Even though at first sight this might seem like the usual teenage perception of the world, this statement might sometimes seem to come very close to reality. This might be a moment of clarification or a person that you despise. The statement, it seems, comes at a time when Hally stops imagining and comes to the cold realization of his father coming back home with his mother that night. He is back in the world where there are actual collisions and where it is not a dance floor like in his imagination. He is once again aware of his drunken and crippled father. This realization is, unfortunately, true to a certain extent. It is his reality that life is not a merry-go-round and that life, like a nigger’s ass, is not always going to be fair.
It is the teenager point-of-view that this cannot be changed and that life will always be miserable. Whether if it is Harold or Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye or most other teenagers in our day, they will most likely view life as a “grind.” They will only be able to focus on the gloomy sides of rather than realize what great potential they have. In this context, Holden decides to run away from his problems and Hally decided to blame Sam for all that is going wrong in his entire life. From his father’s drinking to he displeasure in being a son of a crippled man Hally decides to unleash all his anger on Sam. But what good does that do him? I would say none, if I were to be so blatant. Life can be so much more than a long and dark tunnel if we only come to realize that it is all in our hands to make our life what it is.
In “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” Randle McMurphy says “You can’t really be strong until you see a funny side to things.” This quote has touched me in a strong way I had not encountered in the works I’d read before. And to some extent it is related to the previous quote by Harold. In fact, it is quite the opposite of what Hally is saying. McMurphy is by nature, full of life and laughter. He enjoys life to the greatest measure and he knows how to feel good. When he says these words, you know that he actually means it, both in context of the book and out of it. It shows his outlook on life; his aim is to live freely and without letting anything get him down. And just maybe, this is what we learn as we progress from a teenager to an adult. You realize that life does not always work to “wreck” everything but that sometimes you actually do see the good. You learn to focus on the “funny” parts of even the sad things that go on around you. Maybe this is the way to being a grown-up. Savoring each experience and recalling the ironic, hilarious and worthy sides to it may be the best you can get out of life. You cannot live life with Hally’s point of view and expect to enjoy it. You have enjoy being where you are even if it eventually leads to a lobotomy like in the case of McMurphy (and yes, even then he smiles).
Through the book, Holden goes through the steps towards becoming a more mature individual and Hally fails to do so. While both crave for some human contact, Holden finds it in his sister, while Hally pushes the only person that he could connect to, Sam, away. Of course unfortunate events take place in life. Many of our loved ones pass away, or we grow apart. You may even fail your goals. But none of this should get you down. You have to see that there is so much more to see in life than just the upsetting parts.
In Hally’s case, escaping from the reality by daydreaming is what most of us resort to. It is the small twists of plot that we have in our minds or the completely new scenarios we create in brain that help us keep going at certain times. And when we come back down to earth and our feet touch the ground again, it a harsh and cold gust of wind that hits us hard on the face. This is what Hally experiences. Dreaming is not wrong. It is perhaps one of the greatest capabilities known man. The down side to it is coming back to reality. Facing the fact most of the time dreams might not come true at all. That is why it is important to not lose touch with reality. This is what happens to Hally. He goes so deep into believing that life is a dance floor, that when he realizes that he is bound to collide with his father he is deeply upset. He has to face the truth about his life and that is what gets him down. He is not able to see the “funny” side. He dives deeps into misery that he does not realize all that he could have.
Life is a more than a series of unfortunate events. It is true that humans tend to focus on the sorrow and the pain they experience. But the truth is that the essence of life is in the fun and the joy that we get out of living it. The fact that we can enjoy our experiences is what makes us who we are. What we gather from the memories we leave behind is essential to seeing that life is not a “wreck.” So as we live life, we should enjoy it and not be let down in the face of reality. The fact that some people miss this is the central reason why most people are so sad all the time. To be able to let go of what is behind and to detach ourselves from our sorrowful memories is the key to a more optimistic life. The enjoyment of life comes from enjoyment of the small details behind even the saddest of events. Seeing new opportunities be born from what we go through is the most amazing of sensations that we could ever wish to have.
