Jean Rhys
JEAN RHYS WIDE SARGASSO SEA.
This essay will explore the post colonial text Wide Sargasso Sea. It will pay particular attention to the identity of the protagonist Antoinette Cosway, in Jean Rhys’ most popular book. It will explore the alienation and confused identity of Antoinette and whether this confusion was self inflicted or instigated by the actions of others. Wide Sargasso Sea is a text that is classed as, ‘re-visionary’ writing and this genre of literature will be explained by Peter Widdowson using paper entitled ‘Writing back’. This will be further enhanced by the use of the American lesbian feminist, poet and critic Adrienne Rich and her essay ‘When we Dead Awaken: Writing as Revision’. Throughout the exploration of Wide Sargasso Sea, historical context and information will be given to portray the reaction and analysis of the colonial situation, in light of Rhys’ opinions as a white Creole. The observational and critical analysis of cultural legacy by Rhys, leads to Wide Sargasso Sea fitting under the heading of post colonialism . Wide Sargasso Sea is a prequel to Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. It tells an alternative tale of the secret, first wife of Edward Rochester, Bertha Mason, alias Antoinette Cosway. Rhys’ novel is set on the Caribbean island of Dominica and addresses many issues that were current at the time of writing, as well as issues of society in the temporal placement of the book in 1839. Rhys constructs a thought provoking deconstruction of Jane Eyre and uses many of her own experiences as a white Creole woman, to portray the feelings of thoughts of the white Creole character Antoinette Cosway, through her narration. What is unusual about the novel is that Rochester, who remains nameless in the text also, has a narrative voice, which is heard and observed in the second trimester of the three part novel. By vocalising Rochester it immediately “controverts Mr. Rochester’s narrative to Jane in the original novel – both as to his character
This essay will explore the post colonial text Wide Sargasso Sea. It will pay particular attention to the identity of the protagonist Antoinette Cosway, in Jean Rhys’ most popular book. It will explore the alienation and confused identity of Antoinette and whether this confusion was self inflicted or instigated by the actions of others. Wide Sargasso Sea is a text that is classed as, ‘re-visionary’ writing and this genre of literature will be explained by Peter Widdowson using paper entitled ‘Writing back’. This will be further enhanced by the use of the American lesbian feminist, poet and critic Adrienne Rich and her essay ‘When we Dead Awaken: Writing as Revision’. Throughout the exploration of Wide Sargasso Sea, historical context and information will be given to portray the reaction and analysis of the colonial situation, in light of Rhys’ opinions as a white Creole. The observational and critical analysis of cultural legacy by Rhys, leads to Wide Sargasso Sea fitting under the heading of post colonialism . Wide Sargasso Sea is a prequel to Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. It tells an alternative tale of the secret, first wife of Edward Rochester, Bertha Mason, alias Antoinette Cosway. Rhys’ novel is set on the Caribbean island of Dominica and addresses many issues that were current at the time of writing, as well as issues of society in the temporal placement of the book in 1839. Rhys constructs a thought provoking deconstruction of Jane Eyre and uses many of her own experiences as a white Creole woman, to portray the feelings of thoughts of the white Creole character Antoinette Cosway, through her narration. What is unusual about the novel is that Rochester, who remains nameless in the text also, has a narrative voice, which is heard and observed in the second trimester of the three part novel. By vocalising Rochester it immediately “controverts Mr. Rochester’s narrative to Jane in the original novel – both as to his character
Bibliography: Brontë, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. London: Penguin, 1994. Bush-Caver, Helen and Mary T. Williams. www.everyculture.com/multi/bu-dr/creoleshtml. Accessed 26th April 2010 11.45am. Connor, Steven. The English Novel in History 1950 – 1995. London: Routledge, 1996. Guevara, Che. Colonialism is Doomed. Speech delivered before the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 11, 1964. Havana Ministry of External relations, Information Department. Official Cuban Government Translation. Transcribed for the Internet by the Workers’ Web ASC11 Pamphlet project (RCG), 1997. 2nd (HTML) Edition, 1998. Accessed on 26th April 2010. Rhys, Jean. Wide Sargasso Sea. London: Penguin, 2001. Rich, Adrienne. When we Dead Awaken: Writing as Re-vision. Http://www.nbu.bg/webs/amb/american/5/rich/writing.htm accessed 23/11/2009. Said, Edward. Orientalism. London: Penguin, 2003. Spivak, Gayatri Chakravorty. ‘Three Women’s Text and a Critique of Imperialism. Henry Louis Gates ed. ‘Race’ and Writing Difference. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1985. pp.262 – 78. Widdowson, Peter, ‘Writing Back’: Contemporary Revisionary Fiction. Textual Practice. London: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group, 2006.