The influence of Jewett upon Morrison - Book Report/Review Example

Toni Morrison has established herself as a powerful woman through poignant stories that portray the African-Americans of the twentieth century. An author as such can be assumed to have been victim of the situations that she creates in her own books. The influences her environment has had on her can be seen depicted in her work. However, another influence has greatly emphasized her work; an author that writes about the nineteenth-century rural New England, Sarah Orne Jewett. How can two women, of different eras, cultures, class and race possibly have much in common in their literature to link the influence of one on another Though as distinct the writers may seem both in their use of narratives have created works that preserve the cultural differences and voice the stories that have been unheard and untold. With the similarities seen in both authors and knowing Jewett's work was published first, it is safe to look for how Jewett influenced Morrison's writing. Before examining how Jewett influenced Morrison, it is critical to establish the fact that both authors' writings had many commonalities. According to an associate Professor of English at George Mason University, Marilyn Sanders Mobley, Jewett and Morrison are "cultural archivists" (Mobley 8) In her book, Folk Roots and Mythic Wings in Sarah Orne Jewett and Toni Morrison, Mobley extensively compares these two authors' and explores the characters Jewett created to those Morrison uses. So what is Mobley referring to when she labels Jewett and Morrison as "cultural archivists" To further instigate the insightful label Mobley has given to Jewett and Morrison, it is necessary to establish a definition of what a cultural archivist is. According to The Society of American Archivists, "The primary task of the archivist is to establish and maintain control, both physical and intellectual, over records of enduring value" (Society of American Archivists). Basically, Jewett and Morrison are seen as two authors that thru their writing have maintained control over the cultural records of enduring value. Jewett's work shows more of the class and gender roles whereas Morrison adds on by the racial difference. In one of Morrison's book, The Bluest Eye, she states a memorable quote, "I am a poor Black woman," when counting her misfortunes (Gillman). This shows that being poor is unfortunate, but being a woman adds to the unfortunate and on top of all that being Black worsens the situation even more. Was Morrison's work just coincidentally following a similar pattern that almost any author could have adapted or has it really been influenced by Jewett's previous work The only way to explore in-depth this question is to first examine briefly who Jewett was and what her work was about. Jewett was a nineteenth century American novelist and short story writer. She was a Caucasian living in New England (Eakin). Though her race put her in the dominant privilege in America, her early childhood rheumatoid arthritis was not something that made life easy. She was born into a family where her father was a doctor, so she definitely was not living in poverty (Eakin). Not facing racial discrimination and coming from a nice background, what was the core of Jewett's stories Being surrounded by books from an early age, Jewett eventually turned to writing. In 1884 she wrote A Country Doctor, which was a novel about a New England girl who rejects marriage to become a doctor. As can be seen, the core of Jewett's writing was in women's power (Eakin). In nineteenth century, the belief was still widely that men were the ones that brought the bread home. And for a woman to refuse marriage in order to continue her studies was not a popular ideal. Yet, her story depicted how a woman bravely refused the woman's typical gender roles in her pursuit of becoming a doctor. Jewett, in her stories, wrote about what she had observed in her lifetime. Her stories usually had characters that were sea captains, sailors, and doctors. Growing up in a family where her father was a doctor, she was already familiar with many medical terms and knowledge in that field (Eakin). Thus, in her narratives Jewett wrote about situations that she was familiar with and then addresses those situations to show how a woman is not bound by the typical stereotypes that hold her back. It is evident from Jewett's works that what she is very good at doing is taking in nature and observing what is around her; she then puts these in poignant narratives. Her emphatic nature to those of color is also seen in her works. Jewett was an inspired young woman who was determined to give her characters meaning and life (Eakin). Being more familiar with Jewett's writing style and manner of stories; it is easier to make the connection how Morrison was influenced by Jewett's works. Though commonalities in style and manner might exist, their lives were far different. Toni Morrison, a twentieth-century African American writer, was not born in a rich family (Gillman). However, like Jewett and most authors, she was exposed to a lot of books from a very young age. Also like Jewett though, Morrison was influenced greatly by her father; her father was a welder by trade and told her numerous folktales of the black community. Morrison's dedication to her writing earned her a Pulitzer Prize in 1884 for Beloved (Gillman). Just like in Jewett's work, remnants of her father's profession can be seen, Morrison also uses her childhood memories with her father in her stories. The folktales about the black communities are what Morrison uses to bring her stories to life. Even in her narrative, Morrison has a tendency of not following the norms. Her structure is not chronologically set and her narrator changes in some chapters. However, if analyzed in depth, the controversy of her structure fits well with the controversial subjects she deals with (Gillman). Just like Jewett, Morrison writes mostly predominantly about women and how women have the power to control their lives, or how sometimes women become victim of their situations and destroy their lives, like Pecola Breedlove did in Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye. Well put in Mobley's words, "the goal of their [Jewett and Morrison] art is to redeem or transform their cultures through narrative fiction" (Mobley 9). Reading any of their work, it can be concurred this quote is nothing but true. Jewett has seen the way women are treated around her and uses class difference as a source to illustrate thru her narratives the discrepancies that exist. Morrison reaches out to the Black community with the folklores she has heard as a kid and intertwining it with the environment she has grown accustomed to as an adult. Both represent and beautifully preserve their culture through their writings. Typically, the society sets specific gender roles for people to fill into. A woman should stay in the house and do chores was highly believed in the nineteenth century and still holds somewhat truth in the twenty-first century. Another unspoken rule the society has silently enforced is the different racial differences. A White is more privileged than a Black has been so often reinstated that oftentimes the younger African-American race has been compelled to wish they were white. Both are sensitive issues that have been portrayed by Jewett and Morrison respectively. In her story, A Country Doctor, Jewett describes a woman, Nan Prince, who refuses to get married because she has a dream to fulfill. Nan Prince wants to become a doctor, but becoming a doctor is not what women are "supposed" to do. Doctors was considered to be a "male" profession. Nan Prince, being a woman and being involved in a male profession had much to endure (Eakin). The story becomes yet more engaging when Nan meets a likable man, and she then has to chose between her marriage and profession. This was the first novel Jewett wrote, 1884, and at this time profession vs. marriage was a rising issue for women. It was an issue that questioned Nan's identity, was she a woman and therefore bound by her gender roles or was it okay for her to become a doctor and have a professional life Similarly, Morrison's first novel The Bluest Eye written in 1970, talks about an issue most sought out in her era, racism. Morrison creates a character so real that the reader can almost feel the pain the protagonist Pecola Breedlove has to endure (Gillman). Being black, Pecola is convinced that she is ugly and that is the reason of her misery. According to Pecola, if only she had blonde hair and blue eyes, the world would become prettier and her life would be far less miserable. This obsession of physical beauty is what led Pecola to her destruction. There is no text or source that directly states that Toni Morrison was influenced by the work of Sarah Orne Jewett. However, viewing the work both authors have published, certain commonalities cannot be ignored. Marilyn Sanders Mobley was perhaps the first to point out the vast similarities in Jewett's and Morrison's works. In her book, Folk Roots and Mythic Wings in Sarah Orne Jewett and Toni Morrison, Mobley in-depth analyzes the structure, folklores and even the myths that the narratives have portrayed. Though both authors are of different eras, class, and race, their work still emphasizes women and culture and the power women have. Jewett wrote about the controversial issues that were dominant during her times, whereas Morrison wrote about issues that were most dominant in her Black community. Jewett's work did influence many authors, however much of her work was not even recognized until a lot later. Regardless the difference life may have presented in these authors, both had an obligation to the community and culture which they beautifully fulfilled. Two prominent women authors have written about the lives women face and the obstacles women fight. Many other authors have presented such concept, but it is the style set first by Jewett and then followed by Morrison that overwhelms the heart and engages the reader. Jewett's narrative fiction creates the most real life characters to which women could relate to and similarly, Morrison had characters in her book that the African community could relate with. Jewett's influence on Morrison has given the literacy world a valuable gift. Works Cited Eakin, Paul John. "Sarah Orne Jewett and the Meaning of Country Life." American Literature: A Journal of Literary History, Criticism and Bibliography. (1967) vol. 38. pp.508-31 Gillan, Jennifer. "Focusing on the Wrong Front: Historical Displacement, the Maginot Line, and The Bluest Eye." African American Review. (2002) vol. 36 pp. 283-298 Mobley, Marilyn Sanders. Folk Roots and Mythic Wings in Sarah Orne Jewett and Toni Morrison. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press. 1991 Society of American Archivists. Retrieved on December 10, 2006 from http://www.archivists.org/ Read More