Daughter

Hazel had a completely different change about Mr. Van Houten after hearing him tell the story of his daughter. Van Houten was previously an idol of Hazel after she read  » An Imperial Affliction « , but on her trip to Amsterdam, she thought he was in a bad way, an alcoholic and a bad temper. Van Houten’s  » An Imperial Affliction  » is a special book for Hazel and she appreciates and loves it. She felt the harmony of her life with this book so much that she said « the author, Peter Van Houten, seemed to understand me in weird and impossible ways. AIA was my book, in the way my body was my body and my thoughts were my thoughts  » (34). For a patient like her, she felt that no one understood her life and ideals but until she read of Van Houten’s book  » An Imperial Affliction « , and it seemed to her that there was still the one who understands everything about her is Van Houten. Moreover, she considered the book as a special Bible and dedicated to her life. She shared  » Peter Van Houten, the reclusive author of An Imperial Affliction, the book was as close a thing as I had to a Bible. Peter Van Houten was only person I’d ever come across who seemed to understand what it’s like to be dying, and not have died  » (13). In addition, this book is an incomplete book, she guesses that the main character of the book is dead and the story ends midway, however that is one of her favourite things in this book. She said that « that’s part of what I like about the book in some ways. It portrays death truthfully. You die in the middle of your life, in the middle of sentence » (67). She loved the book very much and admired its author, but he let her down in a reality meeting. However, the last time Van Houten met her after Augustus’s death and he shared his daughter’s story which completely changed her way of thinking and attitude towards him. He shared with her that « my daughter, she was eight. Suffered beautifully. Will never be beatified » and « she had leukemia, like Anna, very much like her » (285). This is probably the reason why a talented writer and a career lover becomes an alcoholic, a strange and rude character. She felt sympathetic to him and understood why he had become making her think of her parents. Therefore, she was like wondering what they would look like when she died. She felt worried that they would be like Van Houten who would turn into a different person and they would not be the same as before because of her death. His daughter’s story touched her heart.

Word count: 456.