September 11, 2001 is a day that haunts Americans to this very day. Due to the horrific events that occurred, many Americans live their lives in fear. America has altered the ways in which it operates in attempt to make every aspect of life ultra safe. Airports have increased security, and schools lock their doors to everyone, including the students. While everyone shares the same idea that 9-11 was indeed a terrible event, not everyone shares the same opinion on where America is headed now. John Updike speaks about his 9-11 experience with the idea that America will continue to shine just as they always had. Susan Sontag dug deeper into what America, the government in particular, has become since the attacks and believes that America, while it may still be strong, is being controlled by fear.
Updike witnessed the September 11th attacks from his tenth-floor apartment room not even a mile away from the twin towers. At first he describes the event as curious, as if it were just a T.V. show, not a reality. Then, once it becomes evident that the event was indeed real, Updike goes into further detail of 9-11. Throughout that day the attacks were broadcast on the news. One by one the shining towers collapsed into a heap of debris spewing smoke that cloaked the majority of the city. When dawn rose again the next morning though, Updike was able to look beyond the smog and still notice how, "The fresh sun shone on the eastward facades, a few boats tentatively moved in the river, the ruins were still sending out smoke, but New York looked glorious." If New York could prove to still be glorious on one of the worst days in American history, surely the rest of America could do the same.
Sontag saw a more frightening angle of the 9-11 attacks. She noticed how, in her own words, "Politics, the politics of a democracy-which entails disagreement, which promotes candor-had been replaced by psychotherapy." The psychotherapy developed as a result of the attacks. Sontag wrote how the government has convinced America, or at least tried to convince America, that the attacks are behind them and that it is alright to move on. America is okay. America is still strong. "But that's not all America has to be." That line, referring to America being strong, is the line Sontag ends with and it sums up her essay perfectly. Americans should be strong but they cannot be stupid, and stupid yet strong is exactly how Americans are acting today.
I hope you had a great summer Cora! I had really similar thoughts to you when reading these two essays about how different they are. It's amazing how two people could have such different outlooks on the same event. I guess it makes sense though since everyone is different and thinks of things and events in different ways. Updike definitely took a positive approach saying that New York still survived and that America is strong. I agree with you that Sontag's last sentence, "But that's not all America has to be." really sums up how she was feeling about the event and how the government handled it. She is saying that America needs to be more than strong, while Updike was clearly satisfied and happy that America was still standing strong.
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