Literature Humanities 19

Just as it is visible throughout history, the rise of Christianity commandeers a certain presence in the texts. Having not yet existed or begun to spread, Christianity finds itself absent from Virgil’s Aeneid and Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Subsequent works, more specifically Augustine’s Confessions and Dante’s Inferno, however, seem to feature Christian beliefs and ideals; their basis is that of a monotheistic, religious doctrine stemming from the teachings of Christ and concerned with a relationship to God and an ultimate place in Heaven. Confessions has explicit references to the Catholic Church, particularly in the characters of Ambrose, the bishop who was influential in Augustine’s perception of the Bible, and Monica, Augustine’s devoutly Catholic mother. The book itself is a portrayal of Augustine’s slow, spiritually painful conversion to Catholicism and a promulgation of the fulfillment found when in unity with God. Dante’s Inferno, on the other hand, along with other works of the Divine Comedy, has more of a focus on the afterlife, the consequences dependent upon the kind of life that was led. Hell seems to be the destination for non-Christians and for bad Christians. Aside from this, Dante also seems to be bridging the gap between the old pagan religions and Christianity, something that had already been attempted through the appropriation of pagan practices and customs by leaders of the Catholic Church.

The schisms and reformations that took a hold of the Church, including the resulting religious denominations and general disconnect, can also be traced through the texts. Montaigne’s Essays in particular show an affinity for relativistic and humanistic ideals that are very much out of line with the teachings of the Catholic Church, most of which dictate the universal truth of God. As a Catholic in his time, Montaigne was subject to the corruption and deceit that shrouded the Church. Montaigne’s writings indeed show a break away from traditional, Catholic views into more reflective ones that seem to draw from reason and earthly happiness. Montaigne also witnessed the reformation movements of Martin Luther and John Calvin, including the split in the Catholic Church and its hasty, desperate actions attempting to rectify itself and hold on to as many followers as possible. The Christian West was thus consequently divided on Christianity and what it meant to lead a Christian life. For once, there was a difference in being Christian and being Catholic. Western literature reflected all of this. While some of Shakespeare’s works included certain religious, Christian allusions, “King Lear” failed to do so for the most part due to the subject being based on an old, pagan king of Britain, King Leir. Cervantes’ Don Quixote has certain characters that seem to exemplify the role religion played in everyday life. Sancho, Don Quixote’s squire, refers to himself as a Christian on multiple occasions, drawing several connotations that he uses to explicate his actions and beliefs. Nonetheless, he does not seem too invested in fully taking part in particular Christian practices or customs. Similarly, the role of the priest seems to be a self-righteous condemnation of the follies of knight errantry and the detrimental effects that secular literature can have on people, seeming to draw from themes present in Augustine’s Confessions. There isn’t an actual importance placed on religion itself, though, and the book seems to focus on maintaining a fictionalized history utilizing religion because it must, as a social construct present yet not totally influential in the lives of the congregation. Milton’s Paradise Lost, in contrast, deals with issues that are borne out of Christian Scripture – the fall of Lucifer and of mankind, with the Son of God playing a role in these events and promising to perform an ultimate sacrifice. Leaving off with the expulsion of Adam and Eve, Paradise Lost leaves off with the as of yet unfulfilled promise of Christ’s to die for the sake of humanity, as well as His resurrection and ascension into Heaven, the former of which marks the beginning of Christianity.

Subsequent novels in the LitHum syllabus express the same divide that existed within the Christian community; there is a difference in the significance of Christianity as well as in the prominence of the different forms/denominations that existed. Characters are not necessarily defined by their Christian religion, if they are so portrayed, but Christianity does seem to be defined in the texts by the characters that practice it. In Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Collins believes his status as clergyman to be asking that he exemplify the qualities of leading a truly Christian life. As a married member of the clergy, he shows one of the differences between the Anglican and Catholic churches, clergy members of the latter not being able to marry. With his position and his view on life, Mr. Collins is the most Christian character, and yet, he is also probably one of the most foolish. Austen’s satirization of society in her novel also seems to ring true for a debasement of religion. The main characters in the novel are assumed to partake in the national religion, of the Church of England, but the beliefs and doctrine of Christianity do not have much influence in their everyday decision-making process. Similarly, Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment employs the use of Christian characters, most notable of which is Sonya, yet these have more significance to the work as a whole, providing a contrast with the main character of Raskolnikov. There are specific religious references, like the reading of the story of Lazarus, and they help to prove a point on good, evil, and what lies in between. Woolf’s To the Lighthouse, is singular in its apparent disavowal of religion. This can be taken in many ways, of course, and there are many who have studied the use of religious discourse in relation to non-religious objects and issues present in the novel. Nonetheless, To the Lighthouse is not overtly or nonchalantly religious like many of the texts from the course syllabus. Instead, it uses certain literary techniques that allow it to question and explore particular subject matters, some of which had already been answered by religion, like death and loss and the meaning of life. Overall, as can be seen, the texts from this semester provide a lens to the rise and splintering of the Catholic Church, of Christianity itself. 

~Ligner

It struck me while I was preparing my last (yay!) essay for the class that the impact of Mr. Bennet’s absence from his family in Pride and Prejudiceseems to get hinted at pretty substantially before it becomes really apparent (when he lets Lydia disappear and then has to rely on Mr. Gardiner and Mr. Darcy to fix the problem).

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(These reflections are much easier to write than to upload—I ought to have kept the upload instructions somewhere other than buried under a stack of papers. Here come all three of mine, the first from way back before the midterm. My life is together.)

Reviewing for the midterm, I’ve decided that, since I wrote my second paper on King Lear, it makes sense to plan on relying on it for the essay component (or maybe for the passage analysis, but that takes less preparation), so I’m trying to connect it to the other works we’ve read.

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Both Woolf’s To The Lighthouse and Shakespeare’s King Lear show instances where a character can’t express their emotions. In King Lear, Cordelia can’t express her love for her father. Lear, of course takes it as a sign that she doesn’t love him since her other sisters can use imaginative, creative ways to describe their love for him. However, it was Cordelia who loved Lear the most. A similar scene was seen in To The Lighthouse. Mrs. Ramsay wasn’t able to tell her husband that she loved him either. According to Mrs. Ramsay, he understood that she loved him without her having to say it. This causes the reader to question Mrs. Ramsay’s assumption. The reader didn’t get to see Mr. Ramsay didn’t affirm her assumption in his thoughts. Lear and Mr. Ramsay share several characteristics. They both are very demanding, hold some kind of authority, and have children that hate him. Therefore, being similar people it wouldn’t be far off to say that Mrs. Ramsay may have been wrong and Mr. Ramsay did not at all understand that she meant to say she loved him as well.

            Mr. Ramsay and King Lear lost the ones who were unable to express their love to them. Lear banished Cordelia and Mrs. Ramsay died. It was through their absence that the inexpressible emotions became more apparent and they thought about their actions. Lear realized that Cordelia was the only daughter that loved him after the other two turn on him and she cares for him when he is sick. Mr. Ramsay finally allows the trip to the lighthouse after denying it in the beginning. I think that when Mr. Ramsay wants to go to the lighthouse, he realizes that Mrs. Ramsay did truly love him and he shouldn’t have been to matter-of-fact, unbending, and slightly rude at the beginning of the novel.

-Kristina Flemming

The first time I was exposed to the novel “Pride and Prejudice” was in high school and it was only through watching the 2005 film adaptation of it starring Keira Knightly and Matthew Macfadyen as Elizabeth and Darcy. When I watched the movie the character of Darcy truly appealed to me. Yes, he was an arrogant snob, but underneath the haughty exterior there was a broken soul in need of fixing. That and the fact that he was undoubtedly attractive put me on his side. I wanted him to win the girl. I wanted Elizabeth to fix him. I wanted him to be happy.

This was the opposite of how I felt reading the novel. Book Darcy did not draw on my sympathy and compassion in the way that movie Darcy managed to. I knew that he and Elizabeth would still end up together, but I did not feel the urgent need for Darcy to find love the way I felt in the movie. Book Darcy lacked appeal and I found myself unable to connect with his character on an emotional level.

I think a primary reason for this disparity between the Darcys is that Elizabeth’s inner judgment of Darcy comes through on a much grander level in the novel than it does in the movie. In the movie our only way into the thoughts of the characters is how they act, what they say, and how they interact with others—all external factors. In the book through the narrator’s use of free indirect discourse, we are allowed to view a full picture of each character’s thoughts and judgments.

Although you would think that connecting with a character on an inner level would strengthen the emotional bond you have with them, in my case the opposite happened. I found the film adaptations of the characters, specifically Macfadyen’s portrayal of Darcy, to be much more sympathetic and emotionally relatable than the constantly judging, ever critical, relatively cold characters in the novel. Movie Darcy is my prince charming; Book Darcy is just another haughty snoot.

-Lara Karaaslan 

While I was taking the now-infamous quote ID section of the final, I remember being struck by the quote from Crime and Punishment where Raskolnikov compares Sonya’s prostitution to his act of murder, saying,

“You’ll understand later…Haven’t you done the same thing? You, too, have stepped over…were able to step over. You laid hands on yourself, you destroyed a life…your own (it’s all the same)”

Here, we see an example of Raskolnikov dealing in absolutes, equating Sonya’s prostitution (a relatively minor crime) to his crime of murder. This, it seems, is a product of his extraordinary man hypothesis because he is justifying his murder in terms of Sonya’s lesser crime, not the other way around. For Raskolnikov, murder is acceptable so long as it is for the greater good.

This scene reminded me the confrontation between Anakin and Obi Wan in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. The video link is posted below (beware: bad acting), and shows Obi Wan, a wise Jedi warrior, reaching out to the young, troubled Anakin, who is being lured by the dark side of the force. Anakin, like Raskolnikov, speaks in absolutes, saying “If you’re not with me you’re against me,” and Obi Wan responds, “Only the Sith (the bad guys) deal in absolutes.” Here, we have a somewhat similar display of absolute reasoning, and it is notable that the delivery is from a character that is portrayed as foolish since logic like this rarely results in an accurate understanding of reality. Anakin eventually does join the dark side, although much later in the series (SPOILER ALERT) he regains his sense of reason and dies a hero, acting not out of evil, but out of love. Similarly, although Raskolnikov’s experiment fails since he is deeply emotionally affected by his crimes, he regains his sense of reason due to his love for Sonya.

Here is the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgpytjlW5wU

—Ben 

“Abandon hope all ye who enter here” - Gates of Hell” 

This is what Dante see inscribed on the gates of Hell as he passes through. It depicts and foreshadows that sinners who have fallen and now reside in Hell have lost their opportunity to hope for anything better.

-Tofunmi Oshodi

A character I really wish we expanded on in class is Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. He is cast in differing lights, making him such a dynamic character while multifaceted viewpoints. In the beginning of the novel, when we are first introduced to Mr. Darcy at the ball, Austen presents to us an arrogant man who refuses to dance with Elizabeth because she is “not handsome enough to tempt [him]; [and he is] in no humour at present to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men” (7-8). Through this quote, Austen clearly exposes Mr. Darcy’s pride to the readers, casting Mr. Darcy to be one of the most unfavorable characters in the beginning of the novel.,

Toward the ending of the book our dislike for Mr. Darcy’s character grows even more as we discover that he “did everything in my power to separate [Mr. Bingley] from [Jane]” (223). This is another instance of not only Mr.Darcy’s pride, but also his prejudice against the lower class—in this case, the Bennet’s—as he does not want his friend to be associated with such a family.

However, as we get closer to the end of the book, Mr. Darcy transforms from man full of arrogance to a man madly in love. Mr. Darcy loses his pride and trades it for Elizabeth’s affection. His love for Elizabeth allows him to overcome his pride. He humbles himself to win Elizabeth over. Despite her social class, she is the woman of Mr. Darcy’s heart—the ideal woman he describes earlier on in the book as he says, “A woman must have a thorough knowledge of music, singing, drawing, dancing, and the modern languages, to deserve the word: and besides all this, she must possess a certain something in her nit and manner of walking, the tone of her voice, her address and expressions, or the word will be but half-deserved” (33). It is only through overcoming his pride that Mr. Darcy is able to see Elizabeth beyond her social status and appreciate and realize she is his ideal woman he has wanted all along.

-Tofunmi Oshodi

I was immediately grabbed by Montaigne, and how he seemed to echo the sentiments  of many 20^th century structuralist Anthropologists, particularly the works of Claude Levi-Straus. Levi-Straus is famed for his research on ‘primitive’ societies, where one of his seminal works, Tristes Tropiques, also details the lifestyles and habits of some of the indigenous tribes in Brazil. His overarching argument echoes that of Montaigne; that these people are by no measure ‘primitive’ but rather share many of the characteristics of those we deem ‘civilized, these characteristics merely occur in different forms.  The Savage Mind, more academic in tone, expands upon this thread of thought, arguing that the traditions and conventions of what we deem ‘primitive’ society in fact share many of the same impetuses as behavior in industrial society, and what we may deem ‘savage’ is merely echoing the work of a bricoleur: one who uses the materials around him. It is interesting that Michel de Montaigne seems to have shared this sentiment some 400 years earlier: “I do not believe, from what I have been told about this people, that there is anything barbarous or savage about them, except that we call barbarous anything that is contrary to our own habits. Indeed we seem to have no other criterion of truth and reason than the type and kind of opinions and customs current in the land where we live.” Amid all the hubbub at Columbia about how Eurocentric our curriculum can be,  it is somewhat amusing and ironic to learn that one of the Dead White Male’s who we study echoes this sentiment.

Indeed, Montaigne is so ahead of his time, you can almost apply him to the discourse on human rights. With the simple above statement, Montaigne seems to align himself in the relativist camp as opposed to the Universalist camp. The charge posed by most relativists is that Human Rights in their current inception are ethnocentrically western both culturally and epistemologically. This is a sentiment it would appear Montaigne would agree upon. Although contemporary HR discourse seems to have moved past this, with relativism falling prey to the charge of essentialism, Montaigne’s sentiments seem to ring true. We must check our biases, and what we might be culturally determined to say, before formulating an opinion we feel we can stand by.

-Ian Trueger