Jordan Denton (Tuesday)
Book Talk
Godless by Pete Hautman
Hautman, Murray Pete. Godless. Publisher: Simon & Schuster; (Aug 2004) ISBN 0-689-86278-4
I. Godless, by Pete Huatman, is a satirical and ironic story of high school students who are seemingly lost within the tight compounds of their mid-west town: St. Andrew Valley. Teenage Jason Bock, the protagonist of our story, has a harrowing experience that alters his point of view on life and, in light of this, he has created a new religion. He and his followers decide to worship the “Ten-Legged God,” a local water tower. What essentially started as mere mockery, the new religion has taken off with calls for a bible, ten commandments, high priests, and a lot more. Some members grasp onto the religion more than others and find they now fit in while others become obsessive with the newly found religion.
II. Author Biography:
www.petehautman.com
· Bay area born and attended Minnesota university but didn’t graduate.
· Pete Hautman won the 2004 National Book Award with the publication of Godless
III. Favorite Quotes:
“My father sighed and sat back and said, “You think you’re an atheist, then?”
“I’m not sure what I am.”
He looked at me for a long time then. I think it was the longest time he has ever looked at me without saying anything. Finally, he spoke.
“I’m sorry to hear that, Jason.”
“Why?”
“Because it means you’ve got a long, lonely road ahead of you.”
“It’s my road.”
“You’re right about that.” His shoulders dropped and I felt something go out of him, as if he had been holding his breath for years and had suddenly remembered to exhale.
“All right then,” he said, his mouth curved into a sad smile. It wasn’t one of his usual looks—angry, bewildered, impatient, friendly, curious, or astonished. It was more of a level look, a look of recognition and understanding.
“All right then … what?” I asked.
“You’re sixteen, old enough to make your own choices. I’m not going to force anything on you. If you don’t want to go to church anymore, that’s up to you. TPO meetings are optional. Worship water towers, trees, frogs, whatever.”
“What’s the catch?”
He laughed, shaking his head. “There are a lot of perfectly good religions out there. You’re a smart kid, Jason. I know you’ll find what you’re looking for.” (347)
I. This passage seemingly condenses the overall message the story conveys onto one page. No matter what you do in life, you need have faith in something. As a teenager, Jason was missing something in his life. He didn’t feel that Catholicism was the right path for him and, because of this, he created his own religion worshipping the local water tower – in order to feel a sense of fulfillment. Jason’s dad, at the end, realizes he can’t control his son and that he needs to find his own path. This is important because, for example, a child may not want to continue the family business, the wife may not believe in the same religion as the husband, etc.
· “The purported idea of TPO is to give kids a chance to talk openly and honestly about God, religion, and Catholicism. But there is also a secret agenda to turn us all into monks and nuns, at least in terms of our relations with the opposite sex. Naked goddesses with big boobs have no place in TPO. Abstinence is one of Just Al’s favorite themes.
Mostly, though, the meetings are just a bunch of pointless yakking. I try to keep myself interested by messing with Just Al’s head. Here’s an example:
Brianna: But, like, I mean, aren’t there, like, people, like, starving to death and stuff? How can you, like, go to church and buy shoes you don’t need and stuff when people are dying because they can’t get enough to eat?
Just Al: It won’t do anybody any good for you to starve. Catholic missions feed thousands of hungry people every year.
Magda: My aunt is Buddhist, and she works at the homeless shelter downtown. They feed people, too.
Just Al: Yes, but that shelter was founded by a Catholic priest.
Magda: Can you be Buddhist and Catholic at the same time?
Brianna: I don’t think so.
Magda: How come only men can be priests? I mean, who wants to be a nun?
Me: I’d like to be a nun.
Magda: (laughs)
Brianna: You are so lame, Jason.
Me: No, really. You get to wear that cool thing on your head.
Brianna: Shut up.
Just Al: The priesthood is the oldest office known to man. Two thousand years ago they didn’t have presidents or congressmen, but they had priests.
Me: So, how do priests breed if they can’t have sex? Do they send out buds like amoebas?
Just Al: Ha-ha.
See what I mean? No matter what we talk about, Just Al always brings it back to how great the church is. And as for that bit about presidents and priests, well, that just gives you a measure of Just Al’s intellectual depth. The man’s a car salesman!
This Thursday’s TPO meeting gets mired in a discussion of pedophile priests. The subject makes Just Al vastly uncomfortable. Normally I would enjoy his agonies of embarrassment, but I am thinking about water towers…” (40)
i) This passage shows the overall mood of the story: satirical. The teens don’t take the talk seriously and, instead, make a mockery of it by pointing out ironies. The
· "He talks to me, you know. I hear what he says." [Shin] looks toward the tower.
"Shin, you're scaring me."
His face reddens. "You think I care if you're scared?" he shouts. "He doesn't want you, he wants me!" (367)
ii) This particular quote was representative of how some cling to religion to the point of near insanity. In this scene, Shin is having a maddening moment where he is on top of the roof trying to get over his fear of heights so he can climb the water tower. He feels betrayed by Jason because he went to the top of the tower with Henry. Shin is determined that there is something hiding at the top that Jason doesn’t want him to see but it is all a delusion. Shin’s mother blames Jason for Shin’s erratic behavior.
IV. “How might you use this book in a classroom?”
The novel, could be utilized in the classroom due to its multitudinous thematic qualities: religion, societal rules and order, and identity. This novel would be most appropriate for high school students because of the subject matter it delves into. Those who are at the high school age typically are experiencing some form of identity crisis and the entire story of Godless uses this as a focal point. Godless may even be utilized outside of an English class-setting and, instead, utilized in a Philosophy class for younger adults. Reading this book in the aforementioned setting would prepare students to ask questions about religions and sets one up to do a bit of “soul searching.” In Adolescents in the search for meaning, by Dr. Mary Warner, Godless would be placed in the chapter 4 and 6: “Real life experiences” and “Identity, Discrimination, and struggles with decisions.”
Teaching Ideas
1. Since the book deals with religion as a focal point, a good prompt for a paper: Jason has a spiritual experience under the water tower that alters his point of view on religion. What experiences have you had that you felt your foundation of faith was shaken or questioned?
2. Godless is filled with several themes. Consider having your students write an MLA styled paper that discusses three of these themes and
why they find them important?
3. The novel is easily read and has a variety of messages conveyed throughout the story. Consider having your students searching for an excerpt in the story and explaining the importance of it. In other words, why is the excerpt seminal to the story and what importance
does it lend to the reader?
Why you should give this book to teens:
· Teens are in the age group where they will more than likely be experiencing some type of existential and identity crises. This book may help reveal the irony and hypocrisy in life and allow them to feel more comfortable exploring outside their comfort zones.
· A feeling of entrapment is common amongst teens because of religious or family beliefs. Godless will help reveal the satirical side of organized faiths and may encourage students to think more freely or, perhaps, find their own respective faith (whether that be a water tower or God).
V. Author’s other works:
Hautman, Murray Pete. Sweetblood. Publisher: Simon & Schuster; (Aug 2010) ISBN: 0-689-85048-4
“Sixteen-year-old Lucy Szabo is undead – at least according to her own theories about vampirism. Lucy believes that the first vampires – with their pale skin, long teeth, and uncontrollable thirst – were dying diabetics. And she should know. She’s a diabetic herself. When Lucy becomes involved with Draco – a self-proclaimed “real” vampire she meets in the Transylvania internet chat room – her world begins crashing down around her. Caught up in late-night parties and Goth culture, she begins to lose control of her grades, relationships, and health. Lucy realizes she needs to make some important choices, and fast. But it may already be too late.”
VI. The overall complexity of Godless is rated at a 9th grade level. In other words, the quantitative complexity in regard to sentence structure and complex vocabulary was minimal. The text was simple and used conventional structures. The text also relied on clear, contemporary, and literal conversational language.