A Modern Generation - Who Are They - Book Report/Review Example

A Modern Generation - Who are They The early twenty first century is marked by social and economic changes, new values believed and practiced by new generation of people. The novel "The Coldest Winter Ever" appeals so much to young adults and college undergraduates depicting new values and changes typical for the new epoch. This novel reflects modernist tendencies which form a milieu of 'New Age'. Thesis The novel is so popular among young adults because it portrays and reflects new social values of modern youth, their problem and culture through the lens of sin and guilt, self-identity and self-destruction. The novel unveils that the decline of traditional culture has encouraged a narcissistic individualism which places the self at the centre of our concerns. Increasing cultural diversity has led to a general relativism, not just in matters of taste or morals but even in matters of fact. This novel so popular because it no longer expect there to be one single authoritative truth; instead there is what works for you and what works for me. The main character of the novel, Winter Santiago, is a prototype of a modern girl struggling for independence and personal identity. She describes: "Every teenage girl wants to cut loose and get close to the fire, but I was like a pot of boiling milk with the lid on" (Sister Souljah, 2000, p. 5). Success for Winter Santiago means fight in whatever direction. To the attainment of any end worth living for, a symmetrical sacrifice of her nature is compulsory upon her. But adult life persuades her to change her mind, and the novel records the changes of her wild nature caused by the death of her mother and imprisonment of her father. Typical for modern youth, the self of Winter and self-identity of her family is constructed in relation to the other, i.e. significant outsider, who thereby defines the self. Though the author attempts to incorporate the totality of being and hence the other. She describes: "Everybody understood that our family had the neighborhood locked down, it wasn't worth the trouble" (Sister Souljah, 2000, p. 6). Racial difference is irreducible, and it reveals the ambivalence and hybrid nature of modernity in every character: Ricky Santiaga, Porsche, Mercedes and Lexus, Midnight and Lauren. This novel can be seen as a kind of awakening of the main character, Winter, faced with harsh realities of life. These developments have put into question traditional assumptions about the unity and supposed homogeneity of a person. On the other hand, Winter Santiago becomes a symbol of imagination continually struggling and contrasted with crude reality. Her changing views and self-identity help to represents the eternal warfare between virtue and sin, good and evil. This book appeals so much to young adults, because it creates the eternal inconsistency between the aspirations and the occupations of a human being and his dreams. Most characters of the novel (including Mercedes and Lexus) have approved loosing hopes not on the ground that they made people go on crazy movements, but because they were idealistically poor. The contrast between rich and poor, morality and guilt is on the one hand idealism, but on the other hand realities of modern culture. Construction of the novel divided into different frames appeals to readers and their perception of the book. The plot is based on polar opposites who often aspired to realize the ideal of reality: poor vs rich people. This novel unveils how a life can treat a person, Ricky Santiaga and Winter Santiaga, when they make the wrong steps. In their doctrine, human beings have an instinct or a drive toward what is real which is impeded by the barriers of nature and custom. This novel appeals to young adults and graduate students through its simplicity. Colloquialisms and slang words appeal to emotions of readers reflecting modern culture and language. The psychological impact of sin is heated by morals and traditions existing in modern society and preached by members of our society. The physiological value is added through an unsound state of public morals depicted in the novel. Also, Sister Souljah, without a scorching rebuke selects such crimes and invests them with all the fascination of genius, and all the charms of a highly polished style. People in the dark world (drug dealers and drug addicts) are never free. They are suppressed by the society, economic decline and personal low spirits which make them dependant upon life struggle. The atmosphere full of terror, rage and hatred has a great impact on the plot development and story telling. Probably, the gap between real and unreal is an indicator of what happens to people's thinking about themselves when they can no longer hold on to the false beliefs like Ricky Santiaga. For instance, all her life Winter believes that her father is an ideal husband who "never had no girlfriend, at least no female ever called the house trying to front on my moms" (Sister Souljah, 2000, p. 4), but she is shocked when knows that he has a 22-year-old mistress and a small boy. This situation reflects modern values and traditions of modern society marked by sin and low morals. Although, at the end of the story, the author creates the atmosphere that forces readers to recollect the problems discussed, and understand hardship and cruelty of life, but it associates more with commonness rather than individuality of Winter. Also, this novel appeals to young adults because it forces them to express sympathy for Winter Santiago in spite of the fact that she is a cruel and spoiled young girl who has "no slum jewelry, cheap shoes, or knock-off designer stuff" (Sister Souljah, 2000, p. 2). However, Sister Souljah is not just invoking sin and guilt in bits and pieces. There is no rejecting the past in the transcendentalist style, which she despised. The novel is so popular among young adults, because it portrays modern culture and changing values perceived through a censure of idleness and reflected in a social immanence guaranteed by the society. Society acquires an ethical power of segregation, which permitted it to eject all forms of social uselessness. This novel appeals to wide audience of young adults because it unveils that when one person's guilt begins to affect another person, society has moved from personal ethics to social ethics and often has to place some limits on human behavior. It shows the human necessity for survival, and the lengths at which a person will go to save the life. References Sister Souljah. The Coldest Winter Ever. Pocket. 2000. Read More