Lastly, An Ideal Husband

         In Oscar Wilde’s play, “An Ideal Husband”, many characters’ actions connect not only to their character’s personalities but also to bigger themes. The dramatic interpretation I will be doing, or the mise en scène that I will be doing, will be on Lord Goring’s interaction with Mabel Chiltern in Act I, lines 217-235. At this point in time, Mabel Chiltern is introduced for the first time. She and Lord Goring have a flirtatious conversation.
         To set up the audience by introducing the relationship dynamics between Mabel and Lord Goring, I would have Lord Goring act in a fun, flirtatious, and witty way in most the lines. However, in the last part of that segment, I would change his tone and make him a more serious character. Through lines 217-230, Lord Goring’s character can be acted with a smile, some half smile, and raised eyebrows when he responds to Mabel Chiltern’s flirtatious jokes. Halfway through, in line 223, Lord Goring responds that he is “very selfish”. I would also want the character to move his position so that he is physically close to Mabel Chiltern, creating a sexual tension between the two. Also, in line 228, when Lord Goring says, “Quite dreadful”, he could emphasize those words to add to the flirting affair. After all this flirting, in line 235, Lord Goring switches topics from talking about the two of them to talking about Mrs. Cheveley – “Who brought Mrs. Cheveley here? That woman in heliotrope, who has just gone out of the room with your brother” (Wilde ll. 233-235). Here, I would have Lord Goring’s character switch to a serious tone – the volume of his voice can be lowered and sound concerned. His facial expression can also switch from a smiling face to one that is not smiling.
          Because Lord Goring’s character has been seen as playful and witty up until this point in the play – especially with his interactions with his father – I would choose for his character to continue to be witty with Mabel Chiltern in lines 217-231. Later on, however, when he switches to asking about Mrs. Cheveley, I would want his character to be more serious to be consistent with the fact that they have had previous history. His seriousness foreshadows their previous history and his knowledge of Mrs. Cheveley’s nature – one that is schemes and deceives. While it seems like Lord Goring’s character is very shallow, though witty – exemplified by his interactions with Mabel in this scene and his father in other scenes – Lord Goring develops into quite a complex character as the play progresses. He shows that he is capable of true care when giving Sir Robert advice regarding his scandal, giving Lady Chiltern advice to preserve her marriage, and negotiating with Lady Cheveley to preserve his friend Sir Robert’s public reputation. In order to be consistent with his dual personality, I want Lord Goring to be flirtatious in lines 217-230 and serious in lines 231-235. Doing so would reveal some of his dual personality, foreshadow events to come, and help develop his complex character.

Austen's FID and Sterne's Parody and Satire in Gender Representations of the 18th Century

Jane Austen’s Persuasion and Lawrence Sterne’s A Sentimental Journey were written in the same time period and have overlapping themes; a significant theme both novels address is the topic of gender roles. In eighteenth-century Britain, men and women were expected to act certain ways. However, the men and women in Persuasion and A Sentimental Journey often take the role of the opposite gender. Through free indirect discourse, Austen uses the narrator and other characters to critique or approve of characters that have fallen out of the expectations of their gender role. Because the focal point is usually ambiguous in free indirect discourse, the audience is left to interpret the true meaning of a passage—often, there are times we wonder if we are reading raw thoughts or reading the critical thoughts of the narrator. In a similar fashion, Sterne’s main character Yorick’s first person narrative also critiques those who have fallen outside of their expected gender role. Yorick’s candid, wandering, satirical, and parodic—almost seemingly stream of conscious thoughts leave us with ideas of eighteenth-century views on gender roles. Though some may disagree, Austen’s use of free indirect discourse and Sterne’s use of the first person narrative, satire, and parody through their characters and their characters' thoughts help produce gender representations of the eighteenth-century Britain to a great extent.

Austen and Sterne's Sentiments

While Jane Austen’s Persuasion and Lawrence Sterne’s A Sentimental Journey were written in the same time period and have overlapping themes and similarities, there are also many differences in the effects that are produced in their use of free indirect discourse and the first person narrative, respectively. Two passages that demonstrate the similarities and differences in the effects produced have an overlapping theme of confusion over motives. In Persuasion, there is a point when Anne struggles with the idea of going to the outer door to check for rain when she clearly saw Wentworth pass by earlier. We can compare and contrast this to the passage in A Sentimental Journey when Yorick questions his motives of inviting a lady he had just met to share a carriage with him.

            Though the two passages share the same theme, there are also some differences. We can see that Austen’s use of free indirect discourse distances us from the situation. We witness bits and pieces of Anne’s thought process—“she wanted to see if it rained. Why was she to suspect herself of another motive?” (165) Though we can see what she is thinking, we do not get to see it in a great detail. What would cause her to question herself? We can only observe. Because it is FID, we also are unsure whether the descriptions of Anne are her own or are of the narrator. However, in A Sentimental Journey, instead of distancing us from the main character, we become closer to the main character. Sterne’s use of first person narrative brings us along with Yorick in Yorick’s thought process—“Now where would be the harm, said I to myself, if I was to beg of this distressed lady to accept of half of my chaise?—and what mighty mischief could ensue” (19). We know exactly what Yorick is thinking. His constant stops with the use of hypens add to this effect. His thoughts jump from one thing to another. Sometimes, he is confused and his conscience comes up to persuade him of one thing while his mind thinks another thing—“you know not who she is, said CAUTION” (19).

             While the use of FID in Austen’s novel gives the audience many focal points and hence different lenses to look through, Sterne’s use of the first person narrative also accomplishes something similar. In Persuasion, we see Anne’s focal point—“Why was she to suspect herself of another motive?” (165) She, in her mind, is “suspecting” herself of wanting to get a glimpse of Wentworth. However, we also see that the passage can be from the narrator’s focal point. The narrator in Persuasion usually takes a critical tone. Here we can see that the narrator may be using “suspect” to actually tell us that Anne is trying to deceive herself. Hence, we have two different focal points to view the overall situation. Similarly, Sterne’s use of the first person narrative shows us Yorick’s thought process. In doing so, we have multiple focal points in which we can see this situation as well—Yorick and Yorick’s conscience. In fact, Yorick’s conscience is personified as multiple things: avarice, caution, cowardice, discretion, hypocrisy, meanness, and pride. However, Austen only provides us with the narrator and Anne to view the situation from. We do not see what exactly persuades Anne, but we see exactly what persuades Yorick. 

What's With Weissman?

At the end of Persuasion by Austen when Anne and Captain Wentworth meet, the narrator ambiguously describes Anne and Captain Wentworth’s interaction in order to portray the sensation and feeling that Anne and Captain Wentworth both may have felt and may be feeling through the passage.

Weissman, in her analytical essay “Doubleness and Refrain in Jane Austen’s Persuasion”, interprets this particular incident a little differently by saying that because “they returned into the past, more exquisitely happy perhaps”, we begin to be doubtful of the ending; however, what exactly are we doubtful of? The vagueness of the doubt is one thing that leaves her interpretation open to many counter arguments. My interpretation is that she feels that when we encounter this incident, it causes us to think that Anne and Captain Wentworth may not get married; the past may repeat itself once again. While Weissman does mention “missing elements of the narrative” Weissman (90), hinting at the ambiguity Austen uses in this passage, she may have overlooked how this passage, stylistically speaking, represents Anne and Wentworth’s feelings towards one another and how they have grown; instead of creating feelings of doubt, Austen may be using this to give us the same feeling that Anne and Wentworth may have.

Austen begins by describing their interaction and how they “exchanged again those feelings and those promises” (225). However, she does not tell us exactly what they are exchanging; she leaves it ambiguous by using the word “those”. By excluding us from the actual content of their conversation from the start, she induces our curiosity as readers. We are like Anne in the beginning of the novel, curious about how Captain Wentworth feels about her. Austen then builds up some tension in using “more”. Her repetition of “more” also induces more curiosity. We are led to think: “Why I there so much concern with ‘more’?”

            Though Austen builds up our curiosity on Captain Wentworth and Anne’s interaction, she does not keep us totally in the dark; she gives us a release from the tension and satisfies some of our curiosity in the last section of the passage. This is also similar to Wentworth and Anne’s story. When they met after their period of separation, they felt some tension – at least, Anne did. As the story comes to a close, Wentworth professes his love for her and Anne feels “an overpowering happiness” Austen (223); She is happy and relieved that she finally knows how he feels about her. Similarly, we find out that they talk about “retrospections and acknowledgements” Austen (225). Some of our curiosity is fulfilled – they are just two lovebirds talking, “heedless of every group around them”. We can also be happy for them – after their years of separation, they can finally be together.

            To conclude, while Weissman’s interpretation may not necessarily be incorrect, she may have overlooked the stylistic aspect of Austen’s writing that may point to a different interpretation – that Austen may be using ambiguity to portray feeling and sensation.


Note to the reader: I realize that this turned out to be a bit more of an essay with Weissman's view as a counterargument to my argument; I am not sure if this is appropriate. Please advise.

Persuasion's Perspectives

From Jane Austen’s Persuasion (Beginning of Chapter 1):

Vanity was the beginning and the end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character; vanity of person and of situation. He had been remarkably handsome in his youth; and, at fifty-four, was still a very fine man. Few women could think more of their personal appearance than he did; nor could the valet of any new made lord be more delighted with the place he held in society. He considered the blessing of beauty as inferior only to the blessings of baronetcy; and the Sir Walter Elliot, who united these gifts, was the constant object of his warmest respect and devotion.

            There are many different literary techniques that Jane Austen employs in her novels. The passage above is an example that demonstrates Austen’s use of free indirect discourse in her novel, Persuasion. In this passage, located near the beginning of the first chapter, we are introduced to one of the main characters of the novel – Sir Walter Elliot. Austen uses free indirect discourse to give us different perspectives on Sir Walter Elliot.

            This passage is one of the first to introduce and describe Sir Walter Elliot’s character. The narrator begins by describing Sir Walter Elliot as vain – “Vanity was the beginning and the end”. Being vain is not a compliment; the tone here is critical. Combining this knowledge with the fact that not many other characters have been introduced at this point, we can conclude that only a handful of characters would be thinking this: the narrator, Sir Walter Elliot himself, and other people in general. We can narrow it down to either the narrator or other people in society because Sir Walter Elliot would probably not be critical of himself; in fact, he seems quite fond of himself – “the Sir Walter Elliot, who united these gifts, was the constant object of his warmest respect and devotion”.  Through this first sentence, we already have a feel for the two possible focal points present in this passage. Sir Walter Elliot thinks highly of himself; the narrator does not.

            However, though the tone of the first sentence of the passage carries a critical tone, it switches in the second sentence – “He had been remarkably handsome in his youth…was still a very fine man”. There does not seem to be criticism here; there is praise. This could be from Sir Walter Elliot’s point of view instead of the narrator. It is supported by his attitude towards himself, once again, in the last sentence of this passage – “…was the constant object of his warmest respect and devotion”. It exemplifies his high opinion of himself. On the contrary, it can be argued that this is still the narrator, but with a mocking tone.

            The narrator can be seen as mocking Sir Walter Elliot in the second sentence by the first half of the third sentence –“Few women could think more of their personal appearance than he did”. This implies that he does not fall into the stereotype of his own gender. Single women in the 18^th century were expected to find husbands without being outwardly flirtatious; hence, it is assumed that maintaining outward appearance would be one of their top priorities. Men, on the contrary, were the head of the house, had voting rights, and were more focused on vocational activities. In comparing Sir Walter Elliot to women primarily concerned with their appearance, the narrator ridicules him and compares him to a young, single woman from the 18^th century.

The last sentence presents a continuing critical and mocking tone. It contributes evidence to the first sentence, the description of Sir Walter Elliot as a vain man. The narrator shows what Sir Walter Elliot thinks of himself; Sir Walter Elliot believes that he was blessed with “baronetcy” and “beauty”. He is so consumed with himself that he is “the constant object of his warmest respect and devotion”. However, we could also see this is still from Sir Walter Elliot’s focal point; these “blessings” and “gifts” align with his self-glorifying viewpoints.

Austen’s use of free indirect discourse presents different possible perspectives and focal points. At times in this passage, we can see the text through Sir Walter Elliot’s focal point; at others, we can see how it may be the narrator’s focal point. However, I am led to believe that this may be from the narrator’s focal point. Even though there is evidence to suggest that this passage is may be from Sir Walter Elliot’s focal point, Austen uses free indirect discourse to give reader’s insight on Sir Walter Elliot’s character. 

Analysis of My Analysis of McKay's Motifs

In my previous blog post, my thesis would be: McKay’s “The Harlem Dancer” is about the multi-faceted personality of the Harlem dancer.

           

My thesis about McKay’s “The Harlem Dancer” is about the multi-faceted personality of the Harlem dancer. I begin by introducing the motif of doubling. My first paragraph introduces the idea of doubling in the word usage of the poem and the second transitions to the doubling in the prostitute’s personality in the poem.

           

Because my first paragraph is about the motif of doubling in the word use of the poem, I point out all of the plural words that are present. In the first part of my first paragraph, I introduce a theme of what the plural words describe – joyful, peaceful, and happy times. I support this observation with the plural words that indicate this, “applauding youths” and “young prostitutes”(1). Though young prostitutes does not necessarily indicate any joy or peace, I further support it with my next sentence and show how they are joined together by the words “laughing together”(1). My third piece of evidence continues with more plural words in the next lines, “blended flutes”(3) and “black players upon a picnic day”(4). I explain the implications of this next piece of evidence and the imagery that it provides. Lastly, in my final pieces of evidence, “black shiny curls”(9) and “coins… / The wine-flushed…bold-eye boys…girls”(10, 11), I continue to support the theme of how the plurals provide doubling and shows one possible side of the prostitute’s personality.

However, after discussing the plural word usage in the poem and how it represents the theme of joy and peace, I introduce the motif of doubling in the prostitute’s personality in. I begin with a transition into the doubling in the prostitute’s personality in my first sentence.  Next, I introduce my interpretation of McKay’s usage of “devoured”(12) and why I think that the word devoured is a turning point. After a short explanation, I provide another piece of evidence, “falsely smiling face”(13), that continues to support my previous analysis and observation. Through these two pieces of evidence, I explain my interpretations and connect the motif of doubling from both the usage of plurals and the turning point to show the multiple facets of the prostitute’s personality.

McKay's Motifs

In McKay’s poem, “The Harlem Dancer”, an important motif is doubling. The motif of doubling applies to the nouns that he describes; they are plurals. Using words that are plural, he paints a picture of good things like joyful times, peace, and harmony. The first line itself contains two plurals: the applauding youths and the young prostitutes. The youths applaud and laugh together, seemingly without worries. In the third and fourth lines, McKay continues to use doubling in his words, “blended flutes” and “black players upon a picnic day”, that indicate times of joy. In addition to a picture of joyful times with black players playing flutes on a picnic day, the voice of the prostitute sounding like blended flutes implies harmony and peace. He continues by describing the  “black shiny curls on her neck” in like 9; the black curls give the impression that the prostitute fancily dressed up. Coins, wine-flushed boys and girls are all in multiples; they also add to the setting of a joyous party.

            Although the motif of doubling is applied in the actual words McKay uses in the form of plurals, another form of doubling is in the prostitute’s personality. McKay reveals this through a turning point in line 12 with the word “devoured”. Prior to this line, the words that were plural have given good connotations and have given a sense of goodness, even giving a sense of some sort of party between the prostitutes and the boys and girls. However, McKay’s use of “devoured” is very powerful and completely changes the tone. Though “devoured” can be used with a neutral connotation, in this sentence, it seems to carry a negative connotation. To me, it conjures images of wild dogs and cats fighting over the last shred of meat on the bones of road kill. In addition to “devoured”, McKay also describes to us her “falsely smiling face”. When this is revealed to us, we are shown a different type of doubling; it is one that shows that there are multiple facets to the prostitute’s personality. Though there are many happy ideas presented before “devoured”, they are all offset by the fact that the prostitute has a dual personality. The motif of doubling is one that is very obvious throughout the poem, expressed through both the words that are plural and through the prostitute’s personality.