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Morningside Heights


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Why do you suppose Arlo lies to Sarah about attending Reed College? Why do you feel he rejects academia entirely? Do you think he meets his father's expectations?

Created: 09/23/21

Replies: 9

Posted Sep. 23, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

Why do you suppose Arlo lies to Sarah about attending Reed College? Why do you feel he rejects academia entirely? Do you think he meets his father's expectations?

Arlo lies to Sarah about attending Reed College. Why do you suppose he does this? Why do you feel he desires to succeed but rejects academia entirely? Do you think Arlo meets his father's expectations of him?


Posted Sep. 23, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Marcia S

Join Date: 02/08/16

Posts: 505

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

Lots of questions here! Arlo always felt left out and unwanted by his father's family. Saying he attended Reed was a way to connect to Sarah, and perhaps elevate himself in her eyes. His father was such an academic success that I think Arlo tried to avoid college so as not to be compared. It was a bit of rebellion against his father. There was also the dyslexia which made Arlo feel "less than." However, Arlo was a financial genius and entrepreneur. I'm not sure his father ever appreciated or understood how intelligent and successful Arlo really was.


Posted Sep. 24, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
kimk

Join Date: 10/16/10

Posts: 889

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

I think that Arlo was jealous of Sarah's academic ease, and the fact that she had two loving, supportive parents. By saying he'd gone to Reed as well but rejected the institution, he was trying to one-up her. I think he rejects academia in general because it was very difficult for him. Not only was he dyslexic, but his formative years - when he should have been learning how to be a student - were seriously messed up by his mom's lifestyle. Plus he saw a different path to achieving success for which school was unnecessary.

I'm not sure one can say for sure whether or not he met his father's standards of success, since by the time the success was apparent Spence was in decline. Spence always seemed super supportive of Arlo, though, so I imagine he'd be proud of him.


Posted Sep. 25, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
paulak

Join Date: 04/21/11

Posts: 264

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

Arlo and Sarah were very competitive with each other, like many siblings. Yet this competition was more pronounced because of the long periods of time Arlo went without spending time with his father. Much of Arlo's behavior is the push-pull, him wanting to belong more to the family unit, yet pushing away as a form of punishment for his perceived abandonment. This felt like such a true depiction of what young people in his situation must go through. Heartbreaking.


Posted Sep. 25, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
ritai

Join Date: 02/15/17

Posts: 24

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

Arlo was always in competition with Sarah and jealous of the fact that she had two loving, supportive parents. He always felt that Sarah had it much easier that him to succeed. In addition, he never felt like he could live up to his father's high academic standards. However, he was a financial genius who becomes very successful. I don't think Spence ever really got a chance to understand the success of Arlo because he was in decline by that point.


Posted Sep. 25, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
juliep

Join Date: 04/07/12

Posts: 250

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

I like what Paulak said about it being a “push pull” with Arlo, wanting to be part of the family, even though he would never be an academic, but also feeling that he wasn’t worthy. And his talents lay elsewhere, in terms of what his father thought was success.


Posted Sep. 26, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
peggyt

Join Date: 08/10/17

Posts: 215

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

Arlo must have felt insecure about his lack of formal education; although he did go to Reed, he just didn’t graduate. I think he rejected academia because it meant everything to his dad and Arlo never felt he measured up although it did not seem that Spence felt that way.


Posted Sep. 26, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Maggie

Join Date: 01/01/16

Posts: 434

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

I like the comment by ritai. It all goes back to how he was raised by his mother. Sarah had the love of his father and Pru. A family he would have liked to feel more a part of. His father was such a scholar it would be so difficult to be like him. The odd spelling tests that Spence subjected Arlo to we’re not helpful. But yet Arlo became extremely successful without the education his father and Sarah had. I am sure Spence would have been proud of him.


Posted Sep. 27, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
gerrieb

Join Date: 09/03/19

Posts: 208

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

I agree with ritai. There was an intense sibling rivalry between Sarah and Arlo. The story Arlo spun to Sarah made him out to be someone who could get into Reed with by amazing the Dean of admissions and telling Sarah “ posture” is what got him into Reed. He felt the need to portray himself to her as a smarter than she is deal maker who could accomplish anything he wanted to AND then reject the college and academia as beneath him. He apparently felt he needed to do this to elevate himself in her eyes. To compensate for having learning difficulties and never being the academic she was.


Posted Sep. 27, 2021 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
Patricia Ann

Join Date: 05/24/21

Posts: 72

RE: Why do you suppose Arlo lies to ...

I think Arlo wanted Sarah to know that he had attended Reed, so she would not think that she was above him. I so wanted Arlo to understand that his father loved him very much, even if he was remote. Spence’s attempt to help Arlo improve his vocabulary was an act of love. I think that Spence was more interested in Arlo achieving what he wanted in life rather than meeting his expectations. He always acted as if he was proud that he was his son. One example is when Arlo sat in the back of his father’s class and Spence had him stand up and introduced him.


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