Stranger than fiction

I am intrigued by the assertions made by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak in her article "Wide Sargasso Sea and a Critique of Imperialism", for Spivak seems to suggest that the insanity of Antoinette/Bertha comes as a matter of choice base upon the fact that she realized her place as the crazy character in Emily Bronte Jane Eyre. I thought that this connection was fantastic and it adds relevance and freshness to the gothic literary format. As pointed out in the other assigned article "Modernist Crosscurrents" by Mary Lou Emery the struggle for colonized countries/peoples (this also seems to apply to emigrants) stems from "living between two cultures, [and] belonging to neither completely"(WSS 165). Emery continues by stating that this conflict is what "sociologist have called the 'marginal man': 'one who is poised in in psychological uncertainty between two (or more) social worlds; reflecting in his soul the discords and harmonies, repulsions and attractions of these worlds, one of which is often 'dominant' over the other...'"(WSS 165). This conflict is evident in the character of Antoinette as she struggles with her self and her "other" self. The example highlighted by both articles (the tears of Tia in contrast with the blood of Antoinette) really illustrates the doubling found in the novel. So, not only does Antoinette struggle with identity due to the conflict in cultures, but Spivak points out how Antoinette's out of character self assessment gives credence to another reason for her "lunacy". From her statement, "now at last I know why I was brought here and what I have to do", we can make the judgement that Antoinette is talking about being in England, but Spivak seems to suggest that the line describing the "cardboard house" is a metaphor for the Emily Bronte's novel, "a book between two cardboard covers". Spivak continues by saying that Antoinette's realization is the fact that "she must play out her role, act out the transformation of her "self" in to that fictive Other, set fire to the house and kill herself, so that Jane Eyre can become the feminist individualist heroine of British fiction" (WSS 243). Thus her mental collapse is an act of destiny spelled out by the hand of an author. Through this interpretation of Antoinette's words, her act can be seen as courageous; however, it also highlights her need to fit into some aspect of the world she sees, and her life can in a sense only be complete once she makes her decision and actually becomes a part of something instead of being caught between two cultures that do not really want to include her. This weird connection between Antoinette's life and the character Bertha in Bronte's novel kind of reminds me of the movie Stranger than Fiction where the main characte

r (played by Will Farrel) has to determine if his life is a comedy or a tragedy written by a popular author. At first he thought he was going crazy, but as he made the connection between his life and the narration of the author, he courageously faced his destiny. Fortunately for him he survives his decision to face his destiny whereas Antoinette burns in the house.

We had an interesting discussion on Tuesday about the Sargasso Sea, and it caused me to do a little digging of my own. I found a great picture online that shows the extent of the sea and the currents that border it. However, this picture makes it look like there it nothing but weeds filling this entire area. Here is a link that shows some of the sea life that is found in this area. There is a picture that shows the extent of the weeds found in the sea (notice while the patch is dense it doesn't extend for miles). Although that would be pretty cool. http://www.bigelow.org/bacteria/teach/data_orgs3.html

I was really interested in the article by Rachel L. Carson found in the back of our reader. I thought for sure the article was written with the novel in mind, but as we discovered in class Carson's article was published many years before the novel. I love it when ideas cross time and space. It seems to give them more validity than any research or modern explanation can offer to a subject. I remember learning about the philosophy of Confucius in another class and I was amazed at the similarities his philosophies shared with Plato/Socrates who were thousands of miles away at approximately the same time. Many chalk these coincidences up a the natural order of civilization, but there seems to be something more sublime in it than the idea that civilizations will come up with similar ideas at similar stages of there evolution. I am much more romantic and tend to take a more hermetic approach to such connections.