Independent Reading: Marley and Me. Entry 3

Summary (Chapter 21-29 [P.207-289])

            Through a chance opportunity, John is presented with a position as a managing editor of Organic Gardening and a proposition of moving north to Pennsylvania. While he is comfortable in the warm climate of Boca Raton, he misses experiencing changing seasons, rolling hills and open land and desires a simpler life. Through this change, Marley and the kids experience their first winter, and play around in the open snow. However, it became increasingly more evident that Marley was feeling the effects of his age. Marley lounged more often, became less adept in hearing and grew less nimble with his limbs, but he never seemed to shake off his puppy-like spirit. Nonetheless, it inevitably came to his time and he was buried in the backyard of the house under the cherry trees.

            Marley’s death brings sadness upon the family, but they are comforted in knowing that he passed away peacefully. Yet, the family still immensely misses Marley to the point that John writes a farewell column to Marley in the Philadelphia Inquirer. While composing the column, John reflects on his past years with Marley and discovers what he’s learned because of Marley. After publishing his column, John receives a wide feedback of condolences and support from other animal lovers. John and Jenny feel relief in sharing their feelings with others and the novel ends with the couple discovering a newspaper ad for a dog that looks and is described just like Marley.

Analytical Paragraph

            One of the main themes demonstrated in Marley and Me is that life does not have to be perfect to fully enjoy it. In the prologue, John describes his childhood days with his first dog, which was a perfect companion to him and became the standard that he judged other dogs by. Even despite this standard, John had adopted Marley, who was far from an ideal dog. Yet, John still found a fully complete happiness with his family and the memories created in the time that they spent. Even after Marley had died, John had realised that Marley taught him about the simple joys in life that are ever-present. Through Marley’s unbridled exuberance to tackle life with all he has, John learned about what really matters in life.

Personal Response

            By knowing what an author feels like while writing his/her story, we can gain a better understand about the meaning of the story from reading it. With the endnote from the author and an interview with the author himself at the back of the novel, I found myself re-reading the story and discovering another meaning from what I read before. Marley and Me is certainly a universal book that everyone can discover a meaning in. Whether you’re a dog owner, or a non-dog owner, there is a timeless, heart-warming tale to discover in Marley and Me.

Independent Reading: Marley and Me. Entry 2

Summary (Chapter 11- 20 [P.93- 206])

            Jenny gives birth to the couple’s first son, Patrick, whom Marley treats with the grace of a gentle giant. With Patrick, the couple discovers the simple joys of parenthood and decide on having another child. Continually, Marley grows to be a more dependable entity that provides the family with a much needed security while they are raising their toddlers. After the birth of their second son, Conor, and much adventure, the family moves to Boca Raton, a wealthy portion of southern Florida. There, with brimming confidence far from their newlywed days, and with a desire for a girl after having two boys, Jenny gives birth to Colleen, the third child to the now full family.

Analytical Paragraph

            Marley himself is a very central character in the story that reflects the feelings of the author in the situations of the novel. Marley’s name actually comes from Bob Marley, whose music and influence indirectly brought John and Jenny together in South Florida. It is well noted that while Marley has an incurably rascally side, his intentions are pure of heart and in his love of life. Even with his ever happy-go-lucky attitude, Marley proves to be infallibly loyal to the couple and the growing family. During a neighbourhood stabbing emergency, Marley rigidly protects the victim and John while the police arrive to the scene. John was so moved, it brought a tear to his eye, and he comments “Man’s best friend? Damn straight he was.”

Personal Response

            While reading through Marley and Me, I’ve found some of the chapters to be quite episodic. An anecdote or a story of Marley’s dog days is put into a full chapter, and then the next chapter starts at a separate period of time. This, I later found out, reflects how the author recounted and expressed his memoirs of the years he spent with Marley. Some portions that had their own chapter, such as the comforting of the miscarriage, were effective in portraying the emotions that he felt at those times. And I concur.

Independent Reading: Marley and Me. Entry 1

Summary (Chapter 1-10 [P. 1-91])

            The story of Marley and Me revolves around the lives of newspaper columnist John Grogan, his wife, Jenny, and their Labrador retriever, Marley. As a dog, Marley is exceedingly energetic, rambunctious, and mischievous, but he fills an important role in the newlyweds’ developing family. Despite regularly being disobedient since adoption, Marley remains infallibly loyal to the couple and, through step-by-step miracles, displays docile behaviour that never fails to amaze John. Most notably, when Jenny collapses on the floor after discovering she had miscarried, Marley gently rests on her lap –tail untwitching- and provides an emotional support in the couple’s moment of grief. Through further training with John, Marley develops a better understanding of the expected behaviour of a dog and the couple is graced with another pregnancy to expand the family.

Analytical Paragraph

            One of the themes explored in Marley and Me is the role of parenting and how it is perceived at different stages of life. At the beginning of the story, Jenny is described by John as a cruel plant killer, after overwatering a dieffenbachia that he bought after their marriage. Following their failure to care for a plant, this led the couple to beg the question of whether they could raise a child. After they adopted Marley, the couple became more accustomed to the antics of another living being under their care. Gradually, they both accept the terms of parenthood and even despite initial failure with miscarriage; the couple pulls through with unwavering support from their four-legged companion and finds success in the end. Even in just the first third of the novel, a broad variety of perspectives on parenting is displayed, with even more to be revealed in the rest of the novel.

Personal Response

             Even before I had picked up Marley and Me, I’ve been showered with acclamations and recommendations for both the novel and the movie. It was seemingly inevitable that eventually I would fall upon this story, and now I have. I would say that the novel has lived up to the expectations I’ve harboured from its wide acclamation. The descriptions are universally understandable and do not alienate readers who have never owned dogs or other pets before. As so far, it leaves the reader well at ease to continue reading and following the story.