A Voice Through A Spiral Notebook

A Voice Through A Spiral Notepad

Blog 2

Chris Jones does a marvelous job of realistically defining Roger Ebert’s voice. Roger Ebert, a man without a voice of his own, conveys strong feelings of normalcy. Even without speech, his life’s message seeps through his written words and Chris Jones’ story.

Chris Jones decided to write his story in third person, giving his audience intimate details about Roger Ebert. At the very beginning, most readers want to feel sympathetic or sadness. Jones trashes this idea. Ebert’s character never shows signs of depression; instead Ebert accepts and adapts. Jones throws in pieces of humor to create a lighthearted tone.

Importantly, Jones includes pieces from Ebert’s journals, adding to the credibility of Ebert’s character. Ebert is a movie critic. Jones’ silently emphasizes the written portions of Ebert’s lifestyle. These pieces are Roger Ebert’s communication with the world, his speech.

Chris Jones portrays his artistic style through small, detailed happenings. For example, the audience knows Ebert always played music in the hospital rooms. Ebert needed to listen to the entirety of “I’m Your Man,” by Leonard Cohen before leaving the hospital. This saved his life because moments later his carotid artery burst.

Jones paints Ebert’s disability in several surprisingly relatable ways. Ebert finds comfort in writing because his voice is still his own. His voice can be heard over the Internet. He can have conversations. Similar to many people, the Internet allows us to freely express ourselves.

Without Chris Jones’ small antidotes Roger Ebert’s personality and perspective would not have connected with an audience.  Jones’ successfully and respectfully narrates several personal days lived by Roger Ebert. The days seem small and unimportant but ultimately the audience understands Roger Ebert’s life.