900 word post

Fathers, Sons and Brothers author Brett Lott uses great detail in his writing to create powerful imagery. This is paramount to his success as a writer. Some may doubt that such minor details could be generated on an event that took place decades ago. On the other hand, I believe that these details are genuine and not just made up for the sake of the story.

When something really has an impact on your life, you are more likely to remember it. In Brett Lott's case he seems to remember every single detail about it. For example on page 147 he writes, "a johnboat lying upside-down in a side yard, its flat bottom and squared-off ends in sharp contrast to the soft jasmine tendrils snaking up a trellis beside the house; a row of crab nets hung from eaves of a carriagehouse; a tree fort high in the fork of an oak, up the trunk a crooked row of two-by-four pieces nailed by a child's hand." This paints an amazing picture, one which I can actually see with my own eyes. I suppose the question with this passage is could Lott actually remember all of those details and be able to put it on paper so perfectly after so much time has passed. I would argue yes, this is a realistic scenario. The drive to Wadmalaw seems to have had a huge impact on his life. We know this from the following passage, "Though she does not know it yet, the view form here is the most beautiful gift I can remember Melanie giving me, and already I'm lining up words in my head to give back to her once we drive back home.... words that will amount, I know already, only to a meager translation of all I've seen" (149). This quote tells me a lot about the author. First, I think it helps me understand his entire purpose for writing this memoir. He is obviously better at writing his words and thoughts down than actually saying them. I believe that this is contrary to what we talked about in class. In class we said that he was almost wasting his time writing this because he would never be able to capture what he saw and felt. I feel like he did capture his surroundings and his feelings through the words and details that he used. After reading this, I would bet that his wife, Melanie, now understands how great of a gift she gave him. Second, I believe that this is testament to the fact that these details are genuine. Why would he make up details about a story that seems so insignificant to us? If he was trying to impress us with his writing and detailed stories, he would probably apply them to a cool story. Maybe something about a fight he was in or something crazy that happened to him. Not this story about a simple drive through an isolated island. What I am getting at is that making up details, especially in the passage I selected, would serve very little purpose.

Another thing that Brett Lott does well is recall quotes of what people said. Some may argue he remembers them too well, but I believe that the quotes he used in the memoir were very significant to his life. These quotes taught him life lessons, created bonds between two people and reminded him of the past. A quote coming from Uncle Lynn helps illustrate my point, " Only through concentrated effort... can one achieve one's goals. Sowing wild oats should be one of your goals" (page 56). It is obvious why this would stick out to Brett. At the time it was probably very awkward, but this awkwardness also made it very memorable. The quote also defines Brett's relationship with his Uncle Lynn. Lynn never had that father-son relationship so he fills this void by making these kind of statements to Brett. A few sentences later Lott writes, "He loved to use words, I came to see during that week, and articulated each one so that it sat by itself for a fraction of an instant between us before the next one arrived." This shows how the previous quote had an impact on Brett Lott. Through hearing his uncle talk, he learned how to use words. Lott has applied this lesson on words to his writing. I get that same kind of feeling described when reading his work. With all of these factors working for him, how could he not precisely remember all of these quotes. It is not just in the last quote where there are so many reasons for him to remember it, but in every quote of the memoir. I have gone threw a lot of the book looking for some irrelevant quotes, quotes that there is no way he could possibly remember. So far I have not been able to find any. All of the ones I have come across are either about significant moments in his life or more recent memories. An additional example can be found on page 49. Lott quotes one of his coworkers, Red, as saying, "Seventy-two dollars and sixteen cents... Now how the hell am I suppose to live off this?" Like many of the other quotes in this book this played a significant role in his life. This is the point in his life where Lott realized that work was work and serious business. It was not all about just making money for the movies or saving up for a bike, it was a matter of living and providing. This event also put everything into perspective for him. On the next page he explains this by saying, "This wasn't fun, but a job. How you lived."

Through evaluating the above sources I have determined that Brett Lott has the ability to remember specific details about the past. He is able to do this with extreme clarity and detail. I believe that this detail and clarity is genuine and not created for the sake of the story.