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Writing can record events to keep a memory constant. I do not use vague, shadowy language, as I have done in other entries I do not hide behind hints and suggestions. “something I have never done before: I write what happened.
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When she journals after Shawn drags her from the car and across the gravel parking lot, Tara says she does, She discusses this in her note at the end of the book (page 333) emphasizing that what actually happened in two of these cases would change how she and likely the reader viewed the motives of the participants. In the stories of Luke’s burn (page 75), Shawn’s fall off the pallet (page 128), Shawn’s motorcycle accident (page 145), and the timeline of her father’s burn (page 219), Tara openly acknowledges that there are differing memories from different people. In Educated, Tara is clear that these are her memories and openly acknowledges that there exists disagreements in who was where, and when. So how do we know what actually happened? In addition, technology is advancing so rapidly that even images cannot be relied up to display the truth. Every time we recall a memory, we are actually changing its shape and restoring it in our brains. The Brooklyn discussion guide also encompasses the theme of 'home' from a very different perspective and could be a good pairing with Educated. It was a shift in mental language, a surrendering of where I was from.” page 206Īt what points in your life has what you call home changed? At what point in your transition from your birth home to your adult home did “home” change? What are the essential elements that make someplace a home for you now? as a child? as a young adult?
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That night I had entered my father’s house as an intruder. “I wonder now if the day I set out to steal that tax return wasn’t the first time I left home to go to Buck’s Peak. Tara reflects on how she changes what she views as 'home', Shawn: second oldest and Tara’s abusive brotherĭrew: Tara’s boyfriend and first boyfriend she tells about the truth of her family Discussion Topics Home Tara: author and youngest of seven siblings Read 'Educated should be read with a grain of salt', to hear their response to the memoire through their lawyer. Not surprisingly, some of Westover’s family share very different memories.
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Malcolm Gladwell has a pair of podcasts on memory, A Polite Word for Liar and Free Brian Williams, that present how memory evolves and finding that truth isn’t always in the memory. Even one individual’s memory can change significantly over time. Often many eyewitnesses to the same event have very different accounts. Online Resourcesīy definition this memoir is about Westover’s memories. The book is an excellent choice for book groups. While the book rings true, you as the reader need to work to determine what you believe is true. Some of Westover’s family (through their lawyer) disagree with Westover’s recounting. On the flip side, clearly we each have our own view of the past. Sharing our stories opens doors through which we can rescue one another and heal wounds. I appreciate her revealing her painful memories to shed light on the secrets and suffering hidden in families, and of the shame associated with being found out. Westover is unbelievably courageous in both her actions and in her writing. I was both captivated by the writing and repulsed by the conflict. She is raised so near others who learn mathematics and history along with self-advocacy and ambition, while she is told her place as a female and daughter of a fanatic. Readers see love, pain, and Westover’s realization of the incongruity of her upbringing. The writing is stellar, the story harrowing and revealing, showing the reader graphically the ambivalence Westover feels toward her family. I read Educated in just a few sittings, the words tumbling over one another as the author's life tumbled chaotically through childhood and into adulthood.