Disability may only be a matter of judgement. This concept appears in Homer and Langley, where Edgar Lawrence Doctorow depicts the possibilities in the life of a blind protagonist, Homer Collyer. Although Homer discerns darkness in a negative connotation, darkness can only be seen and sight is not the only sense for humans. Thus, blindness does not replace the senses or disconnect the Collyer brothers from the world. In a passage on page 159, Langley Collyer’s theory of replacement enables Homer to explore the advantages of his disability which include interacting with the world in a different perspective to maintain his valuable memories, developing positive views about his disability and adapting to other senses. Doctorow incorporates Langley’s
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The verb “fly” and its association with birds express the feeling of extreme freedom and energy. Since the house is a motif for Homer’s and Langley’s memories, the hippies exiting the house like being freed suggests that the Collyer brothers are willing to let go of the world around them. Everything the Collyer brothers are attach to goes through the house, as well as the hippies. This implies that the brothers want to maintain a certain memory of the hippies or the world, but people migrate so it is not possible to conserve them. Doctorow describes the scene where the characters exit the house with a stunning imagery and a comparison to the birds. These descriptions allow the readers to understand that the hippies are a part of the glamorous moments of the Collyer brothers’ lives. The theory of replacement states that everything will be replaced. Thus, the hippies exiting the house indicates how this group of people are replaced by a new generation of people. These hippies are crucial to the developments of Homer and Langley because the Coyller brothers …show more content…
Towards the resolution of the story, Homer loses his hearing. Now floating in space with no sight nor sound, Homer is disconnected to the world he used to be in. However, he is attached to another new world. Despite Homer’s disability, Homer is able to explore the world and develop in his own way. Eventually, E.L. Doctorow enhances the reader’s interpretation of the world by creating the world of Langley and Homer
The verb “fly” and its association with birds express the feeling of extreme freedom and energy. Since the house is a motif for Homer’s and Langley’s memories, the hippies exiting the house like being freed suggests that the Collyer brothers are willing to let go of the world around them. Everything the Collyer brothers are attach to goes through the house, as well as the hippies. This implies that the brothers want to maintain a certain memory of the hippies or the world, but people migrate so it is not possible to conserve them. Doctorow describes the scene where the characters exit the house with a stunning imagery and a comparison to the birds. These descriptions allow the readers to understand that the hippies are a part of the glamorous moments of the Collyer brothers’ lives. The theory of replacement states that everything will be replaced. Thus, the hippies exiting the house indicates how this group of people are replaced by a new generation of people. These hippies are crucial to the developments of Homer and Langley because the Coyller brothers …show more content…
Towards the resolution of the story, Homer loses his hearing. Now floating in space with no sight nor sound, Homer is disconnected to the world he used to be in. However, he is attached to another new world. Despite Homer’s disability, Homer is able to explore the world and develop in his own way. Eventually, E.L. Doctorow enhances the reader’s interpretation of the world by creating the world of Langley and Homer