As said in class “Life is a lot about how you are perceived, as well as how you perceive things.” In Diaz’s book Trust, perception is very important, quite possibly the most important aspect of the book. This concept is realized by Andrew Bevel, as he tries to take accounts into his own hands and combat the many perceptions of himself and his wife. He understands the fact that the power of perception is real.
First, the perception of Bevel. In part one, the novel by Harold Vanner, titled Bonds, Andrew Bevel is depicted as a character named Benjamin Rask. Benjamin Rask is depicted as a very introverted man, who is infatuated with the process of earning money, yet does nothing with his earnings. He is depicted as a man who did not care for the economy and the good of the rest of the people. To Andrew Bevel, this view of him was very wrong in many ways. For this reason, he decided to write and show his life through his eyes. In doing this, Bevel is perceived as a more social man. While he may be in love with earning money, he is not one to just let it sit, rather he is very philanthropic and uses his earnings for the good of the world. In another perception, Ida Partenza seems to believe that Bevel is the man who he says he was and that even though he may seem like he’s only in the business for money, that he is for the good in the world. Talking about Bevel, she says, “While geared toward profit, his actions had invariably had the nation’s best interest at heart” (Diaz, 275). All of the perceptions of Bevel are quite different, creating a struggle as to who should be believed and which perception is true.
The other perception that is important is the perception of Mildred Bevel. In the novel by Vanner, Mildred is a character named Helen. This character is very smart and good in many ways, but she becomes mentally insane and eventually dies due to her insanity. Andrew Bevel is very much against this, and a large purpose of his personal story is about trying to make a better picture of Mildred. He purposely leaves out many details about her and describes her as simple, kind, cute, etc. as an attempt to give her a good, simple identity. This is again contradicted when Ida Partenza shares her readings of Mildred’s diary. She even says that it does not compare to what Vanner or Bevel say about her, that she is finally seeing the true Mildred.
In the end, this book is largely about the struggle of perception. People perceive things in different ways, therefore, people are perceived in different ways. Bevel realizes that perception can do a lot to one’s reputation, saying, “I most emphatically do not want more perspectives, more opinions” (Diaz 279). Regardless of what he says, a question needs to be asked. Whose point-of-view is actually truthful? This question brings to light the main concept, the power of perception.
I 100% agree that perception plays a huge part in the novel. It is so interesting that we as the reader are given multiple perceptions of a similar story. I think you used a good quote from Bevel explaining how he notices how the perception of others is important in his life. The power of perception makes this book complex and really makes you wonder who you can actually trust, or whose perception of the accounts can we actually trust.
ReplyDeleteI like that you chose to focus on the idea of perception and perspective for this book. We watched that clip near the beginning of the book from Diaz himself where he comments on the challenge of writing the same story from multiple perspectives, but it has a deeper meaning when you also consider how the characters' perspectives influence the audiences’ perception of the characters as well. Not only does the underlying story of the book (Bevel trying to “realign reality according to [his] mistake[s]” (Diaz 266)) deal with the issue of perspective, but as you wonderfully stated, the truth is always in question because of the shifts in perspective. I like that you took specific care to highlight each of the key viewpoints in the book, because I think the audience has the understanding at the end of the book that each characters’ perspective contains an ounce of truth. Vanner managed to touch on the truth behind Mildred’s upbringing, Bevel was able to bring to light details about his inheritance and ancestry, Ida was more focused on truly trying to understand who Mildred truly was between the depictions of the other men, and finally Mildred’s personal account reveals that she was paramount to Andrew’s success. This gradual reveal (again, through the use of different characters’ perspectives and motivations) made this novel a very intriguing read.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the notion that perception is a key element in the book and one of the most crucial aspects. Seeing how you discussed how Andrew Bevel's character seeks to manage and alter the perceptions of himself and his wife, as being a fundamental driving force in the story made me more aligned with the intricate interplay of perceptions among the characters. I now appreciate how Andrew Bevel's decision to present himself differently in his autobiography challenges the initial perception of him as an introverted, money-driven individual. The post aptly mentions Bevel's philanthropic side, which adds depth and complexity to his character.
ReplyDeleteFocusing on Mildred's perception also deepens my understanding of the story. It is fascinating to see how Andrew Bevel tries to reshape her perception, contrasting with Ida Partenza's interpretation of Mildred's diary. This exploration adds layers to the characters and raises questions about truth and identity.
I believe viewing characters through a lens focusing on perception reveals very interesting layers to the story, and I believe it adds more value to the book as a whole.