Task A
1.
Summarize what we learn about Bird and his family as well as the society he lives in.
(Comprehension) (12 Punkte)
2.
Analyze how Bird’s state of mind is presented. Focus on narrative perspective and use of language.
(Analysis) (16 Punkte)
3.
Choose one of the following tasks:
3.1
According to American entrepreneur and writer Courtney Coonrod, it seems as if “American society is approaching a modern-day dystopia”.
Discuss this observation, taking into account work done in class on American myths and realities as well as current social and political developments.
(Evaluation: comment) (14 Punkte)
3.2
After seeing his mother’s words on the street, Bird returns home and is still very upset. Write his interior monologue, reflecting on his parents’ behavior as well as his hopes and fears for the family’s future.
(Evaluation: re-creation of text) (14 Punkte)
Our Missing Hearts
Celeste Ng
The 12-year-old protagonist Bird, alias Noah, lives together with his father in a fictional version of the USA under the so-called Preserving American Culture and Traditions Act (PACT). They have just witnessed an uproar in the street.
1
[T]he air is brisk and still. All the police cars have gone, and all the people, too; the
2
block is deserted. He looks for signs of the disruption – craters, scorched buildings, broken
3
glass. Nothing. Then, as they cross the street back toward the dorm, Bird sees it on the
4
ground: spray-painted, blood-red against the asphalt, right in the center of the intersection.
5
The size of a car, impossible to miss. A heart, he realizes, just like the banner in Brooklyn.
6
And circling it this time, a ring of words. BRING BACK OUR MISSING HEARTS.
7
A tingle snakes over his skin.
8
[...]
9
At first it had just been a phrase, like any other.
10
Not long after his mother left, Bird had found a slip of paper on the bus, thin as a dead
11
butterfly’s wing, in the gap between seat and wall. One of dozens. His father snatched it
12
from his hand and crumbled it, tossed it to the floor.
13
Don’t pick up garbage, Noah, he said.
14
But Bird had already read the words at the top: ALL OUR MISSING HEARTS.
15
A phrase he’d never heard before but that sprang up elsewhere in the months, then years,
16
after his mother had gone.
17
Graffitied in the bike tunnel, on the wall of the basketball court, on the plywood around a
18
long-stalled construction site. DON’T FORGET OUR MISSING HEARTS. Scrawled across
19
the neighborhood-watch posters with a fat-bladed brush: WHERE ARE OUR MISSING
20
HEARTS? And on pamphlets, appearing overnight one memorable morning: pinned under
21
the wipers of parked cars, scattered on the sidewalk, caught against the concrete feet of
22
lampposts. Palm-sized, xeroxed handbills reading simply this: ALL OUR MISSING
23
HEARTS.
24
The next day, the graffiti was painted over, the posters replaced, the pamphlets swept
25
away like dead leaves. Everything so clean he might have imagined it all.
26
It didn’t mean anything to him then.
27
It’s an anti-PACT slogan, his father said curtly, when Bird asked. From people who
28
want to overturn PACT. Crazy people, he’d added. Real lunatics.
29
You’d have to be a lunatic, Bird had agreed, to overturn PACT. PACT had helped end
30
the Crisis; PACT kept things peaceful and safe. Even kindergarteners knew that. PACT was
31
common sense, really: If you acted unpatriotic, there would be consequences. If you didn’t,
32
then what were you worried about? And if you saw or heard of something unpatriotic, it
33
was your duty to let the authorities know. He has never known a world without PACT; it is
34
as axiomatic as gravity, or Thou shalt not kill. He didn’t understand why anyone would
35
oppose it, what any of this had to do with hearts, how a heart could be missing. How could
36
you survive without your heart beating inside you?
37
It made no sense until he met Sadie. Who’d been removed from her home and re-placed,
38
because her parents had protested PACT.
39
Didn’t you know? she’d said. What the consequences were? Bird. Come on.
40
She tapped the worksheet they’d been given as homework: The Three Pillars of PACT.
41
Outlaws promotion of un-American values and behavior. Requires all citizens to report
42
potential threats to our society. And there, beneath Sadie’s finger: Protects children from
43
environments espousing harmful views.
44
Even then, he hadn’t wanted to believe it. Maybe there were a few PACT removals, but
45
they couldn’t happen much – or why did no one talk about it? Sure, every now and then,
46
you heard of a case like Sadie, but surely those were exceptions. If it happened, you really
47
must have done something dangerous, your kid needed to be protected – from you, and
48
whatever you were doing or saying. [...]
49
He’d said this to Sadie, without thinking, and she went silent. [...]
50
A few days later Sadie had pulled something from her backpack.
51
Look, she’d said. The first words she’d spoken to him since. Bird, look what I found.
52
A newspaper, corners tattered, ink smudged to gray. Almost two years old already. And
53
there, just below the fold, a headline: LOCAL POET TIED TO INSURRECTIONS. His
54
mother’s photo, a dimple hovering at the edge of her smile. Around him, the world went
55
hazy and gray.
56
Where did you get this, he asked, and Sadie shrugged.
57
At the library.
58
It’s become the rallying cry at anti-PACT riots across the nation, but its roots are here –
59
terrifyingly close to home. The phrase increasingly being used to attack the widely
60
supported national security law is the brainchild of local woman Margaret Miu, pulled
61
from her book of poems Our Missing Hearts. Miu, who is the child of Chinese immigrants
62
and has a young son –
63
The words wobbled out of focus then.
64
You know what this means, Bird, Sadie said. She raised herself onto her toes, the way
65
she always did when excited. Your mom –
66
He did know, then. Why she’d left them. Why they never spoke about her.
67
She’s one of them, Sadie said. She’s out there somewhere. Organizing protests. Fighting
68
PACT. Working to overturn it and bring kids home. Just like my parents.
69
Her eyes darkened and took on a far-off gleam. As if she were gazing right through Bird
70
to something revelatory just beyond.
71
Maybe they’re together, out there, she said.
72
Bird had thought it was just one of Sadie’s wishful fantasies. His mother, the ringleader
73
of all this? Improbable, if not impossible. Yet there were her words, emblazoned on all those
74
signs and banners to overthrow PACT, all over the country.
75
What the news calls people who protest PACT: Seditious subversives. Traitorous
76
Chinese Sympathizers. Tumors on American society. Words he’d had to look up in his
77
father’s dictionary, back then, alongside excise and eradicate.
78
Every time they spotted his mother’s words – in news reports, on someone’s phone –
79
Sadie elbowed Bird as if they’d sighted a celebrity. Evidence of his mother, out there,
80
elsewhere, so worried about somebody else’s children though she’d left her own behind.
81
The irony of it leached into his veins.
82
Now it is no longer elsewhere. Here are his mother’s words, streaked across this street in
83
blood-red.
Celeste Ng, Our Missing Hearts, New York: Penguin Press 2022, pp. 19 – 24
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Note:
Our solutions are listed in bullet points. In the examination, full marks can only be achieved by writing a continuous text. It must be noted that our conclusions contain only some of the possible aspects. Students can also find a different approach to argumentation.
Imagery and Symbolism
Irony and Contradiction
Our solutions are listed in bullet points. In the examination, full marks can only be achieved by writing a continuous text. It must be noted that our conclusions contain only some of the possible aspects. Students can also find a different approach to argumentation.
1.
- Bird, known as Noah, is a 12-year-old boy living with his father in a dystopian version of the USA.
- His mother, Margaret Miu, left the family when Bird was younger, and they do not speak of her.
- Bird discovers that his mother is involved in anti-government activities, particularly against the PACT
- Margaret is a poet whose work, particularly the phrase "Our Missing Hearts," has become a symbol for those opposing PACT.
Main Body
Bird's Family Situation
Bird's Family Situation
- The USA is controlled by a strict government run by PACT, which forces people to follow "American" values and punishes anyone who acts unpatriotic.
- Citizens are required to report any "un-American" activities, leading to widespread fear and compliance.
- In this oppressive society, children are forcibly removed from their homes if their parents are seen as promoting harmful beliefs, like what happened to Sadie.
- The society silences disagreement, quickly removing any protest signs like graffiti or pamphlets that ask for change.
- Within this landscape of repression, the phrase "Our Missing Hearts" is connected to the anti-PACT movement, which the government sees as rebellious and dangerous.
Bird's Society
- Initially, Bird does not fully understand or question the society's strict rules and believes PACT is necessary for peace.
- However, his understanding of the world begins to shift dramatically when he learns about Sadie's family situation and discovers his mother's involvement in the resistance.
- Bird struggles with the clash between his PACT upbringing and his mother's opposition, leaving him confused and unsure about her actions, propelling him into a journey of self-discovery and resistance against the oppressive regime.
Bird's Growing Awareness
2.
In Celeste Ng's depiction of Bird's state of mind, the narrative perspective and language play a crucial role in conveying his internal conflict and his gradual awakening to the harsh realities of his society. Through her careful use of these elements, Ng immerses the reader in Bird's emotional journey as he grapples with the concept of truth and identity.
Introduction
Third-Person Limited Viewpoint
- The narrative closely follows Bird's thoughts and perceptions, allowing readers to experience his inner turmoil directly.
- This perspective draws us closer to Bird, making his fear and confusion more real as he uncovers unsettling truths.
- The limited viewpoint keeps reader in the dark about the full the full extent of oppression until Bird slowly realizes it himself.
Main Body
Narrative Perspective
Narrative Perspective
Focus on Bird’s Inner World
- The narrative delves into Bird's memories and feelings, such as his initial approval of PACT and his later doubts.
- Bird's thoughts are presented in a way that emphasises his innocence and the sheltered nature of his upbringing
making his eventual realisation more powerful
Shift in Tone
- As Bird's consciousness develops, the language he uses to describe his experiences becomes increasingly threatening, reflecting his growing anxiety and disillusionment:
phrase "missing hearts", initially dismissed by Bird's father as "rubbish" (l.13)
- It escalates when Bird discovers the phrase "BRING BACK OUR MISSING HEARTS" in blood red paint on the street (l.6) :
- Change in language reflects Bird's altered perception of his society and signals his growing realisation that something is deeply wrong.
Use of Language
Naive Acceptance of Norms
- Celeste Ng uses simple, straightforward language to capture Bird's innocence and limited understanding of his world:
- Bird views PACT as "common sense," thinking, "If you acted unpatriotic, there would be consequences. If you didn’t, then what were you worried about?" (l.31-32)
- His father’s dismissive attitude towards the slip of paper with "ALL OUR MISSING HEARTS" (l.14) further reinforces Bird’s tendency to accept authority without question.
- The recurring imagery of "Missing Hearts" symbolizes both Bird's personal loss of his mother and the broader societal oppression.
- The graffiti, described as "spray-painted, blood-red against the asphalt" (l.4), is vivid and violent, reflecting the intensity of emotions surrounding the resistance against PACT.
- The phrase "Missing Hearts" also represents of the children separated from their families due to PACT, highlighting the human cost of the oppressive regime.
- The blood-red color symbolizes the violence and gravity of the conflict, making the phrase impossible to ignore for Bird and the reader.
- The author uses irony to highlight Bird's internal conflict and the contradictions in his understanding of PACT.
- Initially, Bird cannot understand "why anyone would oppose" PACT or "how a heart could be missing" (l. 34-36), showing his complete trust in the system.
- The irony becomes apparent as Bird discovers that his mother, whom he thought had abandoned him, is actually a key figure in the resistance against PACT, fighting to protect children like him (l. 53-61).
- This discovery forces Bird to reconcile his love for his mother with society’s portrayal of her as a "traitorous" and "seditious subversive" (l. 75).
- The irony of his mother fighting to reunite families while separated from her own son intensifies Bird's struggle and exposes PACT's moral contradictions.
Bird's state of mind is effectively presented through a combination of narrative perspective and carefully chosen language that reflects his age, innocence, and gradual awakening. Ng’s use of a third-person limited perspective allows readers to experience Bird’s journey of realization intimately, while the language evolves from simple and trusting to complex and conflicted, mirroring his growing awareness of the oppressive society he inhabits. Through these techniques, Bird’s internal conflict and transformation are vividly portrayed, highlighting the tension between personal beliefs and societal pressures.
Conclusion
3.1
Courtney Coonrod's statement that "American society is approaching a modern-day dystopia" reflects concerns about the perceived decline of societal values and the increasing spread of disturbing trends in contemporary America. This discussion will examine contrasting American myths and realities and analysing current social and political developments that contribute to this perception.
Introduction
- American myths portray the US as a land of freedom, but in reality civil liberties are shrinking and inequality is on the rise.
- Social issues such as surveillance, loss of privacy and oppression of dissent reflect Coonrod's dystopian concerns.
- Political divisions and growing authoritarianism threaten democratic norms.
- The economic divide is widening and causing instability, suggesting that the US is heading towards a dystopian state.
Main Body
Myths vs. Realities
Myths vs. Realities
- American myths emphasize the ideal of equal opportunity; in reality, systemic barriers persist that hindering marginalized communities' access to success for marginalized communities.
- The ideal of individual freedom is contradicted by increasing governmental control and surveillance, limiting personal privacy and autonomy.
- In political discourse, the US is often portrayed as a barrier to democracy; however, recent developments show that democratic institutions and practices are under threat.
- The promise of the American Dream is increasingly unattainable for many due to rising inequality and economic hardships.
Social Issues
- Surveillance technology raises fears of a controlled society.
- Political divisions weaken democracy and increase the risk of unrest.
- Growing inequality concentrates wealth among a few, worsening social tensions.
- Limits on free speech and silencing dissent suggest rising authoritarianism, echoing dystopian themes.
Political Developments
- Addressing these dystopian trends requires a reevaluation of American values and a commitment to preserving democratic principles and civil liberties.
- Promoting economic equity, safeguarding individual rights, and enhancing transparency in governance are essential to counteracting the slide towards a dystopian future.
- Engaging in informed public discourse and civic participation can help restore faith in democratic institutions and address societal issues effectively.
Addressing the Issue
In conclusion, Coonrod’s observation underscores a critical reflection on the state of American society. While myths of freedom and opportunity persist, current social and political realities suggest an approach towards a dystopian state. Addressing these issues requires concerted efforts to align societal practices with democratic values and to address the widening gaps in equity and freedom.
Conclusion
3.2
How could this be happening? PACT was supposed to keep us safe, but now I see my mother’s words, "BRING BACK OUR MISSING HEARTS," painted in blood-red on the street. What does it mean? Dad always told me that people who opposed PACT were crazy, but now I’m starting to wonder if maybe there’s more to it. Was Mom fighting for something she truly believed in, even if it meant leaving us behind? I feel so lost, confused, and betrayed. Is she a hero standing up against something wrong, or is she just chasing something we can’t win? I’m scared — what if the authorities come after us now? What will happen to Dad and me? I want to believe she’s right, that there’s something worth fighting for, but what if this hope is just another lie we tell ourselves to make the fear easier to bear?
Interior Monologue
Reflection on Parents' Behavior and Hopes for the Future
Reflection on Parents' Behavior and Hopes for the Future
Dad always said we had to follow the rules to be safe, that PACT was there to protect us. But now I see his fear in the way he reacted to the words on the street. Maybe he’s scared too – not just of what’s happening, but of losing what we thought was our safety. And Mom… she’s out there somewhere, fighting for something she believed in. It makes me wonder if she thought it was worth sacrificing everything for. Could I ever understand that choice? Would I have made the same decision if I were her? My biggest fear is that this situation will only get worse — that the more we know, the more we’ll be at risk. But I also hope that maybe, just maybe, her fight means that there’s still a chance for change, for a better world where we don’t have to live in fear of our own government.
Moment of Realization
In the end, I’m left with so many questions and so much uncertainty. My heart is heavy with doubt and fear, but also with a flicker of hope. I just want to believe that my mother’s fight wasn’t in vain, and that somehow, our family will find a way to make sense of all this.
Final Thoughts