Artistic Responsibility

Today's discussing really helped me develop my understanding of Lowery's intentions as a writer. As someone interested in writing creatively, I'm usually like to consider the writer's intentions. It's especially interesting to think about what messages authors are intending for their children readers. Today I was most struck by our remarks about the main character's roles as artists in Gathering Blue.

When I was thinking about the gifts Lowery gives her characters, I recognized their gifts as something that gave them heroic potential something I now believe to only be half-way true. It was suggested in class that Lowery was presenting an argument about what it really means to be an artist. Kira, Thomas, and Jo were all given artistic abilities that boarder on magical, but these gifts are not the only thing that makes them heroic. Similar to Jonas in The Giver, Kira's personality traits allow her to see the negativity within her community and leave her with a desire to challenge and correct this negativity. While the women in the village treat their own children rather harshly, Kira sees these characteristics as faults. The women think penning their children up with chickens is efficient parenting and are often described yelling, slapping, or neglecting their children. Kira often acts kindly towards the children in her village, offering to tell them stories and nurturing them. Kira especially loves and cares for Mattie, who is as loving and caring a character as Kira herself. Kira mentions that no one in her village would help injured of handicapped people, preferring to take them to the field when they could no longer contribute to the community. She notes that Matt is an exception for saving his dog Branch when he was run over by a cart. Kira also begins to see the selfishness behind the Guardians. She notes that she and her friends Jo and Thomas were not really free. They were required to do specific work for their Guardians who exploit the artists’ talents to write a future beneficial for them.

Kira is heroic because she uses her talents to challenge the institutions that she believes to be unjust. Considering this, we can see how Lowry is arguing that artists have the potential to affect their audiences and create urgency for positive change. She is suggesting that artists have the responsibility to put purpose behind their arts. Kira is responsible for threading the future of her village on the Singer’s robe. Her gift will allow her to make that future something more perfect that what currently exists within her somewhat barbaric community.