Th1rteen R3asons Why

The book Th1rteen R3asons Why by Jay Asher is an incredibly powerful book that requires a strong, intellectual reader. I would rate this text a B because although I might think it's a great read and be able to read it in one sitting, I cannot say it's 100% appropriate to teach in a classroom of high schoolers. There are many teachable aspects of the book, such as themes of bullying and feelings of being an outsider, literary elements such as allusions, narrative style, and sarcasm, and just an overarching story as a life lesson. The text, while useful to teach in many circumstances, also faces many critiques when looking at it from a teaching standpoint. In some ways, the cons outweigh the pros because the nature of the novel is just not something many parents would want their students reading. One could argue that it's important to read stories of bullying and what bullying could lead to, but another could argue that there are other books to teach that will give that same lesson to students. As for my opinion, I'm kind of at a stand-still; I really enjoy the book and think it has many benefits, but I also find myself uncomfortable in teaching this book and the topic of suicide in this context.

One aspect of Th1rteen R3asons Why that I really enjoy and find completely worthy of teaching is the character development throughout the story. When the book first starts out, it's hard to tell if you feel bad for Hannah Baker, the main character who commits suicide, or if you completely hate her. And I think that's an interesting thing to note because there is, in fact, a huge debate on whether suicide is selfish and a choice, or saddening and not a choice. The development of Hannah over the course of the book is incredible because she grows into a character that is extremely relatable: she is picked on, she seeks approval, she gets rejected, and she explains how all of it is effecting her. While many teenagers may not commit suicide, they can still relate to a lot of the things Hannah is going through throughout the book.

Another character to analyze is Clay. At first, it's an obvious confusion to wonder why we are receiving the book from this particular person's point of view; what was so special about Clay? After reading more of the book, its apparent that Clay actually plays a crucial role in Hannah's final time before her death. Clay makes many allusions to the fact that this whole thing is unfair. In fact, Clay actually defends a few people on the tape explaining that they simply didn't know what was going on with Hannah so it's unfair for her to blame them. I found this extremely ironic (and a bit annoying) because that's not an excuse and, furthermore, that's the exact reason you shouldn't pick on someone- because they probably have more going on in their life. Besides that fact, Clay is a good character because he is the only person on the tape that Hannah has there to apologize. Clay is the only character who wanted to actually help Hannah, just maybe didn't have the resources to do so. He's an important character to dissect and analyze when trying to distinguish between bullies and allies and what people can do about bullying or people thinking about committing suicide.

Th1rteen R3asons Why perpetuates gender stereotypes to a T. The girls in the novels are all about looks (Hannah alludes to the fact that anyone is prettier than her at any chance she gets) and the men are all about scoring a girl and making it known. That being said, I think Jay Asher did a great job of painting Hannah in a mature light. Although it can be said that she is the most immature for running away from her problems in the most permanent way possible, the things she knows about life and her poetry and the way she knows a lot about other people all point to the fact that she is mature beyond her years. As for the other characters in the book, I can't say the same. Most of the other characters, especially Jessica Davis, are snotty bullies who like to party, the typical stereotype for teenagers. Not only that, but they don't really have a sense of direction or seem to be involved in school much.