Do you remember where you were on September 11, 2001? I was 10 years old at my elementary school when our grade was called in by our principal. He told us there had been a horrific tragedy, and the World Trade Center had been hit by two planes and had collapsed. At the time, I did not really know the true significance of this event, but as I grew up, I learned that it was one that I will never forget. Cayce Pollard will never forget it either. Ever since this day, Cayce has seen her life change in multiple ways. The world itself has “gone in such a different direction”, and Cayce has experienced the movement of this direction. Therefore, globalization proves to be a significant part of Pattern Recognition. Cayce watches the world around her evolve and she is able to try to push away this dreaded past to focus on this future of hers. She tries to overcome events such as 9/11 and the death of her father. As she does this, she is able to try and become her own person in a different society. Cayce carries certain characteristics and qualities that allow her to evolve into the person that she becomes; as the world moves in a different and odd direction, so does Cayce and her ability to deal with her transformation. The losses, that prove to be a significant theme for Cayce, allow for her to deal with these changes and helps her form and maintain her individuality.
Cayce’s life undergoes many changes throughout the novel, and it is mainly the significant losses in her life. The death of Win is a plays a key role in Cayce’s life. To think about this in a personal way is mind boggling. The loss of anyone close is really hard, and it is even tougher when it is someone like your own father. The hardest question for people to respond to is, how do I come to grips with death? It is impossible to know when death is going to happen or how it might happen, and there is nothing you can do sometimes to prepare yourself to deal with a loss of a loved one. The biggest question that arises during a time of death is why? Why does Cayce have to deal with it? Why was it Win who died? Why did this happen? All of these questions are a part of this change that Cayce has to deal with. Gibson remarks, “But this is a mood, she tells herself, a bad one in its low-key way, dealt by soul-delay” (202). This soul is considered to be the core of one’s being. It is what makes up an individual and Cayce possesses and holds the key to her own soul. It is designed not to be touched by anyone else. The same kind of thing can be said for the 9/11 events. 9/11 so deeply impacted Cayce because of how it was linked to the death of her father. Cayce was able to deal with this by pulling deep down inside her to the soul of her existence. With 9/11 having a direct effect on Cayce, it is also having a direct effect on the feelings of the outside world. Cayce’s sensation of loss is the same that the world is feeling. Those feelings caused many people to question themselves and their beliefs. Not many were able to dig deep within themselves like Cayce was. The world changed dramatically after 9/11 as a whole, and it was mainly large global changes. The globalization aspect of Pattern Recognition proved to be significant to both Cayce and every other character in the novel.
Globalization is a movement to make everything almost standardized. Globalization is a homogenizing force that promotes a lack of individuality. Technology is a huge driving force in the globalization movement. The Internet, cell phones, and satellite communication have all contributed to globalization. Cayce communicates mostly via e-mail which shows how the world has globalized a little bit. In a globalized world, a big aspect is the rise of the corporation. Volkav possesses this in the novel with his oil corporation. All nations depend on oil and without it, the world would not function. “Russian Federation’s got it. Means huge changes in the flow of global capital. Means we’re going to be running on Russian oil”. Boone tells Cayce this, and it shows how globalization has occurred through the novel. Globalization has multiculturalism and a cosmopolitan aspect to it as well; what globalization creates is a lack of individuality. Even in this globalized world, Cayce tries to be more individual.
The biggest question in creating individuality in a globalized society is, how do you express uniqueness when everyone seems to be linked? Cayce tries to be individualized in this global world. Gibson remarks, “However odd things seem, mustn’t it be to exactly that extent of oddness that a life is one’s own, and no one else’s?” (203). Cayce’s phobias are a quality that she uses in order to make her unique. The ability she has to recognize and judge certain logos allows her to be successful at her job and in life. Blue Ant really appreciates what she has to offer from a business aspect.
The tragedies that occur seem to motivate Cayce to do her job well. She is always striving for some higher goal like the new job position, but most importantly, the maker of the footage. Cayce becomes accustomed to this new lifestyle and actually likes it. Being different isn’t as bad as it seems. “She feels as though something huge has happened, is happening, but she can’t define it. She knows that it’s about meeting Stella, and hearing her story, and her sister’s, but somehow she no longer is able to fit it to her life. Or rather she lives now in that story, her life left somewhere behind, like a room she’s stepped out of. Not far away at all but she is no longer in” (303). Cayce essentially left her problems, tragedies, and feelings all behind to get to this better place in life. She comes to grips with all of this at the end of the novel. She is able to deal with his absence and console herself to make things better. This brings about a more satisfying aspect of life for Cayce, and one that required tremendous determination and perseverance to get there. What allowed Cayce to get in this position was her individuality throughout the globalization of the world. Individuality was the key to success and that is what Cayce maintained, even when it seemed like everything was going wrong.
In order to succeed in life, looking to the future and making strides towards a positive aspect might be the best option and present the overall best outcome. People choose to deal with certain events and tragedies in many different ways. What Cayce did proved to be the most effective way for her. How we are able to cope with loss and deal with it helps define humans. When a significant tragedy or loss occurs, where do people turn? Who do they blame? How are their actions and personalities like after the loss occurs? I think these questions all come across one’s mind at some point in time. Cayce prepared herself for the future by doing the best she could at working for Blue Ant. She also set out for the footage, and this goal of her, gave something to motivate and drive her. That is what people need to help them cope with these tragedies and losses. People want something positive, and the only way to achieve that is by setting a goal and trying to succeed. This would get the loss off their mind temporarily and then give them an opportunity to reflect on everything when it is all said and done. This is what Cayce did and is what people should do to help deal with everything.
