The Impact of Families Upon The Watchmen's Rorschach and Wide Sargasso Sea's Antoinette

The manner in which an individual is raised can impact their lives forever. This idea is proven to be true with two characters from the works that were studied this semester. Although they come from completely different worlds, the similarities between these two characters and the manner in which they face the world can be associated with the relationships they had with their families. These two characters are Walter “Rorschach” Kovacs, from Alan Moore's graphic novel which is called Watchmen, and Antoinette, from Jean Rhys' novel which is called Wide Sargasso Sea. First, there is the character of Rorschach. Rorschach is a very angry character, who has a lot of psychological baggage that influences the way that he views the world around him. This worldview can be attributed in part to the manner in which he was raised: with an unstable father figure and an abusive mother. It is because of how he was raised and treated in his early life that Rorschach's personality developed the way that it did in his adult life. Then there is the character of Antoinette from the novel which is called Wide Sargasso Sea. Antoinette is an intelligent woman and originally from a well off family, yet more than that, she is a woman who is desperate for affection and very stubborn. The difficult relationship that she had with her mother and her community at large heavily influenced the development of such a personality. Furthermore, Antoinette's eventual mental breakdowns in her adult life can be attributed to how she was treated throughout her entire life, and from the way that her husband expected them develop and treated her as a result. The families of both Rorschach from Watchmen and Antoinette from Wide Sargasso Sea heavily influence the personali...

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...ferences between them. It is interesting to see how different the forms of a broken home can manifest themselves and impact the lives of the individuals, although it is much more interesting that both characters had such rough childhoods for separate reasons. Their core personalities are exceedingly different, which is a marker of the two different worlds that they inhabit. Even with the similarities between them, one cannot help but wonder how they would have turned out if their childhood experiences were different. The fact is that the manner in which individuals are raised by their parents can influence their lives with great power. This is how Rorschach and Antoinette are so similar.

Works Cited

Moore, Alan. Watchmen. 1-12. Canada: DC Comics, 1986-1987. Print.

Rhys, Jean. Wide Sargasso Sea. Penguin Student. Toronto, Ontario: Penguin Group, 2001. Print.