Hi, everyone! I'm sorry this is late; we got busier than expected in my shops. This is a discussion of Chapter 1-Indication in Beyond the Yellow Brick Road.( So let's begin... )
Sooooo....I think what Justin fails to realize is although Brian willingly let him go, he missed him desperately. He initially tries to replace or fill the void (the Car, iWWINN, etc), but then he needs a more tangible reminder of Justin, and that happened to be his art. Just as Justin is painting elusive memories, Brian is, once again, using gasoline to put out a fire.
Pain is a part of Brian, and he doesnt feel whole unless there is some representation of it. A perfect example is the scarf that he wore as penance. Originally, he bought it as a 30th birthday present to himself (white=young, innocence), then used it to auto-asphixiate. Life and death. Brian is nothing if not dramatic. Art means something different to everyone. For Brian, it means Justin in its purest form. And if pain is represented on the canvas, so much the better.
But I think it goes further. I think, on a wholly unconscious level, Brian feels guilty for taking Justin's innocence, ie, his virginity, and then carelessly, even viciously, tossing it aside, like it meant nothing. I sometimes think that Justin was Brian's first and only virgin. It explains a lot.
Red, Hi. I love the characterization: Brian uses gasoline to put out a fire. Perfectly put.
I think you're exactly right in your analysis. I think the pain in their relationship was tossed back and forth as the years wore on, and there is real anxiety about what it means to let it stay with you. Thanks for participating in this. Not sure when I'll do Chapter 2 but you've definitely stoked the embers of that project.
Pain is a part of Brian, and he doesnt feel whole unless there is some representation of it. A perfect example is the scarf that he wore as penance. Originally, he bought it as a 30th birthday present to himself (white=young, innocence), then used it to auto-asphixiate. Life and death. Brian is nothing if not dramatic. Art means something different to everyone. For Brian, it means Justin in its purest form. And if pain is represented on the canvas, so much the better.
But I think it goes further. I think, on a wholly unconscious level, Brian feels guilty for taking Justin's innocence, ie, his virginity, and then carelessly, even viciously, tossing it aside, like it meant nothing. I sometimes think that Justin was Brian's first and only virgin. It explains a lot.
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Hi. I love the characterization: Brian uses gasoline to put out a fire. Perfectly put.
I think you're exactly right in your analysis. I think the pain in their relationship was tossed back and forth as the years wore on, and there is real anxiety about what it means to let it stay with you. Thanks for participating in this. Not sure when I'll do Chapter 2 but you've definitely stoked the embers of that project.
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