Jonathan Safran Foer's Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close

There are books for learning, there are books for enjoyment, and then there are books that are meant to be explored. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is one of those stories filled with hidden messages and secrets just waiting to be discovered. Jonathan Safran Foer filled his story with these secrets to engage the audience and it starts without even having to open the first page of the book. The title of the story connects many different characters through actions, relationships, tragedy, and loss. These connections bring the entire story together, giving a deeper meaning to the title. Oskar Schell struggles with depression and expressing his emotions after his father dies. He expresses his emotions by talking to new people and telling them about his life and his journey. Oskar uses the words “extremely” and “incredibly” dozens of times throughout the text, which is understanding considering the circumstances and events. In all, the words extremely, loud, incredibly, and close are used 266 times throughout the

Oskar lived in New York and was not too far from the world trade center considering. The day of this tragic event would not only have been physically loud and close but it would also be personally loud and close to Oksar from the loss of his dad. The planes hitting the towers is just one literal example of something extremely loud and incredibly close shown throughout the story. Some other examples include the bombing of Dresden and the bombing of Hiroshima. None of these events are directly related in terms of the main plot and characters but they all are connected by being extremely loud and incredibly close. The main characters in all three events were close to the events and were dramatically changed by the events. All of these events have similar underlying themes of death, tragedy, pain, and loss. These are all emotions that Oskar deals without throughout the