Old School by Tobias Wolff.

¶ … Old School by Tobias Wolff. Specifically it will discuss the theme of the novel. Wolff sets his novel in 1960 at a New England prep school, an unusual setting for a novel. It is set at a time when John F. Kennedy took office, before the Vietnam War, and a time when America was on the brink of change. Some readers might think the theme of the novel is the narrator's coming of age, but in reality, the novel's theme is learning to trust oneself and in our ability to do anything, whether it is good or bad, in life.

At first glance, the novel is a story of coming of age and learning what life will be about. Wolff writes, "I understood that nothing stood between me and my greatest desires - nothing between me and greatness itself - but the temptation to doubt my will and bow to counsels of moderation, expedience, and conventional morality, and shrink into the long, slow death of respectability" (Wolff 68). However, this book parallels much of Wolff's real life, and so, its theme is the reality of life and learning about one's abilities, as well. One critic notes, "His two novels, particularly Old School-which he has said grew out of an idea for a short story-allow the fictional exploration of aspects of himself and others, the element of invention that can take him beyond what may have happened in his actual life into new areas of experience" (Sharp 1429). The unnamed narrator learns about real life, how sometimes heroes can fall from grace and that ultimately, the narrator's love of literature and writing, something that permeates the school, is what truly motivates him. He states this early on in the novel. He writes, "If the school had a snobbery it would confess to, this was its pride in being a literary place-quite aside from the glamorous writers who visited three times a year" (Wolff 4). This love of literature and writing permeates Wolff's own life, and it forms another underlying theme in the novel. The love of the writing life teaches the young men that if they try hard enough, they can do anything in their lives, such as craft a story that wins them the great honor of meeting a legendary writer like Ernest Hemingway.

The boys meet other writers, too. One is another legend, Ayn Rand, who ends up being a major disappointment to the narrator, which proves that great and famous writers and celebrities do not always have the best character. Wolff writes, "But Ayn Rand jolted me into taking sides. She made me feel the difference between a writer who despised woundedness and one for whom it was a bedrock fact of life" (Wolff 94). After this, the narrator begins to question his own character and integrity, especially when the plagiarism event becomes public. Another underlying theme in this novel that correlates with the central theme is wanting to fit in. The narrator is Jewish, and always feels out of place in this New England prep school. He wants to fit in and be a real writer that he will do anything to make that dream come through, even committing plagiarism, the cardinal sin of any good writer. That says a lot about his character, and how much he wants to fit in with the other boys in school. He will pass on another's work as his own in order to fit in and win. Another critic notes, "Yet by plagiarizing Friedman, he has acknowledged the Jewish identity he'd been struggling to understand, and comes to a deeper, more honest self-understanding" (Contino). That leads him to learn to trust himself, rather than trusting others to do something for him. Because of this, he takes his future into his own hands, such as choosing a college. He says, "Things that mattered at Princeton or Yale couldn't possibly withstand this battering of raw, unironic life. You didn't go to eating clubs at Columbia, you went to jazz clubs. You had a girlfriend -- no, a lover -- with psychiatric problems, and friends with foreign accents" (Wolff 109). He has learned who he is and what his character is made of, and that will serve him well in life.

Throughout the novel, the theme of writing and literature is a heavy motivator for all the boys. Early in the book he says, "My aspirations were mystical. I wanted to receive the laying on of hands that had written living stories and poems, hands that had touched the hands of other writers. I wanted to be anointed" (Wolff 7). This is where the book becomes more like a memoir than a novel. While this is Wolff's first full-length novel, he began writing decades before, and has always been involved in literature and journalism. It is clear from this novel and its themes that he is in love with the craft of writing, and that he believes it can teach people about themselves and their abilities, just as the boys learn about themselves in the novel as they turn into young men.

One of the reasons this novel is so successful is that Wolff also bases it on his own life, adding real emotions and themes to the novel. A critic notes, "Wolff attended a prep school much like the one in Old School, the Hill School in Pennsylvania, and was himself expelled not for anything dishonorable, but for failing grades" (Contino). The novel resonates with readers because it is real, and the situations the boys face are real. They illustrate the pressures and angst of coming of age, but they illustrate how young men mature and learn about themselves, and come to understand what their strengths and weaknesses are. The narrator gives in to his weakness in an attempt to fit in, but that teaches him something valuable about his character, and that is what this novel attempts to convey to the reader. We as humans are capable of just about anything, both good and bad. Once we understand that, we can master the evil in us and turn it into good. Another critic notes, "For all the disillusionment -- both explicit in the plot, and implicit in the novel's political backdrop -- Wolff's simple yarn is a reminder that those who gaze deep into dishonesty find greater truths than those who never question the facts" (Brown 52). The narrator learns this, and ultimately, it sets him free to chart his own course through life.