Zoe Storch
AP Multicultural Literature
Wilson
6 April, 2014
In
nearly every great work of literature, there is a common struggle that often
weaves itself through the storyline and into the hero’s journey. This famous thread is not just a battle waged
by the protagonist but a universal truth that parallels our own human nature. It
deals with the power struggle that arises between wisdom and knowledge, culture
and experience. When faced with
completing a journey towards self-actualization, all great literary characters
find that it’s their past that shapes their future. The corruption of society
and its skewed values often sidetrack characters and cause them to feel as
though they are prisoners in their own bodies, separated from their true souls.
Hamlet or Gogol, Prince of Denmark or angst-y young adult, ancient wisdom and
“inner” self always wins out in the fight for self-knowledge. Traits that
significantly shape human identity, such as culture or age, are out of the
protagonist’s control, but when tapped into, control their growth.
Described by Hamlet as a “mortal
coil”, there is a separation that exists in literature between a hero’s outer
body and inner soul. Born with set
cultural beliefs and values, characters begin realizing that the relationships
they enter into shape them in a way far different from how their soul already
exists. Janie, of Their Eyes were
Watching God, is in her second marriage when she realizes that, “she had an
inside and an outside now and suddenly she knew how not to mix them.” (Hurston
72) As a girl, Janie is raised by her grandmother, in a life that deeply roots
her in a set of values. Molded by
different men throughout her journey, (like the symbol of a pear tree and its
pollination by bees), Janie has to decide which bees she will accept in shaping
her and which she will deny, in order to preserve her beliefs. Similarly, Lisa
Parker poem, Snapping Beans, deals
with the separate spheres of home and school and their relation to the spheres
of “outer” and “inner” self. The
young girl’s repetition
of “I wanted to tell her…” and her feelings of “…how I was tearing, splitting
myself apart…” make clear the inner battle between the two settings and their
contrasting values (Parker 20). Just like Janie, Snapping Bean’s protagonist is in a similar stage of her journey
towards self-actualization, where she has made the realization that two worlds
cannot always exist as one; there is give and take needed to maintain cultural
identity, because in the end, “inner” values are more vital to success. Mahmoud Darwish’s Identity Card explores a more obvious cultural situation. In a world where society isn’t just shaping
him but destroying his culture, the main character differs from Janie, because
he already knows that inner values are of higher importance than bending to fit
societal views. “I have a name without a
title,” he states, proudly (Darwish 19). In this case, he is aware that family
names come over superficial titles; a value that has already furthered him in
the race to the top of Maslow’s model.
The separation that occurs between a
character’s cultural values and outer self stems from their past. In every case of great literature, no matter
what culture, the protagonist’s past lays a blueprint for their future.
Although they go through a journey, filled with experiences and obstacles that
mold them, their pasts and cultural identities have already determined a set
outcome. Take the relationship between
Janie and her grandmother. The repeated
theme of the novel deals with constraint, submission. We see it mostly in Janie’s trials and
tribulations, but the truth is, her grandmother’s life had pre-carved
Janie’s. Explaining to her granddaughter
her own youth she recalls, “ah was born back due in slavery so it wasn’t for me
to fulfill my dreams of what a woman oughta be and do.” (Hurston 16). If it
hadn’t been for her grandmother’s own desires and dreams, Janie would have
never been forced into early marriage with a man she didn’t love. Living her
life through her granddaughter, (although in good intention), Janie’s
grandmother unknowingly forces her past to control the future of another
individual. Hamlet perhaps most
eloquently states this fact of literature in his declaration, “As, in their
birth-wherein they are not guilty, since nature cannot choose his origin.” (Act
I, scene iv, 24). If the prince of Denmark could have relayed this fact to
Janie, better yet, if he would have listened to himself, maybe the journeys of
these characters would have taken a different turn. The Namesake’s
Gogol also lives this universal truth of literature. For at the very moment
he’s born his mother whispers, “Hello Gogol” and she, “approves, aware that the
name stands not only for her son’s life but her husband’s.” (Lahiri 28). If
these characters are able to realize what is shaping them and how, their quest
for self-knowledge shortens greatly. It’s true for nearly every hero and hero’s
journey. The past isn’t just where an
individual comes from; it’s where they are bound to be going.
In most realistic situations, age is
thought to stand for a weakening of power, a loss of the strife that comes with
youth. In literary situations however,
age is symbolic of the “yoda affect”, an acquirement of ancient wisdom and a
closer position to achieving self-actualization. Contrasting the beginning and end of Janie’s
journey, as well as the symbol of the road, we see the clear difference that
age makes in understanding the factors that shape us. Initially, Janie
remembers that, “it was time for sitting on porches beside the road” (Hurston
1). After having grown and matured, she recalls, “combing road dust out of her
hair.” (Hurston 192). Instead of sitting beside
life, she begins to live it. And, in living it, finds who she is with the
help of her past. Snapping Beans protagonist describes how her grandmother “reached
the leather of her hand over the bowl and cupped my quivering chin.” (Parker
26). In this old versus youthful
situation, Parker clearly demonstrates the contrast between ancient wisdom and
naïve youth. She suggests that with age
comes a different form of strength, one that arises from an understanding of
who you are. Similarly, Darwish’s Identity Card demonstrates that wise old
age may not only be gained as an individual, but rather, as a culture. The speaker of the poem asserts that his
roots were, “entrenched before the birth of time.” (Darwish 22). In an attempt to protect his homeland from
societal ruin, he utilizes the belief that ancient values form a deeper
cultural significance, on that cannot so easily face destruction by outside
forces. Throughout literature, this similar theme arises, yet is played out in
different scenarios. The hero that finds
the strength to complete his journey however, is often the one that understands
the brevity of youth and the capacity of age.
This capacity also deals with the
battle waged between wisdom and knowledge. It seems a great misconception that
it most cases, knowledge (that of books and tests), is greater than that of
ancient wisdom. For nearly all of literature’s great hero’s the opposite proves
to be true. Identity Card’s speaker asserts how his culture, “teaches […] the
pride of the sun before teaching how to read.” (Darwish 30). Because cultural
identity is the most vital trait to a character’s growth, he recognizes that
power of listening to and applying cultural values and beliefs over societal
standards. For Gogol Ganguli’s father,
this realization has not yet been made when he is on the train on his way to
his grandfather’s to collect a suitcase full of books. “Ashoke was saddened, as
he placed the empty suitcase under his seat […] regretful of the circumstances
that would cause it, upon his return, to be full.” (Lahiri 13). He is unaware that the suitcase will not be
filled with books, but with the wisdom of his grandfather. Unlike the voice of Identity Card, Ashoke
hasn’t yet reached the understanding that wisdom is a gift, something that
needs to be grasped onto and saved. He
is more focused on the material knowledge, a value that wrongly leads him to
worship a different form of intelligence, which in his future, is forced to
change.
Continuing on in their odyssey for
self-knowledge, characters are at some point faced with the realization and
fear of their pasts. Most often, the
protagonist ignores his or her cultural identity in the hopes that they will
grow and excel only from outside experiences. Yet it is this cultural identity
that is the most vital to their achievement. Only once acknowledging and
accepting their pasts can they have the chance at a future. In his dramatic “to
be or not to be” soliloquy, Hamlet debates death as a viable option for
ultimate freedom. Just like the
protagonist is often afraid of confronting their cultural past, Hamlet is
fearful of accepting where we all have come from and where we are all headed. He wonders aloud, “the undiscover’s country
from whose bourn no traveler returns puzzles the will…” (Act III, scene I,
78). It’s not exactly cultural identity,
but it corresponds to the dilemma fellow literary characters face. Not until
after the soliloquy is Hamlet able to move forward with his life. Acceptance of the past and the ability to tap
into it furthers heroes in their quests. A literary character with a very
different background, Gogol Ganguli of The
Namesake, comes to an identical realization of that of Hamlet’s. However,
his epiphany moment is later in life, late in his journey for
self-actualization, and therefore, doesn’t do him as much good as the prince of
Denmark. After his father’s death he
understands that, “all those trips to Calcutta he’d once resented- how could
they have been enough? They were not enough.” (Lahiri 281). For Gogol, life had been spent distancing
himself from what was most important to his growth. When he finally sees the power behind his
past, it is difficult for him to bridge the gap between his two lives. Like Gogol’s separate lives, the speaker of Snapping Beans is dealt two separate
spheres- home and school. She, at first,
can divide her outer and inner selves to play a part according to her
setting. As she begins to mature though,
acting out a role at school proves more detrimental than rewarding. She recalls
how her, “stomach burned acidic holes at the thought of speaking in class,
speaking in an accent.” (Parker 35).
Compared to Hamlet and Gogol, she is the farthest from the resolution of
her journey, and also the most ashamed of her past. Without recognition of this cultural
identity, the one that links her to her grandmother, she is unable to move
forward with her future.
Even after characters understand the
value of cultural identity, ancient wisdom, and their pasts, there is still the
threat from society to corrupt the individual.
When speaking about the individual and the chance for corruption Hamlet
asserts, “Their virtues else- be they pure as grace[…] shall in the general
censure take corruption.” (Act I, scene iv, 34). (It seems as if Hamlet knows
the answers to everything and just doesn’t hear himself when he speaks.) Although experience and relationships will
shape characters such as Hamlet, there is societal corruption and temptation
that no matter what, negatively influences virtues in the end. Without the sin that society causes however,
literature’s protagonists wouldn’t seem as human. These flaws allow characters a chance to
redeem themselves and to grow from failure by getting even closer with their
pasts. In Snapping Beans the young girl
thinks about telling her grandmother “that [her] friends wore nose rings and
wrote poetry about sex, about alcoholism, about Buddha.” (Parker 32). These societal influences aren’t necessarily
all negatives, but in the eyes of her grandmother, seem outrageous when
compared to the values of her culture.
In this way, they are distancing the girl from where she needs to be to
achieve self-actualization. Gogol
Ganguli feels a similar pressure from society when he goes to court in order to
legally change his name. “What is the reason you wish to change your name, Mr.
Ganguli? […] He wonders whether to tell the judge the whole convoluted story
[…] about what had happened on the first day of kindergarten.” (Lahiri 101). In
this case, a major legal and life decision of Gogol’s is rooted in the desire
to please society. In pleasing society,
he takes one step back on his journey to self-knowledge and distances himself
from the past that he shares not only with his parents, but with a majority of
the world and its heroes. Like Identity
Card’s speaker and his assertion that society has, “stolen the orchards of
[his] ancestors and the land cultivated along with [his] children,” Gogol and
all other literary protagonists often feel as if society is tearing up the
“roots” of their culture. If, even after negative relationships and societal
pressures, characters are able to connect with their “inner selves” and cultural
identities, then it is possible that they will be able to work their way to the
top of Maslow’s hierarchy in achievement of self-actualization.
No matter where in literature you look, all great heroes
and protagonists are faced with a very similar dilemma concerning their pasts
and how to use them. Faced with the
temptations and sin of societal values, they often forget their own cultural
identity and are pushed farther and farther away from ever discovering their
full potential. Traits that significantly
shape human identity are out of human control, such as age or culture, but are
the most vital elements in controlling the future. Whether it’s Hamlet’s quest for revenge,
Gogol Ganguli’s search for identity, or Janie’s journey towards independence and
self-actualization, all literary heroes are linked by a universal truth of
human nature; the fact that accepting and employing their pasts as a powerful
tool is the key to unlocking their future.
Works
Cited
Darwish,
Mahmoud. Identity Card. N.d. Poem.
Hurston,
Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God: A Novel. New York: Perennial
Library, 1990. Print.
Lahiri,
Jhumpa. The Namesake. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003. Print.
Parker,
Lisa. Snapping Beans. N.d. Poem.
Shakespeare,
William, and Harold Jenkins. Hamlet. London: Methuen, 1982. Print.
