Relationships


In class, we were talking about how nothing in Black Swan Green is the same at the end as it was in the beginning. One of the best examples of this that I thought of was how romantically, everyone in the Taylor family is in a different place then when they started. Jason's parents start out married, and over the course of the book, the reader can see them fall further and further out of love. Jason's dad ends up with Cynthia and it's hinted at his mom might have a thing with Yasmin Morton-Bagot. In the beginning, Jason is trying his best to impress Dawn Madden so he can get it in with her. By the end, he has no feelings with her and he's all for Holly Deblin. Julia starts out dating Ewan, but by the end is dating Stian. Over the course of the year, every one of the Taylors falls out of love with someone and in love with someone else. 
I feel like Jason was particularly influenced his parents in his loss of feelings for Dawn. Jason doesn’t really stop liking Dawn until he’s sort of been keyed in on the fact that his dad hasn’t been treating his mom well. Jason sees that his dad’s mistreatment of his mom is the biggest strain on their relationship and on some level applies this to how he thinks of Dawn. She treats Jason like shit. A good example of this is that time she forced Jason to act like a dog for her amusement. Jason sees the result of being with someone who doesn’t treat you well in how miserable his mom is, and he realizes that that’s not what he wants in a relationship. I don’t think that Jason is necessarily consciously processing that he’s doing this, but I feel like at some level he’s internalizing this lesson subconsciously.

Comments

  1. Smita NairApril 28, 2019 at 11:36 AM

    Crazy how that happens. Good point about Jason's relationships mirroring his parent's, but I wonder too who influenced his decision to go after Holly Deblin, since he definitely didn't learn what a healthy relationship was from his parents. Julia and her boyfriend maybe? I kinda assumed that people only pursue the kind of relationships they were exposed to as children.

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  2. AkashApril 28, 2019 at 12:11 PM

    I didn't realize the flip in relationship statuses the book. It shows how much the characters have changed and what their new values are.

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  3. ChristinaApril 28, 2019 at 1:25 PM

    David Mitchell puts in so many intricate and parallel connections, I'm kind of mad at myself for missing this one. This change makes a lot of sense. Jason said himself that it was the entire year that changed him. Every little thing in his life has flipped: from suddenly moving to a new house to what he values in his life (a tight-knit circle of good friends, mutual respect, etc.)

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  4. AnonymousApril 28, 2019 at 5:20 PM

    I see that. At the same time he recognizes dawn madden's flaws and mistreatment holly deblin is also their to call it out. Maybe he recognizes the good traits in her as he begins to not give a toss about some other kids

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    Replies
    1. SJApril 29, 2019 at 7:47 PM

      Jason's turn towards considering more about a person as opposed to their looks is expressive of his maturation, at the same tie there's a lot of small changes that we notice in Jason that show hes becoming more distant from the old him (in a good way).

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  5. Dylan BApril 28, 2019 at 8:15 PM

    That's a cool point that I didn't notice when I read through those chapters. Honestly, I thought Dawn was going to end up with Jason by the language that Mitchell uses in Jason's first encounter with her, but you can tell how Jason becomes less and less enamored with her.

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  6. Salma El-NaggarApril 28, 2019 at 8:40 PM

    It's crazy how not only Jason came of age in this book. Almost every single one of the characters in the book changed in some way, and one of those ways was who they all ended up being in a relationship with. I really do like the fact that Jason realizes his worth by the end of the book and that he shouldn't just settle for anyone.

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  7. Emi L.April 29, 2019 at 3:04 PM

    Definitely the example parents set for us influences our relationships for the rest of our lives. Maybe Jason thought that the manipulations his parents engaged in with each other was how relationships were supposed to work, and so Dawn allured him--though it might have just been her looks idk. I'm glad that Jason realized that there is another option--someone who encourages you.

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  8. Katie CMay 25, 2019 at 9:24 AM

    Aw, that's kinda nice. I hadn't noticed it before but Jason and his mom also both become more confident throughout the book. It would make sense that, as he sees his mom become confident enough to leave his dad and get a job that she enjoys, he'd follow her example, allowing him to be more confident in his social life.

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