As I continue to read on, I find it rather funny that Brenda has somehow admitted to her husband that she has been having an affair with a younger man and all he's upset about is how she wants to buy a flat in London.
"Me? Oh I've been behaving rather badly to tell you the truth."
"Buying things?"
"Worse. I've been carrying on madly with young men and I've spent heaps of moey and I've enjoyed it very much indeed. But there's one awful thing."
"What's that?"
...."Tony, I've found a flat."
"Well you better lose it again quick." [71]
It was an interesting moment for me that I found kind of funny. I noticed that Waugh doesn't put a lot of details about the emotions going on in the story and leaves it to the readers to imagine whatever emotions they see fit.
Another thing that goes back to a topic of my previous posts was how Brenda says she doesn't want Beaver but everyone including her actions say otherwise. Brenda says Beaver is "second rate and a snob an, I should think, as cold as a fish, but I happen to have a fancy for him, that's all...besides I'm not sure he's altogether awful...he's got that odious mother whom he adores... and he's always been very poor. I don't think he's had a fair deal. I heard all about it last night...he's got to be taught a whole lot of things. That's part of his attraction."[66] Then the entire scene plays out when Polly calls and they all start gossiping about the matter.
The quote I had just provided reminds me of the passage we read about Dorthea. How her idea of marriage was a fatherly figure who could teach her Hebrew if she wanted it. In this, Brenda thinks Beaver is attractive because he doesn't know as much as she does. It also draws on my idea in the previous post that Brenda wants to be shown as a dominant character that controls everything- and she has found that she can control Beaver.
2 comments:
Hello =] You're book sounds really interesting. I was wondering though, is the book satirical because of the irrationality of the characters in the way in which they present *or don't present* their emotions? You've stated that the author lets the reader wonder how the characters are feeling but are hinted at this because of their actions. What do you think the author is trying to say in doing this? Do you think there is a purpose yet or is it too soon to tell? Sorry, I ask a lot of questions. Just trying to help. Keep up the good work!!
No problem Dina. Satire by definition is "the use of irony and ridicule". So far in the book, Waugh is ridiculing the upper class society of England. He is ridiculing the manipulative nature of human beings in the character of Brenda. And in a way, Waugh is satirical because of the irrationality of the characters. They don't show how they feel but their actions and the surrounding characters reveal their emotions instead.
I think Waugh is probably doing this to show us what he thinks rather than telling us. Mrs. Clapp used to always say that a good writer shows what they mean rather than tell us what they mean.
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