I knew how it was going to end all along; I've read Jane Eyre, but even so, I was still shocked at the ending. I think, in the end, there were multiple people and situations to blame for Antoinette's madness.
The first thing is probably her upbringing. Hearing the expectations of others that she was heading in the same direction as her mother was not an auspicious start, and her mother's behavior towards her was definitely close to abuse. This led to an unstable childhood, sure to produce some problems in the future.
The second of these factors is Rochester, of course. His treatment of her in Jamaica was the beginning of her mental breakdown, but locking her in a cold and dark room in his house in England exacerbated the situation. She's basically a prisoner now, and this drives her even more insane.
I think the third factor is Christophine. While she was trying to help Antoinette and her intentions were good, I think that she was highly manipulative and pressuring. Antoinette doesn't want to follow her advice, but she will be on Christophine's side no matter what, and I believe Christophine takes advantage of this. This is more of a feeling that I get rather than something that I can point to explicit examples from the book about, but she just strikes me as wanting to make sure that Antoinette is on her side and not Rochester's.
Finally, just as in my last blog post, I think that the character's environments play a huge role in their mental states and behaviors. Rochester acts peculiarly when he's in Jamaica, and Antoinette acts strangely in England. They both just feel so out of their element and seemingly have no one to guide them through the new situation. This takes a toll on both of them, and it's a reason that Rochester is able to function back in England, and Antoinette probably would have been able to function back in Jamaica.
All in all, this is a really sad book (even though I knew what was going to happen), and I think that a lot of charcters could have done things differently to produce a happier outcome. However, the book is over, people did that they did, and many people were to blame for many things. Let's just leave it at that.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
The Stranger...wait, didn't we just read that?
To me, Rochester is a very sympathetic character. He's perhaps not the ideal of the doting husband, so fervently in love with his wife that he's willing to drop everything and move to a strange country with her and wishing to make everything perfect for her, but I still like him. Something that I kept thinking throughout class today was that people weren't giving Rochester enough leeway. When you look at the situation from Antoinette's point of view, he is definitely not the perfect partner, but that doesn't make him entirely bad and morally corrupt as a character. I think people weren't taking into account all of the things that Rochester is going through right now, and if they did, they might be a little more sympathetic.
The main thing that I can see as influencing Rochester's behavior in these last few sections is the new environment. As Mr. Mitchell said in class today, Rochester gets sick almost immediately after he arrives in Spanish Town, and seems to be married before he knows it. Recovering from a bad illness can be disorienting, as can traveling a long distance in search of something that you're not too certain about. Rochester does not immediately love Antoinette deeply and passionately, but he's genuinely nice to her, and I believe he cares about her. I don't think he's taking advantage of her, even though he's taking all of her money, because he's not going to up and leave; he's part of this marriage, and he's willing to work to make a happy relationship with Antoinette.
Going along with the changing environment, Rochester and Antoinette are immediately whisked away to Granbois, the couple's "honeymoon house," and Rochester is surrounded by a setting that is completely alien to him, and understanding of which he has rely on others for. I know for a fact that if I were in an as violently new situation as he was, I would be scared out of my mind, and I would definitely not want to try to make my "sweetheart," who I barely know, feel better. I would latch onto the things that make me feel safe, and bit by bit I would slowly begin to understand things. Not only that, but Antoinette feels perfectly at home at Granbois. It is not as though they are both strangers to this new environment, it's just Rochester. This makes him feel even more like an outsider and like the only potential ally he could have (Antoinette) is not on his side.
In Rochester's shoes, I would probably be acting worse than he is. I think he's showing remarkable strength to be able to move to a completely new place and roll with it, in addition to trying to get to know his wife. He's kind and caring, and as good as he could be to her given the trying circumstances that he finds himself in now. Rochester is the stranger here, but I think he's doing well.
The main thing that I can see as influencing Rochester's behavior in these last few sections is the new environment. As Mr. Mitchell said in class today, Rochester gets sick almost immediately after he arrives in Spanish Town, and seems to be married before he knows it. Recovering from a bad illness can be disorienting, as can traveling a long distance in search of something that you're not too certain about. Rochester does not immediately love Antoinette deeply and passionately, but he's genuinely nice to her, and I believe he cares about her. I don't think he's taking advantage of her, even though he's taking all of her money, because he's not going to up and leave; he's part of this marriage, and he's willing to work to make a happy relationship with Antoinette.
Going along with the changing environment, Rochester and Antoinette are immediately whisked away to Granbois, the couple's "honeymoon house," and Rochester is surrounded by a setting that is completely alien to him, and understanding of which he has rely on others for. I know for a fact that if I were in an as violently new situation as he was, I would be scared out of my mind, and I would definitely not want to try to make my "sweetheart," who I barely know, feel better. I would latch onto the things that make me feel safe, and bit by bit I would slowly begin to understand things. Not only that, but Antoinette feels perfectly at home at Granbois. It is not as though they are both strangers to this new environment, it's just Rochester. This makes him feel even more like an outsider and like the only potential ally he could have (Antoinette) is not on his side.
In Rochester's shoes, I would probably be acting worse than he is. I think he's showing remarkable strength to be able to move to a completely new place and roll with it, in addition to trying to get to know his wife. He's kind and caring, and as good as he could be to her given the trying circumstances that he finds himself in now. Rochester is the stranger here, but I think he's doing well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)