04.22.10
Posted in Literary Essays at 5:12 pm by lisa
When one is an adult, pretending is a form of lying and deceit and hurts everyone involved, including the liar. Oscar Wilde portrays the dangers of pretending in his novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Throughout the story, Dorian pretends to be someone he is not. He is able to do this because the part of his nature that would reveal his true identity is absent from his physical body and manifests itself in the portrait. Dorian was able to experience “Eternal youth, infinite passion, pleasures subtle and secret, wild joys and wilder sins” because the portrait would “bear the burden of his shame” (Wilde 90). He remains young and innocent-looking, which enables him to hide his sins. This pretending proves to be harmful to Dorian and to just about everyone Dorian befriends.
Oscar Wilde uses an actress and the theater to illustrate how harmful pretending can be. There is irony in how Wilde uses the theater, because it is not deceitful or harmful to act in a play or musical when the audience knows the actors and actresses are pretending. However, for actress Sibyl Vane, acting becomes very harmful. It is Sibyl’s acting that attracts Dorian to her, and Sibyl gives her whole heart to him, referring to him as her “prince, Prince Charming” (Wilde 54). Dorian is infatuated with Sibyl because of who she is on stage, not because of who she really is. Other than being beautiful, the only quality that Dorian finds attractive in her is that she “is” so many people, “One evening, she is Rosalind, and the next she is Imogen,” he says (Wilde 45). Dorian does not recognize Sibyl beyond the characters that she portrays and treats her badly when she fails to “be” her character; “You make yourself ridiculous. My friends were bored. I was bored” (Wilde 74). It is apparent that Dorian places a high value on pretending. Dorian continues to be unsympathetic when Sibyl explains that she “cannot mimic [a passion] that burns me like fire” (Wilde 75). Unmoved by Sibyl’s own passion for him, he breaks his relationship with her saying, “you have killed my love…You simply produce no effect” (Wilde 75). His mistreatment of her reveals him as a cruel, selfish person, not her “Prince Charming” as she had thought (Wilde 54). Sibyl is devastated by his cruelty and ends her own life. Dorian’s high value of pretending and his own performance as “Prince Charming” harms Sibyl to the point of death (Wilde 54).
The incident with Sibyl marks the beginning of Dorian’s life as a liar and deceiver. The portrait of Dorian reflects his treatment of Sibyl by showing a “touch of cruelty around the mouth” (Wilde 78). This is the first time the portrait alters, and Dorian thinks about “praying that the horrible sympathy that existed between him and the picture might cease” (Wilde 91). Instead, he decides that “there would be a real pleasure in watching it” (Wilde 91). Throughout the rest of the novel, Dorian pretends to be someone he is not. He hides his hideous character behind his good looks in the same way that Sibyl’s character was hidden behind her acting. The difference is that Sibyl did not hide herself for the purpose of deceiving people. Dorian purposely deceives his friends with his innocent appearance. Though Dorian looks young and innocent, he is actually evil and has a bad influence on his friends. Basil lists the many people influenced by Dorian:
There was that wretched boy in the Guards who committed suicide. You were his great friend. There was Sir Henry Ashton, who had to leave England, with a tarnished name. You and he were inseparable. What about Adrian Singleton, and his dreadful end? What about Lord Kent’s only son, and his career? I saw his father yesterday in St. James’s Street. He seemed broken with shame and sorrow. What about the young Duke of Perth? What sort of life has he got now? What gentleman would associate with him?” (Wilde 127)
The actions of Dorian’s friends reflect what kind of person Dorian is, according to Basil, who says, “One has a right to judge of a man by the effect he has over his friends. Yours seem to lose all sense of honour, of goodness, of purity. You have filled them with a madness for pleasure” (Wilde 128). If these people had known that Dorian was pretending to be someone he was not, they could have avoided him and made better choices for friends. However, “His beauty had been to him but a mask, his youth but a mockery” (Wilde 185). People are attracted to Dorian because of his good looks, and he easily befriends them.
Dorian also ruins his own life by pretending to be someone he is not, because he worries, “What sort of life would his be if, day and night, shadows of his crime were to peer at him from silent corners, to mock him from secret places, to whisper in his ear as he sat at the feast, to wake him with icy fingers as he lay asleep!” (Wilde 168-169). Even though he hides his sins from society and masquerades as a young, innocent man, he has to live with the consequences of his actions. Dorian acts immorally and then has to commit more sins to cover up his previous ones. He kills Basil in a rage after Basil confronts him about his immorality and his influence over his friends. He then gets high on opium to keep himself from thinking about Basil’s death, because he “felt that if he brooded on what he had gone through he would sicken or grow mad….It was a thing to be driven out of the mind, to be drugged with poppies, to be strangled lest it might strangle one itself.” (Wilde 137). Dorian cannot rest and enjoy his life. At the thought that the only person who could help him cover up his crime might be out of town, he “grew nervous, and a horrible fit of terror came over him” (Wilde 139). When explaining to Lord Henry where he was the night he killed Basil, Dorian stumbles, “No, I don’t mean that. I didn’t go to the club. I walked about. I forget what I did…” (Wilde 153). He is petrified that James Vane will find him and kill him. Dorian has to constantly look over his shoulder, think carefully about what he says before he says it, and fear being discovered. I agree with Alan Campbell, who exclaims, “‘Your life? Good heavens! what a life that is! You have gone from corruption to corruption, and now you have culminated in crime’” (Wilde 145). Dorian has no life. The portrait offered Dorian a way to sin and to pretend that he was not sinning. He decides against changing his ways; “Yes, Basil could have saved him. But it was too late now. The past could always be annihilated. Regret, denial, or forgetfulness could do that. But the future was inevitable. There were passions in him that would find their terrible outlet, dreams that would make the shadow of their evil real.” (Wilde 102). Hiding his immorality allowed him to get so deep into his pleasure-seeking that he could not stop.
A theme that runs through this novel is that one can distance oneself from the one he or she really is, but one cannot rid oneself completely of that true identity. Dorian’s true nature is bound to be discovered by someone. The unveiling of Dorian’s identity comes when Basil confronts him about his influence on his friends. This discovery is similar to Dorian’s discovery of Sibyl’s true personality and her own passion for him. Dorian only loved Sibyl when she hid her true identity behind her characters, “Without your art, you are nothing….What are you now? A third-rate actress with a pretty face.” (Wilde 75). Dorian is only loved and accepted by society when he hides his true nature in a portrait. Basil confronts Dorian about his nature, because other people discover the connections between him and their family tragedies. Basil says, “They say that you corrupt every one with whom you become intimate, and that it is quite sufficient for you to enter a house, for shame of some kind to follow after.” (Wilde 129). What is Dorian now that his true character is revealed? He is nothing more than a third-rate human being—a corrupt, selfish, drug addict and murderer— with a pretty face. Dorian knows this and is “burdened by his past” (Wilde 187). Dorian never rids himself of his corrupt nature. He tries to destroy the picture to “kill the past;” Dorian “seized the thing [knife], and stabbed the picture with it.” (Wilde 187). However, Dorian kills himself instead of destroying the picture, because what he wanted to destroy in the picture was part of him; “When they [servants] entered, they found hanging upon the wall a splendid portrait of their master as they had last seen him in all the wonder of his exquisite youth and beauty. Lying on the floor was a dead man…with a knife in his heart” (Wilde 188). This nature, which Dorian could hide but not destroy, finally destroyed him.
References
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Oxford University Press Inc., New York, 2006.
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Posted in Literary Essays at 1:39 pm by lisa
Parenting is a struggle between holding on and letting go, because all children are born to be let go and all parents have to figure out when to let them go. The transformation from dependent infancy to independent adulthood is gradual. As each year passes, children seek more and more independence while parents let go little by little. Parents struggle with knowing when, how much, and in what situations they need to let go. Jenise Aminoff portrays this struggle in her short story, “Fate,” from Mojo: Conjure Stories. Throughout the story, Cass was torn between holding on to her son, Eshu, to protect him and letting Eshu go to live out his fate. Although Cass was required to let Eshu go prematurely, much of her relationship with Eshu was like other parent-child relationships. Cass described her relationship with Eshu as being “full of tricks and changes, joys and reversals” (Aminoff 93). This describes all parent-child relationships, because knowing what is best for any given child and gaining the strength to do it involves making uncertain decisions, making mistakes, and fixing mistakes.
Cass’ choices and the events that followed them illustrate the trickiness of parenthood. Even though Cass’ premonitions allowed her to know that Eshu would be taken from her, she was still very much like any other mother. Cass loved Eshu dearly, worried about him and how her decisions would affect him, made mistakes, endured pain for him, made sacrifices for him, and ultimately, only wanted what was best for him. Through Cass and her relationship and experiences with Eshu, I will illustrate how difficult parenting is. All parents have to balance their sacrificial love for and desire to protect their children with their desire to do what is best for them, even if it means they have to let them go.
From the very beginning of the story, we learn that Cass loved Eshu as much as any mother loves her child. At his birth, “she’d laughed and wept and stroked his forehead and put one fingertip into his tiny grasp” (Aminoff 93). She was overwhelmed with joy over her newborn son and lavished affection on him. Her tears could have been tears of joy as well as tears of sadness for his fate. Cass also enjoyed Eshu. His presence, words, and actions alone delighted her. She needed nothing from him except for him to be himself. This is evident from her reaction and response when “Eshu did a wild, ecstatic dance in the living room, and [she] and Stevie laughed and clapped and sang along…” (Aminoff 96). She wanted to tell Eshu a story when he finished, but he protested because he had not brought her anything. She responded by saying, “you just gave me something wonderful” (Aminoff 96). Likewise, parents love watching their children grow and learn and make discoveries about the world around them. It is the best gift children can give, and for most parents, the greatest joy.
Because Cass loved Eshu so much, she naturally worried about him and about the decisions she made regarding him. She thought about what her husband, Hank, said when he “told her she was going to give their son a complex, holding him that tight, that close, never leaving him even for a moment…” (Aminoff 93). Cass wanted what was best for Eshu so “Over time, she began to think that maybe Hank was right…” (Aminoff 93). So Cass did what she thought was best for Eshu and let him go just a little by “paying him little mind as she carefully moved a batch of baby geckos into a new, larger tank” (Aminoff 93). Cass also worried about Eshu after she turned him into a duppy. After Elliot committed suicide, she realized that she had made a mistake. At the funeral, “Even Hank did not notice his dead son tugging at his pant leg, wanting to be held. It broke Cass’s heart.” (Aminoff 100). In the end, she tells Anansi, “He’s my son…I have to set him free.” (Aminoff 101). Through all of the worrying and mistakes, Cass finally realized what was best for Eshu. Many other parents worry in the same way. They fret over decisions wondering if they are doing what is best, because the best is what they want for their children.
In addition to the emotional pain of worrying, Cass also endured great physical pain for Eshu. In her attempt to save his life, she stepped on a toy and broke her ankle. However, “Somehow, she made that ankle work. She made a dash across the room and lunged, her ankle going crack!” (Aminoff 94). Even after she also broke her arm, she “bit back the pain, dragged [Eshu] up over the wall, and set him down on the floor beside where she collapsed” (Aminoff 94). Though she endured great pain that day, she still thought it was all worth it. “I did it. It was worth it. I changed my son’s fate. I saved him.” (Aminoff 95). Many parents endure pain and are able to overcome great physical limitations to save their children. There are instances where people have lifted heavy objects or moved at great speed to save their children.
Cass also made a great sacrifice for Eshu when she traded her ability to know things in order for Eshu to go to heaven. “she thought…How will I know anything? But she looked at Eshu…and she knew there was no going back. So she nodded. ‘Yes, take it…’” (Aminoff 101). This sacrifice was not just for Eshu. It was for her entire family, because she was willing to do anything as long as it only affected her. She told Anansi that she would give “‘Anything that is mine to give. Not Hank, nothing that will harm anyone else. Just me.’” (Aminoff 101). This sacrifice reflects Cass’ sacrificial love for Eshu even though she made it to rectify her mistake of making him a duppy. Ultimately, Cass only wanted and did what was best for Eshu. I believe the same motives are inherent in all parents. Parents often make mistakes but change their minds and their decision—if they can.
Though I have drawn many parallels between Cass and other parents, Cass certainly acted in ways that I cannot compare to other parents’ actions. Bringing someone back from the dead is a horrifying idea. With these events, I believe the author was employing the concept of “Cognitive Estrangement” as defined by critic Darko Suvin. Aminoff exaggerated the events in the story to emphasize the values and ideas that she was trying to convey. When Cass brought Eshu back from the dead, Aminoff was speaking of the struggle all parents have between holding onto their children and letting them go. Every time children gain more independence, parents have to let go a little bit to allow it to happen.
Parents are human beings with their own feelings and desires. The strong love that parents have for their children can make decisions unclear, because it is difficult to distinguish between what is truly best for children and what is only what parents want for them. This uncertainty creates a tug-of-war as parents let go and then pull back and then let go again. Although I am addressing how this tug-of-war makes parenthood tricky and difficult, I believe another closely related theme of the story is for parents to make sure to enjoy their children because no one really knows what their fate entails. I think that any parent-child relationship can be described in the same way that Cass described her relationship with Eshu, which was “full of tricks and changes, joys and reversals” (Aminoff 93). All of the bad is mixed in with the good. One cannot take only the good. The good is actually made better because of the bad. If Cass had had no idea Eshu would be taken away from her, would she have enjoyed Eshu’s “wild, ecstatic dance” (Aminoff 96) as much?
References
Aminoff, Jenise. “Fate.” Mojo: Conjure Stories. Hopkinson, Nalo. New York: Time Warner, 2003.
Parenting is a struggle between holding on and letting go, because all children are born to be let go and all parents have to figure out when to let them go. The transformation from dependent infancy to independent adulthood is gradual. As each year passes, children seek more and more independence while parents let go little by little. Parents struggle with knowing when, how much, and in what situations they need to let go. Jenise Aminoff portrays this struggle in her short story, “Fate,” from Mojo: Conjure Stories. Throughout the story, Cass was torn between holding on to her son, Eshu, to protect him and letting Eshu go to live out his fate. Although Cass was required to let Eshu go prematurely, much of her relationship with Eshu was like other parent-child relationships. Cass described her relationship with Eshu as being “full of tricks and changes, joys and reversals” (Aminoff 93). This describes all parent-child relationships, because knowing what is best for any given child and gaining the strength to do it involves making uncertain decisions, making mistakes, and fixing mistakes.
Cass’ choices and the events that followed them illustrate the trickiness of parenthood. Even though Cass’ premonitions allowed her to know that Eshu would be taken from her, she was still very much like any other mother. Cass loved Eshu dearly, worried about him and how her decisions would affect him, made mistakes, endured pain for him, made sacrifices for him, and ultimately, only wanted what was best for him. Through Cass and her relationship and experiences with Eshu, I will illustrate how difficult parenting is. All parents have to balance their sacrificial love for and desire to protect their children with their desire to do what is best for them, even if it means they have to let them go.
From the very beginning of the story, we learn that Cass loved Eshu as much as any mother loves her child. At his birth, “she’d laughed and wept and stroked his forehead and put one fingertip into his tiny grasp” (Aminoff 93). She was overwhelmed with joy over her newborn son and lavished affection on him. Her tears could have been tears of joy as well as tears of sadness for his fate. Cass also enjoyed Eshu. His presence, words, and actions alone delighted her. She needed nothing from him except for him to be himself. This is evident from her reaction and response when “Eshu did a wild, ecstatic dance in the living room, and [she] and Stevie laughed and clapped and sang along…” (Aminoff 96). She wanted to tell Eshu a story when he finished, but he protested because he had not brought her anything. She responded by saying, “you just gave me something wonderful” (Aminoff 96). Likewise, parents love watching their children grow and learn and make discoveries about the world around them. It is the best gift children can give, and for most parents, the greatest joy.
Because Cass loved Eshu so much, she naturally worried about him and about the decisions she made regarding him. She thought about what her husband, Hank, said when he “told her she was going to give their son a complex, holding him that tight, that close, never leaving him even for a moment…” (Aminoff 93). Cass wanted what was best for Eshu so “Over time, she began to think that maybe Hank was right…” (Aminoff 93). So Cass did what she thought was best for Eshu and let him go just a little by “paying him little mind as she carefully moved a batch of baby geckos into a new, larger tank” (Aminoff 93). Cass also worried about Eshu after she turned him into a duppy. After Elliot committed suicide, she realized that she had made a mistake. At the funeral, “Even Hank did not notice his dead son tugging at his pant leg, wanting to be held. It broke Cass’s heart.” (Aminoff 100). In the end, she tells Anansi, “He’s my son…I have to set him free.” (Aminoff 101). Through all of the worrying and mistakes, Cass finally realized what was best for Eshu. Many other parents worry in the same way. They fret over decisions wondering if they are doing what is best, because the best is what they want for their children.
In addition to the emotional pain of worrying, Cass also endured great physical pain for Eshu. In her attempt to save his life, she stepped on a toy and broke her ankle. However, “Somehow, she made that ankle work. She made a dash across the room and lunged, her ankle going crack!” (Aminoff 94). Even after she also broke her arm, she “bit back the pain, dragged [Eshu] up over the wall, and set him down on the floor beside where she collapsed” (Aminoff 94). Though she endured great pain that day, she still thought it was all worth it. “I did it. It was worth it. I changed my son’s fate. I saved him.” (Aminoff 95). Many parents endure pain and are able to overcome great physical limitations to save their children. There are instances where people have lifted heavy objects or moved at great speed to save their children.
Cass also made a great sacrifice for Eshu when she traded her ability to know things in order for Eshu to go to heaven. “she thought…How will I know anything? But she looked at Eshu…and she knew there was no going back. So she nodded. ‘Yes, take it…’” (Aminoff 101). This sacrifice was not just for Eshu. It was for her entire family, because she was willing to do anything as long as it only affected her. She told Anansi that she would give “‘Anything that is mine to give. Not Hank, nothing that will harm anyone else. Just me.’” (Aminoff 101). This sacrifice reflects Cass’ sacrificial love for Eshu even though she made it to rectify her mistake of making him a duppy. Ultimately, Cass only wanted and did what was best for Eshu. I believe the same motives are inherent in all parents. Parents often make mistakes but change their minds and their decision—if they can.
Though I have drawn many parallels between Cass and other parents, Cass certainly acted in ways that I cannot compare to other parents’ actions. Bringing someone back from the dead is a horrifying idea. With these events, I believe the author was employing the concept of “Cognitive Estrangement” as defined by critic Darko Suvin. Aminoff exaggerated the events in the story to emphasize the values and ideas that she was trying to convey. When Cass brought Eshu back from the dead, Aminoff was speaking of the struggle all parents have between holding onto their children and letting them go. Every time children gain more independence, parents have to let go a little bit to allow it to happen.
Parents are human beings with their own feelings and desires. The strong love that parents have for their children can make decisions unclear, because it is difficult to distinguish between what is truly best for children and what is only what parents want for them. This uncertainty creates a tug-of-war as parents let go and then pull back and then let go again. Although I am addressing how this tug-of-war makes parenthood tricky and difficult, I believe another closely related theme of the story is for parents to make sure to enjoy their children because no one really knows what their fate entails. I think that any parent-child relationship can be described in the same way that Cass described her relationship with Eshu, which was “full of tricks and changes, joys and reversals” (Aminoff 93). All of the bad is mixed in with the good. One cannot take only the good. The good is actually made better because of the bad. If Cass had had no idea Eshu would be taken away from her, would she have enjoyed Eshu’s “wild, ecstatic dance” (Aminoff 96) as much?
Works Cited
Aminoff, Jenise. “Fate.” Mojo: Conjure Stories. Hopkinson, Nalo. New York: Time Warner, 2003.
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