Throughout the novel, Oskar’s boots manage to become light and heavier through the progression of the story line. The metaphor of the boots was something that he learned from his father and therefore, this method was continuously used throughout the novel in order for Oskar to not only express his emotions to the reader, but also to keep the idea of his father alive. Oskar’s boots seem to always be heavy. The first time Oscar mentions his boots, he is attempting to make someone else feel better, thus alleviating their boots–and hopefully, in the process, his own (5).
It seems that whenever Oscar mentions his boots, they are usually heavy and his tries to find some way to try and make them lighter. After talking to a homeless person on the street, Oscar states how heavy his boots feel because he can’t imagine the fact that he lives so close to someone who is so alone and lonely (163). His mother attempts enrolling his in many different classes, she attempts to make his boots lighter by keeping his mind occupied. unfortunately, this doesn’t work. Even on the second page of the novel, Oscar states that he still has heavy boots, but that “playing a good beat” seems to make his boots just a little bit lighter (2).
One of the few times that we see Oskar with lighter boots is when his is thinking or doing anything that reminds him of his father. The quests that Oskar’s father left for him are the only connections that he still had with his father, which leaves him only the satisfaction of trying to make his boots lighter. Maybe Oskar’s father knew that in the unexpected anticipation of his death, he would make, or leave reminders of himself so that his son would not only be able to keep himself occupied, but also have something to remember his father by. The situations that Oskar finds himself in keep him occupied, keep him focused, and keep his boots from getting too heavy so that he can keep going, keep moving in a life without his father.
Your focus on the “heavy boots” metaphor made me look up boots in Google Books — the word appears 21 times (though it seems like it should be more).
I wonder what we’re supposed to make of Oskar’s metaphor of “heavy boots” in the first place? Why that and not something as simple as “depressed” or “feeling blue” to describe his feelings? If we look at Oskar as someone attempting to assimilate or accommodate his trauma, is there any advantage in looking at one’s emotions as something you wear?