EL & IN by Dylann Ruiz

Yes & No palms- Maya

mcrawford9678 — 2024-05-16 16:02:53 UTC

Foer inserts an image of the grandpas tattoed hand to convey a message of opening up and trusting. Oskars grandpa finally opens up to him and shows him what he had been hiding. Before the images are inserted in the text, Oskar asks himself a question, “What about digging up Dads empty coffin?” (259). This is significant because an odd question is asked, and the palms of his grandpas hands follow. It makes the reader wonder if Oskar is seriously considering digging up his fathers coffin, while also showing what Oskar sees visually.

Collection of Letters which morph into each other - Jack Godsil

jgodsil4855 — 2024-05-16 16:14:48 UTC

Foer uses imagery through a cluster of words to illustrate the confusion and grief the Grandpa feels after hearing the last words of his son. From pages 281 to 284, the words gradually fold into each other and morph into a large cluster of words. Here, Foer is effectively illustrating the disillusionment Grandpa's brain, to give insight into the thoughts of the Grandpa Character. By doing so, Foer elevates the readers understanding of the mysterious character and a deeper understanding of the character is revealed. Because of past trauma, the Grandpa's brain is so disgruntled that Foer leads us to believe that the cluster of words is how he thinks, which would support the reason why he can no longer speak. After the events in Dresden, his mind began deteriorating and Foer establishes this with these images.

Numbers-Dylann

druiz2856 — 2024-05-17 15:39:32 UTC

Foer inserted the numbers to convey a message that the grandpa wanted to say but could not. After learning about his son's death, the grandpa tried to reach the grandma but couldn't because of his inability to talk, so he could only press the numbers on his phone "6,9,6,2,6,3,4,7,3,5,4,3,2,5,8,6,2,6,3,4,5,8,7,8,2,7,7,4,8,3..." (Foer 269) The message was the only way he could speak to her because he couldn't. The message most likely explained why he left and hoped to tell her everything. The inability to talk was heartbreaking to see because he had so much he wanted to say, but only he could understand. The way that he is unable to say anything while he has so much to say can be referenced to how the people of New York felt after 9/11: Having so many emotions but not knowing how to express it

Doorknob - Jack Godsil

jgodsil4855 — 2024-05-17 15:49:51 UTC

Throughout the text, there are fleeting images of doorknobs. The origin of these images stems from the Grandpa's story in Dresden when he burns his hand on a doorknob. The significance of the images represents his isolation from the world around him. Foer uses a doorknob with a key image to illustrate how the Grandpa character is locked away in isolation. This image represents the Grandpa's desire for privacy and is left in despair. When Oskar finds the key, Foer suggests that he is the one to figuratively open the door and re-introduce the Grandpa into the world.

One sentence on each page- Maya

mcrawford9678 — 2024-05-17 16:01:09 UTC

Foer puts only 1 sentence on each page after the images of grandpas hands are shown. He does this because these short sentences are important, and this format accentuates it's importance. One of the sentences say "I don't speak, I'm sorry" (262). This is the grandpa writing is his journal. Because he is unable to speak, he must write everything down. He repeats that he feels sorry he has to do so, although it is not his fault. The way that Foer has formated it shows its extreme importance & meaningfulness.

Crossed out words-Dylann

druiz2856 — 2024-05-17 16:04:07 UTC

Foer inserted a crossed-out word to illustrate the unpleasantness of being crossed out and replaced it with a more kind yet obscure word. As the Grandpa landed down in Manhattan for the first time in 40 years, there were things that the grandpa told the man but said, " To mourn(crossed out) try to live"(Foer 273). The Grandpa was supposed to be talking to someone but was most likely talking to himself, telling himself to live for his son. All the Grandpa wants to do right now is mourn over the death of his son, but he is telling himself to try to live for him instead. He wishes that he could have helped him in some way, but he couldn't, so the best thing that he can do for his dead son is to live for him instead.

Overlapped images - Mateo

mbernal0328 — 2024-05-17 16:22:20 UTC

Foer shows this picture during Oskar and Mr.Black's trip to the Empire State Building while looking for the people with the last name black. The image is a representation of Oskar's hallucinations from his anxiety of being up the skyscraper. Oskar describes the Empire State Building being destroyed in the same way as the Twin Towers. When reaching the top Oskar's mind immediately went to "imagining a plane coming at the building"(Foer 244) and putting himself in a fight or flight mindset. Flight for Oskar was him considering how he would have to run down 85 flights of stairs and fight would be calling someone before he dies. Foer writes his story in a way where we see the effects of trauma before the cause is revealed or completely understood by the reader and this segment is the first time we see from Oskar's point of view while having an anxiety attack and believing he is in immediate danger.