Prodigal Son

My notes from class last week read, verbatim...

"Good Stories violate you
attack on your structure of explanation
Parabole

BE INSPIRED

Prodigal Son"


I have recently had some time to reflect on this notion of being violated from a story, yesterday I posted up in my room for an hour and a half just to finish "The Slave." In certain respects I felt violated and asked myself why did Sarah and Jacob have to die at such times in their lives. Sarah during after child birth, Jacob on his return to Pilitz. I felt violated because so much could have happened differently to make it a happy story. But in some respects it was a happy story, the love Jacob and Wanda had for each other was nothing short of inspirational. The fact the Jacob was able to raise his son to become a prosperous man, was simply fantastic. But why the suffering? That might be cause for some inspiration too, the fact that they had to endure so much yet were able to come back from it stirred something in my being. I in a sense reflected on my life thinking. If I could have loved and been devoted to something as much as Jacob was, to Wanda and his religion, then I can do the same in my life and receive a kind of unmatched satisfaction.

I'll now switch gears to talk about the last line of my notes from class I have posted. "Prodigal Son" is a song by the Rolling Stones, which appears on their 1968 album Beggar's Banquet. I listened to it again and pulled up the lyrics, and sure enough it was about chapter 15 in Luke. Each part of the song's verses end with either the line, "And that'll be the way to get along" or "Cause that is no way to get along" This kind of commentary gets at the notion of being violated. It almost seems to ask which is right and which is wrong, in the case of the story it is what is wrong that occurs, and that's what make it a good story, because it attacks us and complicates things, making us question the world, like we should.

Here is the complete lyrics for those who are not familiar.

Well a poor boy took his father's bread and started down the road
Started down the road
Took all he had and started down the road
Going out in this world, where God only knows
And that'll be the way to get along

Well poor boy spent all he had, famine come in the land
Famine come in the land
Spent all he had and famine come in the land
Said, "I believe I'll go and hire me to some man"
And that'll be the way I'll get along

Well, man said, "I'll give you a job for to feed my swine
For to feed my swine
I'll give you a job for to feed my swine"
Boy stood there and hung his head and cried
`Cause that is no way to get along

Said, "I believe I'll ride, believe I'll go back home
Believe I'll go back home
Believe I'll ride, believe I'll go back home
Or down the road as far as I can go"
And that'll be the way to get along


Well, father said, "See my son coming home to me
Coming home to me"
Father ran and fell down on his knees
Said, "Sing and praise, Lord have mercy on me"
Mercy

Oh poor boy stood there, hung his head and cried
Hung his head and cried
Poor boy stood and hung his head and cried
Said, "Father will you look on me as a child?"
Yeah

Well father said, "Eldest son, kill the fatted calf,
Call the family round
Kill that calf and call the family round
My son was lost but now he is found
'Cause that's the way for us to get along"
Hey