The Perks Of Being A Wallflower is a story about a 15-year-old boy Charlie who is about to start high school. The book is written in epistolary (letter) form from Charlie’s point of view. Charlie lives with his parents, an elder brother who is great at playing football, and a beautiful, popular elder sister. Apparently, Charlie’s best friend Micheal has committed suicide before the story begins and it is quite clear through the letters that he is trying to cope up with the loss and is still processing out things by “participating” in life.
Charlie is very passive and introverted and often goes unnoticed by people. He is very sensitive and cries often. But mostly he is invested in observing and feeling. He comes out as someone who finds it comfortable to be on the side-lines than actually participating in life. Later in the book, we discover the issues and events that might have shaped his personality to be the way it is.
Patrick then said something I don’t think I’ll ever forget.
“He’s a wallflower.”
And Bob really nodded his head. And the whole room nodded their head. And I started to feel nervous in the Bob way, but Patrick didn’t let me get too nervous. He sat down next to me.
“You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand.”
Charlie starts hanging out with two seniors at the high school, Sam and Patrick, both of whom are step-siblings. They are kind and friendly and introduce him to music, new experiences and new friends. With them, Charlie finds himself coming out of the shell. Experiencing the dynamic world of a high school life with Sam and Patrick by his side, Charlie encounters school politics and drama, awkward first dates, conversations, etc. Patrick and Sam also introduce him to a world of experimentation with alcohol and drugs, guiding him as he makes new friends and tries to find out where he belongs amid all the partying, music soundtracks and life’s unexpected twists and turns.
“And I thought about how many people have loved those songs. And how many people got through a lot of bad times because of those songs. And how many people enjoyed good times with those songs. And how much those songs really mean. I think it would be great to have written one of those songs. I bet if I wrote one of them, I would be very proud. I hope the people who wrote those songs are happy. I hope they feel it's enough. I really do because they've made me happy. And I'm only one person.”
However, in the midst of all the adventurous and fancy new experiences, Charlie is struggling with his emotions and thoughts. An unknown sadness and anxiety often cripple him. The rawness with which Charlie writes and chooses his words in the letters is evidence of the mental turbulence he is going through. It is almost like he is suppressing certain past demons (which actually is the case).
“So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be.”
“I don’t know if you’ve ever felt like that. That you wanted to sleep for a thousand years. Or just not exist. Or just not be aware that you do exist. Or something like that. I think wanting that is very morbid, but I want it when I get like this. That’s why I’m trying not to think. I just want it all to stop spinning.”
All through Charlie’s letters, there are both heart-warming and heart-wrenching moments. However, in the final episodes of this book, Charlie faces his past as a result of 'certain events' (I don’t want to spoil the plot). And comes out of it at peace and a better understanding of people and the reason for the way they are and the things they do.
“So, I guess we are who we are for alot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there. We can still do things. And we can try to feel okay about them.”
I am really in awe of how subtly Stephen Chbosky has put greater issues through the words of a 15-year-old. He has positively left the readers to think about the issues of mental health, abuse, trauma, drug use, suicide, etc. And probably this in essence is the reason you should read the book. To understand how there is so much more to a person than he lets on. To understand, how a simple act can make or break a person. To simply understand how it is to be someone who is battling mentally and emotionally.
And here’s my one request. Don’t just read this book because of the story or because of the escapism it will provide. Read it to lift the veil of the story in order to understand the real story. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is, for all intents and purposes, a book where the prose and writing style is just begging to reveal its sad and haunting secret.
0 comments:
Post a Comment