Use Of Imagery In Jennifer Egan's 'A Visit From The Goon Squad'

Use of Imagery

The power of a picture being that of a thousand words, is true to the sense that not everyone has the same ideals, thoughts, behaviors, and assumptions as anyone else. In order to captive the reader why not put pictures into the work and let them put the images and own assumptions into their heads. Jennifer Egan did just that in her work A Visit from the Goon Squad a novel in which each story is published as its own piece, then put into one whole book. Meaning that each chapter is an image she is painting independently in the mind of her readers. Each chapter is that of a thousand words can be interpreted in many different ways, like the way she did her chapter 12 “Great Rock and Roll Pauses”. Her vision is only concluded by

Egan is showing us the change of generations with the chapter being in the shape of a PowerPoint journal. This is important to take in because it shows us all of what Egan thinks is important through the eyes of Sasha’s daughter Alison. How this works is because Alison is the main character of the chapter but she is also good with technology which most kids in the future are. This kind of imagery isn’t used very often which is a unique way to map out the chapter to get a better sense of who she is as a person. The things she likes appear to be lighter than the things she doesn’t like. She marks “Ways it can be When Dad Comes Back” she writes, “kissing mom” in white box, but writes “Sits in Car before Coming In” in a black box (266). Stating that in a subtle way she likes him kissing mom but doesn’t like it when he sits in the car. This continues on in the chapter and is used as a way to track her mood. This makes the slide more interesting to look at with the contrasting colors on the page as your reading. With using imagery this way it shows that times have change, Sasha has made something of herself with being a mother, even though she doesn’t like looking back in the past due to her past being something less of her shelf now. Something overall that life and time have taken from her with her addiction to stealing and not being able to settle

Inside of the journal entry she has four subgroups “after Lincoln’s game, in my room, one night later, and the desert” (235). She keeps these subgroups because that is where the plot line is for her journal entries. This is where we get the main items that tell us that there is something wrong with Lincoln when she answers for him when people say good game. Due to his autism so he cannot answer for himself or chooses not to. In her room it gives us a sense of her relationship with her mother and brother. She is very good with her brother talking with him through the wall. The very peak or climax of the story is the problem that their father has with Lincoln. It is in one night later that Drew Blake doesn’t understand his son when he says “‘stop!’ Dad shouts.’ Stop. Please. Forget I asked.’” (279). Alison makes this important by making it on its own slide. She is highlighting the issue of what her father says by leaving it on the page by itself. The falling action in the story is Alison taking a walk in the desert with her father. But also giving him the tools to help with his son. The last three slides are the graphing that he did to help his son or so we are left to assume. By Alison talking about pauses in rock songs to that of her family, requires us readers to also pause in order to make sense of her PowerPoint. Just like the pauses in rock songs life takes pauses to change the course someone is