Concealment in Chesnutt’s The House Behind the Cedars
Who has something to hide?
Everyone in The House behind the Cedars has something to hide. With the possible exception of a few minor characters and children (innocents/ innocence), most characters have something to conceal. Taking this into account, this is more than likely Chesnutt’s acknowledgement of human nature before he gets into the varying motives. Is concealment ultimately worthwhile? Who is hurt and who is helped – or is there any difference?
Molly, John, Rena (The Absent/ Dead Father)
This family is where much of the major concealment starts. Ironically, the family is the same place where secrets are revealed. They start as a secret themselves - hidden away, behind a row of cedars, and inside the house on Front Street. The long dead, white lover of Mis’ Molly, concealed this family from his world, just as he kept his name from his illegitimate children – denying something to each. As a result, Mis’ Molly made many sacrifices. The first sacrifice she made was herself to her lover, which in return brought some security for herself and her family. We are told by the narrator, “she worshipped the ground upon which her lord walked, was humbly grateful for his protection, and quite as faithful as the forbidden marriage vow could possibly have made her” (105). This passage does not seem to indicate a sacrifice on her part, but ultimately it was also done for her immediate family. When her immediate family began to include children, Mis’ Molly had to face that her children were not legitimate, had no family name, and were thrust into a world that would not easily accept them. As this escalates over time, she sacrifices her happiness for the happiness of her child...
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...tood hierarchy among classes, racial and economic, that while not publicly acknowledged, is indeed common knowledge. The novel discusses this in regards to Mis’ Molly, her neighbors – darker and poorer.
Word Cited
Go here for websites with further Charles W. Chesnutt Information
http://docsouth.unc.edu/chesnuttcolonel/about.html Biography
http://www.virginia.edu/history/courses/courses.old/hius323/chesnutt.html Biography
http://www.berea.edu/faculty/browners/chesnutt/biography/biography.html Biography
http://www.berea.edu/faculty/browners/chesnutt/biography/familytree.html Family Tree
http://www.berea.edu/faculty/browners/chesnutt/classroom/class.html Chesnutt in the Classroom
http://authorsdirectory.com/biography_online_book_portrait_picture/c_authors_charles_w_chesnutt.shtml Biography, Lesson Plans, Online Text, Portrait and Pictures, etc.
Class politics are introduced to the story when the Phonies arrive in Stella Street. The Phonies are disliked as soon as they arrive in Stella Street because of the renovations they make on Old Aunt Lillie’s house and the children of Stella Street make fun of the fact that the Phonies refurnish the house (p.13). Henni encourages the reader to make fun of the high class Phonies about the way they speak, because the Phonies use words such as ‘dinnah’ and ‘daaaarling’ (p.18). This shows the Phonies in a negative way enticing the audience to take Henni’s side or a middle class approach to the story. When the Phonies send a note from their lawyer to Frank’s family for a proposal of a new fence (p.22) they are once again looked at poorly.
But I think this book is more for those people who aren’t that aware of social class, or for the ones who feel that we live in a society that is classless, rather than the actual people who have realized the consequences that class really has on someone’s life. Many people can relate to what stories are told in the book; if not, they know of a person that can relate to these stories. As a person that grew up in the lower class, I can definitely relate to most of the stories told in this book. From experience, there is a big difference in this country between the rich, middle class, and the poorest that we see daily. Even those in the so-called working class have to make continuous sacrifices and live very differently from those positioned firmly in the middle class.
At certain times it might feel right for some people to help the people that they love by lying. Elizabeth, Proctor's wife, does not tell the truth about her husband's affair in front of the society to protect her husband. She describes her husband as a “good and righteous man” in the court (Miller 113). However, that is not the truth. When a person loves someone, he or she would do anything to help that person. Some people choose the right way, while the others choose the wrong path. Elizabeth decides to lie for the first time just to save Proctor from the problems that he might face if the truth is revealed. Similarly, a teenage girl lies about her friend’s abortion to protect her. De Paulo says, “People tell these serious lies to protect something when the truth could threaten something that they really value” (Kelleher 1). In this case, the girl took the same step to save her friend. People do not want to see their loved ones suffer. As a result, they hide the truth to protect that person from danger. To protect others, they forget the bad outcomes and the trouble they might have to face for telling lies. Not only do people lie for others, but they lie for their own
Authors have used the element of secrecy to produce a desired effect in their novel throughout history. Vital pieces of information are often withheld from other characters for various reasons. Secrecy is necessary in some cases. Information may be withheld to protect the one sharing the information, to protect others, or a person might not be in the right position to share such information to other trustworthy people. Some secrets are meant to be kept until death and others are to be withheld until the moment is right to share among others. In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice the main character, Elizabeth, has to decide which secrets she has to hide forever and which ones to share with others.
This novel was set in the early 1900’s. During this time, the black people were oppressed by white people. They were abused and taken advantage of. Not only were the black people were oppressed but also women were oppressed. They had little freedom and were unable to be self-sufficient.
This leaves it up to us to figure it out for ourselves. The next example of how race influences our characters is very telling. When Twyla’s mother and Roberta’s mother meet, we see not only race influencing the characters but, how the parents can pass it down to the next generation. This takes place when the mothers come to the orphanage for chapel and Twyla describes to the reader Roberta’s mother being “bigger than any man and on her chest was the biggest cross I’d ever seen” (205).
The author distinguishes white people as privileged and respectful compare to mulattos and blacks. In the racial society, white people have the right to get any high-class position in job or live any places. In the story, all white characters are noble such as Judge Straight lawyer, Doctor Green, business-man George, and former slaveholder Mrs. Tryon. Moreover, the author also states the racial distinction of whites on mulattos. For example, when Dr. Green talks to Tryon, “‘The niggers,’…, ‘are getting mighty trifling since they’ve been freed. Before the war, that boy would have been around there and back before you could say Jack Robinson; now, the lazy rascal takes his time just like a white man.’ ” (73) Additionally, in the old society, most white people often disdained and looked down on mulattos. Even though there were some whites respected colored people friendly, there were no way for colored people to stand parallel with whites’ high class positions. The story has demonstrations that Judge Straight accepted John as his assistant, Mrs. Tryon honor interviewed Rena, and George finally changed and decided to marry Rena; however, the discrimination is inevitable. For example, when Mrs. Tryon heard Rena was colored, she was disappointed. “The lady, who had been studying her as closely as good manners would permit, sighed regretfully.” (161) There, Mrs. Tryon might have a good plan for Rena, but the racial society would not accept; since Rena was a mulatto, Mrs. Tryon could not do anything to help Rena in white social life. The racial circumstance does not only apply on mulattos, but it also expresses the suffering of black people.
A famous poet by the name of Horace once said, “Life is largely a matter of expectations.” Whether these expectations are produced within or those expressed by others, we go on living the standards of how we are supposed to; no more, no less. In the novel written by S.E. Hinton, “The Outsiders”, groups are often put in roles with specific limitations, some of which they put on themselves, while others were expectations from external sources. Moreover, in this novel conjectures played a major role in day to day situations displayed in the text. Both the Socs and the Greasers had roles with reputations to maintain; whether or not it was a good or bad reputation, they still felt the need to live up to the notions placed on them, both as individuals and as a group.
“Lula stopped, but she said, ‘ You ain’t got no business bringin’ white chillum here---they got their church, we got our’n it is our church, ain’t it, Miss Cal?’” (Lee 158). This question from Lula directed at Cal shows the large difference in way of life between the upper and lower class. She shows that the upper and lower class do not interact with each other and do not quite get along. In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, equal creation is not often seen in social classes with the large gap between upper and lower class, but this division between the classes can be crossed. The upper and lower classes have a hard time understanding one another with their large differences in way of life, but the position of upper and lower class is not permanent to a person.
For instance Mayella lacks power because of her class in that she is poor, her dad is a drunk and he can barely make a living. “Maycomb’s Ewells lived behind the town garbage dump in what was once a Negro cabin… Its windows were merely open spaces in the walls…
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