Synopsis: A man (we never learn his age, but my guess is that he's in his forties) named Chance lives a solitary life as a gardener in the home of a rich old man (whose character is called the Old Man). When the Old Man dies, Chance is nowhere to be found in the documents of the estate; there is no record of him anywhere and he has no identifying papers/documents. The Old Man's estate is closed up and Chance leaves the property for the first time, is hit by a car, and winds up in the home of a very rich businessman, Benjamin Rand, whose wife introduces Chance as Chauncey Gardiner. Chance is simpleminded, and cannot read or write because, according to the narrator, he was never able to learn. His favorite pass time is watching television, which proves to be a source of comfort, as well as information once he enters the world beyond the Old Man's house. Interacting with elite members of society becomes difficult and almost overwhelming for him at times, and he repeatedly resorts to discussing the way a garden works, because this is all he knows. However, people take his words metaphorically and apply them to the economic (mostly) and political struggles the world is faced with. Chance becomes an overnight legend of sorts, as everyone clambers to find out information about him (although there is none). I don't want to ruin the end, but the book is largely a satirical commentary on society.
My Thoughts: First of all, I mentioned in my last post that I started this blog because of two books. This is not one of those books...I read this book yesterday as a quick respite from the other book (which I am still reading: The Soul Thief). My sister is reading this book in AP English, and I was interested. Not to mention I'll probably have a paper or two of hers to read in the not-so-distant future, so I wanted to know what to expect.
I should probably start by saying that I had never heard of this book before, even though it is apparently pretty famous and, I learned yesterday, it is also a movie. Honestly, though (you know, despite its reputation), I really didn't think I was going to like it. What a nice surprise. I had no idea what to expect, but I sort of thought it was going to be a sappy story about someone who did drugs and recovered. The title gave me that impression, even though this idea was totally off. The narrator starts out in Chance's mind (sort of), but becomes, at certain points, omniscient. This might bother me in other books, but here it was almost necessary because society's reaction to Chance is arguably the most important feature, if not the entire point, of the book.
Although it didn't have everything I was hoping for, the book did produce an interesting commentary about the United States (yes, circa 1970, but much of it could be applicable today). Everyone Chance meets assumes he has a prestigious and successful past because he dresses so well (in the Old Man's suits). Everything he says is literal - from the very first time he talks about his "business" with Mr. Rand, he is misunderstood. He describes his careful devotion to gardening, but Mr. Rand expects that he is discussing business and creates a metaphor between business and nature where there was none intended. This partly attributes wisdom to Chance's simplistic way of thinking, but goes beyond that. People seem to be so desperate for a positive outlook on the economy and on politics that they quickly promote a so-called expert in economics without knowing a single thing about him, simply because he encourages them. At times I wasn't sure if the author is trying to say that people will believe anything, or if people over think and over speak so much that the simplest ideas sound profound. I think it is a mixture of these things. I also appreciated the way the book ended (but I guess I shouldn't spoil that, in case you would like to read it...I do recommend it).
