In Persuasion Nation
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The author of “In Persuasion Nation”, George Saunders, is a very talented and creative writer, but also can be quite exaggerative. In one of his more popular short stories “Jon”, he tells of a child who has lived in a factory his entire life. Jon becomes an idol for other children as he constantly tests out the newest, most innovative toys. In “The Myth of Sisyphus”, by Albert Camus, the main character Sisyphus is condemned a fate in which he constantly rolls a rock to the top of a hill, only for it to fall back down to the bottom again. George Saunders also creates multiple “cartoons” in the actual story of “In Persuasion Nation” where different characters battle it out to express Saunders imagination and exaggeration of many American flaws and the control of the country through media.
The stories of “Jon” and “The Myth of Sisyphus” seem to have distinct similarities in the sense that they both contain characters that know little of worldly societies. For instance, Sisyphus experiences his fate of rolling a rock up a hill continually for it to come back down, he knows of nothing else. “This universe henceforth without a master seems to him neither sterile nor futile. Each atom of that stone, each mineral flake of that night-filled mountain, in itself forms a world. The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a mans heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy” (p.3). The author is stating that since he knows of nothing else, he has no opinion on this constant worthless deed he is completing endlessly. He is unknowledgeable of worldly experiences, such as love, pain, failure, and success. He does not feel a sense of uselessness because he has no knowledge of any other type of action or accomplishment. In the story “Jon”, Jon also has a different outlook on life because he is isolated from the outside world. He has a crush on the girl staying in the box next to him named Caroline. He compares his feelings toward Caroline to a product in his factory. “And though I had many times seen LI 34321 for Honey Grahams, where the stream of milk and the stream of honey enjoin to make that river of sweet-tasting goodness, I did not know that upon making love, one person may become like the milk and the other like the honey” (p.26). I believe that love itself cannot be compared to any other word, let alone a type of cereal. However, Jons recluse from society keeps him uninformed about love and all he can compare it to is one of his products. This example relates closely to Sisyphuss lack of knowledge about anything except for pushing a rock eternally, and having no feelings or other experiences to compare it to.
In one of Saunders examples in “In Persuasion Nation” he depicts a battle between a Wendys GrandeChickenBoatCombo and Abe Lincoln. The Wendys Combo asks, “Anybody else think a great-tasting poultry-nautical treat is loads more fun than this old fuddy?” (p.167).