Blog #3: The Shadow of the Relationship in Blankets

           As Craig traverses through the story, and particularly in Raina’s hometown, he begins to discover ways that she and her life differ from his expectations. In particular, when they visit her school together, Raina says, “Ha ha This is my friend Craig visiting from Wisconsin,” and while observing Craig says, “I don’t get it. You’re POPULAR,” (Thompson 356-357). Both of these hint at the underlying issue of their relationship as Craig and Raina perceive it differently, and it does not become apparent to him immediately, but his visit reveals it to the reader. He notes, “We sneak to bed together each night and set the alarm, and feel so close. But by day, we keep each other at arm’s length,” (Thompson 360). Having conducted their relationship through letters, phone calls, and packages in the mail, both Craig and Raina have formed their own images of the relationship in their minds separately from each other. In Craig’s case this is the reality he has neglected to see as he views their relationship in shadows and imagines his bond with Raina is more passionate than she believes it is.

            While Craig burns the items that remind him of Raina he creates real shadows, but his reality is becoming illuminated for him. The first time he burns something meaningful to him it is his art earlier in the text and he believes by burning his art he will hold a stronger relationship with his religion because he views it as a distraction, but destroying the art does not strengthen his connection with God. He leads into understanding his relationship with Raina by setting up the story of the "Allegory of the Cave" and interposes it with burning his art and attending school, where for most of the book he was certain he did not fit in. In the image below Craig is shown in the first panel being bullied as he walks through the cafeteria, which is something he experiences frequently, but does not encompass his entire experience in his school. This is the shadow he sees as he views his school as devoid of friends and enjoyment. In the bottom panel the reality is shown as he sits with his friends that ask about his trip to visit Raina and they smile at seeing him. The panel above is dark, with a black background, characters sneering, and Craig is placed in the center of a group of bullies. The panel with his friends has a white background and he is joining them and sitting down as a member of the group rather than an outside while they greet him and smile. 

           The images of him speaking to Raina continue the juxtaposition of Craig's life and the "Allegory of the Cave" story. In the panel pictured below the caption along the top continues the story while the caption below is his conversation with Raina. It conveys simultaneously what is happening in his relationship with Raina and how it connects to the Allegory.  In his mind he built his relationship with Raina up as serious and life changing, but for Raina it has become a distraction from the struggles she faces in her day to day life. Just as Craig once burned his art to focus on his religion, Raina is ending the romantic aspect of their relationship and creating a platonic relationship with him to focus more on her own needs and those of her family. These issues were shown to Craig when he visited her, but he did not see them in the shadow of their relationship that he had created. While these issues were present throughout his visit to Raina as he was able to immerse himself in the issues of her parents' divorce, caring for Sarah and Laura, and his feelings that were moving much more quickly than Raina's, he did not connect these issues in his mind with what he pictured. He created images of her as an angel and placed the relationship on another plane entirely while viewing the flaws of their time together momentarily and then forgetting about them. The first time he tells her he loves her she does not reciprocate, but it was not until this phone call that Craig is thrust into the light and must face the reality that he and Raina were on different pages in their relationship. By burning the things that remind him of Raina he is facing that light and seeing the reality with clarity and forcing himself to cut ties with her to allow himself to move forward. His phone call to her to say good-bye, combined with burning the physical representations of their relationship, gives Craig the closure he has needed. However in keeping and hiding the blanket he is showing that he has not fully turned his back on the bond they had as it holds strong memories for him. He has realized that he was seeing the relationship differently from her but he does not want to forget the relationship entirely.