Friday, November 16, 2018

Symbolism in Wide Sargasso Sea


In class yesterday, we had a panel discussion about Wide Sargasso Sea. At the end of the presentation, there was a mention of the possibility of the ending of WSS symbolizing Jane Eyre. I wanted to elaborate on some other symbolic themes in the story and what they might mean.
                First, there is the garden. Antoinette both loves and fears this garden, and compares it to the garden of Eden. I think this symbolizes her relationship with those around her. Though there are some people Antoinette has liked (like Tia, for example), and has tried to get close to, it has always ended badly. As a result, Antoinette has never had a real friend and is very lonely throughout her childhood. She can never get close enough to the people she likes, and they somehow end up leaving her (the scene where Antoinette goes running to Tia and Tia’s mother for safety after the fire, but Tia throws a rock at her).
                There is also Antoinette’s repeated dreams about the forest. Unlike the colorful, lively brightness of Jamaica that Antoinette is so accustomed to, this nightmare is of a dark and sinister place she is unfamiliar with. In the dream she finds a closed off stone garden behind some tall trees. This unfamiliarity with the place and environment around her is perhaps symbolic of her nearing, inevitable captivity in England, a place she is initially unfamiliar with but will be trapped in forever,
just like the nightmare.
                Another creepy thing is that the name of the place “Granbois”, translates literally into “great forest”. Just like her dream, this name warns her of her future move to the forests of England. It is at Granbois that her husband gets lost in the woods and comes across the eerie, lonely ruins of a stone house. This encounter is a sign of the consequences of his future actions (mistreating Antoinette and holding her captive), which lead to the ultimate ruin of his own estate.  
                Lastly, at the end of Part 1 of the story – when the Mason home is burned down – there is mention of a parrot named Coco who belongs to Annette. Coco’s wings are clipped, which symbolizes Antoinette’s own flightless dependency. Throughout the novel she seems to have no freedom, constantly dependent on others. Antoinette states; “[Coco] made an effort to fly down but his clipped wings failed him and he fell screeching. He was all on fire.” This vivid imagery depicts Antoinette’s own fiery fall from the attic at the end of the book.

               

Saturday, November 3, 2018

Examples of Existentialism in The Stranger


Existentialism refers to the idea that there is no higher meaning to the universe or to man’s existence, and no rational order to the events of the world (think Meursault’s casual attitude about his day to day life, how he just goes with the flow and seems to lack realistic, long-term goals for the future). According to this meaning of existentialism, some hold the belief that a person’s life does not have an asserting purpose—there is nothing beyond man’s physical being. It the idea of life being an individual’s independence to the extent that the person may abandon the “rules” and values society gives, and decide for themselves how to live in the world. In a sense, it is sort of an attitude of indifference to many worldly matters. While such a mindset can seem nice and liberating, in The Stranger, Meursault explores the darker side of this mindset through his questionable conduct.

In the novel, the philosophy of existentialism is subtly introduced from the start, when we analyze Meursault’s detached behavior towards his own mother's death. We might interpret this as his assertion of his existentialist thinking; a person’s life doesn’t have any purpose beyond their physical existence, which might’ve been why he had no emotional reaction at the end of hers. Meursault just sees death as something that happens to everyone, which is why it was easy to move on from his mother’s death. From the very first page of the story, he indicates little to no connection with her whatsoever: ''When we lived together, Mother was always watching me, but we hardly ever talked.'' This suggests he might’ve never bonded with her on a personal level – but there is more.

He is also totally unconcerned about his relationship with Marie, which is really weird. Their relationship seems to mean so little to him, and it seems like it wouldn’t matter to him whether or not he lost that relationship. His response to her mention of marriage: ''I explained that it had no importance really, but, if it would give her pleasure, we could get married right away.'' This attitude of indifference might seem strange to us readers at first, but it definitely depicts the mindset of existentialism. The idea that this world has no rational order of events is probably why Meursault just kind of goes with the flow about everything and never gives definite answers to anything, including the serious stuff like marriage.

Meursault takes this nonchalant attitude towards loss to the extreme when tried for the murder of Raymond’s girlfriend’s brother and becoming passive in his own legal defense. This makes it easy for the prosecution to show him as a coldhearted, heartless criminal. When asked about his belief in God, he denies having one: ''I said I saw no point in troubling my head about the matter; whether I believed or didn't was, to my mind, a question of so little importance.'' Once again, Meursault’s reaction here – well as his rejection of belief in God – depicts existentialism.