Siddhartha Discussion

After reading the book, I discussed my opinions about various parts of the book with the person who recommended it to me, my older brother, Easton.

What do you think of Govinda as a character? How has Govinda been important as a character? What do you think the Author's purpose was in putting Govinda into the storyline?

I see a lot of myself in Govinda. He tends to not try to break the social mold and he adapts to each environment he is introduced to, whereas Siddhartha likes to push each situation to understand it's meaning and usefulness. I am sure that the author's role for Govinda was to establish an base of normality in which to compare Siddhartha. 

I found while reading this book, that the story closely relates to the movie Big Fish. In Big Fish, a man leaves a town that he is "too good for" to achieve his ambitions. In Siddhartha, Siddhartha leaves the Samonas which he is one of the most respected people in to reach his ambition which is enlightenment. What is your view on this connection?

I agree that the movie Big Fish follows a similar story structure, but for different reasons. In Siddhartha, the point of the journey was to achieve enlightenment, whereas in Big Fish it was to satisfy curiosity. Also, one main purpose of the journey in Big Fish was to legitimize the "tall tales" that the old man told the boy growing up. The movie was more of a fairy tale than an actual depiction of the subjects journey.

Who was the most memorable character in the book in your opinion? Why?

I suppose that the most memorable character in the story was Siddhartha which is obvious because the novel was about him. His lifelong trek led him to many different places and changed his life so radically. I am jealous of his bravery and spontaneity. I think we all wish we could be as adventurous as Siddhartha.

The book explained just about everything that Siddhartha learned from different things in the various settings. Did you learn anything new from the book? What was it?

I learned a lot about the Buddhist perspective from this book. Before I read it, I equated Buddhism with Communism. I assumed their religion was based on making sure that the entire community was satisfied and equal. I see now that Buddhists are not completely selfless. In fact, some Buddhists spend their entire lives seeking understanding of ones self. Of course, the way you treat others directly influences the way you see yourself and that is what makes the story of Siddhartha such a powerful subject.

Siddhartha 2

Overall, my favorite character so far has been the Ferryman. Siddhartha first encountered him on his way to the town and he seemed very wise. The Ferryman learned a lot of his life lessons from the river. For example, on the way to town, the ferryman explained that "everything comes back" everything goes full circle. He foresaw the future that Siddhartha would come back to the ferryman and pay his trip across the river in friendship to the ferryman. After Siddhartha left the town, he did just that.

The Ferryman seems to be a very easy going person with a friendly personality and I like that about him. Many people in this book seem polite and respectful towards one another, but very few of them give off a friendly vibe like the ferryman did. The ferryman is not nearly as adventurous as Siddhartha, as he does not leave the river too often. He is not as clever as Kamala, as most of his education has come from a river rather than a teacher. The ferryman in many ways is worse off than a great deal of the people in this book economically as he let's people go free under the assumption that one day they will pay him back, even if it is not with money. It is because of these reasons, that I favorite the ferryman above the other characters.

He is so very basic. His lack of complexity makes him the perfect guide for Siddhartha. His easy going lifestyle draws me in and makes me want to read more about him. His friendliness is a rarity in this book and gives plenty of relief. I would definitely have to say that the ferryman is by far my favorite character in this entire book.

Siddhartha 1

I was away on a trip for a week shortly after finishing To Be Frank Diego and I brought Siddhartha with me so that I may read it while I was there. On the upside, I got a good portion of the book finished and I am enjoying it a lot so far. On the downside, I haven't been able to make a blog post until now (which may or may not actually be a downside depending on your perspective). That being said, let's get started.

When I started reading the book, Siddhartha came across to me as sort of a Gary Stu - a character that is better than everyone else at everything. This initially led me to dislike him. Upon trying to convince his father to let him leave the homeland, he stood perfectly still without food or water for 24 hours. His knees were shaking and he admitted that he would die waiting here if his father did not let him leave. Eventually, he got permission to do so. He left to investigate "Gotama", the man who achieved enlightenment (which I am not certain if this person is the Buddha). This shows something that Siddhartha is not better than everyone else at. It shows that there is someone "greater". Later on, Siddhartha leaves Gotama to find his own enlightenment. He comes to a town where he lives life as a citizen. He gambled, worked a job, and all the other things that the average person does. When he got to the town, however, he admitted that he was only good at 3 things: fasting, waiting, and thinking. It was at this point that I changed my mind about Siddhartha and the more I read, the more clear it became that he has many weaknesses, but does a good job of working around them using his strengths.

Siddhartha Interview

My older brother Easton has always been a person who I have found to have a good taste in stories, so I went to him to ask for a recommendation for my second book. His replies were not as thorough as I would have liked. Looking back I realize that the questions I asked were not as thought invoking to him as I expected. Either way, I am going on a trip tomorrow in which I won't have access to the internet and won't be able to reply. Here are his answers to my questions.

What book would you recommend for me to read?

Sidhartha

What genre is it?

Fiction Novel

Why would you recommend it?

I very much enjoyed Siddhartha and I think that you will too.

How old were you when you read it?

26

Did you read it multiple times? If so, how were your views on the book different the second time?

No. I only read it once, but I would like to read it again.

 

What was going on in your life when you read the book?

Pretty much the same that is going on today.

Do you have anything else to add?

I heard about Siddhartha from a friend while having coffee at Borders. I don't see those friends very often so this book reminds me of them.

To Be Frank Diego 2

Just earlier today, I read a chapter in this book called "Ghetto is Not an Adjective". In this chapter, a man named Che wrote and recited a poem upon the poem he wrote becoming relevant. As the title suggests, the poem criticizes the use of the word ghetto as an adjective; but the poem goes a lot deeper than that. It touches into the modernized view of "the ghetto" and how the media has morphed our view of what is not much different than the middle class.

The poem itself is very well written and meaningful. Every time I hear the word ghetto now, I am going to think of this poem. After Che finished the poem, he left and the two teenage Spanish speaking girls that misused the word ghetto (which started the whole poem thing) called him "loco". This part of the chapter I found that I could relate to a lot. As a performer myself, I have noticed that many people (at least in San Diego) are either inconsiderate or rude towards people who have the guts to stand up in public and go outside the norm for a good cause. I know personally if I was on that bus, I would have followed Che out and praised him for his performance.

To Be Frank Diego 1

I haven't read much of To Be Frank Diego as of yet. In fact, I have only gotten to page 38. But in those 380 pages, I have seen more character development than I have in any book I've read for a while. Perhaps it is because this is the only first-person view book that I have read in a while.

In the first chapter (the chapters are very short and only 2 or so pages long), I learned that the main character's name is Francisco, but everyone calls him Frank. He is 33 years old, half-Mexican, and starts his journey in his parents' house. This is the amount of character development that I expected in the first chapter of the book. It is in the next chapters from then on that contain a vast majority of character development.

In chapter two, we meet the family, or rather, hear about them. The mom is the only technologically adept person in the family and thinks food is the answer to all of life's problems (as Frank puts it). The dad drives too fast, is the least technologically adept, points out the obvious frequently, and avoids technological advances (aside from the remote for the TV) since the late 1970's. The dad drives and the mom backseat drives. Kate who Frank still refers to as his girlfriend has been mentioned multiple times thus far followed by a general statement about how Frank still refers to her as his girlfriend (which shows Frank's insecurities?). Chapter two also introduces the setting: Beautiful Sunny San Diego, which is already criticized for its poor public transportation and media that continually avoids important issues and instead fills its papers with things about trees and the newest info on the Chargers.

Many of these chapters contain plenty of character and setting development which makes for a very good story thus far in my opinion. I am really enjoying this book.

To Be Frank Diego Interview

Dominic Carrillo was (and as of yet, still is) my favorite Humanities teacher out of every teacher I have had thus far (Sorry Rachel, but I haven't had you as a teacher yet). I respect his knowledge about world history and creative writing as well as the way he teaches and how he made me (and from what I have gathered, most people in his class) important in my own way. Because of my respect for him, it is only natural that I would want to read his book. Being modest, he didn't really "recommend" his own book to me, but I decided I wanted to read it anyways. So, I sent him interview questions about the book shortly after I returned from my trip to UC Berkeley at the start of summer vacation. Here is what he said.

Based off of what you know about my interests, why would you recommend "To Be Frank Diego" for me to read?

Well, you strike me as a thoughtful person-- one who is critical of his surroundings and not quite convinced that San Diego is the best place on earth. The main character, Frank Diego, is in a similar boat, so to speak. He has grown up in sunny San Diego and has been lulled into it's complacent charms, but he has grown tired of it. He wants-- he needs-- something new, and he's making fun of his hometown; being critical of his city's culture. I think you might relate to Frank in this regard, as well as with the identity issues. I think everyone must think about who they are at some point in life, regardless of ethnic background.

When did you start writing this book?

I started writing this book almost 3 years ago. I was sick and bedridden in Guatemala. I couldn't do much more than read or write, and i had been putting off this "Frank Diego" idea for months. I knew what I had wanted to write about, so it just took me being ill and stuck in bed to actually start the long process.  

How many drafts did you go through with this book before it was published?

It's hard to say just how many drafts because after about six I stopped counting. Of course, after each draft was finished, I thought I was finished! Done.  Then I would let the manuscript sit for weeks or an entire month before I read it again. I didn't need an editor to tell me what I was re-reading was crap. At first it was crap, then it became readable, then each time it was revised, it would become more and more polished until I felt that it was ready and professional enough-- 10 revisions later! Having said that, there were still a few errors, but I suppose that's inevitable when creating a novel that's nearly 50,000 words and only having one hired editor.  

Was there ever a time where you were thinking of giving up?

Yes, I thought about giving up after two close friends read one of the early drafts. They said they liked it, but I could read in their eyes that they weren't excited about it; they didn't believe in it. They were just being kind and supportive friends. That's when I knew I had my work cut out for me. And I realized that I had to believe in it wholeheartedly if I was going to continue. I convinced myself that I did , but I was also teaching full time at HTH at that time, so Frank Diego was put on hold for a while. I suppose it could have permanently been put on hold if it weren't for the encouragement of friends and family members, and the editor of the SD Reader who kept publishing excerpts from the novel.

What stopped you from finishing this book earlier? What specifically inspired you to finish it?

What stopped me from finishing this novel in one year (rather than almost three) was time and the fact that I'm slow. I'm slow in general, but it was also my first novel. I hear they come out quicker after you get one under your belt. I'm also a slow writer. I like to take my time with revising and re-writing. I've learned that I absolutely need to let my writing sit for days or weeks before returning to it with fresh eyes. The other thing was TIME. When you have a full time job that includes the responsibility of 60 young students' education, it takes up a lot of time. At the end of the day, there's just not enough time and energy remaining to write a novel. 

What inspired me to finish it was myself and my students. I was a teacher admonishing students for not revising well or not finishing their writing assignments! I couldn't be a complete hypocrite and say that to them while I sat on an unfinished novel. I couldn't speak of professionalism and responsibility and not apply that to myself. I also didn't want to be that high school English teacher that always wanted to write a novel-- even had an unfinished manuscript in his desk drawer-- but never finished it. I didn't want to regret something like that. Life is short, and it gets even shorter in your mid 30's. When I considered all of that, I had to finish. 

What was going on in your life at the time you were writing this book? Do you think that may have affected your writing?

When I wrote the first draft, I was in Guatemala for five weeks and had just broken up with my girlfriend. 'Or had she broken up with me?' It was a strange but valid question that I wanted to explore. I was hurt emotionally, but hadn't dealt with it at all. That first draft was more like a memoir, but a bitter and sarcastic one. It was my venting exercise. At first I thought it was funny, but when I re-read the story Frank Diego sounded like an insensitive bastard. It wasn't funny. It wasn't even my voice. I must not have been in the best mood. So with each re-write, Frank Diego became his own character who became less and less like me in Guatemala-- although he is still kind of my alter ego. Likewise, Kate became less and less like my ex-girlfriend as I revised and re-wrote. I like basing characters on real people, but I also enjoy fictionalizing them too.

In your disclaimer, you state that the book is fiction. Are there characters of the book that were influenced from real life people? 

I answered this question a bit in my previous response, but I will add something here. Yes, I do base characters in my stories on real people. I do this because I enjoy stories and characters that sound authentic -- that sound real; like the truth. Some people read to escape into other worlds that don't really exist. I don't. I read to gain a deeper insight and perspective on ordinary everyday people-- the kind you bump into at school or the grocery store. Then, the fun part is taking those real characters, and playing with the action and their dialogue. That makes them fictional and allows me to be creative with the story and add some humor. I think I base characters on real people because I like books that seem real-- like the author was there, living it-- maybe only observing the experience, but somehow a part of it. 

Do you have anything else to add?

Great questions, Kenan. Thank you. If you like my novel, be sure to recommend it on Goodreads, to your friends, and to your new English teacher-- Rachel!!!