Monday, November 8, 2010
Landscape
Stating the obvious: rural England and rural Jamaica are different. How are characters products of the environment they come from? How does setting relate to theme? Compare the way Bronte uses setting and the way Rhys uses it. You can start with the differences, but also see if there are similarities, as well.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Well in rural Jamaica, the characters seems to be more racist towards Antoinette's family. This is probably because in Jamaica there is more than just one race. There is a mixture of white and black jamaicans and since there is such few numbers of whites there, the whites are persecuted more than the blacks. thy are called many different names such as "white cockroach." In England, there was not much racial class because there was no black people in the book but more social class. Social class is prevalent in Jamaica also. The setting in England is more dreary which goes with the theme because the book has so little twists and turns. In Wide Sargasso Sea, the setting is vivid and with wonderful colors and goes with the theme because the story has so many twists and turns that you may not even understand what just happened in the end of the sentence.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a character being a product of the enviornment that she came from is, Christophine. Christophine practices "voodoo", and most of the times when I think of islands of think of magic and spells. The setting relates to the theme because in Jamaica everyone is happy and free and in rural England it is gloomy.
ReplyDeleteBronte uses setting to connect with characters, specifically jane. not just setting, but weather. for example, jane has been miserable in places that sound miserable, for example, Lowood, not exactly the most chipper of names. Another example, when Jane is feeling lost as she runs from the only thing she loves, Rochester, she ends up in the woods, lost in reality and mentality. Rhys uses setting in a different fashion. As she talks about the Coulibri Estate, you may have noticed the garden and the "glacis". The garden is a happy but mysterious place with the orchids that grow just out of reach, and Antoinette refuses to venture near them. The glacis, co close to the garden, yet so different. The glacis gives more of a eerie feeling as almost a watchtower for a prison, you can see all. Rhys uses setting more to give mood. she also relates setting to certain social issues.
ReplyDeleteJESSICA[K]
ReplyDeleteThe actions,attitudes, and beliefs of the characters emphasize the environment in which they come from. Because of their familiarity with the ways they are used to growing up and the people they are more comfortable different to be around are expressed through their indifferent actions toward one another.Such as the conversations that Rochester has with the woman of Coulibri. he notices that their language are ,like tthe words they have for different things.Rochester also realizes that their dialect and english are ignorant compared to his own. they mispronounce words, leave out words, add unneccessary words in their conversations. Compared to his educated speech, their broken off language are open windows to him on how he and Antoinette are very much different from each other and come from different lives.
Bronte uses setting as a way to describe feelings, Rhys uses hers in a way for information purposes only, i suggest. Both authors have this 'dream-like' setting where a character dreams something tht foreshadows an act from either books. Such as the dream Antoinette/Bertha has where she is being led up many steps and she wants t go on but after many moments she bomes reluctant to keep moving. "The tree sways and jerks as if it is trying to throw [her] off", Antoinette/Bertha is being forced into this dark area and then she hears a strange voice that tells her to come inside. you can infer that this dream foreshadows when Antoinette/Bertha is locked inside of this room on a third story where she is taken care of like in Jane Eyre.
Characters are products of their environments because Mason who grew up in cold England appears rigid emotionally. He doesn't understand the complications in Annette's life because the society he grew up in was much different than hers. Setting relates to the theme because the environment seemingly changes based on what's going on in her life. While she was a child the garden was untamed and Eden like but when Mason came and changed her life the garden didn't have the same appeal. When they were being chased from her burning house the bamboo caught fire which could be a symbol for the life as she knows it being destroyed. Bronte and Rhys both use setting to foreshadow future events. In Jane Eyre the tree splitting into two but still being connected at the roots;symbolize Jane and Rochester's life together:split apart but brought together in the end. In Rhys Antoinette's wild garden being cut and trimmed down could symbolize Antionette having to leave her home and live with nun's with a different structured life.
ReplyDelete@Iris, I agree with you. There is definitely some differences between the social classes in both Jamaica and England. Let's keep in mind that Jane Eyre was written during the Victorian Era where social class was important. Young ladies were expected to behave properly. The novel we are reading now was not written during that time period and the author does have a background involving Jamaica. England is portrayed as the dreary place while Jamaica seems to be this place exploding with livelihood. Even today, I think those descriptions can fit those places because in England it does rain frequently and in Jamaica, there is a very mixed and diverse culture.
ReplyDeleteI think in Jamaica and England both areas are similar in the way that there is racism in both areas. In Jamaica there might be more racism because as @Iris said there are different colors, white and black Jamaicans, but in England if it is all white and blacks come to their land, they would treat them differently. I also agree that in England they are more racist, not about color, but about the hierarchy.
ReplyDeleteIn the way Bronte uses the setting also inquires Jane's mood (at least to me). When Jane left Thornfield, the weather was nice and the sun was out and the setting was beautiful. With Rhys it is similar, but instead of the setting changing with Antionette's mood it changes with what changes in her life. Also the dreams show a lot of foreshadowing in both novels. For instance a baby meant bad things for Jane Eyre.
Characters are products of their environment because in rural England the people there focused more on Social class and you can tell because there were so many stereotypes based on whether you were poor and rich. When Jane was homeless most people assumed that she had no education,manners,or discipline. In Wide Sargasso Sea people focus more on race. It seems like it was okay to not have a lot of money if you were white as long as you had more money than the former slaves. If you were white with less money than former slaves you were considered a white cockroach which apparently is the lowest of the low. Setting relates to theme because in England everything is sad and gloomy and Jane's always in pursuit of happiness(which i think the theme is) and in the Islands everything is beautiful and exotic. Even though Antoinette's life isn't much more happy than Jane's is at least Antoinette knows how to appreciate the good in what she has.
ReplyDeleteJamaica is a place that is greater plagued with racial struggles in society (using the book) compared to England. It is also a place of high heat and wild-like scenery, where as England is cold and elegant looking. I think the factors of racism, heat and wild scenery play in the emphasizing of the behavior of the Jamaicans in the book. Racism will obviously effect a persons character and how they handle situations. Heat may play a part because during the extremely hot days Rochester seems a little out of his element and the heat has always seemed to have some affect on people. Jamaica is a very beautiful place and its wild look makes it look even better. However, i think the wild beauty of this place can symbolize the wild beauty of its inhabitants. Much like Antoinette's family they are very deceitful. What they show outwardly is completely different form what is happening and is bound to show inwardly.
ReplyDeleteI would say the theme is that beauty is dangerous, it hides on the face of misconception and deception. As aforementioned, the setting is like a wild beauty and so is Antoinette. Her deceitfulness was masked my a thin sheet of beauty. Bronte uses setting to contradict occurring situations where as Rhys uses setting to directly symbolize the characters. A similarity between their uses is that they will use the setting to correspond with the characters' moods. For example, in Jane Eyre, the rainy and cold days were usually associated with Jane's mood. In Wide Sargasso Sea Rochester's confuses or frustrated moods will correspond with hot or humid weather, darkness, or alcohol associated situations.
other than the people you interact with, your environment is the largest influence on what you are. social customs such as behavior and religion are all dependent on where you are. for example, in america, it's considered polite and generous to leave tips in restaurants; in mexico, you wouldn't dare to leave a tip, because it is considered an insult. antoinette in WSS is a perfect example of the byproduct of her environment. she is erratic and driven insane by her tortured upbringing, of being called a "white cockroach" and enduring other taunt. at the same time, she is also vain, arrogant and proud, due to the more sophisticated life she temporarily had when her mother remarried. jane, on the other hand, is less like her environment, but still has some qualities as a result of her upbringing. she grew up in an elegant england home, and has fine taste, but does not care much for the expensive things in life. the people around her scorned and abused her, yet she has a gentle nature. because of this scornfulness, she is quiet and bookish, happier to be a lone than at a party.
ReplyDeletesetting relates to theme in that the theme is partly dependant on the setting. you wouldn't want a tale of desperate, heartbreaking tragedy to take place in a happy, sunshine filled field of bunnies and flowers.both authors use setting in their novels to help make their theme more realistic.