Chap 27-35

Eli Pardue
9/17/08
Brit Lit
Mrs. Pfan

Rob's acceptance of who and where he is in life was brought about by his 'new' relationship with Laura. Because they got back together, hew as able to see what his personal problems and insecurities were, why they attracted people, but also why they drove them away. He was able to speak with Laura (in a civilized manner) about the reasons she left him, why they had grown distant, and why she was attracted to him in the first place. Previous to his reconciliation with Laura, he was only left with his skewed views of himself and those around him. For example, he used to believe that people were to be judged by the things they do, the music they listen to, and the films they watch. The only way he would ever see someone past their outward image was if it was compatible with his outward image. When Laura took him to see her friends, he found that, he was trapped in a situation where he knew nothing about her friends, except who they presented themselves to be, sans outward image. When he looked at their record collection, he was appalled. Yet he realized that he liked these people before he knew anything about their possessions. From this encounter, Rob realized that it was not about what they owned, but who they were. I have no reason to think that Rob's changes are fake. Rob achieved peace because he realized the errors of his bigoted mindset.
I have mixed feelings about the end of the book. It was nice to see Rob find himself at the end of High Fidelity, but the book ended without gusto. It ended with a question mark. Rob is back together with Laura, but we cannot see the future of his relationship with her, which may be the defining factor of whether or not the new Rob sticks. We do not know what will happen with Rob's job at Championship Vinyl. There we simply too many loose ends.