The Son
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William
(last edited Jul 21, 2013 04:41AM)
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Jul 20, 2013 05:11AM
I have been pondering why this book is called The Son. Is it referring to Eli or Peter or all the family. I would appreciate any of your ideas.
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I have the asked myself the same question. I'm stretching a bit here, but I think it refers to Eli and Peter...sort of continuation of the role of 'son'. Granted, I'm no authority and that's just my opinion.
Finally, I thought I was the only one confused.
Actually, after giving this a little more thought...I think the title refers to ALL of the sons. The colonel, Phineas, Peter, Thomas, Garcia, all the rest. Some shaped his own destiny (certainly the case with the Colonel and to a large degree Garcia) while others were shaped by his birthright (Peter, ex). Just a thought...
Because Jeannie never changed her name despite two marriages, she might fit in there too, after all she was sort of depicted as somewhat "masculine."
I agree with Fred. The son = the collective group of son's within the family lineage, including Jeanne. Is it just me or did anyone else notice that the Jeanne was referred to as Jeanne only when the author wrote about her life (childhood to early adulthood) prior to family business involvement. After she became involved in the family business, she was referred to as J.A in the chapter titles?
Its great when u get a bunch of readers pondering a similar question, IMO it should be called 'The Whole Family' lol, I mean Eli is the larger than life character but there are far more people in his family that are touched positively & negatively by him. The book obvious concentrates on 2 POV, but there are other 'Sons' that were glossed over, etc... If I had to guess I'd agree on the same linear thought of Linda, that 'The Son' title is just the result of a metaphor Jeannie represented thru the book, I believe there was a part she commented if only the colonel could see me now... along those lines of wishing he was around to approve of what she'd done?
...and yet maybe he called it "The Son" because the title "The Son Also Rises" had already been sort of taken.
I'm three quarters of the way through this and have been puzzling over the title since the beginning. Nothing works for me yet. Maybe I'll have some sort of epiphany. I am totally hooked on the breadth of the book. Big like Texas.
Be sure to share when you get to the end. You've read my comments, both serious and tongue in cheek.
Comment to come.
My words of wisdom. Why is the book called "The Son"? My guess is based on the following:"Most will be familiar with the date of my birth. The Declaration of Independence that bore the Republic of Texas out of Mexican tyranny was signed on March 2, 1836, in a humble shack at the edge of Brazos. .... I was the first male child of this new republic."
Colonel Eli McCullough was the "first male child", hence "The Son".
Eh?
Sounds as good as any of the other suggestions.
I think you nailed it!
RK-ique wrote: "My words of wisdom. Why is the book called "The Son"? My guess is based on the following:"Most will be familiar with the date of my birth. The Declaration of Independence that bore the Republic ..."
I'd buy that!
It is named the Son as the son of Texas. Eli was the son of Texas and then by legacy his sons and granddaughters were also sons of Texas.
I suspect it refers in a literal sense to the "aberrant" son of Colonel Eli, who refers to him in the WPA recording as "Seed of my destruction". The son who abhors the violence and repudiates Eli's claim to dominion. Consider this in terms of the Gibbon quote "spares neither man nor the proudest of his works...buries empires and cities in a common grave." The son represents the vicissitudes of fortune in the shape of an inevitable changing of the guard...
I didn't get the title either. But enjoyed the book. Felt like the way history should have been taught. And if that thought deters you, don't let it! It's a great read. And yes, you learn something too!
I think it's talking more about Peter. He didn't fulfill any of Eli's plans. He wasn't who everyone wanted to him to be. But he was Peter.
William wrote: "...and yet maybe he called it "The Son" because the title "The Son Also Rises" had already been sort of taken."That's hilarious. (The Son Also Rises). Well, I didn't truly get the title... though I may have hit on some of these suggestions. I am the one who didn't find the Family Tree until about page 200... couple pages must have stuck together when I first entered the book. Good God I needed it! Loved the story... Loved it... I currently live in San Antonio... so the history was very interesting.
The title resonates on a lot of levels. Eli says he was born as a first son of the new Republic. But the title also references the patrilineal tradition of passing titles and land to first born sons or favored sons. There are three narrators in the novel, two of whom are sons and one who wishes she were. As she transitions from Jeannie to J.A., she shows that she has "made it" in a man's world. Then, of course, there is also Peter's unrecognized son (born of the lines of both McCullough and Garcia) who is present at Jeannie's death. Layer after layer of sons.
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