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| the book cover of Reflections in a Golden Eye |
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| Anacleto's grotesque peacock |
1) In the novel, the 20-year-old Private Williams is described as a dumb innocent who is unreflective and acts only on instinct. He is constantly associated with the natural world. What evidence can you find in the novel that reveals Private Williams's savage or animal nature?
2) Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
3) Animals figure prominently throughout the novel. What are the possible implications or symbolic functions of using animal imageries?
24 comments:
In the story, the narrater first describes Private William’s appearance. He is a person who doesn’t dress up himself and seems a little dirty. His hair looks like an animal’s and tangled together. It looks like his has been rolling or playing in the wild and doesn’t care if he is not clean or not. His eyes are clear and bright and they don’t move around a lot. All those eyes do is stare. It’s horrible to see something staring at you in a quiet circumstance. He looks like an animal which is eager for the food that is infront of it. He is pale, thin but has delicate muscles. I think that the narrator’s description makes William Private an animal which is not very nutritious but moves a lot whenever he wants. It seems like he doesn’t have any desire for anything in life, but you can’t deprive of his freedom. He does whatever he wants. He is naked in the forest and he interacts with animals with no boundary. He is like one of them and has the same feeling. Compared to people, he can’t get along with people well maybe it’s because he is not used to the false display of affection between human beings. He prefers the savage but natural spirit of the animals.
Captain Penderton was an oppressive and a contradictious character. He was living under the social expectation. In the beginning of the movie, the director had emphasized this point: the captain stand in front of the mirror and the mirror reflected his muscular body. But it was not the way he really wanted to be. Until Penderton met Private William and saw William’s action of the natural way, he started to change. The Captain’s deep real heart was gradually seduced by William. The previous of him and the real of him had conflicted to each other. His hate to William had somehow transferred to love. And in the novel, when the major told that he wanted to take Anacleto to the army to make him be a man, Penderton had totally realized something. He said: ‘’the square peg would not fit in the round hole.’’ It would not bring the happiness to those who live in this way. By this comprehension, he saw the reflection soul of himself and realized that he was in the same situation as Anacleto. Finally, the figure that he had pretended to be was suddenly collapsed. By the character of the Captain Penderton, there is a question: What is “normal”?
How to define it? It is also a question for us to discuss it.
Actually, I don't like the character-Captain Penderton. In the story, he was arrogant toward his identity. Because he was a captain who owns the power of control. He was eager to control everyone including Private William, Leonora, and even the Firebird. Private William should be an annoying one to him. But, somehow, he had a crash on Private William after he saw his naked body. This is an irony part that I don’t understand his mind toward love and sex. I think Captain Penderton was mentally abnormal in some aspect. He loved whom Leonora loved but he don't love his wife a lot. Besides, he wants to control the Firebird with great desire. So when he fell off, he felt shame and frustrated. Although he is willing to conquer the horse, he is an coward toward life. He can hardly take actions to the things he wants to change. He dare not solve the relation between his wife and Major Langdon. He would rather keep good relationship with them than reveal it. However, Captain Penderton doesn't really care his wife a lot although she has a perfect figure. Also, when Alison told him that there is a man peeping Mrs. Leonora, he chose to ignore it. In the end, he should not shoot Private William. Captain Penderton is selfish and cowardly. He decided to eliminate it than find a better way to settle it.
Question 2:
I found captain Penderton a very interesting figure, and he is also a complicated one too. He wants himself to be a macho man, to fit in the stereotype of the society. Hard, rigid, and violent, I think he did reach the goal of being a man, but that was only on the surface. As the story goes on, we get to know more about this character: he was raised up in an extreme feminine environment with unmarried old ladies surrounding him, instead of turning into Anacleto, he chooses to join the army. And the part firebird gone mad and almost killed captain Penderton, it shows that he was once tender and vulnerable, but after being sculptured by the society, he became violent and harsh. Captain Penderton was madly in love with Private William, and the love was desperate and grotesque. There is a theory between the love and the beloved, and not receiving any feedback must be a torture. Another thing is that I found Captain Perderton’s character is somehow related to Cousin Richard in the short story “Sucker”. They are both once soft and innocent, but after being abused by others, they become what people expected them to be, like a man. They are not themselves any more.
Private William was one of the important characters worthy to be discussed. The story tried to display the savage side and animal-like in human part. At the story begin; Private Williams was described as “a silent young soldier with a mute expression that is found usually in the eyes of animals.” Although Private Williams looked like heavy and awkward, his movement was silence and fast just like a wild creature. In addition, Private Williams liked to spend his leisure time in the wood where to be found a lot of wild animals, such as deer, wild pig, and foxes. Private Williams didn’t afraid about it. Besides, the story compared the horse and Private Williams together. Private Williams gave the horse a sugar when he went into the stable. The horse liked the sugar and made his hand sticky with slaver. Private Williams himself like sugar very much ass well. The purpose of this element was trying to display the similar behavior of the horse and Private Williams himself. Last but not least, Private Williams liked to take off his clothes and lay down on a rock in the middle of the field in the wood. Sometimes, he would also slip upon the horse’s bare back. Clothes in this story symbolized civilization of the humankind. However, Private Williams was presented as a savage and animal-like who liked to take off all his clothes and hanged around in the wood. At the end of the story, Private Williams was shot by Captain. Even in the death of Private Williams, the look was warm and animal comfort as well.
Private William was one of the important characters worthy to be discussed. The story tried to display the savage side and animal-like in human part. At the story begin; Private Williams was described as “a silent young soldier with a mute expression that is found usually in the eyes of animals.” Although Private Williams looked like heavy and awkward, his movement was silence and fast just like a wild creature. In addition, Private Williams liked to spend his leisure time in the wood where to be found a lot of wild animals, such as deer, wild pig, and foxes. Private Williams didn’t afraid about it. Besides, the story compared the horse and Private Williams together. Private Williams gave the horse a sugar when he went into the stable. The horse liked the sugar and made his hand sticky with slaver. Private Williams himself like sugar very much ass well. The purpose of this element was trying to display the similar behavior of the horse and Private Williams himself. Last but not least, Private Williams liked to take off his clothes and lay down on a rock in the middle of the field in the wood. Sometimes, he would also slip upon the horse’s bare back. Clothes in this story symbolized civilization of the humankind. However, Private Williams was presented as a savage and animal-like who liked to take off all his clothes and hanged around in the wood. At the end of the story, Private Williams was shot by Captain. Even in the death of Private Williams, the look was warm and animal comfort as well.
Private Williams showed his savage both on his body shape and his behavior. This young and solid man had a sun burnt face with tangled hair, eyes with "a mute expression" usually belonged to animals, a small pair of strong and boney hands—a figure in Gauguin’s work. And the way he moved was quick but silent. Taking care of the horses in the stables was his duty, which suited him for he was not good at people but much more comfortable when staying with animal and nature. No one in the post actually knew him. Private Williams was not civilized at all because he had none of the habits of smoke, drink, fornicate, or gamble; he only enjoyed riding and having some candy bar. He also liked to drink milk (after drinking, there would be milk dripping along a side of his lips). If he had more time, he would go in the woods with the mare, bathing and wondering in sun shines, nakedly. Private Williams had been a misogynist—he regarded women as disease—until he saw the pure flesh of Leonora. Then he observed her in the night liked a predator watching a sleeping prey: he not only learned well about Mr. and Mrs. Penderton's daily routine; he squatted in the room a whole night, sniffing her perfume, biting on her unfinished chicken legs. Though the story, Private Williams was characterize as innocent and savage, and because of that, he triggered the whole incident to happen after witnessing the astounding scene.
2) Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
I don’t like Captain Penderton. He is a man has a lot of trouble. But he’s also a man hard to hate. He is a sensitive character that he is easily to feel restless. He has unspeakable hobbies that he hurt animals, steal stuffs, and he follows the Major and Private Williams. Although having his dark side threatening, he tries hard to control these tendency from doing more damage: he steals only twice; he never really fight with Leonora even after her provocation; he waits for a while until he make a move to be Leonora and her lover’s partner; and that he doesn’t pretend to like females. His sexual orientation makes him self-abased in the military camp, but he is not afraid to make his move following Leonora’s lovers. So that makes the Captain an honest guy on his appetite, though he sees it shameful and nervous about it. I would say he has his dark side and that makes me hard to like him, but having his defects exist while posting not much threat to the society makes me can’t help but sympathizing him. He is a normal person with his problem. That’s how I see him.
I don’t like Captain at all, because he didn’t dare to be himself. Of course, it was not fair to attribute the mistake to him. The society pressure was an important factor which made him become that kind of man. The stereotype of man was masculine, strong, and tough. However, there were many kinds of people in the world. How can the society constrain all men to follow one direction? Although he was looked as common as other soldiers, his inclination was not. He had been fascinated by Private Williams since he watched his young bare body in the wood. The accident stimulated Captain’s instinct. He started to follow up Private Williams and observe him secretly. However, in the end of the novel, when Captain found Private Williams broke into his house, he shot him with no thinking. It was difficult to guess the Captain’s emotion. If he fell in love with Private Williams, why did he kill him? Maybe it was out of envy, jealousy, or anger. After all, Williams liked the Captain’s wife, and he must not accept Captain’s love. Besides, homosexual relationship was despised by the public. I thought Captain wanted to end all of it. Finally, he still decided to shape himself which was suitable for the society and sacrifice Private Williams.
2.
I think it is unfair to judge him as a likeable person or not. In the novel, writer mentioned that Captain Penderton had never known real love. He had kind of unhappy boyhood, and he felt like he was a broken doll which had been thrown away. He was an oppressive and susceptible figure in this story. He had ever mistreat a kitten, and afterward, he also had the hatred combine with love toward the soldier to make him suffer. I think it was a hint that the Captain finally ended their complex relationship in such a violent way. Maybe the main reason he did so was because he did not know how to love, and how to express this strong affections toward the soldier. He wanted to attract the soldier’s attention, and he even stalked the soldier. He wanted to take control over him, but when he knew that the soldier loved his wife. It was unbearable for him. Maybe through taking the soldier’s life away, Captain Penderton had the kind of dominance in this relationship. In the movie of this novel, Captain Penderton watched his reflection of masculine body in the mirror. It perhaps means that he is strong and manlike on the outside, and he also expected himself to be manlike inside his heart. This kind of self-consciousness made him oppress his emotions. If only he could accept the real self and learned how to love previously, the tragedy in this story may not have happened.
2) Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
I would say Captain Penderton is a pitiful character rather than likable or unlikble one. The novel depicts Captain Penderton as a repressed and miserable character. Apparently, Penderton grows up in the strict male society. He is disciplined to be masculine and has to have a strong and tough physique. Also, he serves on an army post where masculinity is strongly emphasized, so he has to constrain something feminine. Under over-oppression of masculinity, he lacks power. In other words, he is impotent. For example, when his wife, Leonora Penderton, is naked and seduces him, Mr. Penderton is completely indifferent and even feels disgusted. Moreover, he is out of control. Sometimes, he does something cold-blooded, brutal and horrible, like shoving a kitten into a mail box and beating the Firebird savagely.
At the same time, he feels confused about and struggles with his gender role. Although he portrays himself as a potent figure on the army post, homosexual desire has been lived in his heart and is not aroused until he sees Private Williams is naked in the forest. As his homosexual affection “like a disease” mentioned in the novel, Penderton tails after Private Williams and picks up a candy paper what he leaves. But Penderton’s love toward Williams turns out to be hatred when Penderton discovers Williams is interested in Leonora. Finally, Penderton kills Private Williams; nevertheless, he spends the rest of life like a broken doll.
In the beginning of the story, the narrator tells us directly that Private Williams possessed animal nature by stating that he has “a mute expression that is found usually in the eyes of animals (309).” He also has a “rapt face of a Gauguin primitive” (338) and soundless footsteps like an animal when he watches the Captain’s house in the darkness of the woods (320). Moreover, when he goes to the stables one morning to get the horses ready to ride, he has traces of milk on his lips (321), which is associated with the “light froth of foam” (322) on the horse’s muzzle. Apart from animal nature, Private Williams also possessed savageness. Being close to nature, he likes to lie naked on a rock deep in the woods and “let the sunlight soak into his flesh” (344), and sometimes he rides on the bare back of the horse still naked with “a sensual, savage smile on his lips” (344). In addition, Private Williams is closer to animals than to humans. He easily shows affection to animals and does not seem to understand human emotions. He caresses his cow and the horses in the stable, but looks at the Captain “as though looking at some insect” (356) when the Captain is sobbing after falling off the horse and beating up the horse in the woods. Even when he died, Private Williams has “the look of warm, animal comfort” (393).
2) Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
It is hard for me to decide whether Captain Penderton is likable or not. For me, he is a pathetic character in the story. In the beginning of the story, Captain Penderton is described as a man who grows up in the chauvinistic society that be instructed to be a masculine man and give readers a tough, buffed and strong-minded image. However, after Penderton be fascinated by Private Williams, his side of feminine is revealed. In the deepest of his heart, he is a homosexual actually. But he is confuse about it and even can not face his real sexual orientation in the reality, since he is in the army where a manly place is. Because of the extremely depression of his emotion, he sometimes shows his dark side and tender side as well, for example, he rides Firebird, the horse, crazily until Firebird lost control and drag him on the ground, then he beats Firebird savagely in the forest, and finally he crumbles down with tears. In the end of the story, Penderton has no choice but to kills his lover, Private Williams, because Williams intrudes into his wife room, and which means he sacrifices his real love for the formal love in reality. To conclude, Captain Penderton is a complicated character not only in his behaviors but also in his mind. He is not a character to be liked but be commiserated.
4)Anacleto in the story plays an over-active character that is difficult to claim that he’s a likable or unlikable person. In the story, he gets the extreme images from Alison and the Major. Alison treated him just like best friends even sister and brother. Conversely, Major hated him and often stared even cursed him getting a broken neck. At the beginning of his appearance, he showed an “airy” little skip, just like a ballet dancer, and then spoke French beautifully. Those behaviors represent his strong desire to perform and his love for many kinds of arts. Although that made him like a funny and stupid clown. In addition, he’s so considerate to Alison with an angel heart, for example, Alison once asked him if he was happy or not, and his response was so sweet that surprise me, he said” when you are well”. And he has another trait that he’s a little childlike, for one thing they stayed the night in a hotel, which was an enormous delight to him. The events shows that he was easy to satisfy with something not a big deal and that was just like a child will do. For another thing is he always tried to trick or offend the Major like a mischievous and evil boy. Moreover, He is a bit arrogant, because a common knowledge in his mind that the Lord had blundered grossly in the making of everyone except himself and Madame Alison. In conclusion, the story will not be so lively without Anacleto who seems to just be a supporting role.
After reading Reflection in a Golden Eye, the character, Captain Penderton, impresses me the most. Besides, I would like to characterize him as a pent-up man. In the beginning of this novel, he trains himself as a muscular captain then stares at himself in the mirror. It implies that he has to rely on the mirror to understand who he is even though the reflection from the mirror is not the real him. On the contrary, there are a feminine and a homosexual features in captain’s mind. And he collects his “precious” things like William’s candy wrapper and a tea spoon stolen from a party. It shows that he is not as muscular as the reflection from the mirror. However, when captain rides fire bird into the forest, he faces what the real him is and releases himself. It’s an epiphany about captain in this story. Therefore, I am impressed by this character even though he has the complex and ambiguous feature. Moreover, author also tells readers that how to exists in a conservative society by this character. Furthermore, if people are the minority, they have to be challenged by the majority. They are even afraid of facing themselves. And this character is a typical character in the past. Therefore, the author not also depicts captain skillfully but also reflects the minority in the conservative society through her novel.
I don't have any feelings toward Captain Penderton. However, I'm really impressed that he is a savant with his head filled with statistics and information of scholarly exactitude and he is also fluent in three languages. Even though those amazing skills don't seem to help him get a better life. Captain Penderton's unique personality with his penchant for kleptomania, physical and moral cowardice, and fastidiousness, personal and intellectual, are dispensed with for the stalking and predatory characterisation of the film. His ambivalent sexual nature where male and female elements were in delicate balance, neither of which was in command, was transformed into a latent homosexuality. Captain Penderton is also impotent and he lacks power and control. As a result of his struggle with himself, Penderton is a very angry character. He does nonsensical, brutal things, like shoving an innocent kitten in a mailbox. Penderton's discomfort with himself leads to him being a kleptomaniac It is also appropriate that Penderton feels joy when he is on the runaway horse, as this is an escape from the rigid structure of the army post and the problems he has with himself. Captain Penderton's anger is especially apparent in his relationship with Private Williams. Penderton represses his love for Private Williams, and then the feelings of affection are turned into hate. Eventually, Penderton's obsession leads to tragedy, as he shoots and kills Private Williams.
In Reflections in a Golden Eye, Private William is depicted as a character that possesses animal nature with both his appearance and behaviors revealing the sense of savageness. His appearance presents clues that he is a man of animal traits. In the beginning of the story, he is explicitly described as having “a mute expression that is found usually in the eyes of animals.” He also has a sun burnt face with tangled hair, which implies his unrestrained character. His behaviors also reveal a lot. He walks soundlessly “like an animal”. He prefers to be in the woods and likes to nakedly cling onto horses, which shows his hidden unbridled savageness. He gives a horse some sugar and is not annoyed when the horse leaves on his palm slaver. These evidences reveal that there is an indivisible connection between him and horses. It is clear that he feels more intimate with animals than with humans as he distastes getting along with humans but is fond of close contact with animals
I think Captain Penderton is a miserable man. He followed the expectation of the society, grew up and became a person which was not who he really was. He often looked into the mirror, examining his appearance, he had a lot of pressure to maintain the image. In the time where there were no war going on, he had to face the nature deep inside him. He was a bisexual, coward, and he sometimes steals things and abuse animals. He somehow holds a special feeling toward his wife’s lover, Major Langdon, but he could not dare to confront the relationship between the two of them. Then he met Private Williams, and started to have interest on him after he saw him naked. Captain Penderton once tried to ride Firebird, but he failed. In the forest, while nobody was around, he finally put down his mask, started to cry loudly, and fiercely beat Firebird, he began to reveal the true self. He started to stalk on Private Williams, and even picked up the trash he threw away. At the end, he found out Private Williams also stalked on his wife, and sneaked into her room at night. With a complicated feeling, Captain Penderton killed Private Williams. In this story, many people wear masks to hide their nature, but the depress of their nature leads to the destruction of the person.
1) Physically, Private Williams is a reticent solider with precautious expression on his sunburned face. Although his posture seems bulky and clumsy, he is quick and silent in movement. Furthermore, he has small but clever and strong hands and focused and curious eyes which were mingled with amber and brown. In addition, the behavior of Private Williams presents the animal-like features. First, he likes to spend time on lingering in the forest, as if he belongs to nature and feels more suitable and comfortable to be there. Second, the way that he peeps secretly into the house of Captain Penderton from the forest at night or without talking to others for all day long both similar to an animal waiting silently for the perfect time to capture his prey. Third, the lip with the remained milk and the act that he bites chicken leg without hesitation are same as the wild animal having meals with bloody mouth. Last, Private Williams rides naked on his horse which stands for that he is within a condition of mutuality with nature and does not like to be restrained by artificial rules. These physical and behavioral portraits all reveal the features of animal. Private Williams just likes a leopard, which is famous as an athletic, strong and smart hunter with fine senses that is ready to hide and then does a quick movement or surprise attack.
2) Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
My first answer is I like the character Captain Penderton. I like the Captain Penderton because he is a character who possesses human nature and reveal most of vicious instincts. That is to say, he is more close to reality or human nature. For instance, Captain Penderton felt unhappy while the evening he married to Leonora. In this way, he drove out to the street and got the kitten out of the shelter then put it into another cold mailbox. Another example, he tried to control Firebird and finally whipped the pitiful creature. I think it’s hard to deny that most of people have the instinct of destroying those pretty things when they have the power. In addition, he sometimes felt inferior when he met another character who is very self-confident. For example, when Leonora showed her magnificent body and unrestrained attitude also showed her self-confidence to him. He felt not only abject but also indomitable though he has no idea to resist his wife. I think that is the reason led him ride Firebird and tried to control it as control Leonora. Moreover, he is cowardly when Alison told him there is someone in his wife’s room. He rejected to check the room because he knew his wife has extramarital relations. Captain Penderton is just like a normal man when facing the difficult condition and desire to escape of it. To characterize Captain Penderton, he is an abject, brutal, indomitable, and cowardly character of the story.
4) List Anacleto's traits. Do you think he is a likable or an unlikable character, or a little bit of both? Why?
I think he is a little bit of both likable and unlikeable character. He was a houseboy of Alison since he was seventeen years old. He always does everything for her without complaining. In spite of Alison has a sad emotion, he still stay with her. I was impressed that when Allison asked him if he was happy or not, he answered “When you are well ”. He was so sweet that he could get her heart. Moreover, he usually made face or speak French with a naughty tone to catch somebody’s eyes. He liked to dance and paint. He could paint a peacock with grotesque reflections in its golden eye that explained the title. He was always the one that make people happy. However, I think he was too closed with Allison to let Major hated him. He didn’t maintain an appropriate distance. They are so tight that they can leave the house to work hard for new works. Finally, Anacleto seemed like a childlike boy. When he was out of the Allison house, Major missed him so much. In conclusion, Anacleto was an indispensable supporting character in this story.
In the beginning the narrator describes Private William was marked by a certain watchful innocence. This description shows Private William like an animal which is watching everything unintentionally. For example, dogs are watching everything which is their nature. Then Private William’s eyes are described as a curious blend of amber and brown. “…there was a mute expression that is found usually in the eyes of animals.” These are Private William’s appearance which is described in the second paragraph. Then the narrator describes how Private William’s weird behavior likes an animal not a man. In the bottom of the second paragraph, “…he moved with the silence and agility of a wild creature or a thief.” “Nor had he ever been known to laugh, to become angry, or to suffer in any way.” In the second part, Private William goes to the stables. In this part, it presents Private William is closer to animals than human. “His sun-browned skin was flushed in the morning air and on his lips there were still the traces of the milk had drunk for breakfast.” Its Private William’s animal like. And in the following paragraph, Private William took sugar and his hands were warm and sticky with slaver by horses. It is the Intimacy between Private William and animals and bring out Private William’s animal natural.
I choose question 2 Do you like Captain Penderton? How do you characterize this character?
I think I like Captain Penderton this character. He is a complicated role. At begin, he is a man who press himself. He had muscle and want to live in army. He likes to live with solider. He thinks the live of army is simple and neat. He can afford the mess. However, his wife is dirty and make house messy. So, it is paradox. And, he is a boring man. He doesn’t dress him up. However, when Captain Penderton meets Private Williams in the forest, he changed. He becomes stranger. He is reborn after that he fall from house and sees naked Private Williams. The view brings about his desire. He is fascinated by Private Williams. He wants him. So, he begins to follow Private Williams. And, when he finds Private Williams don’t like him and intrude his wife’s room. He felt angry and kill him. He kills his love to protect his formula love in reality. I think he care about his reputation more than his love.
As a character, Captain Penderton’s repressed natures are the sources of his brutal and controlling characteristics. Because of his family background and social pressure, he chose to hide away his feminine qualities and his homosexuality. Although he was able to repress his inner self, the repression had only made him feel frustrated and miserable in his life. To release his frustration, he treated animals brutally, and the kitty he tucked into the mailbox and the whipping of Firebird are both good examples. This is because the animals somehow remind him of the being natural and wild, which are something he couldn’t be. To him, the animals are the embodiment of nature that he was unwilling to face, because he didn’t have the courage to face his true nature. In addition to this, he also tried to control over all the things in his life, including his wife - Leonora. Yet, Leonora, like her favorite stallion – Firebird, possessed an unrestrained spirit, and was reluctant to be in Captain’s control. And this had given him uneasiness when he was with her. Furthermore, Captain Penderton also wanted to control the wild and untamed Firebird. But, like Leonora, it ended up to be a failure that nearly ended his life. However, this near death experience also became a turning point for his life. Facing death had taken out his fear of facing his real self, and had made him learn to live. Although he had demonstrated great brutality by whipping cruelly at Firebird, he was, in some way, reborn after this fatal ride.
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