Japanese Faces and "Parker's Back" /// Bug Olsen

 

            This reading was one of my favorites we have done this semester, and while there were numerous concepts of theology and literary importance, one of my favorite things I noticed was the way Sebastian Rodrigues viewed the face of God as opposed to how Parker and his wife viewed it in “Parker’s Back”. This is largely because we just read it, but it was interesting to see the concept repeated in this reading in a new light.

            Unlike Parker’s wife, Rodrigues views the face of Jesus as something he can idealize and loves to think about. He states that as he speaks to the Japanese peasants, he is often reminded of this face, and wonders what it looked like when he was preaching on the Sermon on the Mount. He loves imagining the face of Jesus, and just like in “Parker’s Back” he discusses how the face of Jesus has been presented in numerous different ways throughout history, and he chooses to picture a particular version of him when he thinks on his face. Unlike Parker’s wife, Rodrigues loves the face of Christ and uses it as motivation throughout his time in Japan. He also wonders what the face of Ferreira looked like as he was preaching to the peasants, and faces in general seem to be particularly fascinating to him. When he first meets the Japanese, he remarks how their faces all look the same to him, and he continually mixes them up. They also only have one emotion on their face, which comes from hiding their feelings as Christians so that they are not found out. This even applies to Kichijiro, who seems to have a permanent look of cowardliness and untrustworthiness to him. A large amount of emotion is portrayed on faces, and thus it is vital to understand their faces to understand the Japanese people. I believe that faces will have an important role in the rest of the novel and contain more symbolic meaning that their face value throughout the reading.

I commented on Emma Landry's and Ashlyn Scism's posts.

Comments

  1. Joshua NaqviApril 11, 2022 at 4:28 PM

    Great connections Bug. You bring up a fantastic point. To some, the image of Christ is a holy thing that represents God. Yet to some, the image of Jesus is heretical. These opinions are largely formed on what denomination someone belongs to and how they read scripture. I think that in general it is ok to have a portrait of Jesus as long as it is representative and not an idol. Then again I am a Baptist, so this view is no surprise.

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  2. Emma LandryApril 11, 2022 at 7:37 PM

    You made some very interesting observations! I have no doubt that faces will continue to play an important role as the story is further fleshed out. The fact that Rodrigues is drawn to faces might indicate that he truly feels a personal connection with those he serves. This is definitely an asset to his vocation. It brings to my mind the old saying that "the eyes are the windows to the soul." Rodrigues probably takes this idea to heart as he cares for the souls of those around him.

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    Replies
    1. Emma LandryApril 11, 2022 at 7:44 PM

      -Emma Landry

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    2. Haylee LyndApril 11, 2022 at 8:12 PM

      I think you found yourself a great research paper topic, Bug. You have a great attention to detail. This representation of faces in Silence is something I may have completely missed if not for you pointing it out. It is interesting that it brings him comfort to think of Jesus' face. I think it is interesting too that he fears the peasants who desire to have a crucifix so badly kind of have it wrong to desire that so greatly. I think you could argue he looks toward Jesus and them towards the religion in that particular passage.

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