The+Floatplane+Notebooks

=**Title of the Work: __The Float Plane Notebooks__**=

=Author: Clyde Edgerton=

=Nationality/Ethnic Background:= This novel is based in America with origins of American history. It can be assumed that it is based around the war in Vietnam.

The author was born and raised in Durham, North Carolina. =Genre and Sub-genres= Fiction. =Pertinent Biographical Information:=
 * Edgerton was born and raised in Durham, NC.
 * He was part of a large family which was his inspiration for writing __The Float Plane Notebooks__
 * His mother came from a family of cotton farmers.
 * His father came from a family of tobacco farmers.
 * He took piano lessons at the age of 7 and took and interest to music as a result.
 * After sophmore year in college, he decided to become an English teacher to share his love for good literature.
 * As and undergrad., Edgerton took piloting classes with ROTC and, apon his graduation in 1966, served as a pilot for the next five years.
 * His works recieved "**a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Lyndhurst Fellowship, [and] the North Carolina Award for Literature, a Distinguished Alumni Award from University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Education Department, and five notable book awards from the //New York Times"([])//**

~ Groups like Angry Young Men(Group of writers who fiction stories and plays that contradicted politics and the content middle-class)are small examples of what else originated around the same time that __The Floatplane Notebooks__ was published. ~The __Floatplane Notebooks__ could be considered part of the postmodernism movement, starting in the 1945 and stretching to the present. (Disjointed literature characterized by it's "fragmented **pastiche"(** []) of the different veried status' in culture and how it shows the missing attendance of traditional structure in a technologically advanced and driven world.) =Major Characters, Their Relationships, Their Conflicts: The Copeland Family= ~Albert(Mr. Copeland) + Mildred(mama)= Thatcher(eldest brother), Meredith(black sheep), and Noralee(only daughter) ~Thatcher(19 yrs old) + Bliss(18 yrs. old)= ten years later= Taylor(their only son) ~Uncle Hawk(convict) + Sybil= annual visit to Florida for the imediate family(Mr. Copeland's family and Thatcher's) ~Mark= cousin and Meredith's bestfriend(partner in crime) ~both boys go into military when they come of age ~Meredith + Rhonda(rockstar girlfriend he eventually marries)= Ross(only son)
 * Literary Historical Period/Movement and Pertinent Background**

=Brief Plot Summary= This is a story of how a family overcomes obstacles and forgives many mistakes in the name of love. The points of view of many are included, as if the novel were a family diary, telling of the different memories shared between the family members. Even in death, the family stays together and continues to watch over their living relatives. The story is mostly based around the way the youngest male character, Meredith, grows and changes with time. Over time Meredith is overcome with many physical disabilities which lead him to see who and what really matter. The novel, although fiction, is very realistic and relatable to an average American family in the time period.

=Motifs (Recurring Images, Ideas, Figures of Speech, Symbols, Colors) & Their Thematic Significance:= ~a recurring image is the vine. It provides, yet another, point of view and some insight on the families history. It is also a symbol of the families growth and stability throughout the years since the day Walker and Caroline Copland(great-great-great grandparents of Thatcher and his siblings) settled down.

~a recurring main idea would be that of family value. Family is and always will be something priceless due to the strong family bonds and memories made in each generation's lifetime.


 * these contribute to the general theme by showing how a family's strength can overcome any hardship, as proven in their history with their great-great-great grandparents. Traits of strength, loyalty, trust, and honesty are passed down through generation to generation, thus, aiding in the theme of family=strength and strength=undying love(despite the loss of a loved one)**

=Other Significant Thematic Elements (Significant Character's Names, Significant Quotations, Significant Actions/Events):= ~Mark(Meredith's cousin; the pilot): one of the twelve deciples of Jesus and wrote the second Gospel to the New Testiment. Classicly known as Marcus in the 19th century. In celtic legend, Mark was the name of the King of Cornwell.

~Meredith(the middle brother in the Copeland's immediate family; the marine; the black sheep): can be translated into ether "great lord" or "sea lord". Was the name of the novelist George Meredith in the early 1800-1900's.

(Significant action/event):Both boys, at an early age, went off into the survice. This contradicts what the audience might have thougth for Mark due to his less agressive attitude and obedience. This exemplifies the family's physical strength in their passed down genes.

(Significant action/event):The famliy history is another example of strength and loyalty to eachother. Specifically when the great-great-great grandmother poured boiling water on a bunch of soldiers that made themselves too comfortable without her permission, and her young son reinforcing his mother's dominance over the situation with the shotgun.

=Major Themes= family is strength and strength is undying love

two minds are always better than one in problem solving, especially if one is related to the other.

One should always take the time out of his/her day to show his/her appreciation for their significant other because tomorrow isn't promised to anyone.

Flying by the seat of one's pants isn't always fun but is generally rewarding in more ways than one.( teaches a lesson, results with marriage, the plane flys for a split second, etc.)