Be Your Own Support (Literary Essay)

Be Your Own Support

By: Vainavi Gambhir

In life, it is common to lose someone very close to your heart. And especially when that person has supported you during tough times, it hurts to let them go. This is what happens to Caitlyn, a girl suffering from Asperger’s syndrome, in Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine, when she loses her brother, Devon, and loses all support. As the book progresses, she then finds a solution- closure.

In this book, Caitlyn loses her brother Devon, and life seems confusing. She needs company and someone to talk to, but nobody in her class is willing to be her friend. She then realizes that to overcome Devon’s death, and find closure, she needs to finish his incomplete project- his chest. Then comes the part where she completes what she set off for, and in the end it is a proud moment for the whole family.

Caitlyn was the most affected of all by Devon’s death since she was coping with both loss and her syndrome. She needed a friend and someone to talk to, someone to support her, which is why during school she would try making friends, but couldn’t find much except people demeaning her. “He turns his head to me and whispers, Loser. I know, I tell him, but I’m going to keep trying.” - (pg. 154) She didn’t give up and showed determination to either make the right friends, or have no friends at all. On page 171 and 173 of the book, the way Caitlyn tried making friends with Mia and Laura showed she was desperate, but instead she received unkind comments from them, and so it was decided they were not going to be her friends. This part of the book really brought out the message that everyone needs friends, and especially for a person who lost all support and has their own pressures, making friends becomes both essential and hard.

In this book, the author, Kathryn Erskine showed symbolism in her writing. Devon’s incomplete chest showed the significance of what was missing all along- the finished chest, just like the complete Devon was missing. After Caitlyn completed Devon’s chest, she felt a sense of closure that Devon was complete, exactly like his chest, and the feeling of closure she got was what she was missing all along. Caitlyn shouts, “DEVON’S CHEST! HIS EAGLE SCOUT PROJECT!” - (pg. 151）This quote is suitable to show how determined Caitlyn was to finish what her brother had set off to do.

By finishing Devon’s incomplete project, Caitlyn found her sense of closure. She persevered, from struggling to find friends to finishing an incomplete chest of Devon’s. This proved to be a proud moment for not only her, but the whole family, as Caitlyn now knows she completed a close object of Devon’s, and as a result, gained her closure, and felt satisfied. In the end, confronting your challenges and finding a way that helps you stay strong is what we should all do when we confront a difficult situation. There is always a way to find closure, and when support is not there for you, be your own support.

Reflection:

What I liked most about the book Mockingbird, was that it portrayed the characters in a very complex, yet understandable way. I could connect to certain parts of the story, and agree that life isn't always easy. My book club gave good quality discussions which helped me understand some points I missed. We all took turns in talking, and it was interesting to see the different views of my members. Belonging to this club helped me grow by speaking and discussing, and I got a better understanding of the book. As a writer, I have grown a lot. I can now use elements like transitions in my writing, and I learned something new- succinct summaries. Some challenges I faced while writing my essay were finding direct quotes from the book that precisely supported my claim. I have definitely surprised myself as a writer by trying a genre based on a book. Literary essays were very fun to learn!