I think it is super cool how this mystery starts off. I mean could you imagine someone giving you a gift and then telling you that you cant open it for 25 years?!? Its like a Christmas Eve that lasts 219,145 hours. I would go crazy.. But anyway. That's not why I love this story.
Ayesha is the original mean girl! I'm pretty in tune with my inner feminist and I love the idea of women being in power but COME ON~ this is a story of a women who killed her "true love" during a temper tantrum! I love how caddy she is because it makes for great entertainment. Ayesha is uber jealous of Ustane, which is also such a girly move because she thinks Ustane is trying to move in on Leo, who looks like the lover she killed. Are you still with me? MEAN GIRL.
As for my social commentary for the story: I don't know what side of female empowerment Haggard lies on but I don't think hes pro-feminism.While Ayesha is a great source of entertainment and her character "must be obeyed," you would think he's giving women some credit--- I think he is just really being sarcastic. No one really liked Regina George, the leader of the Plastics. She was a bitch that people made fun of. Ayesha is vein enough to bathe in the fountain of youth TWICE, which is also Haggard's critique on how women view the value of beauty, something that has thus been drilled into our heads so far this semester. This story definitely is comment on feminism.. It's just hard to figure out what team Haggard is really on!
I was also drawn into the whole plot of the story...I wondered how Holly would last that 25 years without opening the box (let's face it, who wouldn't open it before then?). For that reason, I was drawn into the piece, and was actually excited to see its resolution through. I completely agree with you: Ayesha is the typical jealous "he was mine first!" girl, which is humorous because I wouldn't have suspected this in the context of the story. This is such a modern (or so I thought) idea that actually existed in ancient stories and adventures. It is funny how literature does that: presents us with the ideas we follow today way back when, and we don't even realize it until we are thrown into classes tat make us read 19th and 20th century literature. I completely agree with your take that Haggard is being sarcastic: in the end, I felt like what's so great about "she?" I suppose she's awe-inspiring, breath-taking, charming? (I would not say she is this), and that is the reason why men are drawn to her. But, if you think about it, she's been alone for centuries (or however long it's been) and why is that? Because she's cruel! She's full of herself she's vain! For this reason, I think Haggard's in support of Leo and Holly: forget the female! She's no good; don't join in on her self-obsession and pity-party. Can you tell I didn't especially like "She?" I have a feeling that if she "gets" with Leo, she's only going to drag him down (and, poor Leo, because he's so beautiful and has so much potential :) ).
ReplyDeleteI also really liked this story and agree with many of the things you have to say about She. First off, I would have opened the gift the day he died. I have no patience. But anyway, oh boy is she mean! (Hah, she...)The interesting difference between She and other women we have read about is that although she is jealous and man crazed, she is extremely self-centered about her looks. She thinks she is hot and is not afraid to tell anyone. One of the most interesting scenes to me was when she made Holly tell her how great she was just to say sorry you know you’re not the man I want. She even went on to laugh at him and say she wondered how long it would take her to get him on his knees. She is a mad woman! I do think it’s cool to see an empowered woman in British literature for a change, but She is stuck up and honestly quite mad. Poor Leo and Ustrane. Ustrane was willing to risk her life and stand up to She to be with Leo! I too am not sure exactly what Haggard’s stance on women is. He portrays She as cruel but yet capable of severe emotion. Although she is mad an insane force of love drives her to be this way. Then when you look at the way he portrays men, he makes Holly look weak and pathetic. First he pours his heart out to a stuck up cruel woman, then is jealous when she is in love with his adoptive son. I’m not quite sure what to think! But overall I loved it and will probably read the whole story one day soon.
ReplyDeleteSo, during class today--for some reason because these stories are so dissimilar--I was reminded of The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Perhaps it was the word creole that was written on the board in regards to Mukharji, but as soon as femininity was brought up while discussing She, I started to think of the lovely Edna who remained true to what she wanted to do despite what expectations others held her to. She escaped the bounds of her society and experimented with gambling and another lover besides her husband. The Awakening was obviously written by a woman, and we can tell that other people in her society don't agree with what she's doing, but I began to imagine how the story would be told differently if it were written by a man. Perhaps Edna would be described as a monstrous person--almost devilish. So maybe, just maybe, we're all being a little harsh on Ayesha based on the author's point of view? But this could also be very wrong, and I'm just reading too much into it while simultaneously thinking about The Awakening haha.
ReplyDeleteCaroline--I love this conceptualization of She and the connections to The Awakening! Good thinking.
ReplyDeleteCaroline--I love this conceptualization of She and the connections to The Awakening! Good thinking.
ReplyDelete