Thursday, January 08, 2009

Just a quick note

Just a quick note tonight... I just watched a little T.V. and now I must scurry to finish a few chores before tomorrow.

I am doing Romeo and Juliet with my girls tomorrow. I definitely do not remember it being as bawdy as it is. Of course, when I read it in school I didn't have a line by line translation like I do now. It sounds a lot prettier in old English...and without the explanation of what exactly Shakespeare meant. I am sure I will skip over a few of the explanations! It is interesting though to think of his plays being performed. Even this tragic play has some (bawdy) humor. Wouldn't it be cool to witness a performance as it was all those years ago? see the audience reactions??

I just finished reading The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes.. a book Mom read and reported on earlier.
It was very interesting. I didn't think I would be able to read it at first because a girl becomes involved in a crime and ends up with the baby of a woman who dies. (She takes the baby and that horrifies me. But as you read you understand the circumstances and while it IS awful it is not as bad as you first imagine. )Well.... I got through that part and finished the book. The underlying theme is this: Can people change? Can you know someone one way for years (like 30) and then find out about their "secret" past? Does that effect you? Can you still love them?

This is the third book with this similar underlying theme that I have read and they have all had different results. In one, the wife could not forgive the past (which was horrific) even though she had been VERY happy for years with her husband. In another, The Reader, the man is sort of mesmerized when he finds out about the past... and tries in his own way to help but the resolution is not totally satisfactory. This story of CeeCee probably has the best ending of all three books.

Still, I find the idea behind these books intriguing. Hopefully we all grow in grace and love and life experience. Each of these characters has a criminal secret past. The characters totally turn their lives around and move forward but have not.. at least as the books begin.. paid for their crimes. If what we want (as a society)is rehabilitation then do they still need to pay?? Do we as a society only want rehabilitation or do we want repentance and punishment? Does it matter what the crime was and the circumstances under which it was committed?? I think so. I guess my answer differs for each case. HHMMMM
I hope that this wasn't too muddled. Trying to just articulate a few thoughts here..
I suppose I have gone on long enough... trying not to get those chores done I guess.

5 comments:

Milk & Cookie Party said...

Very intersting. As a society I think we assume that rehabilitation only comes after one has "paid" for their crime. However, I've heard cases, that only those in prison that come to know the Lord really have a change in their hearts. Others just seethe bitterness forever. Maybe it's just the opportunity to forgive themselves and want a different life. But we can't let folks run free to find that on their own with a criminal past. Interesting post- very thought provoking.

Love you!

Loveandadoor said...

I agree. I am not for letting criminals run free and in fact each of the characters mentioned ended up "serving time". What was intriguing I guess is the idea that someone you know and love could really "BE" someone else... having a past that you never even dreamed of. How does that effect your relationship once you know? The fact that these "criminals" were seemingly rehabilitated enough to go on and live a normal life is the secondary storyline or at least only one part of it. Thanks for sharing with me!!

Joyous said...

I haven't read the books so I don't know exactly what sort of crimes you are talking about but I think I would be ok with someone who may have committed a crime in their youth and was never caught but on their own decided to make amends as best they could and live a better life.

that said, it would be a shock to find out that someone you had known a long time had committed some horrible crime and you never knew.

Lynn said...

Oh I'm so glad you started this discussion/topic! I'm about to give you yet another book with this theme called VANISHING ACTS by Jodi Picoult. It is very good. It's about the crime of kidnapping-----your own child and not (anyone) finding out about it until 28 years later! Do you punish the kidnapper if he thinks his reasons are good ones? Should he have to pay? His daughter thinks her mother is dead all these years......but she is not. It's very very interesting.

I think when someone commits a crime it all depends on what the crime is of course----and how they've lived their life. Especially if it's the only crime they have ever committted. Maybe they've suffered themselves over the crime? Maybe it made no difference to their own personal growth. It's not an easy black/white answer.

This story is not like any of the others you've mentioned, and I think it will tweak your thinking....yet again!

Wendy said...

This is a great discussion. And, like you all said, I really think it depends on the crime and circumstances. Still, I cringe at the thought of reading a book like that. My mind just can't shut down and I turn into a fearful "what if" basket case. I've seen a couple of movies along these lines that were difficult for me. (I'm an avid reader, but I need to "get it over quick" if it involves crime.)

But what if there is no criminal past? The questions are still good ones: "Can people change? Can you know someone one way for years (like 30) and then find out about their "secret" past? Does that effect you? Can you still love them?" I think the answer is Yes to each question.