Reading 1001 discussion

Navidson, Karen, and their children are the novel’s “family.” The other characters tend to be alone or hold onto other tenuously. What are the forms of connection here and how does the novel critique and/or reconstruct issues of the individual and the family? Think, especially, about the issue of gender as it is raised throughout.

Navidson and Karen were both selfish and put themselves before their children, Navidson also put his curiosity before Karens fears.

Truant doesn't really have anyone apart from his friend Lude which allows him to develop his obsession. Zampano also appears to be an obsessed loner.

With regard to gender the men are the explorers while the women are basically there for sex.

Karen suffers from claustrophobia, which explains why she wan't an explorer. In the end she overcame her fear to save Navidson. I did not get the sense that the Navidsons put themselves before their children. Truant does not have normal adult relationships with women, or he appears not to, but we have ample evidence of his being an unreliable narrator. Zampano was a recluse who was obsessed by a movie he could not have seen because he was blind. his isolation is unexplained. The Navidsons have moved to the house because their relationship is in trouble because he is away with his work and she is left in the role of homemaker. A stereotypical family.