“The Marriage Cure” was a sad and powerful read. The article was well-written and kept me turning the pages. For me, I was taking a look into another world. Not only have I never experienced the true South, but I have never experienced poverty. I have never worried for my next meal or that my electricity or phone may be shut off. The article left me feeling somewhat helpless. There are so many ways in which people need help, and there are just too few willing or able to give it. What a character Corean was. The love and support she gave to her family and friends was inspiring. Each character, and especially her, were painted very honestly and deliberately. I’m very happy to have read this.
For the Post article, I have to admit (embarrassingly) that I did not know anything about this situation with Robin Madrid before reading, and so for me, while I see the lede as effective, I myself did not understand it as well as one who had been keeping up with the story (or the war, for that matter). It was effective in that it added suspense and tension to the piece immediately. The reader is intrigued and urged by it’s teases to read further.
I was thinking about your responses to these articles as I was reading them, knowing that you are from Jackson. I guess I am curious about how you felt your hometown was represented in Aupperlee’s writing? It struck me that he has a talent for turning the tragic or the unsavory into enlightening or uplifting narratives. Do you feel the same way? Or do you feel that these stories are unjust in any way or misrepresent your community? Also, have you read any other pieces by Aupperlee in your day-to-day life in Jackson/have any favorites? Sorry to bombard you with questions, but I feel like you have a really unique perspective on this reporter and his context and I’d love to hear more of your opinions about it all.
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I feel that in all of Aaron's pieces I've read thus far, he does a fine job in portraying Jackson in a true manner. It also struck me that he is able to turn depressing subjects into a story worth telling. Areas such as Chittock Street are not representative of the "nice" areas of town. Those are the areas you're more willing to hear shootings, robberies, drug deals, etc. come from. (Sad but true) Aaron's piece mentioned this just briefly in a comment from a resident on Chittock - Ben Willard's death. So yes, I absolutely agree that he is able to paint a much prettier picture than the reality of a situation, or maybe these are simply situations I cannot fully understand. No worries with bombarding me with questions :) I'm truly bummed we couldn't have this discussion with Aaron in class! He's a very cool guy, and shares many of my same views on the "Dirty J." Haha!
ReplyDeleteStephanie,
ReplyDeleteI am also interested in hearing more about how you think your hometown was portrayed. I think it's really intriguing that you don't know where Chittock Street is and wonder what that says about Aupperlee's writing. Should he have given his readers a better sense of place? Should he have given us more background? If people from Jackson don't even know where it is, what is that really suggesting? Perhaps he could have tied that in with the minimalist response the people there receive from the police department. It's really great that you can read these pieces from such an "insiders" perspective (though you admit to sometimes feeling like an "outsider.")
I feel that in Aaron writing a piece about Chittock Street, he or the Cit Pat is aiming to profile places that are often given little or no recognition, and especially for positive happenings. I think in this light, this story is both important and the given background is appropriate. I do have some idea of where Chittock is, although again I do not know the exact logistics. I didn't give credit to Aaron mentioning Francis Street, which I am wiling to bet is known - and well known at that - by all Jackson residents. As I said in my post though, Francis Street and that area in general are often viewed extremely negatively by residents who are from other areas of town (such as myself) - at least after lights out. SO, perhaps with Aaron's regular audience being Jackson-area residents, and not Kalamazoo College students from various areas of the country, he gave just enough information concerning the area Chittock is in!
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