The Time Traveler's Wife.
Everyone has dreamed or thought of time traveling at one point or another in their lives. What would happen however, if it wasn't you who traveled but your husband? It seems like an easy enough task, just wait while your significant other is out and about traveling through the days, months and years of time. However, in Audrey Niffenegger's, "The Time Traveler's Wife" we witness this superficial problem as it goes deeper than just mere words. Clare Abshire, a young artist falls for the romantic and mysterious time traveler, Henry DeTamble. Little miss Clare meets her future husband at six years old . Of course, she doesn't know this yet but as the years progress she continuously receives visits from Henry, the man who overcomes time. She falls in love with Henry as she develops into a blossoming teen, with his still routine visits. Somewhere in these visits, Clare learns that she will one day will marry Henry.
Characters
There are many characters in this winding novel that we encounter through the time traveling itself and the story that follows it.
Henry DeTamble: A handsome young man, dark hair, tall and runs for a passion and nessity. The Time Traveler, the man with no age. Henry DeTamble sees himself as monster who cannot control what he has, although he wishes he could. He's hard on himself due to the fact that he witnesses things he can't necessarily change. When he meets Clare however...continued on page:6
The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, was turned into motion picture earlier this year in September.
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Above is pictured Alba, the duo's daughter.
Gomez: Clare and Henry good friend, who also happens to be in love with Clare. Throughout the book Gomez never gives up on Clare, although at one point married and with a family you see his perseverance and obsession with Clare.He hopes that one day she will leave Henry.
Katherine: Clare's good friend, she's supportive and believes in her relationship with Henry. She is also aware of Gomez's feeling toward Clare.
Dr.Kendrick: The doctor that tries to help Henry with his time traveling problem. He's faithful to what he's doing and hopes that one day help Henry and Alba, overcome their time travels.
Alba: Product of Clare and Henry's love. Their only daughter, she's mentioned as an intelligent and brilliant child. She also time travels.
Henry and Clare, struggle to keep things together through the troubles of this never-ending relationship.
Major Conflicts
Their are many conflicts that are built in this novel. I believe their are two that stand out the most. One is Person vs. Self, Henry vs. himself. Henry is never honestly happy with the fact that he time travels, he has trouble accepting the fact that is his nature until he meets Clare. Even when Clare and Henry's paths meet in the future he cannot accept himself for all the damage that is happening to her, while being with him. We Clare struggle as she deals with Henry's disappearances, also how Henry's tries everything humanly possible to overcome this.
***Continued on page 6 under Major Conflicts.
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Chicago <3
Setting:
The Time Traveler's Wife, setting is difficult to put a finger on due to the fact that it can change in blink of an eye. The main setting, you could say is Chicago, Illinois. The time line ranges from 1967 to 2053.
Heney and Clare.
Theme:
There are many themes people could interpret from this. The theme I see consecutively played throughout the novel is:
"Love can overcome any barriers".
Henry and Clare's love overcame time, people and one of the biggest virtue of all patience. Through Clare's lonely nights and Henry self acceptance they stuck together and never let go. Now, if you bring time into the game, that is another thing that makes their love unique and yet more powerful. Its not every couple that has to go through disappearances like that.
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One of Henry and Clare's last encounters.
Plot Line
Exposition: We learn in the prologue that Clare is left behind and Henry struggles as he is often parted from his daily activities in a brusque way that doesn't give him time to either say goodbye or finish anything. We begin the story on Clare and Henry's first date, where Henry has never seen Clare but Clare has known him all her life.
Rising Action: The rising action I would say begins from the moment Clare first meets Henry's 32 year old self at six years old. She falls for Henry as a teen and soon learns she will one day marry him. Jumping to the "present" Clare and Henry do marry and as a newly wed they go through much more than just mere troubles. Dealing with self acceptance and patience, is there. Not much, later Clare has the urge to be a mother. Motherhood, unfortunately does not come easy. With 7 miscarriages and much pain, Henry decides to have surgery in order to prevent another painful miscarriage without Clare's consent. Fortunately, for Clare a past Henry gives the gift of pregnancy once again. This time their is no miscarriage.
Climax: Their baby girl, Alba is born.
*** Continued on page 6 and 7 under Plot line.
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AUDREY NIFFENEGGER
AUDREY NIFFENEGGER is a visual artist and a professor in the Interdisciplinary Book Arts MFA Program at the Columbia College Chicago Center for Book and Paper Arts,where she teaches writing, letterpress printing, and fine edition book production. She shows her artwork at Print works Gallery in Chicago. The Time Traveler’s Wife is her first novel. ***This information is directly from the book.
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<3
Character Continuation
...his life takes the turn he's always been waited for.
Clare Abshire: Clare is six when we meet her. She grew up in South Haven, Michigan. Clare is an artist, she a beautiful young woman and most of all her patience and love in this novel surpass boundaries of time which is what makes this strange love of Henry and hers work.
*** Their are many characters in this novel that ranges from so many times, but these are only a few that are mentioned the most.
Major Conflicts
The other big conflict that I see, is Person vs. Person. We see Henry and Clare arguing about having a baby, after almost 7 miscarriages. We see her pain, in not being able to hold a baby in her arms and we see his struggle to mentally not kill himself as he knows the baby would be a time traveler.Plot Line
Falling Action: Before Alba is born, Henry travels to the future where he meets his future daughter at 10 years old. Alba by mistake tells Henry that he has died. Henry inquires "how long have I been gone", and to his horror finds out that he dies when Alba is five. From here Henry travels back to the present and begins to prepare himself for his death. He writes letters to Clare and Alba, travels to the future and ultimately begins his wait.
Resolution:
Henry does die, eventually due to time traveling, however he leaves Clare many gifts. He leaves her dates which in his past self will come to her and visit her. The last date is when she is 82 years old and she is waiting for him to come to her one last time.
Point of View:
We see the story from the two protagonists point of view, a first person view.
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Recommendations:
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. The books has many elements that could capture anyone's attention it has mystery,romance,reality,sci-fi and adventure. I can almost say that it has everything that anyone would like it.Created at LetterPop.com