The thing that bothers me most about As I Lay Dying is its title. It seems to imply that Addie is the one narrating the book. However, after leafing through the rest of it, I didn't notice a single chapter that she narrated. I think that it would be really funny if Faulkner decided to throw in a scene where Addie talks to one of the narrators in their dreams. It also wouldn't be all that out of the ordinary, as Darl already has the supernatural ability to know what is going on in other places or inside other people.
Although I didn't read the end of the book, I noticed that there were a few new narrators towards the end. There may have been a chance that, in some weird plot twist, Addie narrates unexpectedly through those characters or that I missed a chapter titled by her name. Any way, I think it would be neat knowing what Addie thinks about Anse, given the mostly negative views of him by the people around him.
"Thayt damn old man cant do anything right. Just look ad him mess uh mah bed agin. D'wee Dell, git in here an fix this!"
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Saturday, February 14, 2015
[Potential essay topic] Is Odysseus a psycopath?
Wikipedia: Psychopathy is traditionally defined as a personality disorder characterized by enduring antisocial behavior, diminished empathy and remorse, and disinhibited or bold behavior.
Although Odysseus isn't antisocial, he does exhibit a weird lack of empathy and remorse for his crew members. I don't recall any times in the Odyssey where Odysseus seemed to lament the loss of his men. He never mourned the loss of his crew, the only time he had a funeral for one of his crew members was when he was explicitly told by that man's spirit to do so. Later, when he slaughters the suitors in his palace, he sheds no tears over the loss of life. Most of these men were his citizens, I would expect that, if in some unfortunate circumstance a leader has to kill many of their subjects, they would feel remorse for what they did; Odysseus did not. In addition, contrary to most works of this genre, Odysseus, the hero, never looks back and laments over what he could have done differently to save more people. In most of the heroic material that I have consumed, the hero is always beating themselves up over some small oversight that could have saved more lives.
Odysseus' bold behavior also fits with Wikipedia's definition of a psychopath. Going against Circe's advise about the Scylla, Odysseus is stupid and decides to arm his best men to fight it. His bold action costs the men their lives. After this scene, Odysseus shows no remorse for his men's cursed fate.
Does this seem like a potential topic for an essay? Are there any other blatant examples of this tendency?
Although Odysseus isn't antisocial, he does exhibit a weird lack of empathy and remorse for his crew members. I don't recall any times in the Odyssey where Odysseus seemed to lament the loss of his men. He never mourned the loss of his crew, the only time he had a funeral for one of his crew members was when he was explicitly told by that man's spirit to do so. Later, when he slaughters the suitors in his palace, he sheds no tears over the loss of life. Most of these men were his citizens, I would expect that, if in some unfortunate circumstance a leader has to kill many of their subjects, they would feel remorse for what they did; Odysseus did not. In addition, contrary to most works of this genre, Odysseus, the hero, never looks back and laments over what he could have done differently to save more people. In most of the heroic material that I have consumed, the hero is always beating themselves up over some small oversight that could have saved more lives.
Odysseus' bold behavior also fits with Wikipedia's definition of a psychopath. Going against Circe's advise about the Scylla, Odysseus is stupid and decides to arm his best men to fight it. His bold action costs the men their lives. After this scene, Odysseus shows no remorse for his men's cursed fate.
Does this seem like a potential topic for an essay? Are there any other blatant examples of this tendency?
Monday, February 2, 2015
The real people who get screwed in The Odyssey
I know we talked about this in class today, but I would like to bring it up again with a few new insights. Every time Odysseus arrives in a foreign city, he is greeted with hospitality. The occupants prepare a great feast, then set him up with a ship (or fleet of ships) and a crew to continue his voyage with. Apart from being extremely unusual by today's standards, there is another issue with this hospitality. What happens to the ships and their crew?
So far, every ship and crew that Odysseus has sailed with has perished. The Phaecians nearly made it back to their port, before being smited to Davy Jones locker. All of his other crews suffered a similar fate. The sailors who were selected to be part of the crews (or maybe volunteered) get screwed in multiple other ways. They are leaving their family. They don't know how long it will take to see Odysseus safely to Ithaca, or how long it will take them to return home. Furthermore, they aren't given any share of Odysseus' plunder (as evidences in book 10), so they have no real reason to take a long voyage with a man they just met. This brings up another interesting point: what is Odysseus' relationship to his crew?
Odysseus has gone through many crews and ships. The death toll may be in the hundreds, maybe even close to one thousand. How can he put up with knowing that every crew he sails with will likely die or experience some unfortunate accident? How does he know that this new bunch of strangers will be loyal to him or know where to go? How do the sailors know that Odysseys isn't some madman, trying to capture them and sell them into slavery. Such things weren't uncommon in the ancient times, men from port villages were dragged aboard ships in their sleep, only to wake up on the open sea, forced to become part of the crew. One thing is for certain, however, every crew that has sailed with Odysseus has perished, and none have received any due credit.
So far, every ship and crew that Odysseus has sailed with has perished. The Phaecians nearly made it back to their port, before being smited to Davy Jones locker. All of his other crews suffered a similar fate. The sailors who were selected to be part of the crews (or maybe volunteered) get screwed in multiple other ways. They are leaving their family. They don't know how long it will take to see Odysseus safely to Ithaca, or how long it will take them to return home. Furthermore, they aren't given any share of Odysseus' plunder (as evidences in book 10), so they have no real reason to take a long voyage with a man they just met. This brings up another interesting point: what is Odysseus' relationship to his crew?
Odysseus has gone through many crews and ships. The death toll may be in the hundreds, maybe even close to one thousand. How can he put up with knowing that every crew he sails with will likely die or experience some unfortunate accident? How does he know that this new bunch of strangers will be loyal to him or know where to go? How do the sailors know that Odysseys isn't some madman, trying to capture them and sell them into slavery. Such things weren't uncommon in the ancient times, men from port villages were dragged aboard ships in their sleep, only to wake up on the open sea, forced to become part of the crew. One thing is for certain, however, every crew that has sailed with Odysseus has perished, and none have received any due credit.
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