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ments Alex’s voice.
Jonathan’s voice becomes more intrusive in the edited version of the
journey narrative which we do not see but know exists from discussions
of alterations in Alex’s letters. In later letters Alex agrees to insert new
text, written by Jonathan, into his own. For instance, Jonathan asks Alex
to change the section of the story when the three travelers stop in a hotel
to read more in his favor. In the original version, Jonathan comes across
as a bumbling tourist. Alex recounts that Jonathan had to pay extra for
his hotel room because he revealed that he was an American to the hotel
owner: “‘You must remain in the car,’ I told the hero, because the proprietor
of the hotel would know that the hero is American, and Father told
me that they charge Americans in surplus … [W]hen we entered the hotel,
I told the hero not to speak … [B]ut he kept inquiring why he should
not speak, and as I was certain, he was heard by the owner of the hotel”
(63). As a result of ignoring Alex’s advice, Jonathan is forced to show his
passport and is forced to pay more. Alex’s response to Jonathan’s review of
this account suggests Jonathan wishes to be portrayed in a more flattering
light. In Alex’s following letter to Jonathan, he writes that he changed the
section according to Jonathan’s suggestions:
I fashioned the very sparse changes that you posted to me. I
altered the division about the hotel in Lutsk. Now you only pay
once. “I will not be treated like a second-class citizen!” you apprise
to the hotel owner, and while I am obligated (thank you,
Jonathan) to inform you that you are not a second-, third-, or
fourth-class citizen, it does sound very potent. The owner says,
“You win. You win. I tried to pull a fast one” (what does it mean
to pull a fast one?), “but you win. OK. You will pay only once.”
This is now an excellent scene (101).
Alex changes the exchange of dialogue within the scene to alter its outcome.
Now, Jonathan comes across as a savvy traveler. It is apparent that
28 | Mehlinger
Jonathan has written the actual text Alex conveys in the letter, because
at one point Alex has to interject to ask Jonathan what the phrase “I
pulled a fast one” means. We can also see that Alex is easily influenced
by Jonathan, whose opinion he holds in very high regard. Despite the
blatant revision of fact that Jonathan requests, Alex does not protest. In
fact, he goes so far as to conclude, “This is now an excellent scene.” By
editing Alex’s text, Jonathan’s voice alters Alex’s voice within the text by
asserting his own.
Jonathan also has strong influence over Alex’s everyday usage of the
English language. When first introduced to Alex, any English speaking
reader will be initially jarred by his strange vocabulary choices and grammar.
Mihai Mindra addresses Alex’s unique language in the context of the
time and place he grew up: “The vocabulary used by Alex, in his story
of the trip and his post-trip letters to Jonathan Safran, seems to indicate
Foer’s expertise in pre-1989 East Communist mechanical perception of
Western culture dictated by ideological Iron Curtains” (Mindra 52). According
to Mindra, Alex’s bizarre interpretation of English is an accurate
representation of how Western languages, like English, were taught in
the Communist Block before the Berlin Wall’s fall. Mindra explains that
it was common for English to be taught “according to academically out
of fashion dictionaries and East European textbooks using high standard,
archaic, non-colloquial dead lingos” (52). As the novel progresses, Alex’s
English abilities improve, which can be documented in his letters to Jonathan
as time passes.
In Alex’s very first letter to Jonathan, he begins by apologizing for
his usage of English, writing in the second sentence, “Like you know,
I am not first rate with English” (Foer 23). As he continues, he reveals
that Jonathan has made efforts to help him with his English: “I fatigued
the thesaurus you presented me, as you counseled me to, when my
words appeared too petite, or not befitting” (23). The correspondence
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