Throughout
Light in August there is a constant motif of characters that do not fit into society. An example of this is Joe Christmas and his constant struggles within society because of his biracial heritage. Lena Grove further exemplifies this motif with the reaction of the society she is in to her pregnancy. I have noticed that almost every book we have read as a class this year contians this same motif. Including Meursault in
the Stranger, Edna in
the Awakening, and even King Lear.
I've noticed that too -- our book choices seem to be very anti-societal in nature. I think one of the significant things about that is the fact that it is easier to see how society works from the outside. We can't get an unbiased perspective on how our society works unless we view it from the outside. Otherwise we will continue blindly accepting society's ideologies and values. By detaching ourselves from our culture, we are better able to evaluate it.
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