The Raging Quiet by Sherryl Jordan

1300 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Racism in literature

The novel, The Raging Quiet, written by Sherryl Jordan, portrays the ignorance, suspicion, and prejudice that people feels towards other individuals who have done nothing wrong except for committing an unforgivable crime of being different than the rest of the society. Upon arriving in Torcurra, the protagonist, Marnie, finds herself an outsider in this remote seaside village. Alone in this place filled with unwelcoming villagers, Marnie befriends with two other people, a local priest and a madman named Raven. Like Marnie, Raven is also shunned from this village. When people see the growing relationship between him and Marnie, false accusations are immediately made about them, which add even more pain and suffering to their loneliness in this society. This story deals with the victimization of those who are different from others due to the superstitious beliefs of the villagers and their fear for the new and unknown.

After her forced marriage with Isake Isherwood, Marnie and her husband arrive in Torcurra as foreigners, and she soon becomes a social outcast. Rumors and mutters fall upon this couple when the villagers learn that they occupy the old and isolated cottage used to be the home of the witch who was burned during a witch trial. When Marnie goes to the village market on her second day in Torccura, "[the market] was crowded and noisy, but the voices dropped as [Marnie] approached. She felt curious stares, and heard whispered comments. It took all her will not to run" (47). Marnie also heard someone murmured "They must be sore in need of a solitary life, to occupy that house" (47). The residents, filled with superstitions, could not accept the fact that Marnie and Isake live in a house that is evil and cursed and once occupied by a witch. Already unhappy with her marriage, she felt even more dreary and depressed with the hostile attitude of the villagers. The village priest, Father Brannan, who is the only welcoming person, remarks to Marnie that "Most of [the villagers] have lived in this place for generations, and they know one another's fathers and their fathers before them. They feel threatened by newcomers, especially people they know nothing about" (49). The villagers act toward the newcomers with ignorance and suspicion because they know nothing about Marnie and her husband. Then, unfortunately, just two days after her marriage, Marnie comes home and finds her husband dead from falling off the roof.

Show More
Related

  • Under A Cruel Star By Heda Margolious Kovaly

    1367 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Under a Cruel Star, Heda Margolious Kovaly details the attractiveness and terror of Communism brought to Czechoslovakia following WWII. Kovaly’s accounts of how communism impacted Czechoslovakia are fascinating because they are accounts of a woman who was skeptical, but also seemed hopeful for communism’s success. Kovaly was not entirely pro-communism, nor was she entirely anti-communism during the Party’s takeover. By telling her accounts of being trapped in the Lodz Ghetto and the torture she faced in Auschwitz, Kovaly displays her terror experienced with a fascist regime and her need for change. Kovaly said that the people of Czechoslovakia welcomed communism because it provided them with the chance to make up for the passivity they had let occur during the German occupation. Communism’s appeal to

    Read More

  • The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann

    713 Words  | 2 Pages

    Alexander Stowe is a twin, his brother is Aaron Stowe. Alex is an Unwanted, Aaron is a Wanted, and their parents are Necessaries. Alex is creative in a world where you can’t even see the entire sky, and military is the dream job for everyone and anyone. He should have been eliminated, just like all the unwanteds should have been. He instead comes upon Artimè, where he trains as a magical warrior- after a while. When he was still in basic training, and his friends were not, he got upset, he wants to be the leader, the one everyone looks up to.

    Read More

  • Ethan Frome Essay

    700 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Winter lies too long in country towns; hangs on until it is stale and shabby, old and sullen” (“Brainy Quotes” 1). In Edith Wharton’s framed novel, Ethan Frome, the main protagonist encounters “lost opportunity, failed romance, and disappointed dreams” with a regretful ending (Lilburn 1). Ethan Frome lives in the isolated fictional town of Starkfield, Massachusetts with his irritable spouse, Zenobia Frome. Ever since marriage, Zenobia, also referred to as Zeena, revolves around her illness. Furthermore, she is prone to silence, rage, and querulously shouting.

    Read More

  • Mission Of Mercy By Esther Lipnick

    666 Words  | 2 Pages

    The drama, Mission of Mercy, by Esther Lipnick is a very inspiring read. It tells about a girl who doesn’t want to be like her proper, fancy family at all. Instead she wants to become a nurse. She leaves her home and becomes a nurse. It inspires me because both of my parents, and other family members of mine, are teachers, although I’m not going to be one. Mission of Mercy is a drama that could inspire many people to go for what they want, even if other people don’t always approve of it. Florence changes throughout all of the the scenes 1, 2, and 3.

    Read More

  • Disciplined Hearts by Theresa O'Nell

    1268 Words  | 3 Pages

    I enjoyed reading Disciplined Hearts by Theresa O'Nell because i find that many people today do not know a lot about the Native American culture and what they have been through. Their cultures history is not talked about as much the African American or Hispanic's are. Most Americans know about the hardships that the African American and Hispanics had to overcome to assimilate to the level that they are today. I think O'Nell is trying to talk about the history of the Native American culture because, she believes that the reason that their culture is not well-known because of the fact that they have chosen to keep living like their ancestors and not assimilate to the American culture.

    Read More

  • Characterization In The Lottle By Eugenia Collier

    681 Words  | 2 Pages

    Living in Maryland, the narrator and her little brother Joey lived a very simple life. There mother had job that required many hours, and her father was unemployed and still in the process of trying to find a job. They lived in a very run down house in a very small poor community. One summer day, the narrator , Joey, and a group of kids from the community were bored and wanted to do something different. So,the narrator and the kids went down to one of the elders home, Miss Lottie. Miss Lottie was the old woman that everyone made stories about and for the kids they knew her as the witch. In the summer time Miss Lottie would always be in her front yard planting marigolds, which were an easy target to destroy. The kids all took part in throwing rock at Miss Lottie's marigolds, and the narrator was the coordinator. After they sprinted back to the oak tree, the narrator started to feel guilt for what she

    Read More

  • Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

    1230 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the year 1625, Francis Bacon, a famous essayist and poet wrote about the influences of fear on everyday life. He stated, “Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark; and as that natural fear in children is increased with tales, so is the other” (Essays Dedication of Death). Clearly, external surroundings affect perceptions of fear as well as human nature in general. Although C.S. Lewis published the novel, Out of the Silent Planet, over three centuries after Bacon wrote his theory on fear, Lewis similarly portrayed external surrounding to manipulate perceptions of fear. From the first chapter of the novel, Lewis revealed fear to be a weakness that leads to ignorance. It was this ignorance that apparently fueled the cycle of corruption and immorality on “The Silent Planet.” Using the character Ransom to reveal the effect of memory and morality on fear, C.S. Lewis demonstrates that fear is a quality of the “bent” race (humans), and only by eliminating fear in our lives can the human race become hnau.

    Read More

  • Let Them Talk By Wayne E. Wright

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Let Them Talk!” written by Wayne E. Wright is an article that focuses on the idea of promoting English Language Learners (ELL) oral-language skills in the classroom instruction time to improve their literacy and academic achievement. Too often are an ELL’s speaking and listening skills overlooked and not given enough attention to, even though it is one of the most important parts of communication. Wright encourages teachers working with ELL students to allow time for the student to adjust, not to pressure them into their language development, respect their various stages, bring them into whole class and small group discussions, correct simple language errors in speaking that impeded comprehension, and have them interact and communicate in the classroom for meaningful purposes.

    Read More

  • Pride by Dahlia Ravikovitch

    1730 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the poem pride, Dahlia Ravikovitch uses many poetic devices. She uses an analogy for the poem as a whole, and a few metaphors inside it, such as, “the rock has an open wound.” Ravikovitch also uses personification multiple times, for example: “Years pass over them as they wait.” and, “the seaweed whips around, the sea bursts forth and rolls back--” Ravikovitch also uses inclusive language such as when she says: “I’m telling you,” and “I told you.” She uses these phrases to make the reader feel apart of the poem, and to draw the reader in. She also uses repetition, for example, repetition of the word years.

    Read More

  • Lamb to the Slaughter by Roal Dahl

    545 Words  | 2 Pages

    Having to take your anger out on someone isn’t fair or good, especially if you’re being killed with frozen lamb. Based on everyone’s understanding, when you kill someone you’ll have to pay the price and consequences. Apparently this lady didn’t. But are we sure she’s going to marry another man and kill him too? In “Lamb to the slaughter”, I’m going to be talking about Mary Maloney and how madly crazy she is.

    Read More

  • A Separate Peace, by John Knowles

    1215 Words  | 3 Pages

    The quote, “Ignorance is bliss,” by Thomas Gray is a seemingly adequate description of the lives of Gene, Finny, and Leper until they are all roughly jolted out of their fantasy world and brought back to reality. In A Separate Peace, John Knowles does an acceptable job of showing how disillusionment can greatly impact and, thus, change the lives of people. The book showcases the cycle of disillusionment and the ramifications it implies. Throughout the book, we see Gene, Leper, and Finny’s views on the world change. This all culminates in Gene being elevated to a higher level of understanding of the world and seeing the truth about Devon and the war. The illusions created by Finny and Leper are also taken on by Gene, and he, in turn, shares in their disillusionment. Overall, disillusionment is a part of life and often serves as a tool to help many people grow and learn from the past.

    Read More

  • All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    “All Quiet on the Western Front” is a novel written by Erich Maria Remarque.  It is a war novel that tells the story of a young man and his experiences in combat during World War I.  The title of the novel roots from a phrase used to describe the silence between shellings and infantry attacks during the battles fought on the western front ( Text, 895 ).  Although World War I was a very real event, the testaments of the main character in “All Quiet on the Western Front” is purely fictional, but they are based on the accounts of veterans of the war.

    Read More

  • Choices, Actions And Characters In Rene Denfeld's The Enchanted

    2052 Words  | 5 Pages

    Our world, and lives, are full of trials and tribulations. Its our choices, actions, or lack thereof when facing these difficulties that influence the direction of our lives. Rene Denfeld explores this wonderfully in her novel The Enchanted. Her characters all face trials, of varying degrees of intensity, that not only shape them but also the direction of their lives. She delves into this process thoroughly through her character of the white-haired boy. He transforms from an optimistic boy, to a hollow victim of abuse and a corrupt penal system, and finally into a man who did what was necessary to survive.

    Read More

  • Alone Together by Sherry Turkle

    809 Words  | 2 Pages

    The novel, Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Each Other (2011) written by Sherry Turkle, presents many controversial views, and demonstrating numerous examples of how technology is replacing complex pieces and relationships in our life. The book is slightly divided into two parts with the first focused on social robots and their relationships with people. The second half is much different, focusing on the online world and it’s presence in society. Overall, Turkle makes many personally agreeable and disagreeable points in the book that bring it together as a whole.

    Read More

  • The Other Side of Silence, by Urvashi Butalia

    1383 Words  | 3 Pages

    Urvashi Butalia in her book, The Other Side of Silence, attempts to analyze the partition in Indian society, through an oral history of Indian experiences. The collection of traumatic events from those people who lived through the partition gives insight on how history has enveloped these silences decades later. Furthermore, the movie 1947 Earth reveals the bitterness of partition and its effect of violence on certain characters. The most intriguing character which elucidates the silence of the partition is the child, Lenny. Lenny in particular the narrator of the story, serves as a medium to the intangibility created by the partition. The intangibility being love and violence, how can people who grew up together to love each other hate one another amidst religion? This question is best depicted through the innocence of a child, Lenny. Through her interactions with her friends, the doll, and the Lahore Park, we see silence elucidated as comfort of not knowing, or the pain from the separation of comfort and silence from an unspoken truth.

    Read More

More about The Raging Quiet by Sherryl Jordan

Open Document