Monday, September 17, 2012
A Look at the Way We View Perspective
The perspectives of the main characters in, “A Memory” and in “The White Heron.” Both perspectives give the reader the ability to understand how the main character view the world, and their lives.
The main character in “A Memory” tells the reader at the beginning of the story that, “…since taking painting lessons, I had made small frames with my fingers, to look out at everything.” This is exactly how she views the world. Through a narrow perspective with no understanding of the greater meanings of actions. This is clearly illustrated in her story, when she watches a family play at the beach, but seems to view things such as throwing sand as acts of hatred. The other main component of the main character’s perspective is overall pessimism towards the world. “But this small happening which had closed in upon my friend was a tremendous shock to me, it was unforeseen, but at the same time dreaded…” This sentence in particular resonated with me, and made me pity this girl whom fears all the world and all that could happen so deeply. How could this girl hope to become close with anyone, if she lives in continuous fear that everything could end terribly at any given moment?
In near complete contrast, Slyvia, the main character in, “The White Heron,” views the world she lives in with great wonderment, and understands that a broad perspective (figuratively and literally) is essential in life. Her feelings for her new home is true love at first sight. For after seeing her new home, she whispers that, this was a beautiful place to live.” Soon after she has become intimately aware of the areas surrounding her new home. Slyvia then shows that she has seen enough to be cautious when crossing paths with the unknown. When the hunter arrives, she see a man with a gun, and rightly acts careful around him, until he proves himself to be, “charming and delightful.” This change of opinion shows that she her perspective allows her to change opinions and views based off of new information. This change kind of change occurs again, when she decides to protect the hiding place of the white heron, rather than sacrifice it, as she planned, for reward money. For she feels it is beautiful and merits protection.
These two different views could not be further apart. While “A Memory” shows us the thought process of someone closed off to the world and new ideas, “The White Heron” lets us view the world through the eyes of a girl that loves nature, life, and tries to see the world as it is. It seems that hope (or lack thereof) is the key to these differences in perspective. The last lines of each story really illustrate this.
“A Memory”
“I Could even foresee the way he would stare back at me, speechless and innocent, a medium-sized boy with blond hair, his unconscious eyes looking beyond me and out the window, solitary and unprotected.”
“The White Heron”
Whatever treasures were lost to her, woodlands and summertime, remember! Bring your gifts and graces and tell your secrets to this lonely country child!”
The right perspective is essential to understanding anything, and Slyvia is trying to understand, while the main character in “A Memory” is simply trying to see the way the world has been mean to her.
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Erik, Great post! the thing I liked the most about it was what you did at the end when you compared the last paragraphs of each story. I think the girl in "A Mermory" was definetily hurting from the boy not taking interest in her and because of that I think that her perspective on life was a little darkened and skewed by that moment in her life. As if everything she saw to be good in life would not work out or would turn away from her, and that made her blind to all of the good things that there actually are in the world, such as playing with your family at the beach. When she was watching the family play at the beach it seemed to me like she was kind of hoping that all of the negative things she was saying about them would be true, so that they could feel how she felt and she wouldnt be alone. To me perspective is really about how one chooses to see things things inspite of what is going on around them.
ReplyDeleteYour last sentences really hits it on the head for me, and also brings up a big question I have with, "The White Heron." On page 70, the grandmother talks about how Sylvia's uncle fought her grandfather. Her grandmother doesn't seem upset about it in retrospect. Does this imply that Sylvia's grandfather was abusive and Dan (her uncle) was protecting people similar to how Sylvia protects the bird? and following you last sentence, what about her grandmother's perspective allows her to remember and talk about this so nonchalantly?
DeleteErik, I totally agree with you, especially the last part when you said "Sylvia is trying to understand, while the main character in "A Memory" is simply trying to see the way the world has been mean to her." The character in "A Memory" judge everything and everyone around her while Sylvia took everything for what they truely are. Their views were very different but both view came from their loneliness. Like you said, Sylvia's perspective on things allows her to change her opinion but then at the end she questioned her decison about protecting the bird; "Were the birds better friends than their hunter might have been,-who can tell?" (75) The character in "A Memory" was lonely because she looked at the world the wrong way but, to my understanding according to you, Syliva was looking at thing from the right perspective in order to understand but still ended up alone. Do you think she had the right perspective? Well I guess it comes to the point of making the right choices.
ReplyDeleteWhile the last sentences seem to say Sylvia is lonely, I don't think it is being used in the conventional way. I think the writer is saying that she is..... stand alone, or apart from everything else at times. Her morals allow her to do what is right, even if it is in opposition to the people that she likes. It is an interesting word to choose though. I can't think of anywhere else where the story implies she is emotionally lonely, can you? And the last sentence seems to portray hope to me. What kind of feeling to you get from the last sentence(s)? Also if it is supposed to be an uplifting message, was that terrible word choice?
DeleteThis is the first time I've ever thought seriously about the importance of perspective in these two stories. I think a lot could be said about the difference between the protagonists and how their respective ways of viewing the world affects them. As you've stated the narrator of "A Memory" literal forms a frame in which view the world, reflecting narrow-mindedness and sheltered background. The young girl from "The White Heron" overcomes a great obstacle in order to her world more clearly than would normally be possible and has an almost epiphany involving the white heron and herself. The two are polar opposites. "A Memory" girl is afraid letting others be happy when she herself isn't and "The White Heron" girl proves to be brave and willing to take great risks.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone have any other differences/similarities between them that I might've missed?
Erik, seriously, you did a great job. I never really looked at either story the way you described above. What really caught my attention was when you started stating that the girl in "A Memory," perspective is overall pessimism towards the world." Because I completely agree. I thought she was bitter because she was missing something in her life, but your point about her just being pessimistic make sense too.
ReplyDeleteThe line in your post where you say, "seems that hope (or lack thereof) is the key to these differences in perspective" it couldn't be more true. I never thought of it that way until I read this. And for some reason I feel like my mind is blown (strange, I know, but astonished none the less). In "A Memory," the main character is hopeless, pessimistic, dark and bitter. He/she doesn't see the happiness of the people in the beach, she sees it as some sort of violent act. And in complete contrast, as you stated, in "The White Heron" she sees the world and nature in the most innocent eyes. She saw the forest and embraced it completely. With that said, in response to Bianca's comment, I don't think Sylvia ended up alone. She had nature, hope and optimism (if that makes any sense). The character in "A Memory" seems to find something wrong in everything and everyone causing her to not allow herself to find any sort of compassion or positive feelings for anyone/thing. Does anybody else agree?
Chantal and Erik, I want to piggyback on you guys here. I like this discussion.
DeleteIt is interesting that you are pointing out that the difference in perspectives between the two stories is that one is hopeful and the other hopeless. I wonder if either of you (or anyone else) could speak to this a little more.
What is it exactly that Sylvy has hope for? What is her hope?
Likewise, what do you think it is that is keeping the narrator in "A Memory" from having that same kind of hope or optimism? Erik points out the finger-frames that Welty's protagonist sees through—if you already have a decided angle on the way you see the world, is there room for something like hope? Doesn't hope introduce the idea that there is something unknown or unseen? (Or is hope a confidence that you do know what is to come or to see?)
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DeleteI think it is clearly laid out that the girl within the story "A Memory" views her surroundings as being hopeless because of things that have happened to her. So maybe she has lost her child-like innocence that would make everything seem more appealing to her, compared to Sylvia who in the beginning of the story describes playing hide and seek with the cow as something out of a fairy tale. As "White Heron" tends to be more of a coming of age story about Sylvia, it shows that Sylvia still has much of that innocence that has since left the girl in "A Memory". The fact that the girl in "A Memory" looks at everything through the frame created by her fingers goes to show that she is trying to control what she is seeing into a pessimistic/negative view. As Sylvia goes about doing certain things the author uses language that would transcend a playful/hopeful image to the reader. These are some of the things that I was able to pick up on as I was reading the stories. One thing I noticed also was that the girl in "A Memory" makes it seem that she has been almost robbed of something, which could be said for Sylvia feeling something could become of her and the hunter, although nothing does. I would love to see what others would have to say about this, and what might be some other ways that exude the hopeless or hope of either girl?
DeleteI think Sylvy's hope may be freedom, but not the way that we usually see it as. Because she didn't understand why the man killed the animals if he considered them to be beautiful. In my opinion that is why she didn't take him or show him where the heron's nest was. Like Dustin said she is still innocent in that way. She has hope that an animal can be free and not get hurt.
DeleteI feel that the girl in "A Memory" is self-coconscious about herself and feels more comfortable by shrinking the world around her. It could be a pessimistic view that she is going for, but I just think that she is misunderstood by her family and so takes an approach of separating herself from them. I agree with you Dustin about how Sylvia still seems to have her innocence about her, and that the girl form "A Memory" doses not. Sylvia is content with the old things that she is used to and accepts them for what they are. She even accepts the new things after some time of getting to know them. In "White Heron" the Heron is reason for Sylvia's change in attitude toward the hunter and his purpose. The feeling that she gets when she "saves" the Heron exemplifies her attitude and her view of the world in a good way.
ReplyDelete