environment (Herron, 1996). We can also see an increasing comfort that Bones takes in his own company, a result of his development and perhaps a reflection of his increasing happiness with the people he has chosen to be with and his cultural environment. He begins to see himself “like I was my own best friend, a kid wanted to hang with forever” (Banks, 1995). Race & Culture Somerson (1999) also covers some important aspects of race as part of culture. In this descriptive essay, Somerson describes how the father figure in “Rule of the Bone” is initially a white man, but is later replaced by a black Jamaican Rastafarian. Somerson (1999) suggests that race and culture cannot be completely unlinked, but the era of transnationalism has thrown up some interesting concepts of culture which cannot be ignored. The social ideas of Rastafarianism shape Bone’s development, despite the fact that he has not grown up in this environment. Additionally, Rastafarianism is traditionally associated with Afro-Carribean individuals living in Jamaica (Holt, 2007), and therefore it may be quite controversial to some readers to associate this religion/movement with Bone. Another interesting aspect of the racial culture idea is that Banks seems intent on providing the reader with the idea that these social groups are related to race but are in many ways permeable, as exampled by Bone’s transformation from drug-dealing New Yorker to Jamaican Rastafarian (Parker, 2010). Part of the way that Banks portrays culture and Bone’s interaction with it throughout the novel is the sheer permeability of it all. Bone easily moves from location to location, adapting to various local and cultural traditions. Although many of his actions, particularly in the early sections of the novel, do suggest a naivety and a need to rebel against the older generation and their traditions, an element of the novel actually suggests that cultural boundaries are not as strong as we think they are, and this may challenge some readers (Parker, 2010). Part of this portrayed permeability of cultural boundaries is the question of whether Bone actually becomes more or less part of his cultural heritage and his sociocultural environment. In a sense, the fact that Bone crosses into Jamaican culture, as his father did before him, suggests that he actually chooses to become part of something more familiar to him (Parker, 2010). In a sense, this cultural crossing shows that Bone has changed from a natural rebel (as he is at odds with his environment and culture in New York) to someone who fits in slightly better with the cultural ideals elsewhere. In this sense, the change from rebel to having a place to fit in more naturally is what makes the novel interesting. Parker (2010) also suggests that in “Rule of the Bone” the protagonist moves from “rage against the machine” to more culturally competent and at home in his surroundings. Conclusions Although Rule of the Bone is a complex novel which covers a lot of intellectual ground, there are many things that can be drawn from how Banks portrays Bone as a part of a culture. As a Bildungsroman, there is inevitably a lot of growth for the character and this is in some way echoed by the changes that Banks has made to Bone’s surroundings throughout the novel. Importantly, Bone is portrayed as being a cultural and social outcast, although he is part of a very definite sub-culture. In this sense, Bone does not share the normal beliefs of society (drugs and theft are wrong in the eyes of the law) but has his own way of viewing the world which is linked to his punk roots. However, it is interesting to see how Bone adapts to being immersed in Rastafarian culture through his meetings with I-Man. I-Man is interesting as he acts a type of father figure for Bone, and is at odds with the adult members of society whose social norms Bone finds difficult to conceptualize. Overall, Banks does a very good job of showing how growing up does not necessarily have to mean fitting in, but that an individual will necessarily adapt to some parts of their cultural environment. Works Cited Banks, Russell. Rule of the Bone: a Novel. HarperCollins, 1996. Print. Herron, Jerry. American Anger and the Lost Art of Liking. JSTOR, 1996. Google Scholar. Web. 7 Aug. 2013. Holt, Karen. “Class Rules.” PublishersWeekly.com. 2007. Web. 7 Aug. 2013. Parker, Joshua. “Formal, Geographic and Cultural Metalepsis: The Fiction of Russell Banks.” Language and Literature 19.3 (2010): 285–299. lal.sagepub.com.ezproxy4.lib.le.ac.uk. Web. 7 Aug. 2013. Somerson, Wendy. “Becoming Rasta: Recentering White Masculinity in the Era of Transnationalism.” The Comparatist 23.1 (1999): 128–140. Print. Read More