Working Annotated Bibliography : The Fault in Our Stars
As I’ve researched The Fault in Our Stars, I’ve realized that it fits under two genres: tragic romances and what I will call “cancer books”. I’ve come to find that how the characters and their philosophies (specifically existentialism and surrealism) fit into these archetypes tries to convey something about the nature of life and the nature of love. So I think that I will be delving into Hazel, Augustus, and possibly Peter Van Houten and whether or not they fulfill their character archetypes, and I will also be doing more research on existentialism and surrealism, since those two schools of thought seem to be at war in the novel.
1. [magazine article found using EBSCO]
Burton, Tara Isabella. “Existentialism for Millenials.” America Magazine, America Media, 5 August 2019, pp. 32-35.
This is an article that explains how millennials view the school of thought known as existentialism. It argues that this philosophy is becoming more and more popular among youth of today, which is interesting considering The Fault in Our Stars consists of a lot of existential themes, and the main character, Hazel, seems to be an existentialist (and a millenial) herself. This article could help me to understand more about what existentialism is, where it exists, and why it is popular today so that I can better understand themes and symbolism used throughout the book.
2. [print book found by reading the interview with John Green on Goodreads]
Esther, Lori, and Wayne Earl. This Star Won’t Go Out: The Life and Words of Esther Grace Earl. Dutton Books for Young Readers, 2014.
This book actually happens to be about the girl who inspired Hazel Grace Lancaster (the protagonist of The Fault in our Stars). Since I will be focusing a lot on Hazel Grace and the archetype of her “sick girl” character, it might be informative to learn about the actual girl who inspired the character. It would be interesting to learn whether or not John Green changed her to fit an archetype or not.
3. [interview with John Green found on Goodreads]
Green, John. Interview by Jade Chang. Goodreads, 4 Dec 2012, https://www.goodreads.com/interviews/show/828.John_Green. Accessed 22 March, 2020.
This is an interview that John Green had specifically about The Fault in our Stars and what inspired him to write it. He talks a lot in this interview about archetypes and how dangerous they are, which makes me think that he is probably purposefully straying from archetypes instead of fulfilling them, like I previously thought.
4. [radio interview with John Green found by using Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors]
Green, John. Interview by Scott Simon. “‘Star’-Crossed: When Teens With Cancer Fall in Love.” Weekend Edition Saturday, 28 Jan 2012, https://www.npr.org/2012/01/28/145903081/star-crossed-when-teens-with-cancer-fall-in-love. Accessed 22 March, 2020.
This is another interview where John Green talks about The Fault in Our Stars, but here he talks more specifically about the people that inspired the book- not specifically Esther Earl, but other sick children who he spoke in depth with. He discusses how we as a society tend to view sick people, and why we should try to fix the way we view them. This could be useful if I wanted to add a bit of Critical Disabilities Analysis into my paper.
5. [magazine article found using EBSCO]
Silverman, Marcus M. “Rene Magritte and the Denial of Meaning.” Modern Psychoanalysis, Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies, 2012, pp. 69-98.
This is an article about Rene Magritte, who painted the famous “Ceci n’est pas une pipe”, which is a work of surrealism referenced a few times in The Fault in our Stars. After reading a little bit of it, it seems that Rene Magritte and the character of Peter Van Houten have a lot in common, and they both echo themes of surrealism presented throughout the book. They both address the idea that this life is all we get, and that we shouldn’t look for meaning in it, because there is none. The difference between this and existentialism seems to be a prevalent conflict in the novel, and it is important to know the difference between the two in order to prove my thesis.
6. [youtube video found by searching “john green the fault in our stars” on youtube]
“The Fault in Our Stars Special | John Green.” YouTube, uploaded by Puffin Books, 6 Feb 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ue3P0bLD7g.
This is a youtube video in which John Green talks about the genre of “cancer books”. He actually lists out clearly the archetypes of “the sick character” and “the healthy character” and the basic premise of all “cancer books” and talks about what he wanted to do specifically with his “cancer book”. This will help me understand the archetypes that I am to focus on and whether Hazel and Gus fit those archetypes.
This is a youtube video in which John Green talks about the genre of “cancer books”. He actually lists out clearly the archetypes of “the sick character” and “the healthy character” and the basic premise of all “cancer books” and talks about what he wanted to do specifically with his “cancer book”. This will help me understand the archetypes that I am to focus on and whether Hazel and Gus fit those archetypes.
I think the fact that our young adult readers are interested in philosophy is really telling of our era, and could be what distinguishes us from post-modernism. Maybe you could make comparisons to post-modernistic writers and existentialist stories of the past to our stories now.
ReplyDeleteJohn Green seems to take a similar approach as what you've described in your post about avoiding archetypes and exploring philosophical question in his other books as well, like in "Turtles All the Way Down." I like what you said about adding the critical disabilities lens into your paper--I think you could fit it in nicely with the archetypal criticism by talking about what our perceptions of sick people are and how they are fulfilled/not fulfilled in contemporary times.
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