Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean RhysNorton, 1982
171 pages
Date completed: November 16, 2009
What really spoke to me about this book was that it addressed something that I was aware of, but hadn't really given much thought to: the concept of unhomeliness. Rather than try to explain it, I'll relate it to the book: the narrator, Antoinette, was born and raised in Jamaica. She is white, and therefore she and her family have never been accepted by the indigenous people of Jamaica because whites on the island have always dominated the native people. On the other hand, Antoinette is also not accepted in British culture because of her humble beginnings and the fact that her ideas and culture are so different. Therefore, she has no true home and is suspended instead between two worlds, which is fascinating and heartbreaking.
This reimagining of the story of Antoinette (also known as Bertha, the "mad woman in the attic" from Jane Eyre) is very powerful. It's so interesting to see an explanation for why Antoinette might have gone mad, rather than just distancing her and seeing her as that crazy woman who is locked away. It also made me want to reread Jane Eyre through a new lens. There is a great emphasis upon cultural relativism and the fact that to the English in the early 19th century, people of other cultures were considered "savage." Despite the fact that Antoinette looks just like the English, her background is still capable of tainting her in the eyes of the British.
It was also interesting that not only is Antoinette suspended between two cultures, but she is also suspended between two different personas in Rochester's perspective. He is lustfully drawn to her beauty, but at the same time he hates her and is repulsed by her connotations with "barbaric" raw nature. The oppositions set up throughout the novel were excellent.
Overall, it was a really quick read that I enjoyed delving into. Parts of it didn't make a lot of sense to me at first, but I think upon a second reading (which I'll have to do before I write a paper about it), I'll be able to smooth out my misunderstanding.
What really spoke to me about this book was that it addressed something that I was aware of, but hadn't really given much thought to: the concept of unhomeliness. Rather than try to explain it, I'll relate it to the book: the narrator, Antoinette, was born and raised in Jamaica. She is white, and therefore she and her family have never been accepted by the indigenous people of Jamaica because whites on the island have always dominated the native people. On the other hand, Antoinette is also not accepted in British culture because of her humble beginnings and the fact that her ideas and culture are so different. Therefore, she has no true home and is suspended instead between two worlds, which is fascinating and heartbreaking.
This reimagining of the story of Antoinette (also known as Bertha, the "mad woman in the attic" from Jane Eyre) is very powerful. It's so interesting to see an explanation for why Antoinette might have gone mad, rather than just distancing her and seeing her as that crazy woman who is locked away. It also made me want to reread Jane Eyre through a new lens. There is a great emphasis upon cultural relativism and the fact that to the English in the early 19th century, people of other cultures were considered "savage." Despite the fact that Antoinette looks just like the English, her background is still capable of tainting her in the eyes of the British.
It was also interesting that not only is Antoinette suspended between two cultures, but she is also suspended between two different personas in Rochester's perspective. He is lustfully drawn to her beauty, but at the same time he hates her and is repulsed by her connotations with "barbaric" raw nature. The oppositions set up throughout the novel were excellent.
Overall, it was a really quick read that I enjoyed delving into. Parts of it didn't make a lot of sense to me at first, but I think upon a second reading (which I'll have to do before I write a paper about it), I'll be able to smooth out my misunderstanding.
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