Write an essay (250-300 words) based on ONE
of the following questions:
1)
Discuss Sylvia Townsend
Warner’s ingenious use of “failure” as an alternative way of thinking that is
linked to an awareness of racial and religious “difference.” How can a story of
a loser be a critique of Christian imperialism or European colonialism?
2)
As a lesbian writer, Sylvia
Townsend Warner intentionally subverts the conventional gender norms and
stereotypes by creating queer characters whose gender ambiguities defy
traditional gender expectations. Discuss Mr. Fortune and Leuli’s gender
ambiguity in the novel. How does their gender ambiguity open up a possibility
that the world can be different (from the existing patriarchal society)?
57 comments:
410202023 蘇郁惟
In the existing patriarchal society, these ambiguities still couldn’t be accepted by some people. But, luckily, there are many people fighting for these rights, such as queer love, homo marriage in these years. We start to rethink: “Is there only one way to define who you are?” Your gender is female, so you should tender, sweet, like Barbie; your gender is male, so you should be macho, play basketball, like GI Joe. There is a big NO. Little by little, we know gender temperament should not only two extremely opposite sides, it should be a spectrum, because human being is very complicated. We shouldn’t be delimited by simplified way. For instance, Mr. Fortune is a “man” coming from Europe. He is educated the “formal” education which teach boys what they should act like a “man.” It is a very unbelievable thing to believe. Even children in the same family would have different characters. How can you ask all male human to reach the same standard? So, when he came to the “barren” island, in some ways, he felt free. He enjoyed dressing Lueli up, oil massage and being a “househusband.” Plus, Lueli is a boy, but he doesn’t fit the mold of the “normal boy.” He is coquetting like a girl, likes look himself in the mirror, makes flora garland. In other people’s thoughts, Fauna is an uncivilized island, because they don’t like to wear clothes, worship their own god and many things don’t reach the standard of “civilization”. But, in the other hand, it is a paradise, in this island, you can be the true you. So which side is more uncivilized? In short, someday, I believe all these values would become universal values.
英美三 410202006 林禹彤
Question 1
The islanders of Fanua are innocent and pure. Before European come, they have their primitive and happy life without any disturbance. It is wonderful for them to dance and sing in a field. The islanders also don’t have religious.
The first failure is that Mr. Fortune gives announcements to the islanders but they just look at him and crunch on cookies. It is new to them. The second failure is that Mr. Fortune wants Lueli to live with him, so he talks to his mother. But Lueli’s mom can’t understand what Mr. Fortune is talking about. She doesn’t know what Mr. Fortune is going to do. They have problems not only in communication but also they are in different racial and religious. The Archdeacon considers that the islanders are immoral and barbarian.
Mr. Fortune is a humble man. Because of his characteristic, he has done so many failed things. He seems to be a loser in a story. In fact, he’s not like those who force colonies to convert their language, religious and the way of life. When Mr. Fortune encounters the failure, he gives up. He doesn’t want others reluctant to follow the new idea. As we know, the Imperialism and the colonialism usually seize weak countries’ land and resource, and force them to give up their culture. Mr. Fortune is the contrary to the Imperialism and the colonialism.
410202029 邱亮勳
As missionaries in reality, it is very common that they almost be masculine, aggressive and high superiority people to control, dominate and convey the knowledge of civilization to aboriginal. However, Mr. Fortune's condition is different from the others because his personality and his thoughts. And these elements of him criticize Christian imperialism and European colonialism indirectly.
It is doomed to fail the mission at first because Mr. Fortune is a humble, simplicity and empathy missionary. He thinks Fanua is a wonderful island and the natives are kind, so he likes there completely. In contrast, his boss, Archdeacon, thinks the local people is immoral just because they are heathen pagan. Through their different thoughts, readers can knows directly how strong concept of Christian imperialism that Archdeacon has. And because Mr. Fortune has weak concept of European colonialism, he uses gentle ways to teach Lueli. Even though every process of teaching fail in the end, Mr. Fortune never forces Lueli to change and keep learning. His empathy and gentle can not bear to destroy the quality of this island and his love, so Mr. Fortune accepts the different cultural gradually. His personality is a big way to allow readers to aware the difference of racial and religious.
The most important element of Mr. Fortune is reflecting on himself after something bad happen between Lueli and him. The climax of this story shows Mr. Fortune's mood of introspection clearly. His monologue criticism the civilization that human destroy the natural and they start to interfere the process of growing. He also understands that how dreadful and unfair it is because of European conspiracy which opposes gun-boats to canoes and rifles to bows and arrows. Therefore, he decides to relinquish and leave so that he will not enslave and control what he loves on Fanua. Although Mr. Fortune faces many obstacles, failures and ambivalent, these quaint fancies gave him pleasure and relief.
410202042 康如儀
According to Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Mr. Fortune’s Maggot, Mr. Fortune’s failures criticize Christian imperialism. At first, Mr. Fortune is confident and enthusiastic about converting Fanua. He thinks he can successful, but when he decides to do something, he will get a failure, and then he gives up. One of his failures is converting Leuli. Although Mr. Fortune tries his best to convert him, in the end Leuli does not change his religion. Because Leuli lives in an island where people have their own culture and religion, it is difficult for Mr. Fortune to convert. In addition, the islanders are innocence and enjoy their lives. After the convert of Leuli is a bog failure, Mr. Fortune wants to teach him mathematics. However, it is another failure again because Lueli cannot understand what Mr. Fortune says. There is a huge gap between Mr. Fortune and Leuli. Mr. Fortune just symbolizes as some European countries. Those countries want to preach their religion to other countries in order to expend their territory. Some European countries often think their culture and religion are the best. But they do not know every country’s cultures and religions have advantages or disadvantages. Another factor about why Mr. Fortune always fails is his personality. Mr. Fortune is a humble man of heart. When Leuli lost his God and became very sad, he would think whether his converting good or not because he felt love with Leuli. He does not want Leuli live a miserable life. Therefore Mr. Fortune’s failures imply the disadvantages of Christian imperialism.
410301022 中文二俞亭安
Mr. Fortune's Maggot is basically a story about failure, and an archive of Fortune's bumbling and stumbling. The failures begin to happen since he arrives Fanua. When Mr. Fortune decides to go to the island, the two clergyman warn him that: " But they are like children always singing and dancing, and of course immoral. But all the natives are like that." In my opinion, this label that Western people give natives is unjust and unfair, this kind of discrimination is the main reason that leads Mr. Fortune's failure.
The first Failure that Mr.Fortune undergoes is that his religious work is neglected by the islanders, they receive his speech in silence broken only by crunching. I think it is the most remarkable fiasco of Mr. Fortune because he did not realize that there aren't any religion on Fanua, how can the islanders be "enlighten" just only by his speech that mentions God? Another failure is that Mr. Fortune can't communicate properly with Lueli's mother and Ori. It's a disaster when people can't understand each other.
Moreover, there are two representative failures which can be a critique of Christian imperialism and European colonialism. First is that Mr. Fortune tries to make clothes to Lueli, but he doesn't want to wear it, he goes to bath frequently, so he doesn't have to wear it all the time. Although Mr. Fortune knows Lueli's purpose, he doesn't force Lueli to wear. The second one is the introduction to mathematics, and this action leads Lueli's suicide. We all know that Mr. Fortune is trying to make Lueli happy, but it causes a totally opposite result, This indicates Christian imperialism which tries to unify different religion in the name of love, just like Mr. Fortune wants Lueli to wear the clothes and ignores this behavior violates Lueli's nature. So as European colonialism forces natives to serve under rationality and scientific knowledge which they brings. But Mr. Fortune is not so violent, he's humble instead, and I think the author wants to show readers her critique to civilization and imperialism.
410202074 賴祖兒
Q1
“Mr. Fortune’s Maggot” is a work narrating all Mr. Fortune’s frustration and failures, in which let not only Mr. Fortune learns to perceive things in a different aspect, but also us learn something from his failures. First, upon landing the island, when giving the speech, Mr. Fortune encounters his first failure that nobody is listening to what he says. Later, when converting Leuli to a Christian (which he hasn’t), he talks to Leuli’s mother and Ori, but nobody can understand what he means. Also, when he wants to make Leuli some clothes but turns out with a two-dimensional basis, and not to mention that Mr. Fortune wants to teach Leuli about playing musical instrument, singing, playing ping-pong and making honey, etc. However, Mr. Fortune is never knocked down or gives up despite all these frustrations. As an English man, he is regarded to conquer other “seeming inferior” people and dominate them, and there shouldn’t be any problem or difficulty to do so. Nevertheless, Mr. Fortune is a man with humility, and although he is British, he doesn’t agree with the principle of domination. On the contrary, when facing frustration, he starts to think about the situation in different aspects, and conclude to have his own perspectives of what he has been through and what he has tried to exert to others. This is a process of self-examination and he possesses this kind of capability because he is humble and doesn’t regard himself superior, which is a crucial characteristic that most colonists don’t have. All the failures and refusal Mr. Fortune has been through make him wiser and stronger, and make him realize not only how the world works, but also who he really is.
Q1
In this novel, it seems a failure that Mr. Fortune went to the island, Fanua for preaching. Mr. Fortune intended to change the aboriginal’s primitive and simple mind to Christian’s mind. However, this action did not work very well.
For example, in the beginning, Mr. Fortune full of passionate attitude to preach Christian religious to them, but in fact, the reason that the residents come is only for the novelty biscuit which they were crunching. Second, Mr. Fortune wanted Lueli to live with him, so he tried to persuade his mother and Ori, but the answers were very confused to him, her mother asked him if he wanted like a netful of shrimps? And Ori asked him that if he also likes a girl, too? Third, Mr. Fortune lived with Lueli for a while, Mr. Fortune thought that it is better for find a female matchmaking for his companion, but after their discussion, Lueli misunderstanding that Mr. Fortune wanted to find someone to get married. The last one is Mr. Fortune introduced mathematics to Lueli, he thought that math is another religious, however, Lueli did not understand this subject, and he cannot understand that the hole is a dot.
Although it seems a failure story of Mr. Fortune, but in fact, the story is telling us about the difference between Christian and pagan. In 1900, European colonists brought their superiority and Christian religious to the colonies and instilled their thought to the aboriginal. Mr. Fortune reflected this phenomenon in the story. He always wanted to use Christian way to teach them, such as he asked them to throw the idol away, and told them to wear cloth. However, those things all failed in the end. I think through this story, the author tried to tell the readers that do not judge a book by its surface.
410202040 英美三 邱奕瑄
Answer to Question 1
Sylvia Townsend Warner’s ingenious use of “failure” brings out the issue of Christian imperialism and European colonialism throughout the whole story. Mr. Fortune, as a loser, encounters a serious of frustrations, but it is also those frustrations which readers can see clearly that something evil hide in them as spectators’ point of view.
Misunderstandings and miscommunicates often happen in conversations between Mr. Fortune and islanders. For instance, Lueli’s mother asks if Mr. Fortune would like a netful of shrimps and Ori asks wouldn’t Mr. Fortune like a girl too after Mr. Fortune tells them something obedience to God and obedience to lawful authority. In addition, there is another case of miscommunicate when Lueli is mistaken, supposing Mr. Fortune and him are talking about Mr. Fortune’s marriage but not his own. The examples above show the difference of culture, racial, and religion, which is the main reason why cause so many misunderstandings.
Christian imperialism and European colonialism reveal the arrogance and superiority through some expressions of opinion. First, the Archdeacon uses “the Raratongan language has no words for chastity or for gratitude” to judge islanders that they are immoral. Second, Mr. Fortune gives a new name to Lueli, which is also the violence of imperialism. Third, Mr. Fortune once wants to rape Lueli inwardly, etc. There are cultural hegemony, Christian imperialism, and European colonialism among. The Europeans think what they have asked the islanders to do are good for them, including convert to Christianity, learn Christian education, learn Catechism, wear clothes, abandon original idol, etc.
Sylvia Townsend Warner uses irony and metaphor to let readers reflect on the reality and the existing society. Do people notice that they are self-center, horrible and doing harm on others as they have the intention of dominating and controlling others? Mostly are not, since empathy is what they are lack of. They think they are helping but not enslaving the natives, and commanding the natives to receive and submit no matter what for granted since they think they are better than the natives and surely have the right to dominate the natives. Sylvia Townsend Warner takes Mr. Fortune as an example of imperialism and colonialism; however, Mr. Fortune is not an absolutely typical case since he is humble, has consciousness, awareness, and reflects on himself that his stay will harm the one he loves. It may well be asked that Mr. Fortune is the one who chooses to leave and end the harm at last, but how about other who chooses to stay?
410202041 李亞儒 英美三
Question 1
In this story, we can know that a lot of failures in the process of preaching religion and different racial between Mr. Fortune and Lueli. There are two examples. The first failure is fickle in affection of local people. When Mr. Fortune arrives at the island, all residents are curious about everything they saw. But soon after they feel boring and turn to do their own things. The second failure is that Mr. Fortune cannot communicate with the residents well. They cannot know each other between preaching religion and the local customs. In the story, the residents do not want to assimilate Mr. Fortune into their culture, but Mr. Fortune wants to. So he feels ashamed.
After facing these failures, Mr. Fortune starts to reflect that he does not respect Lueli’s belief and customs. And he also finds that he falls in love with Lueli. Later Mr. Fortune frees himself from his believe and starts to know how to respect different culture and religion. And he begins not to prejudice against the residents and culture gradually. Then, Mr. Fortune thinks about the disadvantage of imperialism and European colonization. This is an uncivilized action and very selfish. Because they just want to rob the resources and they do not care about the local people’s feeling. He also suspects his belief and loses his God. By the way, the imperialism just likes an infectious disease, if imperialists go to the area and then the place will be destroy as people who get the infection, then are sick.
But even though Mr. Fortune leaves and wants to keep this place as original, there will still have a lot of preachers and imperialists coming and destroy the beautiful island. This is an unchangeable fate which people of island will face. This is the imperialism.
410302036 英美二 朱恆慧
Question 1
I think that what Mr. Fortune tries to do is what a lot of or most of the empires want to do at that time, as a result, I consider that Mr. Fortune represents Christian imperialism and European colonialism, and Mr. Fortune’s failures symbolize the fail of Christian imperialism and European colonialism. There are some textual evidences. First of all, Mr. Fortune does not preach anyone successfully and even does Mr. Fortune himself give up his religion. It is obviously implying the fail of Christian imperialism. In addition, Mr. Fortune used to try to “fix” those local residents, such as, encourages them to wear clothes, because he thinks that “people without clothes” is not allowed. However, he fails, and even those residents think it is ridiculous to wear clothes. How an irony! Next, what Mr. Fortune thinks about those women on the island is also sarcasm. At the beginning, Mr. Fortune considers those women have no chastity. However, when Leulis tries to drown himself and Mr. Fortune cannot stop him, those women help Mr. Fortune. Last but not least, when Leulis loses his god and feels depress, Mr. Fortune thinks that teaching him math will rescue him. On the contrary, teaching Leulis math promotes him commit suicide! I think that teaching math imply that at that time a lot of colonists and preacher who come from empires feel superior about what they have known which is called “knowledge” in their country and is much more advanced than those people who live on island, and those people even invade other countries and islands by this thought. But, it does not work on Fanua, and those people live well though they do not know mathematic. These are the reasons how this story become a critique of Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
410102074 曾凱婕
“Mr. Fortune’s Maggot” is a work which talks about Mr. Fortune’s frustration and failures. The story has two essential functions. One is that the story lets Mr. Fortune learns to perceive things in different aspects. The other one is that the story makes readers learn from Mr. Fortune’s failures.
The first failure happens when Mr. Fortune gives a speech to islanders. As a matter of fact, nobody actually listens to him. Islanders give him responses in silence. Mr. Fortune makes the mistake because he does not understand that there is no religion on Fauna. How come the islanders can be influenced by his speech? As for the islanders, God is an unfamiliar word among all of them. Maybe, in Mr. Fortune’s speech is just the first time to hear the concept of God. Based on the above, we can realize why the result would go into the bad consequence.
The second failure occurs when Mr. Fortune wants to persuade Lueli to be a Christian. Originally, Lueli is not a Christian. He tries to use his words to talk to Lueli’s mother and Ori. However, none of them understand what he tries to express. They seem to stand in different directions. There is a wide gap between them.
The following is an example of a critique of Christian imperialism and European colonialism. In the story, Mr. Fortune tries to make clothes for Lueli although Lueli refuses to wear it on. Mr. Fortune knows this fact, but he does not force Lueli to wear them on the body. Mr. Fortune chooses to respect Lueli.
410302020 英美二 簡嘉俞
Mr. Fortune's Maggot is a story of failures. However, his failures are productive and meaningful because they show a different relation to knowledge which is not based on mastery, domination, and assimilation. There are several examples showing his awareness of cultural and religious differences, his self-examination, and reflection on the ideology of Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
First failure is the conversion of the islanders. As he explains the benefits of believing in God, the islanders are distracted by the biscuit he offers to them due to its novelty and listen without zeal and comprehension. Then, he has difficulty communicating with Lueli’s mother and Ori when tring to explain the distinction between obedience to God and obedience to lawful authority. He finds they’re not in the same page. Also, the similar situation happens while he does matchmaking for Lueli. Lueli mistakes the one who is going to marry is Fortune. Other two remarkable failures are the trousers and the teaching of mathematics. The clothes are symbols of civilization, however, not only the islanders but also Lueli don’t know the meaning of wearing it. And teaching Lueli math is originally to make him feel joyful, yet it turns to be an alternative religion for Fortune to preach. He explains the concept of a dot to Lueli, but he just looks the hole on the sand as a simple hole. Fortune’s missionary will eventually leads to Lueli’s suicide. He starts to reflect on what he has done on Lueli. He always interferes his life. He realizes what he loves is Lueli’s opacity and unpredictable actions, so he shouldn’t be selfish and want to dominate his life. These failures reveal that he and the islanders are from different cultures, beliefs, and customs, so it’s impossible to make them completely accept and embrace what he think is good and beneficial for them. You may think you’re enlightening them by the light of civilization and brightening their life through the Christian love. Ironically, it turns out that you solely deprive their right to be themselves, the genuine selves.
Besides, Fortune’s personality- humble, gentle, and empathetic gives him chances to view things from different perspectives. He finds those untrue comments on the islanders are merely white people’s stereotypes and prejudices. Their racial superiority, ingrained ignorance and arrogance make them despise pagan, heathen, and people with other skin color. He also finds how evil, unfair, and dreadful it is to obliterate differences as many colonists and imperialists having done to other places. Therefore, he refuses to use violence like the white colonists who “opposes gun-boats to canoes and rifles to bows and arrows” and take extreme methods like forcing natives to burn and abandon their idols to make others submit to what he believes, worships, and adores. He chooses to respect uniqueness, individuality, and other’s free will which it’s the opposite of the value of Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
410202038 張榮桀
As a European missionary, Mr. Fortune has a sense of superiority and he wants to convert the islanders who are regarded as “barbarians.” The islanders are pure and live a happy life without disturbance. They sing and dance happily and they don’t even have religion. However, Christian imperialism and European colonialism are just like invaders to destroy this innocent paradise. As we know, the Imperialism and the colonialism rob of land and resources from other countries, and force them to learn their culture and give in their control. Mr. Fortune faces many failures, miscommunicating with Lueli’s mother, delivering announcement which is seen as cookies-delivering to the islanders, making unfit trousers for Lueli and the introduction to mathematics, for examples. These examples show that the violence of knowledge and Mr. Fortune thinks that he brings these must-learning to the islanders and forces them to learn. Fortunately, Mr. Fortune is a humble man, and he can change his mind and have a reflection in what he had done to Lueli. When Mr. Fortune faces failure, he quickly gives up. This seems that Mr. Fortune is a loser and he can’t finish anything no matter how hard he tried. In fact, because of his characteristics, he won’t force the islanders to learn what they don’t like and he doesn’t force them to covert different religion, change their language and their way of life. Mr. Fortune is very different from the typical concept of Christian imperialism and European colonialism and he even changes his religion. Sylvia Townsend Warner chooses him as her protagonist in this novel not only reveals the ambition of imperialism and colonialism of European, but also uses him as a critique to point out that European are selfish and arrogant.
英美三 賴璟毅 410202022
Q2
Both Mr. Fortune and Lueli are characterized as androgynous in the story. For instance, Mr. Fortune’s feeling of happiness of the hanging lamp in his hut is compared to Sappho’s expression of pure wonder in the evening star in the story. Also, Mr. Fortune identifies himself with Delilah, a woman whose figure is one of several dangerous temptresses in the Bible. Moreover, when he was young, Mr. Fortune liked to read a story book that was for girls. He is described as having a housewifely mind, which is not common among men. We can see the girlish side of Mr. Fortune through his feminine qualities. Similarly, Lueli is effeminate. He likes to act as a conquet, and his obsessed with flowers. He adorns himself by wearing flowers and necklace. He is compared to Demeter instead of Narcissus. Moreover, his maidenly demeanour makes him stand out from the crowd. He is definitely not a so-called normal boy.
There is still a long way to go on gender equality, because the gender ambiguity is not fully accepted in the existing patriarchal society. For example, women still face barriers to advancement at work. There are still some conservative people think women should stay home. Or even worse, there are stereotypes about powerful women. I don’t like the idea of “Man should be masculine and women should be feminine.” I believe in gender fluidity. There isn’t a perfect man, neither is woman. I don’t like the labels in our lives. Why do people tend to label and judge others? What if I don’t fit in any of those? Where do I belong? I would like to be in a place like Fanua, where I can truly be myself, and I don’t need to care about what others think of me.
410102071 英美四 陳翰韋
The traditional gender expectation has been cultivated as a righteous, formal, natural thought in European society in a long period. In Mr. Fortune’s Maggot, the author tries to break the traditional gender expectation by depicting, or creating two queer characters. The gender ambiguity can be found in both two characters’ personalities. Concisely speaking, we might find it in the interaction between their behaviors, reactions to matters. It brings not only a view but also a lesson for readers and the world.
For Mr. Fortune, the author has put some elements into his personality. When going to the island, he brings a gentleman’s housewife. Except for his talented ability, the author mentions Sappho and Delilahs in Mr. Fortune’s thinking. Because Mr. Fortune is a male from Europe, masculinity has rightly become law on morality. However, Mr. Fortune has performed his gender ambiguity accidentally in his behaviors, such as sewing or reading Leila in the kids’ storybooks.
On the contrary, Lueli in Fanua, was never educated and natural. The author also shows the gender ambiguity in Lueli’s behaviors and personality in several paragraphs. When Lueli makes garlands for Mr. Fortune, Mr. Fortune describes that Lueli is conqetting like a girl. Next, Lueli tries to oil Mr. Fortune. However, In Mr. Fortune’s British stereotype, oiling is effeminate. Moreover, the author designs the plot that Lueli is playing at houses. Until about the end of the story, Lueli gives Mr. Fortune a head-dress.
These elements which the author gave Lueli are explained the aim of the story- to revise the traditional gender expectation, though many people trapped in the so-called the state-of-the-art education with inequitable stereotype. Mr. Fortune’s journey to Fanua seems like a journey to search or re-define his real God (the right standard of gender issue).
410285026 英美三 李靜潔
Question one :
Through the whole book, all of the thing Mr. Fortune did is failures. Start from his first day till at the end he taught Lueli Math. However , all of the failure show the difference between aboriginal and European colonialism. For exam when Mr. Fortune teaches Luile Math which totally destroy Lueli psychological at all. For Mr. Fortune math is his happy resource. All of those movements are failure because he does not understand their racial difference. I think that is the reason why through the books all of the examples do not success at all.
The failure let Mr. Fortune grow and he gains experience. Through the experience Mr. Fortune accomplishes the only one good thing and farewell with Lueli.
From, European side Mr. Fortune is a loser at all. He spends all the effort for missionary but in vain. Because his failure so he absorb the culture and has different attitude toward imperialism. He even gives up his religious as Christian. He truly understands that Christian culture cannot fit in the island at all.
Mr. Fortune a very English man when first time in Funa island. He critics everything. The author uses Mr. Fortune as metaphors to see the life. The failure Mr. Fortune makes which also the mistake imperialism did in other countries. Reflect their mistake and he hopes that they can understand the cultural difference. The author uses a loser to critic the European colonialism to show even a loser can understand the difference.
The author reflects the society through this figure, reveal the self-center and arrogant side of imperialism.
410213005 英美三 張鈺翎
Q2
Mr. Fortune and Lueli both have androgynous characteristics in this novel. They are described with both male and female physical features individually.
Mr. Fortune’s same sex desire shows up when he first met Lueli and gave him a new name. This point is referred to not only the violent of naming but also Mr. Fortune’s deeply mind that he discovered Lueli was attractive to him. Besides, Sylvia Townsend Warner describes the girls on Fanua are all nymphomanias to Mr. Fortune. In contrast to being a man, Mr. Fortune feels terrible by surrounding by these young girls. Moreover, Mr. Fortune likes a house-wife to make clothes for Lueli in order to let him have properly dressed. Furthermore, Mr. Fortune also compares himself to Sappho who represents for lesbianism. In my opinion, Sylvia Townsend Warner as lesbian writer, she puts lesbian elements in and gives this novel in a childish tone. In the beginning of the novel, Mr. Fortune was not given a masculine characteristic. All clues of Mr. Fortune’s androgynous characteristics are due to his good and gentle. Because of Mr. Fortune has feminine personality so that he is willing to sacrifice his belief and to accept his failures.
Luelie’s characteristic is described as a girl who stayed coquetting beside the mirror. Moreover, his behavior is as aristocratic-looking somehow in order to favor with husband. In addition, Lueli, like other beauties, had a tincture of aloofness in his character. He is like a pet cat which as a beam of moonlight playing bo-peep through a cloud. In the novel, we can see how Lueli acts like a little girl. And his maidenly demeanour is quite contrast to those aggressive young girls on Fanua. For instance, Lueli is gentle to standing on his head to find out the unguent for Mr. Fortune in order to let he enjoy the oiling.
I believe that human beings have fluid sex desires. Forever love to somebody is such the most difficult thing. Because of sex fluidity, it can open up a possibility that the world can be different.
410202037 徐翊庭
Q1:
From a series of Mr. Fortune’s failures in Fanua, he not only brings out great important issues which is the disparity of racism, culture and religion, but also learn how to respect those large differences, how to get along with native people in a humble attitude, and how to see the both side with an equal-standarded sight.
Moreover, through these failures, Sylvia tries to convey messages to Mr. Fortune, people in the era of European power, and those who are reading this novel that forcibly changing the original nature, violently enslaving the virgin land, and expropriating the purest heart without the consent, which all are just big failure, since what you change, enslave or expropriate are the shallowest part which cannot really get real elements but the negative twisted power that may strongly counterattack.
Taking European colonial era as example, in order to earning large benefits, those colonial countries conquer Africa, Asia, the Antillean islands in Caribbean Sea, and etc. This not only results in bad effects of great uncertainty and environmental damage, but also have discriminations in every aspects. Another example, Aboriginal and Hakka cultures in Taiwan are disappearing gradually especially the event of speaking Mandarin in 1958, which Kuomintang government used the carrot and the stick to make their languages decay.
However, in the novel, Mr. Fortune humbles himself on Fauna’s everything, no matter how Lueli does refuse him or how disappointing those people in Fanua cannot accept his missionary lessons. Mr. Fortune doesn’t break the peace and the balance in Fanua. Let us understand that the key to the happiness, the message which Sylvia Townsend Warner also wants to convey, is to respect those different from you and me.
英美三 410202001 林冠宇
Q1
At beginning of novel we can read the Archdeacon said the islanders who live in Fanua was immoral, has no words for chastity or for gratitude but this just Christian and European arrogant point of view. The truth is the islanders live in their own way; the people who come to this island try to change their lifestyle are wrong and stupid. Mr. Fortune as a Christian and European, the duty of him is bring the civilization to this island however his humble and innocent makes lot of failure and we can read is not easy to change people’s mind and behavior not based on domination. There are two failures I want to mention are when Mr. Fortune gave a speech to explain his reasons for coming to the islanders; the islanders received his speech in silence broken only by eating cookies and thought Mr. Fortune was novelty and nothing else, the speech of Christian beliefs for them was not really important although it seem like important to Mr. Fortune. The second one is Mr. Fortune wanted to achieve a duet with Lueli but we can read the harmonium and wooden pipe not fit to each other. Musical instrument and melody sometimes symbolize the culture of country so we know it is difficult to mix two different cultures together. The writers use this loser without tough weapons and ways we know Christian imperialism or European colonialism is weak, they think they are noble but they just like barbarians come to strange place then scramble everything include people thoughts. Fortunately, Mr. Fortune always reflect on himself and not think himself is better than the other islanders saves him from death and make himself better which is religion really give to us ── the power to change yourself not the others.
英美二 410302016 陳 璞
Mr. Fortune symbolizes the failure of Christian Imperialism and European Colonization. For he tries his best to make a difference to the islanders, it’s similar to the deeds that colonial countries and people of religious imperialism do to conquer the “weak” countries.
The story of Mr. Fortune is full of many unexpected failures. Mr. Fortune initially feels a calling that he would like to go alone to convert the natives of Fanua, the place is a rather small and remote island, moreover, the islanders are like children, they are happy, always singing and dancing. The setting is very unique; it’s not like the weak countries that appear in the history. The characteristics of Mr. Fortune are also unlike the characteristics of normal adventurous character. He is humble and has easy-going nature. There’s a kind of purity inside of Mr. Fortune, sometimes the readers may take pity on him for the unlucky events he encounters. Throughout the story, not only he makes only one convert but also he encounters bad things unexpectedly. This is a total difference compares to the somewhat powerful Christian Imperialism and European Colonization. The author uses a witty way to criticize on the foolishness of colonialism and both the religious and imperialism. It breaks our myth about colonialism that powerful countries are “superior” and they forced those weak countries to learn what they think is good and better, just like Mr. Fortune tries to let Lueli wear clothes and teaches him mathematics. What’s so ironic about Mr. Fortune is that he even gives up his religion!
The funny ironies throughout the story gives the readers bittersweet pleasures by seeing Mr. Fortune fails again and again. The story surely throws a to reflect on the dominance of Christian Imperialism and European Colonization.
410202006 英美三 林禹彤
Q1
The islanders of Fanua are innocent and pure. Before European come, they have their primitive and happy life without any disturbance. It is wonderful for them to dance and sing in a field. The islanders also don’t have religious. Before Mr. Fortune comes here, the Archdeacon tells him that the islanders are immoral and barbarian.
Because the culture in Fanua is totally different from Europe.
The first failure is that Mr. Fortune gives announcements to the islanders but they just look at him and crunch on cookies. It is new to them because there is a man talking about something they don’t understand with passion. The second failure is that Mr. Fortune wants Lueli to live with him, so he has a conversation with his mother. But Lueli’s mom can’t understand what Mr. Fortune is talking about. She doesn’t know what Mr. Fortune is going to do. They have problems in communication. Mr. Fortune’s religious is also different from the islander’s, so Lueli’s mother doesn’t know what the conversion is. Because of these failures, Mr. Fortune makes none of them convert to him
Mr. Fortune is a humble man. Because of his characteristic, he has done so many failed things. He seems to be a loser in a story. In fact, he’s not like those who force colonies to convert their language, religious and the way of life. When Mr. Fortune encounters the failure, he gives up. He doesn’t want others reluctant to follow the new idea. As we know, the Imperialism and the colonialism usually seize weak countries’ lands and resources, and force them to give up their culture. Mr. Fortune is contrary to the Imperialism and the colonialism.
410202031
游皓宇 英美三
Question 1
Island of Fanua is a wonderful place for living. Lots of people live here with passion and happiness. All of the sudden, a group of missionaries arrive and change their life gradually. I want to talk about missionaries first. Missionaries are sent from their countries, trying to change people’s belief in colonies. John Locke (1632-1704) said that every human being has natural right. No one can change other people’s religion or belief. Missionaries’ behaviors are kind of “religion-imperialism”. In this story, Mr. Fortune uses a lot of ways to make Lueli change his belief, such as making clothes, teaching music, finding Lueli’s wife, and so on. On page 10, there is a sentence, “they are like children, always singing and dancing, and of course immoral. But all the natives are like that.” Mr. Fortune and his partner use “immoral” to describe the natives. This one shows the racial discrimination because they have moral judgment. White supremacism makes white people (or European people) use superior angles to treat different races inappropriately. Besides, it is self-centered. The main point of imperialism is self-centered. They always believe that no one is superior to them. About the failure part, it is kind of symbol in this story. Failures which he made represent that rejection of imperialism and Christianity. Everything he did for Lueli ended with failure because the author wants us to think about the situation the natives face. It is not a good idea to force people to change their religion or belief.
民發三 410297071 楊雅婷
Question 1
In this story, Mr. Fortune went to Fanua, an "undeveloped" country, to preach Christianity as a protestant mission. There must be culture shock and different values (moral value, religious value, living value, and so on). He tried so hard and thought a lot of ways to please his only “follower’’ and persuaded local people to believe in God though it never succeeded. In my opinion, I think the author gives readers another perspective that redefines the “successful” meaning. No matter it’s a critique of Christian imperialism, European colonialism or major views on success. I think the author want to say people like Mr. Fortune is a kind of success on mental development. Mr. Fortune knew how to reflect himself, put himself in other’s shoes, did action to re-correct the failure and never gave up things he really like or wanted to do though at the end he had not achieve any specific goal, his mind had grew and he learn other unexpected things on this experience. For instant, he accepted the difference and sympathized on Lueli sincerely. At beginning, when Lueli’s idol was burned out into ash, he did not understand the sorrow of Lueli and even persuaded Lueli believe in God and forget about his own religion. This made Lueli sadder and Mr. Fortune didn’t understand. This is just like the situation that people use their own point of view to think and they will become stereotype. However, Mr. Fortune reflected himself after he go though many failure. He even carved the idol for Lueli that is contrary to his belief on religion. I think it means what we use to believe may be wrong or unsuitable, we need to correct it regard as different background and target though reflection.
Sylvia Townsend Warner’s ingenious use of “failure” to foreshadow the difference of racial and religious in Mr. Fortune’s Maggot. Although Mr. Fortune is generally considered as a loser, his failure actually reminds us to recollect the issue of the Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
As the difference culture, racial and religion always lead lots of misunderstanding, Mr. Fortune faces many obstacles in the process of conversion. For instance, after Ori listens to Mr. Fortune’ speech about Christian education, he cannot understand what Mr. Fortune means and starts to talk about whether Mr. Fortune likes a girl. Besides, when Mr. Fortune preaches to the islanders, nobody listens to him but eats their ginger-bread nut. Both of this examples show that it is difficult to force people to understand Christian thing when they have different religion, racial, culture and life.
Since Mr. Fortune has the superiority complex and the ingrained arrogance, he displays many evil characteristics of the Christian imperialism and European colonialism. First, the decision to gives Lueli a new name, Theodore, shows the Christian imperialism to dominant others. Second, Mr. Fortune forces Leuli to learn everything he teaches because he thinks all of this conversion is good to Leuli and Leuli will love this conversion. However, this conversion seems to make Lueli as a parrot to talk like Mr. Fortune rather than whistle like a wise bird. From the above examples, Mr. Fortune’s behaviors represents the great irony of Christian imperialism and European colonialism, as he tries to brings everything about Christian and European to the islanders and ask them to learn and convert but ignore their original religion and culture.
While Mr. Fortune is considered as a loser who gives up when he faces frustrations, he is actually a humble person in the story. After three years of conversion on Fauna, Mr. Fortune makes no a single convert and messes up everything. If Mr. Fortune was a cruel imperialist who used the weapon to convert islanders, I think he would not face so much failures in the story. It is interesting and important that Sylvia Townsend Warner uses Mr. Fortune as a “kind” Christian imperialist and European colonialist. Since Mr. Fortune is kind and humble, he chooses to give up his believed instead of using violence. Sylvia Townsend Warner successfully uses Mr. Fortune’s failures as metaphor and irony to remind us the Christian imperialists’ and European colonialist’s selfishness and pride.
410302032 袁涵茵
Answer question 2
No matter it is western culture or eastern culture, the traditional stereotypes of a man is main to be masculine, strong, powerful and ambitious because of physiological difference of gender. Logically speaking, most of male creatures are physically taller, stronger and more aggressive than female indeed and female creatures are opposed male creatures. Therefore, people would have stereotype that men are the leaders of the society, they have higher social state and more dominion than women have. To break the stereotypes, Mr. Fortune and Leuli born.
Compared to other novel, Mr. Fortune and Leuli are the characters which is much more feminine. For instant, Mr. Fortune is described as a thin man, he did things like reading books for girls secretly and playing with dolls in his childhood. Also, he sewing for Leuli’s new clothes, but it is thought to be housewife’s work at that time.
Mr. Fortune is neither strong nor masculine in the novel, which is very different from gender expectations. Leuli is similar to Mr. Fortune, he is described as a pretty boy who is neutral and docile, and Mr. Fortune has used beauties, Demeter that highlight the characteristic to describe him. He do what Mr. Fortune told him, seldom revolt Mr. Fortune. He treat his idol like a girl playing with a doll.
These kind of characteristics which Mr. Fortune and Leuli have are in contrast with traditional gender expectations. However, while I was reading, it didn’t occur me that they are gender ambiguity because it seems to be common in our life. Somehow we have accepted those gender rules unconsciously, but the truth is that the author in nineteen century presents characters which are closer to reality. Not about their gay identity, it’s just that human are neutral, no one would be absolutely masculine or feminine. The author tries to break the rules, and I think she did it.
英美四 王潔安 410102010
Answer to Q1:
Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Mr. Fortune’s Maggot demonstrates the failures Reverend Mr. Fortune encounters when attempting to convert the residences in Fanua. In the eye of the British, Mr. Fortune is a loser who fails to “tame” the immoral indigenous people. By demonstrating Mr. Fortune’s failures, Warner critiques the arrogance of the European colonialism and Christian imperialism.
Mr. Fortune is described as a humble man, and his humbleness has led to his “failures.” He does not seek to change the customs and traditions in Fanua, rather he embraces it whole-heartedly. Because Fortune respects the local culture, he does not wish to compel the indigenous to give up their idols, even though his main goal is to convert them. Therefore, Mr. Fortune has failed his mission in “civilizing the immoral people,” instead he blend in with the local customs.
Mr. Fortune is being defined as a failure because he does not carry out the European spirit in a savage world. He is expected to bring “rules and virtues” to straighten out the “undisciplined and debauched.” However, different customs should never be valued less simply because they do not share the same values. Forcing people of different colors and beliefs to comply to the “righteous rules” is violent and arrogant. This very kind of act should be described as immoral and savage.
Sylvia Townsend Warner seeks to bring the awareness of “difference” to the readers by Fortune’s failures. Homogenizing has been recognized as the goal of colonialism and imperialism, and Warner shows disapproval of that by letting Mr. Fortune encounters a series of failures.
Lueli is described to be a feminine figure, which is accepted by the villagers on the Fanua island. He would look in the mirror like a coquetting girl. His movement is pliant, complaisant, and docile. Instead of being aggressive, he seems to be a submissive boy. All these characteristics fit with the femininity defined in the patriarchal society. Compared to the Great Britain at that time, Victorian Age, Lueli's behavior would not be recognized or could be a violation to gender norms. Mr. Fortune is a housewifely man. He likes to clean his little hut and cook for himself. He is easily pleased when seeing a light hung outside the house. His behavior contrasts patriarchal expectation of a man. The two characters' depiction must be a shocking challenge to the readers, an it will gradually motivate them to rethink on the static imagination of gender in their minds.
410102036 林太乙
Unlike the sharply opposition setup of the upper and the lower, superior and inferior, and civilization and savage, Sylvia Townsend Warner uses Mr. Fortune as a character to criticize the European colonialism and imperialism. Through a series of failures, Mr. Fortune, who owns a humble and androgynous disposition, makes the difference in embracing religion, culture, and nonconformist concept.
The islanders are attracted by the surprising “novelty,” not his religious speech, which starts a bunch of fiascos. Miscommunications with Lueli’s mother, and chief man Ori are the second failure. Every time Mr. Fortune tries to put his thoughts, religious, or even love on Lueli, all of them are not successful like the trousers dressing, the matchmaking and mathematic teaching for Lueli, and Mr. Fortune’s resistance to be oiled. Despite of ending in failures, Mr. Fortune gets more knowledge from those refusals rather than nothing.
Through many failures in the island, Mr. Fortune finally understands and thinks over the colonization and imperialism of Europe. Released from every single paradox, Mr. Fortune blends in with those so-called “uncivilized” people in Fanua, which is really unusual. Fortune becomes a totally brand-new person, who is willing to break the Christian doctrines like carving a new idol, which is totally a sin of refection. After some introspection, Mr. Fortune brings out the critique of imperialist ideology. Sylvia Townsend Warner employs British and European perspective to define Mr. Fortune’s “failures” to wake our awareness of violence domination, and predation in language, mind, and the others.
410202076 英美三 林怡君
Q1
Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Mr. Fortune’s Maggot is a story about failure and an archive of Fortune’s bumbling and stumbling. Mr. Fortune is an ineffectual missionary and he succeeds in nothing. However, he is humble, kind and willing to learn from failure. Mr. Fortune’s failures are productive because they propose a different relation to knowledge, a relation not based on mastery and domination, but on their refusal.
Before Mr. Fortune comes to Fanua, the small remote island, the islanders are pure and live without bound and worries. They have their own definition of a happy lifestyle. What Mr. Fortune do and his failures represent the typical Christian imperialism and European colonialism. He brings something to the island and tends to change islanders’ local life into civilized way of life which is what Europeans called “good lifestyle”. In addition, religion is also a huge topic about Christian imperialism and European colonialism. For Mr. Fortune, there is only one real god when he is a Christian. He said his God is a better God than Lueli’s. He did self-reflection then. This is the criticism of imperialism.
“I’d had a poor, meagre, turnpike sort of life until I came here and found Lueli.” Mr. Fortune said. After a series of failures, Mr. Fortune totally changes his mind and accepts the way those islanders are. Human nature is instead of civilization. As a European, Mr. Fortune is not supposed to be like this and betrays his mission for European civilization. However, he is well aware those differences about racial and religious through all of his failures. He refuses to bring the torch of civilization into the island and destroys islanders’ life.
410102072 英美四 莊鈞翔
In Mr. Fortunes Maggot, Mr. Fortune suffers lots of setbacks and frustrations which result in his failure. His failure is meaningful because it shows that he is lack of cultural awareness and become a critique of Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
Mr. Fortune tries to teach new things and knowledge to people in the island, and this is his first failure. He is an enthusiastic man who believes that he can help people in this island by preaching, which is the same as European colonialism. Mr. Fortune thinks he can give these people a better life. However, it is important that people in their region have their own ways and belief to live; bringing them knowledge or advanced technology will only bring them disaster. Afterwards he falls in love with Lueli. He starts to teach Lueli every new thing whether Lueli likes it or not. Mr. Fortune starts to convince him to become a Christian, but he later perceives that he is forcing Lueli to do what he doesn’t want. Just like teaching Lueli math, Mr. Fortune believes teaching math can rescue Lueli, which later drives Lueli to commit suicide.
From the reasons above, Mr. Fortune is a great example of imperialism and colonialism, but I must clarify that he is a humble man who doesn’t think he is superior to others. Unlike to other colonists who think they are more powerful and prominent, Mr. Fortune is humble and has the ability of self-examination. He tries to bring something which he believes to be beneficial, but he will give up if people are unwilling to follow his idea. So we can say the novel "ingeniously" implies Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
410202003 英美三 吳明潔
The western countries think they are too more civilized, more powerful, more wisdom to teach the other countries they finding. But the fact is the people who lived in the countries that the western people finding are have their own attitude to life, have their own religion to believe, having their own rules to follow. What’s more, they are civilized in the some perspectives that is they show their respect for the nature and their surroundings, and have their happiness consists in contentment.
The western people found the “new” places (Actually, it already exists for a long time.) and want to conquer the places, control the people’s mind. To make them be have the same thoughts, behaviors even the religion. The western people with greedy, violence heart come to the countries in order to increase their power and money that shows their wealth and the status of the world.
In the perspectives from the people (Lueli in the Mr. Fortune's Maggot) lived in the places where the western countries finding, and be force to change their thoughts, religion, behaviors. Lueli has his own belief that idol that he created, but be burned. He loses his faith, and live unhappily. Can you imagine a person’s belief be destroyed violently how grief he is? But, fortunately, Lueli is teach by Mr. Fortune who has the characteristics of housewife who is careful and sympathy and, most importantly, he is a humble man. He suffers a lot of failures and he does not want to make Leuli unhappy so that he leaves.
When it comes to imperialism and colonialism, I think about the Industrial Revolution. People know more knowledge being a good thing but it brings same deficiencies too.
410185071 幼教四 許馨文
Q1:
Sylvia Townsend Warner described a series of failures which Mr. Fortune went through in “Mr. Fortune’s Maggot”, and this work also shows the process of change of Mr. Fortune’s concept owing to author’s ingenious use of continuous “failures”. First, there are two clergymen told Mr. Fortune: “I must warn you, Fortune, you are not likely to make many converts in Fanua.” When Mr. Fortune decides to set out on a journey to Fanua, people around him entirely have no hope for his missionary journey. I think those words which clergymen said also predicted that Mr. Fortune’s journey is doomed to fail. Then, Mr. Fortune really suffers endless frustration during the process of missionary journey. For example, when he is full of zest to make a little formal speech to the islanders, the islanders receive his speech in silence. Mr. Fortune’s speech can’t resonate with the islanders at all, because they have entirely different cultural background. In addition, Mr. Fortune makes a new cloth to Lueli, and he wants Lueli to wear it. In my opinion, wearing clothes might be a behavior which represents civilization, and it can make the islanders look like “people” rather than “creatures”. However, Lueli avoids wearing the cloth as far as possible. Also, Mr. Fortune tries to make Lueli become a Christian, a child of God, but he still fails in achieving this purpose at the start. Just like most missionaries or colonists, Mr. Fortune wants to make those “creatures” become converts in the island of Fanua at first, but he is always in a state to do anything that is desperate. These examples just reflect the critique of Christian imperialism or European colonialism.
英美三 410202075 李家欣
Mr. Fortune’s Maggot is a story about Mr. Fortune’s failures, which propose a different relation to knowledge and not based on mastery and domination. Some of Mr. Fortune’s failures can seem as critique of imperialism. For example, his purpose of going to Fanua was to preach and convert the islanders to believe the true God. Also, Mr. Fortune tried to teach Lueli Mathematics, which was the other truth to him after he no longer believed in God. These two examples show how the powerful countries try to change the colonists’ religions and even force the colonists accept their knowledge. Another example is Mr. Fortune gave a new name, Theodore, which means ‘the gift of God’ to Lueli. It is also violence of colonialism.
There are still many different failures. To make Lueli more like a Christian, Mr. Fortune presented him in hand-made clothes, but this behavior only made Lueli’s mother terrified and thought it would ruin the boy’s prospects. Second, after Lueli’s idol destroyed in the fire, Mr. Fortune tried many ways to cheer Lueli up, such as teaching him ping-pong and pet a parrot.
However, he didn’t success. He forgot the purpose of being in Fanua, instead, he enjoyed spending time with Lueli. Lueli didn’t really change his belief and become a Christian; he still worshiped his idol secretly. Also, Mr. Fortune didn’t really cheer Lueli up with teaching and petting. To Mr. Fortune, going to Fanua is a journey full of failures, but he never give up. With his humble and easy-going personality, he reflected himself, change, learn, and grow up from the failures.
英美二 410302062 王郁婕
Question 1
Mr. Fortune’s Maggot is a story about failures. Fortune’s failures produce a new relation which is not based on European colonialism but multiculturalism. Mr. Fortune, a humble missionary, deals things with multiculturalism. He makes everything fail, but his failures show his kindness. Also, his failures give prominence to European colonialism which is aggressive and inhuman. There are some examples. Lueli disappears for three days to fish with his cousins. Before he left, he didn’t ask Mr. Fortune. Mr. Fortune scolds Lueli in an infuriated manner when he comes back. But suddenly, he realizes his desire which is to control Lueli. Mr. Fortune introspects himself. Lueli is no longer a convert but a person. As an European, he should civilize and change heathens, because he is “superior.” However, he changes himself, instead of changing others like an European. Another example, Mr. Fortune wants to find a Christian wife for Lueli, because Mr. Fortune thinks that Lueli is young and vigorous. Lueli refuses to have a wife, he is already quite happy as he are. Mr. Fortune fails as before. This thing improves that he doesn’t dominate Lueli, but respects his will. Third example, Mr. Fortune finds Lueli’s idol. He realizes Lueli has been playing a double game, betraying him, feigning to be a Christian. Mr. Fortune is totally failed, he is an ineffectual missionary. His only convert isn’t a Christian. Mr. Fortune asks Lueli to burn his idol. Before long, a fire which caused by an earthquake destroys Lueli’s idol. Lueli falls into a great sorrow. Finally, Mr. Fortune feels it seemed ungentlemanly to have such a superior invulnerable God, part of that European. Then, he criticizes how aggressive European colonialism is.
Q2:
In the story, we see lots of descriptions toward Lueli. For examples, the first time he described Lueli “Coquetting like a girl” or “Only some women, happy in themselves and in their love, will show to a lover or husband this kind of special grace.”
Although it said that Mr. Fortune did not know, we could obviously see the difference between Leuli and our normal gender expectation toward males.
There was a special part I’d like to talk about is those native women. Teacher said this kind of people called nymphomania. For Mr. Fortune, those women are like “a pack of wolves,” “a swarm of mosquitoes,” and “a horde of Tartars.” I think this is kind of gender ambiguity in the story. This kind of situation for most men are like heaven; but for Mr. Fortune, hell. Maybe it’s due to his religion, but I think it can also be a gender ambiguity.
These gender ambiguities actually can make our thought toward gender issues more multivariate. We wouldn’t view some behaviors or sayings as specific genders’. That’s totally wrong. Our established impression toward gender is made up by the mainstream values. However, there was no any rule telling us which kind of gender should behave or talk in restricted way.
Another example is charming domestic ease. It gives Mr. Fortune domestic bliss. This also subverts our expectation toward male’s hobby. In the patriarchal society, females do those house chore. Housework wouldn’t be the priority for male, but it gave Mr. Fortune joys. This can also give us another thought about this kind of stuff.
410202045 英美二 楊涵喻
Q1
Since Mr. Fortune is a Reverend from European, we can see him as a symbol of Christian imperialism and European colonialism in this story. And the island, Fanua, symbolizes places where religion and race that are different from European’s and Christianity. And we can know from Mr. Fortune’s failure which is based on not thinking for others, enforcing Christianity and European culture on people with different religion and culture would eventually fail, for example, the islanders received his speech in silence broken only been crunching, his miscommunication with Lueli’s mother and Ori, he failed to present Lueli’s clothes, he couldn’t arrange Lueli’s marriage and Lueli disliked to play spillikins with him and got bored when he was using magnifying-glass to observe. Sometimes people with different religion and culture could get hurt or had a negative impact in the progress, for instance, Lueli was terrified by the wild bees attracted by honey and water, Lueli’s nose bled while playing ping-pong and hit by the nut, Lueli was scratched and bit by their pet baby flying fox, and the worst of all, Lueli tried to drown himself because he couldn’t stand mathematic and geometry. Also, the unfeasible duet plan is an evidence that two different religion and culture are incompatible with each other when one enforce their perspective on the other.
Since Mr. Fortune did examine himself carefully, and discovered mistakes in him, he changed his behavior and appearance, and the truth of Mr. Fortune having no convert at the end, these are suggesting that enforcing Christianity and European culture on people with different race and religion is wrong, Christian imperialists and European colonialists won’t succeed and should change their mind of being superior to others.
410102040 英美四 林欣慈
Answer Q1
There has been a series of failure during Mr. Maggot’s journey in Fauna. Even though carrying a sacred mission to the island, he shows his respect to accept brand-new things, and learns from his introspections. Without any successful convert, Mr. Maggot’s admirable disposition of being humble preserves Lueli’s uniqueness, and saves his own identity.
To some degree, Mr. Maggot is an invader of Christian imperialism. He does not eliminate the culture and the religion differences of the island fiercely. He makes his efforts to preach, convincing his only convert, Lueli, to believe in his god. One day, Mr. Maggot is struck by an incident that Lueli suddenly disappears for the first time. Examining his inner self with great loss and anxiety, he realizes it is egotism that leads him to his down fall. He knows how the civilized countries work; however, they are not the center of the universe.
Then, later comes the biggest failure. Mr. Maggot wants to introduce the beauty of math to Lueli, who is freaking out by this abstract culture monster. Again, he puts his will on his lover, which not only kills Lueli’s identity, but also half of his life. He intends to drown himself to death. Finally, the only way not to assimilate his true love is to leave forever. Go back to the civilized world, where he does not belong to anymore.
To sum up, even though Mr. Maggot is a failed missionary, he is a real man who cares about his beloved one. He gives up his religion, and departs from Western imperialism to keep Lueli’s completeness identity, which can be considered a great love.
410202013 英美三 林靖瑜
Mr. Fortune is described as a humble, simple, gentle, and empathetic missionary who constantly reflects on himself. Unfortunately, because of his personality he becomes a total failure throughout the story; nothing really follows his intention. However, these obstacles seems to be fortunate and meaningful for him. Also, Sylvia Townsend Warner uses his defeats as satire, irony, and critique to mock Christian imperialism and European colonialism. The following examples are his frustrations which brings out the discrepancy of two culture/religion.
First of all, misunderstandings and miscommunications are common in conversations between Mr. Fortune himself and the islanders. There is one time when Mr. Fortune decides to match-make for Lueli, and he asks whether Lueli is interested in any of the girls on Fanua or not; Lueli misunderstands the whole conversation and thinks that Mr. Fortune himself is getting married. Also, Mr. Fortune has trouble communicating with Lueli’s mother and the chief, Ori, while he is trying to explain the difference between obeying God’s will and the lawful authority; Lueli’s mother offers a netful of shrimps and Ori, women, for their answers.
Secondly, when he returns after visiting the Archdeacon, he decides to make some clothes for Lueli in order to show the islander the benefits of wearing clothes and provoke their sense of shame. Turns out everything goes wrong, not only the trouser is two-dimensional which makes Lueli really uncomfortable wearing it, but also the islanders, especially Lueli’s mother, think of the clothing as a blasphemy.
His next failure is teaching Lueli math. Mathematics as well as the clothing which symbolize civilization and the superiority of the western world are supposed to be good for Lueli and the Fanuans, but these so-called advantages seems to be fatal in the story. Although Mr. Fortune explains the concept of dots gently and patiently, Lueli still cannot understand anything about geometry, and even upsets Lueli. Moreover, it also leads Lueli to commit suicide.
Mr. Fortune is the representative of Christian imperialism and European colonialism, but being humble, and always aware of the main causes of his failures makes his mission unsuccessful; he does not convert and ‘civilized’ anyone on the island. Furthermore, he refuses to be prejudicial and violent, that is why he does not force the residence to burn their idols. Instead, he chooses to respect the Fanuan culture and even admires the beauty of the island itself and the culture. Ironically, his decision and way of thinking let him fail to ‘tame’ these immoral aborigine. Sylvia uses his story as a critique to attack the stupidity of imperialism and make us the readers to rethink about our own society and even ourselves as individuals.
41020A039 李季穎
After reading the novel, Mr.Fortune Maggot. I rethink what is “gender” Is it means that the character of the outward appearance? It is means our inherent gender? Nevertheless, both of two questions are contained social stereotype. But, the two stereotype is the expecrion of our society. People in our society always think men are strong, they are not afraid of anything certanly, they can protect everyone and they have masculine. Women are gentle, temperamental and they should have long hair. Neverthelss, I think everyone should rethink is that should gender characters are drew a line absolutely?
In the “Mr. Fortune Maggot”, the gender feature of Mr.Fortune is ambiguous. Though Mr.Fortune is a male, his many abilities is really like a girl. For example, he likes to do many I n our society, many people put themselves into the box He has a housewifely mind. Other example is when Mr.Fortune was a child, he liked to read Leila’s story, which is supposedly a book for girls. Fortune identifies himself with Delilah. Lulie likes to act as coquet. Leuli has maidenly demeanour, it is so big difference from the horrible girls in the island. The ambiguous gender is different from the patriarchal society. The family of patriarchal society is means that the power of the family is made of the male. Nevertheless, when the gender feature is no longer clear and it becomes ambiguous, the distribution of the house work is not absolutely. For example, male do the house work mainly. Female works out. When the gender feature become ambiguous, their distribution of the house work is according to everyone’s ability not be according to gender stereotype. It is more equal to everyone.
410102051 黃昱孜
In Mr. Fortune's Maggot, Sylvia Townsend Warner uses a serious of failure of Mr. Fortune to criticize the Christian imperialism and the European colonialism. Just like Kurtz who represents civilization in the Heart of Darkness. The Christian imperialism and European colonialism; one is force others to convert the same religion as they are and the other one is trying to make the savage civilized. Mr. Fortune, an English man, as a missionary his mission to Fanua is to convert the natives. But it turn out that he only convert one boy named Lueli who be found does not convert in the end of the story. Also Mr. Fortune failed when he tries to teach or show him something about civilization. Even though he does not success at all, with his humble and simplistic personality he accepts every failure. Besides, he shows his respect to the islander and even seems to blend in with them. If Warner uses the Christian imperialism and European colonialism position to narrate the story, then Mr. Fortune’s mission should be completed finally. But in the story Mr. Fortune does not eliminate the racial and religion differences of the islander also face a lot of failure. I think Warner uses the novel to present that try to change others or think its own culture and religion are superior to others is a wrong thoughts. Also Warner uses the failures to bring our awareness of the difference, and wants the reader to respect the differences as Mr. Fortune does.
410102029 英美四 彭靜怡
I would like to answer Q1
Before discussing Mr. Fortune’s failure, we should get to know the role of missionaries. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, missionary are driven by strong aspiration to serve humanity and also bring some material things and social changes to somewhere they think is uncivilized. Simultaneously, they also possess a sense of superiority which makes them get used to make judgments on indigenous behavior, values and belief which they don’t even try to understand or realize. The missionary compulsorily impose western morality and value upon the local people. They think the standard of living achieved by the “civilized” and “developed.” By means of spreading Christianity, missionary believes that it will eliminate natives’ superstitions and heathen customs. However, what does it mean to be civilized? Does Western life symbolize civilization in culture?
As a missionary, Mr. Fortune without a doubt is totally a failure. During his missionary time, he isn’t able to make converts except Lueli who doesn’t actually believe in Christianity at the end. He encounters so many frustrations when he try to preach to natives, he doesn’t force people to accept what he said, instead, he liberate from his egotism. Mr. Fortune tries to find out what native religion is. What he learns is that each of the islanders has his or her own individual god, a god that is carried with them and worshiped in their own ways. He finally discovers that Lueli has been secretly worshiping his god – a wooden statue while pretending to be converting to Christianity. He is shocked by his jealous possessiveness when Lueli’s come back. The idea is that he wants to smite his body down on the grass and ravish it which completely threatens him. Humble and meekest like him also has an unconscious desire to dominate and control his converts; both physically and mentally. There is no difference between him and other “successful” missionaries. His self-examination gives readers awareness that somehow Christianity is a form of imperialism. It is the conquest of the mind, spirit and culture of a person.
410202033 Zoe 廖家寧
Those “civilized” force “savages” to take their western value and religion, and belittle the local culture and custom. It’s a kind of violence, as well as a kind of arrogance.
At the first time Mr. Fortune meets the boy Lueli, he asks the boy’s name, and then he decides to give the boy a new name, Theodore. At that time, he hasn’t realized that Lueli’s own name is a part of him, not to mention noticing that the naming itself is a kind of violence. He names the boy just like colonist claim a new land and rename it in their words. Yet, it seems that Mr. Fortune forgets that he once renames the boy. Except the day he renames Lueli, he never calls Lueli Theodore again in the rest of the story. He doesn’t even notice that he unconsciously fails to call him Theodore.
As the story moves on, with all the failures he encounters, Mr. Fortune starts to feel what he deeds is wrong and refuses to put his own will on poor Lueli. (The clothes he makes for Lueli is a symbol that the “enlightenment” of civilization isn’t suitable for Lueli’s nature.) He appreciates the way Lueli is and decides not to interfere with Lueli’s true color.
Often, people think that only people who are people are people who think and look like them. Different from them, Mr. Fortune doesn’t possess that attitude. And it’s the key that makes Mr. Fortune see the bizarre things with tolerance instead of prejudice. And it’s his open mind and humbleness that makes he reflect on himself and start to realize things he used to believe is not necessarily true.
When he loses his God, It seems that he gives up his belief. But the truth is, he finds his belief.
林儀濃49802075
Mr. Fortune experiences culture impacts when he lives on the island of Fanua. There are many differences between Mr. Fortune’s country and the island of Fanua.
First, the personalities of Fanua people are natural and innocent, their life style are free and unconstrained; however, Mr. Fortune is so-called well-educated and reserved, the villagers in Fanua to him are immoral and uncivilized. For example, Fanua people do not keep their huts clean, they do not favor wearing clothes, and the women in Fanua are too sexually aggressive to Mr. Fortune. Second, the religions between Mr. Fortune and the islanders are also different. As a Christian priest, Mr. Fortune’s mission is to convert the islanders, so he tries different ways, such as giving the islanders bread and preaching them the doctrines of Christianity. But the islanders are only interested in the bread.
Then, after many times of preaching failures, Mr. Fortune again and again introspect himself upon him as an outsider living among the Fanua islanders, trying to change them with his belief and his ways of living. He even trying to educate the boy, Lueli, who he once thought is his first converter, yet, after he discovered Lueli is still worshipping his idol, he is full of anger and despair. The typical dominant and arrogant Christian thinking overwhelm Mr. Fortune’s mind and he takes it out on Lueli and accusing him a deceit. The monotheistic Christianity excludes other religions, which means it has no rooms for people who worships pagan Gods, just like Mr. Fortune’s angry reactions on Lueli’s secretly worshipping his idol.
However, Mr. Fortune has changed after many times of failures. His failures represent how the monotheistic Christianity pressing the pagans or the islanders’ belief and also reveal the European countries’ ambitious invasion to other small islands or countries. The changed attitude towards the islanders is a salvation to Mr. Fortune and a brief peace to the people in Fanua.
Q1
The islanders of Fanua who has not been implanted Christian imperialism or European colonialism are free and pure. They are not restricted by civilization or religion. Therefore, when Mr. Fortune goes to Fanua as a missionary, he is struck by failure continually.
The author adds many incidents ingeniously to show the failure of Mr. Fortune’s missionary plans. The first failure is when he explains the reasons for coming to Fanua, the islanders do not understand what he is talking about being a Christian at all because the religion means nothing to them. Second, after Mr. Fortune gets his first follower, Lueli, he talks to Lueli’s mother about the holy faith in order to get her approval, but he still cannot get the answer. Third, Mr. Fortune has a plan to dress Lueli and show off the superiority of civilization to get more followers. However, people do not accept it, so does Lueli. It is uncomfortable for the islanders of Fanua because they never wear clothes. Finally, Mr. Fortune finds that Lueli still talk to his own God, and this is the biggest failure for him. Lueli does not know what exactly a Christian is; he only knows that talking to his God makes him release. Through the incidents, we can see the different aspects of race and religion between the islanders and Mr. Fortune, who stands for Christian and European.
Most things around our lives are filled with imperialism and colonialism. Although Mr. Fortune who as a loser fails to propagate them, he finally understand that they are not the truth to everyone.
410102018 英美四 林庭筠
Mr. Fortune’s Maggot describes that Reverend Timothy Fortune goes to an island called Fanua to preach the local people. He meets a boy named Lueli who is young, graceful, and unusual to him. Mr. Fortune tries to change Lueli and teach him the “civilized” knowledge, but he always fails. By using Mr. Fortune’s failure, the author criticizes the Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
The author likens Mr. Fortune to Christian imperialism or European colonialism and likens Lueli to the aboriginal people. In addition, their totally different culture background creates some cultural conflict between Mr. Fortune and Lueli. First, when Mr. Fortune finds that Lueli still worships his idol, he feels angry and betrayed. However, after Lueli’s idol burns out, Lueli becomes mournful and depressed. Therefore, Mr. Fortune tries hard to make Lueli happy, but it turns out more and more failure on Mr. Fortune. The last failure is that Mr. Fortune tries to teach Lueli math. Because for Mr. Fortune, math can take him into “a inexpressibly romantic air” and give him “a kind of swoon and ecstasy,” he thinks that Lueli also can experience the same feelings. However, learning math leads Lueli to commit suicide. From the beginning to the end, Mr. Fortune and Lueli cannot balance the harmony.
In the end of the novel, Mr. Fortune gives up civilizing “the barbarous people” in Fanua, and he starts to accept the traditions of the island. Through Mr. Fortune’s failure, we can understand that the author wants to tell the readers every culture has their own originality, and it is wrong to force them to transform.
410202034 英美三 謝岱蓉
Q2
When it comes to male gay couples, I often think of a man who is more masculine and another is more feminine. However, this case is different although Mr. Fortune and Leuli are not couple. Both of them are more feminine and in other words, they are androgynous.
Mr. Fortune, who comes from English grew up in a traditional patriarchal society and he was taught to be a “man”. But, in fact, he has another soul in his body. For example, his feeling of happiness about the hanging lamp is as same as what Sappho felt about the evening star. Also, he identifies himself as Delilah and he can even feel the domestic bliss. In his childhood, he liked to read Leila’s story secretly because the book is not for boys but girls. Besides, he likes sewing, so he makes clothes for Leuli, and he enjoys things like preparation. Obviously, Mr. Fortune has a housewifely mind.
As for Leuli, he likes flowers and is like a coquettish girl. Leuli is good at weaving garlands and puts one round his neck, and he regard the tin box as a mirror that he loves to bend over it. When Leuli returns home with fish and fruits, he is just like Demeter, goddess of plenty rather than any male gods.
We still live in a patriarchal society, but I believe that someday gender ambiguity will be accepted and become common for everyone. There are so many gender expectations exist, but every single person is unique, so we should not be expected to have some characteristics. People have their own freedom to decide who they are and who they want to be. Fanua is a great place that people live there have no any gender norms and stereotypes, and this is what our society should learn.
410002061 英美系 申傳勝
Q1
In the beginning, Mr. Fortune believes that he can do something in Fanua. It is as the sign of European colonialism. The European believe that they are better than others, and they have the right to educate others. However, the islanders are innocence and they enjoy their lives. The people of Fanua are pure. They need no interruption. They own their way of life and have no religious.
Obviously, it is a huge mistake that Mr. Fortune wants Leuli to live with him. Also, it is unnecessary that Mr. Fortune wants to teach Leuli mathematics. Mr. Fortune only wants to teach him, but he even doesn’t understand him. It is as the reflection of European Imperialism. They believe their culture and religion are better than others. But they spend no time to appreciate other country’s culture and religion. In their eye, they see other cultures are lag behind civilization.
Mr. Fortune has problems in communication with Leuli. They have deep differences in racial and religious. Although Mr. Fortune tries his best to convert him, in the end, Leuli does not change his religion. In conclusion, there is the huge gap between Mr. Fortune and Leuli. Mr. Fortune is symbolized as some European countries.
In the first, Mr. Fortune thinks he can be successful, but after he decides to do something, he fails, and then he gives up.
In the end, he seems to be totally a loser. But part of Mr. Fortune is unlike the aggressiveness of European Imperialism and colonialism. However, there is also difference between Mr. Fortune and European Imperialism and colonialism.
410202079
Q1:Sylvia Townsend Warner’s Mr. Fortune’s Maggot is a story about failure. The failures began to happen since Mr. Fortune arrived at Fanua. Sylvia Townsend Warner used Mr. Fortune as a character to criticize Christian imperialism and European colonialism. Mr. Fortune thought Fanua was a wonderful island and the natives are kind, so he really likes there. Mr. Fortune is confident and enthusiastic about converting Fanua. But there are so many differences between Mr. Fortune and the local people, like religion and customs. So many things happened that showing Mr. Fortune’s awareness of religious differences, cultures differences, his self-examination, and reflection on the Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
Miscommunicating with Lueli’s mother, failed of teaching Math…all of the failures show the differences between aboriginal and colonialism. In the end, Mr. Fortune gave up, all the failures made him realized. He didn’t want to bring the torch of civilization into the island and destroy Fanua. Because all the things he done to this island made himself think about the disadvantages of imperialism and European colonization. His self-examination gives readers awareness of all the colonialism, imperialism or mainstream power. Sylvia Townsend Warner takes Mr. Fortune as an example of imperialism and colonialism. And there is an irony part of the story, even though Mr. Fortune leaves because he wants to keep this island original, there are still a lot of preachers and imperialists will come and destroy the beautiful island. These are the reasons how this story become a critique of Christian imperialism and European colonialism.
410302049 洪子宸
Question 1
Mr.Fortune had done many mistakes in the story. The first one was that he told the islanders what he's coming for when he approached the island, but they just looked at him and crunched on the cookies; the second was when Mr.Fortune tried to persuade Lueli's mother that he wants Lueli to live with him, but Lueli's mother couldn't understand what he was trying to say, and she didn't know what he was going to do, either. Mr.Fortune and the islanders not only have barriers on their languages but also their conventions, religious and race. The Archdeacon regarded the islanders as barbarians and dissolute.
Although Mr.Fortune was a missionary who came from a imperialism country, he didn't preach and change their own culture by force. Instead, he tried to join their lives and attempted to spread the lifestyle of his home country little by little. Even though he always failed, still engaged in a peaceful way. Mr.Fortune would gave up when he failed, for he wouldn't let any one to follow new ideas against their own will.
Imperialism countries usually take down the smaller countries and take their resources and make a devastating damage to their own culture, so Mr.Fortune is a good example for the irony of imperialism at that time.
Mr. Fortune is described as a house-wife-like man, who find domestic life, such as making clothes, interesting. Hence, Mr. Fortune also compares himself as Sappho, who was a lesbian poet. Meanwhile, Mr. Fortune also finds himself attracted by Leuli, and his desire for this little boy somehow makes Mr. Fortune’s behavior masculine. What's more, the young girls on the island are described as bevy girls by Mr. Fortune. This description implies that in fact, Mr. Fortune is not atrracted to women. On the other hand, Leuli is described as one who “would have stayed coquetting like a girl with a new coral necklace had not Mr. Fortune called him into the hut.” From all these we can see that Mr. Fortune and Leuli are both given androgynous characteristics. And this gender ambiguity which Sylvia Townsend Warner creates, is total opposite of what the society tends to inform public. By creating these two characters and their characteristics, Sylvia Townsend Warner tells the world that not only women can be soft, domestic but men as well. Although 89 years from the publishing of the novel, the society is still full of stereotypes, we can still say that the novel deeply influence how people see each other. I think that Mr. Fortune and Leuli make every reader feel that androgynous is nothing weird and that people who are different from the traditional gender expectations are not unbearable at all. I quiet like how the author creates their characteristics and their relationship. The sweet and sorrow atmosphere makes me wants to read it again and again.
Question 1
英美三410202028 杜元
In “Mr. Fortune’s Maggot”, it seems that the first time Mr. Fortune step on the wonderful island is a failure. I always view missionaries’ activity as an sort of imperialism, because they try to change the belief of the colonist.European colonialists’ purpose is to take large benefits, those colonial countries conquer Africa, Asia, the Antillean islands in Caribbean Sea, and etc. It’s not only result in bad effects of great uncertainty and environmental damage, but also has discriminations in every aspects.Sylvia Townsend Warner uses all the frustrations that Mr. Fortune had encountered to make her readers realize there are something wicked in those frustrations he had meet.
First, we can find out that those failures in the process of preaching religion and different racial exist between Lueli and Mr. Fortune. Also, there are so many misunderstandings truly occur to the conversation between Mr. Fortune and islanders. For instance, Mr. Fortune starts a conversation with Lueli’ s mother because he wants to live with Lueli; however, there are still many misunderstandings happen in their conversation due to their language barrier. Sylvia Townsend Warner make Mr. Fortune as her protagonist reveals the ambition of imperialism and colonialism of European. Moreover, she uses him as a critique to point out that European are selfish and arrogant.
I like the part that Mr. Fortune’s mission had ended in failure. He headed up to the volcano to find a piece of wood and began carving Lueli a new idol. It was time for him to leave the island. His story that had begun with a bang of creative promise had fizzled out in an authorial whimper.
Question 1
The failure of Mr. Fortune is ironic and satirized. From the story, we learned about that his personality is his own flaw. People on Fanua are happy and simple. However, Mr. Fortune is so arrogant to think that he can transform this situation and bring so-called civilization to the island. He always want to control and dominate not matter people or the environment. He didn’t realize that his role in this novel definitely expose the futility of religious zealotry among societies that functioned perfectly happy without it. Take Lueli’s suicide for example. He drown himself in order to refuse this kind of pathetic imperialism and colonialism. Because he realize that Mr. Fortune is unable to resist a last hurrah for the stupidity of colonialism and missionary mentality- not to mention a final triumph for the purity of unconditional love- rushes to get help and save Lueli. Just like the teacher said Fortune’s failure are productive because they propose a different relation to knowledge, a relation not based on mastery and domination, but on their refusal. Mr. Fortune’s failure proves that this sort of unilateral thoughts which tries to enlighten them, regards them as savages, and wants to bring them civilization are so ridiculous and shows how hilarious imperialism and colonialism are. According to Sylvia, she didn’t criticize directly, instead using “failure” as an alternative way of thinking to strike back is really impressive. In the novel, we can find out some details prefigure Mr. Fortune’s mastery and religious mentality that will ultimately leads to his Failure. One is the earthquake part, the person who saves Mr. Fortune is the vary Lueli; nevertheless, Fortune turns out to gratitude the love from god. The other one is that when Lueli’s worshiping idol is lost in the conflagration, Fortune tries to teach him math, which the symbol of rational, his subconscious domination, and western world rather than help him. Lack of the awareness of racial and religious difference, Fortune ultimately gives up and surrenders to their refusal.
英美二 410302010 洪寧孺
Mr. Fortune is a missionary who has come to the island of Fanua. Himself stands for the icon of a typical white man, who upholds the Christian imperialism and European colonialism belief. However, he is a humble man who lived by the dictum "Good things come to those who wait". Thus, instead of forcing the boy, Lueli to convert his religion from the start, he patiently waited, and didn't tell the boy to abandon his God. Something peculiar is that when Lueli's gieving over the loss of his idol, being burnt in the conflagration, though Mr. Fortune express empathy; telling Lueli that he had also lost his God, but his solution to comfort Lueli is teaching him math! What is he even thinking? Making the boy learn something that may seem useful and cultivated in the developed countries,like Europe, while it's actually meaningless in Fanua. In the process of being taught of math, Lueli let Mr. Fortune know that he can't compel the imperialism and colonialism ideals on him. He won't accept those things, which are taken for granted by the White. Many of the White don't respect and value others' culture, especially those of different races and religions. When Mr. Fortune asks him what are "points", even though he knows the answer, he replies "holes" so that Mr. Fortune doesn't prevail. By slapping Mr. Fortune in the face,leading to Mr. Fortune's failure, Lueli stays true to himself, appreciating his culture and never falters a second. Throughout the passage, Mr. Fortune is just like a representative of the Christian imperialism and European colonialism, but have mixed feelings within, making his story qualified as a critique of Christian imperialism and Europe colonialism.
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