When I think of Levine’s collection, I tend to see different angles or aspect that the word work falls into. When you look at how this collection praises the type of workers across America, with not so traditional names such as Sweet Pea, Packy, and Loonie that work in the not so traditional workplace doing not so traditional jobs such as working furnaces, being operation over the assembly lines and the loading docks. Levine’s make sure to gives his characters a voice that defines them by the life they live and not just their jobs. He makes sure to show the reader what more they have to offer, being remarkable in their talents and displaying creativity in the things that they do. He makes a reference to them living their lifestyle and hope as “at the borders of dreams”.
Around the 40s and 50s, this was a time typically known for its hard labor jobs, Levine captured the essence of Detroit (I am assuming he is speaking about where he grew up) perfectly during this time. Even though I did not work in any form of an industrial job the same sense of pride still fills me to know that I am more than my work, but it complements me through all my creative endeavors. When you look at the names of his poems, they remind me of little checkpoints in life when it comes to working and growing through life. In his piece “Among Children” I got so many viewpoints from it. One is that children often look to parents when aspiring to work and what hard work looks like.
For me growing up my mother worked multiple jobs to ensure that we were well taken care of, and as I grow older today, I see those same characteristics traits in me but more so in my older sister. She is never without a job and sometimes she works at 2 or 3 different places. So, after reading “Among Children” it really allowed me to think back, even though I was so young and had no knowledge about work I was still very impressionable and have taken what seen around me and placed it into my adult working life today. Levine speaks on different issues within working America such as physical labor, family, personal lost and even economical class. Some key comparison that I see between Levine’s experience and my very own is that we have worked extremely hard for what we want whether that’s for us individually or for your family.
Being a first-generation student I feel this a lot, I have to work extra hard at a not so traditional job to ensure that my family is taken care of while I am in the states and they are in the Caribbean. Even though Levine worked in factories and I work in an office the pressure is still there. Within the working field, it is taught to you the more you work the more chance you have to move up in your economic class. Even though I do believe this, at times no matter how hard you work sometimes your job placement decides which economic class you fall into. When Levine spoke about working on the assembly line and loading docks, those aren’t the jobs that scream upper class. And no matter how hard you work within those jobs your class placement is chosen for you. After being in college I see that my own experience working in different jobs held shift my perception on work and what it actually is.
Work isn’t just the labor you put into something but what you get out of it. Levine shows these workers as creative souls that aren’t just workers but are readers, poets and even those in the academic world. I am more than a receptionist at a desk but I am a student, a creator and so much more. Levine doesn’t just speak about work but he also dabbles in the theme of love and passion. These themes will always be connected to work and you as a person in so many ways than one. Being a receptionist I fall in love with the idea of being able to help people with things that may seem so minuscule to other. This helps me find out about myself and how it ties in with jobs that I have had or jobs that I am looking forward to getting. Levine makes a great point with connecting the different themes in his collection to life experiences that everyone goes through.
