Antoinette's Madness

Towards the end of Wide Sargasso Sea, Antoinette 'goes mad'--but, what exactly is the operational definition of madness that we are using? In class discussions, we were saying that madness is determined by how your society sees you. But, the problem with this definition is the fact that towards the end of the novel, Antoinette goes to England, where she is no longer being viewed by her society. The only people in England who have any contact with her, besides Rochester, have no idea what the world that she comes from is like, so it makes sense that they would see her as being mad.

When Rochester first comes to where Antoinette lives, he is seen as an outsider and people don't really know how to understand him. This is similar to how Rochester, and everyone else in England, don't understand Antoinette. But, a difference arises because Rochester isn't considered to be 'mad'; this seems to be because everyone already knew that Antoinette's mother was mad, and it was a ready-made excuse for Rochester to use to explain his wife's behavior.

I think that the solitary confinement that Antoinette faces in part three of the novel definitely drives her mad. But, I think that her madness is very different from what Rochester thinks that it is. Rochester locks her up because he thinks that she is totally incapable of making rational decisions and functioning in society, but she isn't ever really given the chance to be a part of England's society. And, I think that she is able to make rational decisions--when she attacks Mr. Mason, this may seem like a totally irrational thing to do, but not when you think about her reasons for attacking him.

Antoinette's suicide is another example of how she is still able to make rational choices. While suicide may seem like an irrational thing to do, one has to look at what her options are; she can remain confined in an attic for the rest of her life, or she could not. I think that staying in the attic would have been better proof that she was mad than any of the reasons that Rochester used to justify keeping her there. When Antoinette chooses to jump out of the window, she is freeing herself from the life of a madwoman that she had been forced into. However, by jumping she cements the idea that she is crazy in the minds of readers (and, as seen in Jane Eyre, the other characters in the story). I'm a little hesitant to say that she's in a Catch-22, but she definitely is stuck in a situation where she can't win. She is forced to choose between life and freedom, and by jumping out of the window, she chooses freedom--from both her husband and the identity of a madwoman that he has forced on her.

Rochester

The beginning of part two was a little confusing at first, but I quickly figured out that the narrator had switched from Antionette to her new husband. I couldn't understand exactly why or how they got married. Rochester didn't seem too enthusiastic about being married to Antionette. He keeps referring to how she isn't really an English woman, and he has clear doubts about the marriage. Antionette also has her own doubts about Rochester, for a period of time, she refuses to marry him, until he goes to her and talks her back into the marriage.

As Rochester gets further into Antionette's world, he finds himself more and more uncomfortable. Antionette tries to introduce Rochester to Christophine, but he tells her that he doesn't like her because of her language and rough nature. Rochester doesn't actually feel comfortable until he is led to Mr. Mason's old room and is left alone to write a letter to his father. He doesn't like the fact that the privileges that he is so used to having in England are diminishing and being replaced by dislike and distrust from the people that he is encountering.

Antionette and Tia

Growing up, Antionette's identity is a constant source of confusion. She is torn between who she is because of her family, and who she is because of where she is growing up. For most of her childhood, she is able to live in both of her worlds, but as she gets older, it becomes more and more difficult for her to ignore the racial conflicts in her area. Antionette doesn't want to have to choose an identity, but she is constantly being pushed or pulled in one way or another.

When Antionette's house is burned down, she loses the part of her identity that has to do with her family; then as they are fleeing, she tries to reach out to Tia and her family, but is rejected. Instantly, Antionette has gone from being pulled towards different identities, to being pushed away from the places and people she loves. After Tia throws the rock at Antionette, Antionette says that looking at her was like looking through a looking glass. Tia had previously been the tough one who never cried, but when Antionette looks at her with her face covered in blood, Tia is the one crying.

Initial Impressions of Wide Sargasso Sea

When I first started reading Wide Sargasso Sea, I had a lot of trouble following what was going one. Coming to it from The Stranger, which was written in a very simple and fairly straightforward way, the writing style of Wide Sargasso Sea was really hard to follow. To me, it seemed like it was composed of a series of vignettes, each of the short sections didn't seem to be as connected as many other novels that I've read, but they were still coming together to form a story. As I got further along, I became more and more accustomed to Rhys' way of writing. Also helping me was the fact that as Antoinette grew older, her narration became easier to follow and the ideas were more complete and thoroughly explained.

I read Jane Eyre for an English class last year, and I think that that definitely shaped my attitude going into Wide Sargasso Sea. Knowing how the story ends made me want to keep a certain distance from Antoinette. In Jane Eyre, the character that Antoinette becomes isn't a character that is easy to relate to, and since its narrated by Jane Eyre, she isn't a particularly likable character either. However, I almost immediately began to feel sympathetic towards Antoinette. I really like the idea that Rhys had to take a character who isn't really understood and tell their story, after reading only the first section, there are already things that I previously didn't understand, but now see explanations for.