Unraveling of Myths in Porter’s Old Mortality
“There was a kind of faded merriment in the background, with its vase of flowers and its draped velvet curtains, the kind of case and the kind of curtains that no one would have any more. The clothes were not even romantic-looking, bur merely most terribly out of fashion, and the whole affair was associated, in the minds of the little girls, with dead things: the smell of Grandmother’s medicated cigarettes and her furniture that smelled of beeswax, and her old-fashioned perfume, Orange Flower. The woman in the picture had been Aunt Amy, but she was only a ghost in a frame, and a sad, pretty story from old times. She had been beautiful, much loved, unhappy, and she had died young.” (173)
Porter uses this second paragraph from Old Mortality to suggest themes and foreshadow future happenings in this story. This passage, which focuses exclusively on the background of Aunt Amy’s picture, is full of language suggesting the outdated feeling of the photograph. Phrases like “faded merriment,” “the kind of [things] no one would have any more,” “most terribly out of fashion,” “associated… with dead things,” and “old-fashioned” lend the picture a sense of falseness that only time has exposed. This falseness seems to hint to the reader to be wary of accepting things as they are given. The way that the girls seem to find everything in the photograph to be dated and out of fashion also foreshadows Miranda’s inability to identify with the myth of Amy. It may also point to a larger theme of the crumbling ideal of the Southern Belle and the slowly collapsing walls of the rigid confines of the role of upper class, white women.
The narrative can be seen as a continual unraveling by Miranda of the many myths generated by the family. The myth of who Aunt Amy was is a part of the larger myth of what constitutes a southern belle to the families of the Old South. Porter’s repeated use of flowers, beautiful, yet easily perishable, can be seen as imagery for the mythical Amy, suggesting her fragility. But just as the smells that the girls associate with the picture –medicated cigarettes, beeswax, and perfume –exist to cover up the real smells of the grandmother’s things and person, so does the created myth of frailty cover up Amy’s real independence, strength, and finally her death.
The setting takes place in April at a funeral. There was a “gardenia on the smooth brown wood” (Holczer 1). They have been “wandering across the great state of California” (2). The setting moves to Grace's grandma’s house. It was “two stories with attic windows”, “sky-blue paint with white trim”, “ and a wood porch” (19). There were “two chairs covered in yellowed plastic and pine needles” (19). There was a gently sloped driveway. Inside the house there were “piles of Tupperware and glass dishes” (19). Outside there was a shed, garden, trees, and
Although this story is told in the third person, the reader’s eyes are strictly controlled by the meddling, ever-involved grandmother. She is never given a name; she is just a generic grandmother; she could belong to anyone. O’Connor portrays her as simply annoying, a thorn in her son’s side. As the little girl June Star rudely puts it, “She has to go everywhere we go. She wouldn’t stay at home to be queen for a day” (117-118). As June Star demonstrates, the family treats the grandmother with great reproach. Even as she is driving them all crazy with her constant comments and old-fashioned attitude, the reader is made to feel sorry for her. It is this constant stream of confliction that keeps the story boiling, and eventually overflows into the shocking conclusion. Of course the grandmother meant no harm, but who can help but to blame her? O’Connor puts her readers into a fit of rage as “the horrible thought” comes to the grandmother, “that the house she had remembered so vividly was not in Georgia but in Tennessee” (125).
The childhood of Frances Piper consists of inadequate love, loss of innocence and lack of concern, ultimately leading to her disastrous life. As a six year old child, she encounters several traumatic events, explicitly the death of her loved ones and the loss of her innocence. Over the course of one week, there have been three deaths, two funerals and two burials in the Piper family. “Frances was crying so hard now that Mercedes got worried. ‘I want my Mumma to come ba-a-a-a-ack.’”( McDonald 174). As a young child, there is nothing more upsetting than losing a mother. A family is meant to comfort each other to fulfill the loss of a loved one; however, this is not the case in the Piper family. Mercedes, only a year older than Frances, tries to console her even though she herself is worried. The loss of motherly love and affection has a tremendous impact on her future since now her sole guardian, James, expresses no responsibility towards her. Instead, he molests Frances on the night of Kathleen’s funeral to lessen the grief of his lost daughter. As a result “These disturbing experiences plague Frances with overwhelming feelings of low self worth and guilt that haunt h...
In this short story of "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" by Katherine Anne Porter, there is a powerful symbolic meaning through out the entire narrative. Although the symbols are not obvious in some paragraphs, they are in hidden text in others, which has to be, examined thoroughly by the reader. Granny is an eighty-year-old woman on her deathbed. She is in a state of confusion drifting in and out of consciences; she is reminiscing and blurring the past with the present. Although she comes to her senses every now and then, she is still perplexing some important details of her life. Through this story, all the symbols help define Granny's character, provide greater understanding of her life, and reinforces the important parts of the story.
The life of a lady in the 19th century is painted in a romantic light. Pictured in her parlor, the lady sips tea from delicate china while writing letters with a white feathered quill. Her maid stands silently off in the background, waiting for orders to serve her mistress. What is not typically pictured, is the sadness or boredom echoed on the lady’s face. Perhaps the letter is to a dear friend, not seen in ages, pleading with the friend to visit, in hopes that the friend will fill the void in the lady’s life made from years spent in a loveless marriage. Possibly the lady isn’t writing a
Whyte, Alan and Jamie Baker. "Prison labor on the rise in US." 8 may 2000. wsws.org. 05 April 2011 .
After five years of being raised and living with their grandmother whom they truly loved, the girls had a rude awakening. Their grandmother, Sylvia had passed away. “When after almost five years, my grandmother one winter morning eschewed awakening, Lily and Nona were fetched from Spokane and took up housekeeping in Fingerbone, just as my grandmother had wished” (Robinson 29). This was the final attempt that their grandmother had made in order for the girls to have a normal and traditional life. This is a solid example of how the sister’s lives are shaped by their family and their surroundings. Lucille’s ultimate concern in life is to conform to society and live a traditional life. She wishes to have a normal family and is sorrowful for all of the losses that she has experienced such as her mother’s and grandmother’s deaths. On the other hand, Ruthie, after spending more time with her future guardian, Aunt Sylvie, becomes quite the transient like her.
In paragraph 2 the author uses foreshadowing when it said "I had seen Aunt Gertrude more in the past two years than I had ever before in my life, and she could be terrifying, often wearing a mean scowl on her deeply lined face." It makes the reader think that aunt Gertrude is mean and doesn't care about her
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation launch a public safety reforms to encourage inmates to complete rehabilitation programs. These programs are provided for the inmates to help high risk parolees to be able to come back to the communities. There are many programs that are given in and out of the incarceration. With these programs California’s prison population should gradually reduce about 6, 500 inmates over the next year (Public and Employee Communications, 2013 ). The advantage of rehabilitation is not just for the inmates but for the community as well. With the new parole system it created a new line of field supervision for field agents. It will reduce agent caseloads which gives agents a better opportunity to supervise parolees and interact more frequently with local law enforcement. Also, be able to assist the parolee’s by interacting more with rehabilitative service providers and other community partners (Public and Employee Communications, 2013). Rehabilitations of the parolees’ will consist of GPS supervision, increases monitoring system for sex offenders, and open jobs position for training officer and parole agents (Public and Employee Communications,2013). This is one of the advantages of rehabilitation in the community.
“It was a large, beautiful room, rich and picturesque in the soft, dim light which the maid had turned low. She went and stood at an open window and looked out upon the deep tangle of the garden below. All the mystery and witchery of the night seemed to have gathered there amid the perfumes and the dusky and tortuous outlines of flowers and foliage. She was seeking herself and finding herself in just such sweet half-darkness which met her moods. But the voices were not soothing that came to her from the darkness and the sky above and the stars. They jeered and sounded mourning notes without promise, devoid even of hope. She turned back into the room and began to walk to and fro, down its whole length, without stopping, without resting. She carried in her hands a thin handkerchief, which she tore into ribbons, rolled into a ball, and flung from her. Once she stopped, and taking off her wedding ring, flung it upon the carpet. When she saw it lying there she stamped her heel upon it, striving to crush it. But her small boot heel did not make an indenture, not a mark upon the glittering circlet.
When writing poetry, there are many descriptive methods an author may employ to communicate an idea or concept to their audience. One of the more effective methods that authors often use is linking devices, such as metaphors and similes. Throughout “The Elder Sister,” Olds uses linking devices effectively in many ways. An effective image Olds uses is that of “the pressure of Mother’s muscles on her brain,” (5) providing a link to the mother’s expectations for her children. She also uses images of water and fluidity to demonstrate the natural progression of a child into womanhood. Another image is that of the speaker’s elder sister as a metaphorical shield, the one who protected her from the mental strain inflicted by their mother.
Valdes, G., Mears, B. and Shoichet, C. (2014) Convicted Cop Killer Edgar Tamayo Arias Executed, [Online], Available: http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/22/us/mexico-texas-tamayo-execution/ [Date Accessed: 25/01/2014].
Death of a Salesman, a play written in 1949, by Arthur Miller, has been Miller’s most famous work thanks to how relatable the play can be to almost every citizen in America. The play is told from the point of view of the principal character, Willy Loman. The play examines Willy’s perception of success, and the conflicts that his perception creates in his household. Having a wrong perception of likeness, lying, and cheating can lead to an individual to make decisions that can be irreversible and have many consequences. The family of Willy Loman is an example of how the life of each one of the members of the family can be defined by the mindsets of only one person.
“What’s the matter darling? “ asked her mother. Lily could say nothing, she felt paralysed there was nothing she could do. “WHAT’S THE MATTER?” asked her mother again, growing more and more anxious by the second. She slowly made her way to her daughter and peered into her husband’s study. There he was hanging, showing no signs of remorse towards his mourning wife and daughter. The mother quickly shielded her daughter’s eyes hoping it would make the horrible scene disappear and resurrect her dead husband from the underworld. There by the door of the study stood Lily and her mother weeping as if tomorrow would never come knocking on their doorstep ever again.
Miller, Arthur, and Gerald Weales. Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman: Text and Criticism. New York: Viking Press, 1971.