Philip Antohi
Journal Assignment Two: Analyzing Style in Wide Sargasso Sea
Jean Rhys’ writing style is no doubt one of the unique writing styles in the prose genre. Her book Wide Sargasso Sea epitomizes this writing style and is also regarded as one of her best works. One of the characteristics associated with her writing style is the mode of narration that the book takes on, being narrated by several persons throughout the story. The second part of the book, for example, is narrated by Rochester Antoinette’s husband. The use of Rochester as the narrator in this part allows the reader to view Antoinette and other characters in the book though the eyes of a non-familiar character. Rochester, despite being married to Antoinette, has only known
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The use of simple language makes the novel more accessible to persons of different levels of education. One does not need to have a great understanding of the English language or contain the highest level of vocabulary so as to read and understand the novel. That is not to say however, that the novel is simplistic in form. Simple language is only meant to make the novel accessible to persons from different parts of the world, and the author ultimately achieved this aim since the novel is considered one of the classics of English …show more content…
Tragedies are one of the most celebrated forms of writing and Wide Sargasso Sea definitely has a tragic connotation that increases its appeal to the reader. Firstly, Annette was the wife of a powerful rich man, and she was considerably beautiful as well, and so these elements set her up to be a kind of tragic hero. Antoinette, being the daughter of a powerful man and a beautiful woman during the slavery era, is also a possible tragic hero. The events that occur after the death of Antoinette’s husband are nothing short of tragic for the two women. They lose Pierre through a fire incident, both women get married to men that cannot be described as loving, and both suffer from poor mental states. Furthermore, the misfortunes that befall the two ladies are made all the more agonizing by the implication that the ladies had little to no choice in controlling their destinies. All these are characteristics of a tragedy plot, and although the novel cannot be classified as a tragedy, the connotation is quite clear. It points to the author’s literary maturity since she can successfully embed tragic elements without disturbing the plot or flow of the
throughout the novel allows the audience to gain a better understanding and personal compassion for both the character and the author. 	The novel is written in a short, choppy sentence structure using simple word choice, or diction, in a stream of consciousness to enable the reader to perceive the novel in the rationale of an eleven-year-old girl. One short, simple sentence is followed by another, relating each in an easy flow of thoughts. Gibbons allows this stream of thoughts to again emphasize the childish perception of life’s greatest tragedies. For example, Gibbons uses the simple diction and stream of consciousness as Ellen searches herself for the true person she is.
In this novel, the society is centered around dichotomies; “youth and dotage” (Balzac 67), “the young man who has possessions and the young man that has nothing” and “the young man who thinks and the young man who spends” (87). Any person who falls outside of either box is called a “[child] who learn[s]… too late” or can “never appear in polite society” (87), essentially meaning they are undesirable in a formal society because they cannot follow expectations. The titular character, Paquita, is an “oriental” foreigner, from Havana, domesticated in Paris when she was sold to a wealthy woman who desired her. She fits into no culture entirely, as she is “part Asian houri on her mother’s side, part European through education, and part tropical by birth” (122). She is bisexual, choosing neither men nor women over the other. She is controlling, dressing Henri in women’s clothing (119), but controlled as she is reduced to a possession. However, there are ways in which a person can still be desired even if they are not easily pigeonholed. With her golden eyes and sensuality, Paquita fulfills both of the main pursuits of this society, “gold and pleasure” (68). Consequently, unlike the Marquis and his irrelevance in society, Paquita is highly sought after, thus making her a valuable commodity. Her desirability is not because of who she is as a human, but instead what
The author uses short, simple sentences that manage to say a lot in a few words. The author also uses imagery. He also puts in his book references to historical events. These references increase the understanding and appreciation of Billy's story by suggesting historical and literary parallels to the personal events in his life. The novel does not have smooth transitions from one event to the next.
As the era of literature slowly declines, the expert critiques and praise for literature are lost. Previously, novels were bursting at the seams with metaphors, symbolism, and themes. In current times, “novels” are simply short stories that have been elaborated on with basic plot elements that attempt to make the story more interesting. Instead of having expert critical analysis written about them, they will, most likely, never see that, as recent novels have nothing to analyze. Even books are beginning to collect dust, hidden away and forgotten, attributing to the rise of companies such as Spark Notes. An author deserves to have his work praised, no matter how meager and the masses should have the right to embrace it or to reject it. As much of this has already been considered, concerning Les Misérables, the purpose of this paper is to compare, contrast, and evaluate Victor Hugo’s use of themes and characterization in his novel, Les Misérables.
Both Heart of Darkness and Wide Sargasso Sea deal with Englishmen, Charles Marlow and Mr. Rochester, who are placed in unfamiliar and different environments than accustomed to. These two characters not only deal with their own personal struggles, but are connected to the struggles of people close to them (namely Kurtz and Antoinette).Joseph Conrad and Jean Rhys attribute these hardships to the effects of colonialism. Conrad mainly uses Kurtz as his symbol for colonialism, while Rhys uses Mr. Rochester. The ways in which these two characters interact with their new settings move the narratives.
is also simple. Hemingway uses simple writing not for the ease of complexity but to give the
Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey is a coming of age story that filled with suspense and mystery keeping us captivated till the end. Set in the 1960’s in an old mining town if Corrigan, where everyone knows one another. I certainly agree with weartholdcoat’s opinions on the novel, it’s a great thrilling read that keeps you completely hooked. Silvey uses various techniques like narrative and language conventions, theme and Australian context to achieve such a captivating finish.
The sense of fear attributed to the setting in 'Wide Sargasso Sea' may have been influenced by Rhys' own experiences as a creole woman growing up in the Caribbean. Rhys' great-grandfather's house was burned down by members of the local black community in an act of revenge, as he was a slave-owner. This event is often considered to have inspired Rhys to write about the arson of Coulibri. This supports the idea that Rhys was influenced by her own feelings of fear in her own home, which indicates that fear is a vital part of the setting in the
George Saunders, a writer with a particular inclination in modern America, carefully depicts the newly-emerged working class of America and its poor living condition in his literary works. By blending fact with fiction, Saunders intentionally chooses to expose the working class’s hardship, which greatly caused by poverty and illiteracy, through a satirical approach to criticize realistic contemporary situations. In his short story “Sea Oak,” the narrator Thomas who works at a strip club and his elder aunt Bernie who works at Drugtown for minimum are the only two contributors to their impoverished family. Thus, this family of six, including two babies, is only capable to afford a ragged house at Sea Oak,
To start with the language of a novel can be a crucial it its determination of whether or not it is a classic. As obvious as it may seem, effective language is the foundation of good writing. Effective writing is in word choice, sentence structure, phrasing, etc. It is also the experience in which the reader engages the text. No matter who reads it they can understand because the language is able to change to suit its audience. Many parts make up a good piece of lite...
... perfect exemplars of how an ideal innocent women, can face undoubtedly tragic fates. Despite much strength in their characters, both Daisy and Desdemona exhibit the vulnerability of their innocence, the ability for others to take advantage of them, and glaring weaknesses. They are unaware of their surroundings, which lead to questionable actions. Their inevitable tragedies occur because of how each character dealt with these situations placed in front of them. All in all, Daisy and Desdemona are responsible for their tragedies because they are women placed in unfamiliar positions and are unable to deal with situations placed in front of them.
José Maria Eça de Queirós, though not worldly renowned, is arguably the greatest Portuguese novelist of his time. In 1877, he wrote a novel titled “The Tragedy of the Street of Flowers” (“The Tragedy”); however, it was not published until many years following his death. The novel is a tragic love story about a cocotte (prostitute) named Genoveva de Molineux and a lawyer named Vítor da Silva. The story follows the love between these two individuals which ultimately leads to the death of Genoveva. When first appearing in the orchestra audience in Lisbon, every man was attached to her beauty and wanted to know her. Vítor falls in love with Genoveva at first sight without previous knowledge that she is a high-class prostitute. However, the tragedy begins when Genoveva is told by Vítor’s uncle, Timóteo, that Vítor is her son. Unable to cope with what she had just learned, Genoveva commits suicide; neither herself nor Timóteo disclose the truth to Vítor. When asked about the novel, Eça had stated that it is a cruel story, one of the best he had yet written (at that time) and “a real literary and moral bombshell” (Queiroz, preface, ¶ 3-4). “...nineteenth century writers knew that incest in Greek Tragedy represented the protagonist’s hopeless fight against fate. Finding a close correspondence with contemporary Lisbon society, aimlessly debating political, economic and social problems, unable to control the nation’s destiny, does not require a great stretch of the imagination” (Ponte 79).
Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel Jane Eyre depicts the passionate love Jane Eyre and Edward Rochester have for each other, and as Bertha Mason stands in the way of the happiness of Brontë's heroine, the reader sees Mason as little more than a villainous demon and a raving lunatic. Jean Rhys' serves as Mason's defendant, as the author's 1966 novella Wide Sargasso Sea, a prequel to Jane Eyre, seeks to explore and explain Bertha's (or Antoinette Cosway's) descent into madness. Rhys rejects the notion that Antoinette has been born into a family of lunatics and is therefore destined to become one herself. Instead, Rhys suggests that the Cosways are sane people thrown into madness as a result of oppression. Parallels are drawn between Jane and Antoinette in an attempt to win the latter the reader's sympathy and understanding. Just as they did in Jane Eyre, readers of Wide Sargasso Sea bear witness to a young woman's struggle to escape and overcome her repressive surroundings. Brontë makes heavy use of the motif of fire in her novel and Rhys does the same in Wide Sargasso Sea. In Rhys' novella, fire represents defiance in the face of oppression and the destructive nature of this resistance.
In Jack London’s The Sea-Wolf (1992), a young Humphrey Van Weyden is thrown overboard from the ship, the Martinez, in a collision with a ferryboat. After he struggled in the cool San Francisco Bay he is pulled into a seal-hunting ship, the Ghost. On the ship the captain, Wolf Larsen, and Van Weyden become intellectual friends. As the voyage continues Larsen and Van Weyden start to become enemies because of their disagreement in the philosophy of Captain Larsen. The captain and Van Weyden are both well-educated men but differ in strength and desire.
Abstract: There are many Analyst who would agree that the novel Moby-Dick by Herman Melville, the whale is just half of what the novel is really talking about. They would also agree that Melville employs some sort of spiritual read by simply by providing scriptures and rephrasing verses from the Bible into the text. But what is it really about? What made Melville come up with this idea style of writing Moby-Dick? Other analyst who also asked themselves this questions, probably looked deeper into the novel doing tons of research figured out a possible solution. The solution that Melville was influenced by Shakespeare novel ‘Hamlet’ this has been established because of the allusions Melville makes to Hamlet are countless. Moby-Dick may be a contemporary version of Hamlet. This paper will illustrate how the characters of Moby-Dick counterparts with the characters in Hamlet, expanding the reason why the character in one works with the other.