To Deceive, or not to Deceive
To Deceive, or not to Deceive David Mitchell’s Black Swan Green was a bit of a change of pace from Fun Home . Featuring the youngest protagonist that we’ve seen, Jason is finally a character who has less life experience than all of us. Unfortunately for him, that means that he’s living through arguably one of the most challenging parts of his life, one where he is repressed and attacked at almost every corner. I’d like to specifically focus on one common theme that is presented throughout the novel, the theme of deception. Throughout the story (even confession?), Jason suggests that he feels repressed with secrets and false truths at school and even at home, with a social hierarchy that dominates him at school, and the stress of knowing that something is amiss with his parents. Right off the bat, Jason is shown breaking the number 1 rule in his house, to not enter his father's office, but immediately, a mindset of keeping secrets is established. It starts with: “Do not set fo...