The last section of the book was the section of the novel that I have been looking forward to since we began reading. The last section of the book addressed the beginnings of modern day Jerusalem. When addressing the modernization of Jerusalem I found it very interesting that it was compared to New York City by Edward Robinson. I found this ironic because New York City in the 1850's was marked by the beginnings of the industrial revolution, a sense of separatism in the United states, rebuilding, and over population- all things that I don't typically relate to Jerusalem.
The last chapters of the book were not typical to what I expected. I am kind of upset that Armstrong didn't provide a possible solution to what is going on, but then again the novel was a historical account and I don't feel it was on Armstrong's list of goals to write the future. I wish she could of at least gave an in depth explanation as to what each of the possibilities were and how feasible the are. I think the only reason I am slightly upset is because I was expecting this grandiose break through but she only gave nothing. I feel like I read this great account that was providing me with knowledge and then it just ended without a proper finish. I understand why Armstrong did this though, it is not her responsibility to create the future, just to help us better understand the past and how it correlates to modern times.
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Yeah, I also kind of wished that Armstrong would have synthesized all of that information to suggest a solution... it would have been nice to reaad what she thought. It seemed like she kind of offered something by recognizing that any of the long standing groups in Jerusalem were prepared for tolerance and coexistance, but that's not much.
ReplyDeleteSorry if this shows up twice, but I thought I just posted a comment and it's not here... so I'll write it again.
ReplyDeleteBut I agreed with your sentiment about Armstrong not suggesting a solution. I did wish that she would have offered a little something as a synthesis of all the information she had presented. She did mention that the people who lasted longest in the city were those who were prepared for tolerance and coexistance, and while that's kind of self-evident, it makes sense.