These two book covers bring a lot to mind when I initially looked at them. First and foremost the cover on the left brings the word "children" into my head. This is due to the figure in the picture looking like it is a young child as well as the fact that it looks as if the figure is in motion or playing. The cover on the right brings the word "crude" to mind. The cover depicts organs entrapped inside barbwire. The sketches are rough with mostly straight lines and little precision, it is almost dehumanizing the organs and the people that the organs come from.
The yellow cover would have led me to believe that this book was about children. The picture along with the title would have led me to think that the book would include a family who was at risk of losing a daughter or a loved one and about that families struggle to keep the child with them. After reading the book it is obvious to me that the cover is supposed to represent Kathy's childhood at Hailsham. The other cover would lead me to think that the plot was darker, possibly about organ and human trafficking. This thought is due to the barbwire surrounding the organs. It makes it seem as if the organs have been trapped or captured and are being detained in some way. Now that I've read the book I realize that the image is portraying the idea that their organs are not theirs to use freely. That they are trapped in this ideal created by society.
In the first picture it is easy to say that the girl pictured is Kathy. It is meant to show her as a child, playing and moving. The POV appears to be that of a guardian, one of her instructors who would watch over her and make sure that her development is moving in the right direction. The other picture would be from the perspective of a doctor or a carer who is assisting with a donation. This photo could easily be an internal image of the donor's body. Who's body it is is left to the interpretation of the reader. It could be the audience member's body or any of the character's body.
The yellow cover presents the ideal of care and friendship. This is shown through the bright, happy colors and the softness of any possibly rough edges. The people who would make this are people who have families or who have a child in their life that they care about. The gray cover shows desperation, fear, pain. This is through the hard edges and the barbwire and the sloppily written words. People who would make that would be people who have felt fear and entrapped. People who are scared and feel threatened and who have been in tough situations before.
Overall I believe that the yellow cover is a better representation of the book and what the book is trying to say. The story line of NLMG is constantly promoting hope of a better tomorrow and of a better future and that is better shown throw the soft colors and edges in the Yellow cover. The Gray cover promotes hostility and danger. That is not the central theme behind NLMG which is why I believe that the yellow cover is a better representation of the book and its messages.
Interesting preliminary thoughts on the grey cover about to being related to organ or human trafficking. When I was examining that cover I did not recognize the barb wire that made the shape of the body. I think that makes the whole cover and that is the point that you are arguing and it really symbolizes how the clones organs aren't really their own. They belong to the real humans of society who are responsible for creating them. Overall good job, I think you did a good job summarizing the aspects of the covers but you could have gone a little more in-depth into the effect the various aspects have/had on the reader.
ReplyDeletePretty good analysis, Nick. I agree with you that the yellow cover is the better representation of the book. I liked that you mentioned that the figure in the cover looks to be a child that is in motion, playing or something. I think this motion lends the cover an impermanent quality. It makes Kathy, if we are assuming that she is the child, seem transient, and the whole book is her trying to hold onto memories and pieces of her life that are now gone. There's also a degree of nostalgia to it, and I think it makes the reader recall their own fleeting childhoods.
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