Commentary of Koren Zailcakas´ Smashed

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In the wake of it all, I think I’ve learned what it means to be authentically glad. These days, I’m grateful for a hazy afternoon when the man behind the counter of the grocer remembers how I take my coffee, when the gut in the long tunnel of the Sixth Avenue subway stations is still playing “A Hard Day’s Night” on guitar, when the park is filled with strangers laughing at their dogs trying to mount one another. I like picking up a roll of developed film at the corner photo lab and discovering that the world inside the prints confirms that for a few brief moments, the world was as handsome as I thought it was. It convinces me that my efforts aren’t useless. I think I’ve found some meaning here. (Zailckas 332) Koren Zailcakas uses imagery to set a tone that solidifies the connections readers will make with her personal story regardless if they have ever had a sip of alcohol or are recovering addicts. If one has never taken a drink or known what it is felt like to be trapped by the liquid bars that alcohol may hold, one may not comprehend the true depths of Koren’s problem. Even in the end when Koren is breaking free of the shackles her dependence on alcohol has bestowed upon her she narrates with a technique that causes all readers to form an undeniable bond with her experiences. Through the trials and tribulations of Koren Zailckas readers are confronted with the story of a Drunken Girlhood and all she experienced under the influence of alcohol. Individuals are expected to have matured by the time they reach young adulthood so that can aspire to form genuine, stable relationships with their peers but Koren never constructed that desire because her first true relationship was based off alcohol. In turn, she could only ... ... middle of paper ... ...er appreciate the world in this way because her mental and physical state was always impaired. When she wasn’t she could not make these same associations because bonding with alcohol repetitively was the only constant joy she had in her life. This passage shows a distinct change in Koren. Koren Zalickas was an abuser, her choice of substance was liquor. Although this passage sets a completely different tone of triumph rather than previous despair she remains consistent in using literary device so that the audience can also transition with her. Koren Zailckas creates tone by using common life experiences and uses detailed adjectives to reinforce as evidence. One may not have had the opportunity to encounter abuse in any form but through this memoir Koren’s use of tone and imagery guides readers along her journey and allows for personal connections to be made.

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