Author Archives: Eileen Medina

May 05 2021
1 Comment
Posts

Annotated Bibliography

The primary sources I’ll use are Henry James’s What Maisie Knew and William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying. My secondary sources primarily come from JSTOR, and Google Scholar. I’ve searched for child narrators, Vardaman Bundren, Maisie, modernism and children, as well as narratology (this last one has been tricky). I’m debating on incorporating psychological resources relating to children and language or cognition. This paper has proven to be pretty tough to mold/write. 

Bollinger, Laurel. “‘Are Is Too Many for One Woman to Foal’: Embodied Cognition in ‘As I Lay Dying.’” Texas Studies in Literature and Language, vol. 57, no. 4, 2015, pp. 433–463. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26155314. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Bollinger contrasts Darl and his philosophical moments with Vardaman and his child philosophy. It really emphasizes Addie’s theory of language, as Darl’s language is very pronounced in adult terms while Vardaman lacks the pronounced language, yet he expresses similar ideas with a child’s twist.  

Britzolakis, Christina. “Technologies of Vision in Henry James’s ‘What Maisie Knew.’” NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, vol. 34, no. 3, 2001, pp. 369–390., www.jstor.org/stable/1346072. Accessed 22 Apr. 2021.

Britzolakis writes about James’ innovation on narrative perspective in his work. She focuses on his “experimental” text, What Maisie Knew and its titular character and James’ emphasis on her developmental consciousness in and throughout the text.  

Delville, Michel. “VARDAMAN’S FISH AND ADDIE’S JAR: FAULKNER’S TALES OF MOURNING AND DESIRE.” Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies (HJEAS), vol. 2, no. 1, 1996, pp. 85–91. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/41273916. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Delville directly relates Addie’s monologue to Vardaman’s attempt to understand and work through his own grief by declaring that Addie is a fish. He utilizes Lacan’s epistemological work to understand Vardaman. 

Donnelly, Colleen. “The Syntax of Perception in ‘As I Lay Dying.’” CEA Critic, vol. 53, no. 2, 1991, pp. 54–68. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/44378225. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Donnelly speaks of both Vardaman’s understanding of his mother’s death and his own child monologue in relation to Darl (ontological musings). 

Heberle, Mark A., et al. Infant Tongues: The Voice of the Child in Literature. Wayne State University Press, 1995. 

Heberle interestingly examines language and child narrators via consciousness, he also makes the relation of adults being the ones who define the child and their attempt at articulating their inner world.

Marotta, Kenny. “What Maisie Knew: The Question of Our Speech.” ELH, vol. 46, no. 3, 1979, pp. 495–508. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2872692. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Marotta’s piece focuses mainly on Maisie’s character and the hypocrisy she witnesses at the hands of the adults. He addresses language and narration.  

Apr 21 2021
1 Comment
Posts

Simple Bibliography (Exploring Child Narrators)

***Note: everything is subject to change.

Bollinger, Laurel. “‘Are Is Too Many for One Woman to Foal’: Embodied Cognition in ‘As I Lay Dying.’” Texas Studies in Literature and Language, vol. 57, no. 4, 2015, pp. 433–463. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26155314. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Britzolakis, Christina. “Technologies of Vision in Henry James’s ‘What Maisie Knew.’” NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, vol. 34, no. 3, 2001, pp. 369–390., www.jstor.org/stable/1346072. Accessed 22 Apr. 2021.

Delville, Michel. “VARDAMAN’S FISH AND ADDIE’S JAR: FAULKNER’S TALES OF MOURNING AND DESIRE.” Hungarian Journal of English and American Studies (HJEAS), vol. 2, no. 1, 1996, pp. 85–91. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/41273916. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Donnelly, Colleen. “The Syntax of Perception in ‘As I Lay Dying.’” CEA Critic, vol. 53, no. 2, 1991, pp. 54–68. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/44378225. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

Marotta, Kenny. “What Maisie Knew: The Question of Our Speech.” ELH, vol. 46, no. 3, 1979, pp. 495–508. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2872692. Accessed 21 Apr. 2021.

NANCE, WILLIAM L. “‘WHAT MAISIE KNEW’: THE MYTH OF THE ARTIST.” Studies in the Novel, vol. 8, no. 1, 1976, pp. 88–102. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/29531770. Accessed 22 Apr. 2021.

Apr 15 2021
1 Comment
Posts

Child Narrators (Research Question)

For my research paper, I was thinking about the unique perspective of children as narrators. Both Maisie in James’ novel and Vardaman in Faulkner’s novel offer a distinctive point of view of the events which occur. Children are typically very observant and aren’t bogged down by the ‘rules’ of society. I’m not too knowledgeable about children’s literature, but I know that during and prior to the Victorian era, children were exploited and not thought of as important human beings (I think). Maisie and Vardaman’s narratives counter the naiveté simplicity thought of children. Both of them navigate their world astutely connecting the dots and thinking complexly about their relationships with those around them, Maisie doesn’t resign herself to being a pawn and makes decisions for her well being; Vardaman thinks about death and non-death (existence) through the fish he caught in the beginning of the novel.

I was thinking of using Piaget’s stage of development to analyze Maisie and Vardaman. Or intertextually compare and contrast them.

I suppose my main question relates to how child narrators offer a unique perspective, or how their perspectives differ from the adults about them.

Apr 06 2021
Posts

Darl’s Two-faced Crazy Train

Out of the many images Faulkner’s novels have impressed on me, a notable one is of Darl Bundren on the train beside his escorts in his last chapter. As a departing picture of Darl, it seemed reminiscent of a surrealistic work of art (perhaps a Rene Magritte or a Salvador Dali piece). The portrait invoked thoughts relating to economics and shellshock, revelations which are in jarring contrast to his lucidly eerie logical-illogical clairvoyance. The disclosure of Darl being a war veteran explains his pronounced monologues throughout the novel and his plunge into madness. The parting image of Darl in his last chapter ties into the larger theme of economics in the novel.

In his final section, Darl spirals into madness and makes some insanely interesting remarks. In third person he narrates the scene in which he finds himself in, “One of them sat beside him, the other sat on the seat facing him, riding backward. One of them had to ride backward because the state’s money has a face to each backside and a backside to each face, and they are riding on the state’s money which is incest” (254). Darl connects his position on the train car to the main avenue of capitalistic exchange: money. The face to each backside and backside to each face summons an image of the Roman deity Janus whose two faces symbolize the idea of duality. Faulkner represents each character in a dual manner (via point of view and first person narration), and the idea of duality is strongly evidenced in the end by Darl’s narrative split (first to third person). This duality and incest definitely ties to the theme of economics in two ways, microscopically and macroscopically. The theme of economics is prevalent in this novel microscopically with Anse Bundren as a lazy delegating figurehead who manages his children as employees (he’s also looking to replace his baby-maker) and the two-facedness is also represented in the ploy which Anse carries out. We see how under the pretense of Addie’s dying wish (and blathering about doing his Christain duty), the Bundren’s each individually seek out their desires in town which could suggest the two-sidedness of human behavior. 

Speculatively, on a macroscopic scale, the revelation of Darl having fought in the war broadens the business which Anse intelligently devises. The state sought free military labor (drafts) at the cost of human lives. I suppose one can say that what Darl was exposed to in Europe namely aesthetics, art and the war crafted Darl’s character into one of clairvoyance. The war did its number on him, yet he isn’t mad in the beginning of the novel. It’s as the novel progresses and Darl’s witness of the self-absorbed Anse and the (embarrassingly) absurd situations his family finds themselves in (all due to the pursuit of a labor force/economics) that trigger the progression of Darl’s shellshock. 

This brings up a correlation between Woolf’s Septimus Smith and Darl. Or at least an interesting thought, Dr. Holmes and Sir William Bradshaw were to Septimus “human nature” (Woolf 92) which was torturing him. Darl’s form of “human nature” lies in the beastiality of economics in which, “A nickel has a woman on one side and a buffalo on the other; two faces and no back” (254). Namely the duality of economics which is reflected in the Bundrens as selfishness which lies on top of the absurdity of the smelly coffin carrying the corpse of his mother.

Tagged , , , ,
Mar 04 2021
1 Comment
Posts

The Traveller’s Ride and Young Goodman Brown

While sitting in Regent’s park, Peter Walsh nods off to an incredibly interesting dream. I’d say that those with Fruedian kinks would be most delighted to pick and analyze Peter’s dream through his psychoanalytical lens. However, this dream strongly reminded me of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown.” Peter Walsh’s dream journey contrasts Goodman Brown’s own journey through a forest scene. 

Hawthorne’s Young Goodman Brown is a story of religious morality, temptation and faith. It follows Goodman Brown as he takes a stroll through the nighttime forest to meet with the devil, disguised as a man. Throughout their walk, Goodman Brown tries to hold himself together as a good Christain who would never side with the devil, while the devil attempts to sway him to his side. To persuade Goodman Brown the devil shows him how those most dear to him have already sided with him. Among those Goodman Brown sees/hears are the Christian ministers from his town, his wife Faith (note the irony) and his father and grandfathers. Upon acquiring this knowledge Goodman Brown gives into the devil. Peter Walsh’s dream parallels and contrasts against Hawthorne’s own short story.

Although Goodman Brown struggles to maintain his faith, Peter seeks to obtain some form of redemption or comfort in female figures. Peter’s dream commences with, “The solitary traveller, haunter of lanes, disturber of ferns, and devastator of great hemlock plants” (57). The reader presumes the traveller to be Peter himself, and we see how this traveller traverses, “down the path with his eyes upon the sky and branches” (57). In place of the human-like pagan figure of the devil, Peter’s dream features women in three ways. Peter imposes womanhood onto the surrounding forest scene of nature and encounters three different figures of women all of which call and beckon him towards them. The first, “[Murmurs] in his ear like sirens lolloping away on the green sea waves” (57). This beautiful temptress could be the devil of Peter’s dream who attempts to lure him to his death just as the devil tries to corrupt Goodman Brown. The second woman the traveller encounters, “as he advances down [the] forest ride” (57) is “made of sky and branches” (57) and she bestows compassion, comprehension and absolution. This woman seems to be the complete opposite to the siren previously mentioned, while the siren could compare to the devil, this woman could be the traveller’s own version of Faith. However, it’s interesting that the traveller views her as an angel who’ll take him into “nothingness” (58). 

The last woman the traveller encounters is found “beyond the wood” (58). This is also an interesting parallel to Young Goodman Brown, because the devil also pulls him beyond the forest towards the end of the story to some kind of ceremony. The traveller finds himself in a village face to face with, “an elderly woman who seems to seek, over a desert, a lost son” (58). Hawthorne’s story also has Goodman Brown’s mother at the ceremony who tries to dissuade and push him away. The motherly woman the traveller encounters transforms into a landlady who asks him a question and yet the traveller cannot respond. The traveller has no one to turn to, just as Peter has no one to turn to. Goodman Brown also has no one to turn to because in the end he finds himself alone in the forest just as the traveller finds himself alone. Neither the traveller, Goodman Brown, or Peter find any solace/redemption on their journey. Goodman Brown loses his innocence and lives his life in fear and pessimism, while Peter finds no absolution from the inner strife of his feelings for Clarissa and lives in a tortuous cycle of (about 30 years) reliving his rejection unable to move on from Clarissa.  

Tagged , , ,
Feb 22 2021
1 Comment
Posts

Letters and Relationships

An interesting and slightly overlooked recurring motif in James’ What Maisie Knew are letters. Handwritten letters were one of the primary methods of communication prior to the technological age. In the novel, James incorporates letters as indicators which address one of the prominent themes: relationships. There are many types of relationships explored in the novel between every character. One of the most interesting manners in which relationship statuses are reflected between characters is through the exchange of letters. 

As a recurring motif, letters appear sporadically in the novel as a means of communication between characters. Oftentimes the letters are obstructed, an early instance is seen in the first chapter, whilst Maisie is with her father. “Her first term was with her father, who spared her not only in letting her have the wild letters addressed to her by her mother: he confined himself to holding them up at her and shaking them, while he showed his teeth…chucked them, across the room, bang into the fire” (8). This instance reflects the relationship between Ida and Beale as well as the constant projection of anger onto Maisie. Note the association of both Beale and Ida as subtly animal-like, Beale’s animalistic baring of teeth associated with his demeanor, and Ida’s “wild” letters. This violent action sets the tone for Ida and Beale’s behavior as well as foreshadows their complete abandonment of Maisie in the end of the novel. The obstruction of the letters meant for Maisie by her father represents his own interception of Ida and Maisie’s communication and perhaps their potential relationship. 

This interference of letters is common in James’ novel, especially when they’re meant for Maisie. This adds another layer of instability and chaos in Maisie’s life and relationships. This is often seen in the conflict between Mrs. Wix and Mrs. Beale, where Mrs. Beale constantly blocks Mrs. Wix’s “dolefully written” (32) letters to Maisie, “[The] charming woman held in her hand the last letter that Maisie was to receive from Mrs. Wix; it was fortified by a decree abolishing the preposterous tie” (33). Mrs. Beale’s actions are meant to sever the relationship between Maisie and Mrs. Wix because Mrs. Beale declared her an illiterate nobody. She doesn’t succeed in completely breaking up Mrs. Wix and Maisie, but it reflects Mrs. Beale’s character as someone who is possessive and prejudiced towards someone from a lower social class than her. 

The relationship which most relies on written communication is the one between Mrs. Beale and Sir Claude. This is another function of letters, they allow for secret discrete communication between recipients. In chapter eight, Sir Claude and Mrs. Beale meet for the first time and it’s obvious that they like one another despite their recent marriages. Throughout the course of the novel, behind the scenes to Maisie’s narrative, the reader ascertains the affair which Mrs. Beale and Sir Claude are engaged in. Their secret exchange of letters confirms it. But this exchange is seldom mentioned until the moment when Sir Claude, Maisie, and Mrs. Wix are in France and Sir Claude receives a letter from Mrs. Beale which he shares with the others. “It’s a letter to Mrs. Beale from your father, making the rupture between them perfectly irrevocable. It puts an end for ever to their relations” (187-188). This letter which Sir Claude receives, is a letter within a letter, originally from Mr. Farange to Mrs. Beale containing private information on their relationship; then forwarded to Sir Claude. This letter within a letter is representative of all of the adult relationships which Maisie is exposed to in the novel. Each of them are characterized by deceit, secrecy and adultery all of which are represented in the physical form of handwritten letters.

Tagged ,
Feb 08 2021
Posts

Maisie’s Psychological Development

In a literary studies course I took years ago, we happened to read Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw. I remember how it was mentioned that James’ older brother William was a pioneer in the field of psychology and this altered the way in which we read the novel. This interesting application of psychology (at the time when the field itself was being developed) into James’ novels is another facet which makes them modern. What Maisie Knew not only illustrates the negligence and selfishness of adults, but it also showcases the developmental psychology of a child. 

The first few chapters of the novel feature many metaphors used to describe Maisie, these metaphors and the corresponding chapters take place at the time when she’s youngest. Meaning she hasn’t fully formulated her own symbolic thought and in place of her voice, the narrator describes her in a series of metaphors which communicate her position for her. Maisie is, “a deep little porcelain cup in which biting acids could be mixed” (5), a “magic-lantern” (8) and a “little feathered shuttlecock” (12). Each of these metaphors speak to the precarious position Maisie is in within the world of her parents. As a porcelain cup and a feathered shuttlecock, she is a supposed inert empty vessel filled with resentment from each parent, and as a sensitive tool of retribution. As a magic lantern, she is an observer of the world around her. Her observations play a role in her cognitive reasoning. She interestingly recognizes her own limitations at a young age, “she found in her mind a collection of images and echoes to which meanings were attachable-images and echoes kept for her in the childish dusk, the dim closet, the high drawers, like games she wasn’t yet big enough to play” (10). Maisie is aware of what is happening around her, she also realizes that there is meaning behind the actions and that at her very young age she isn’t fully able to be an autonomous participant. 

As the novel progresses, Maisie’s cognition develops and she begins to act. In connection to her parents, “She puzzled out with imperfect signs, but with a prodigious spirit, that she had been a centre of hatred and a messenger of insult” (13). Maisie realizes that she’s being used through the perception of her surroundings. She also develops operational thought in which she perceives the occurrences around her in a logical manner. Instead of being an inert object in a game, Maisie evolves into a participant who harbors and strives for her own needs and desires. One of which is the need to protect herself from her parents, “Her parted lips locked themselves with the determination to be employed no longer. She would forget everything, she would repeat nothing” (13). Not only is Maisie protecting herself from their venomous words through silence, but she is also refusing to be a pawn in her parent’s game.

The most striking instance which showcases Maisie’s inner consciousness is when she’s playing with her doll Lisette. During the scene, Maisie recreates the scenarios of the adults in her life with Lisette being Maisie, “She could only pass on her lessons and study to produce on Lisette the impression of having mysteries in her life” (26). Maisie is attempting to make sense of her life by projecting her inner struggles onto the doll. While, “[She] tried hard to discover where she had been, she discovered a little, but she never discovered all” (27). The reader gains insight on Maisie’s consciousness as she logically tries to make sense of who she is and what place she has in the world. This level of thinking and reasoning is an evolvement from being a tool for her parents spitefulness, to refusing to take part in her parents’ game, and now to attempting to make sense of who she is and where she fits. Maisie’s psychological trajectory is an interesting modern angle which James utilizes to successfully explore the themes of morality and family through a child’s point of view.

Tagged , , ,
Skip to toolbar