The Pledge by Friedrich Durrenmatt, Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles - Essay Example

?Insert of The Pledge by Friedrich Durrenmatt; Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles Love stories are sometimes very thrilling especially when we read them from the works of a skilful writer. They are the most realistic ways that literature can be used as mirror to the society often narrating what goes on in the society. People fall in love and eventually end up in marriage which is in most cases surrounded by thick clouds of disappointments and mistrust. While some marriages and love affairs can be deemed genuine and truthful in nature others are circumstantial and only occur as a matter of chance between the two parties. Circumstantial marriages and love affairs are the most affected kind of affairs around the globe and always end up in painful circumstances as they occur due to the pre-meditated intensions that certain people involved harbors from the beginning usually without the knowledge of the other innocent parties. Once these plans are achieved, the affairs always have a painful ending as the two part ways. Most love affairs today are of such kind as is what is often narrated in most of the love novel commonly referred to as the romantic novels. The pledge novel by Friedrich Durrenmatt and Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles are among the many romantic stories that have been written by various authors to air out what goes on in the world of romance. The two stories involve the circumstances surrounding the two men and women and the feelings they bear as the aftermath of their affair. Though the two stories have different settings, they carry almost the same message to the reader. The pledge novel by Friedrich Durrenmatt is a narration of a love story between two German citizens. The pledge has its setting in a small ton in Switzerland where the couple lives and spends the rest of their lives. The novel narrates the story of a police officer, Matthai, who falls in love with and marries a German lady and a house keeper whose daughter, Annemarie, he uses as a spy to trace the disappearance of a serial killer. On the other hand, the sheltering sky has a double setting with one instance in Africa and another in New York, America. The two novels narrate the stories of two set of couples trying to solve their problems in different ways. The setting of these two novels on the first instance suggests the difficulties that underlie the whole process of conflict resolution in each case. While north Africa where the couples in Bowles story moves to settle their disputes is a dry and does not show signs of live, the pledge has its setting in a small town in Switzerland where life is at its full as evidenced by the presence of enough wealth circulating within the city as Matthai has enough money to purchase a petrol station while in search of a murderer who has been noted to be a serial killer in the region. “Immediately when you arrive in Sahara, for the first or the tenth time, you notice the stillness… Once he has been under the spell of the vast luminous, silent country, no other place is quite strong enough for him; no other surroundings can provide the supremely satisfying sensation of existing in the midst of something that is absolute. He will go back, whatever the cost in time or money, for the absolute has no price.” (Bowles 240) We can argue that the pledge is a narration of a love affair which is circumstantial as Agee terms it. While Matthai knows very well what he wants in his got lady and daughter, the two remains in total darkness and when his plans fails to work out as he aspires, the two parts ways without the knowledge of the woman. On the other hand, the sheltering sky narrates the story of a real or an almost real love affair a direct contrast of the other affair. These two novels therefore give the sharp contrast in the two contradicting affairs giving an explicit and tacit controversy which goes on in a life shared between two people. It reveals that in most marriages where we see the couples laugh from outward perspective, the inner feelings are often covered in a thick cloud of unspoken difficulties and deep secrets known only to those who harbor them. "You have chosen the easiest terrain." But if they elected to place obstacles in their own way which they clearly did, encumbering themselves with every sort of unnecessary allegiance-that was no reason why they should object to his having simplified his life. (Bowles 222). While the pledge takes a first person narration, the sheltering sky takes the third person’s narration point of view. Some scholars have argued that by Durrenmatt using the first person’s narrative perspective, he is actually reflecting his own life in the story. He creates characters that actually reflect his feelings and inner self in general. Sheltering sky on the other hand uses the third person’s narrative style to convey and illustrate the broad picture of the society at large rather than his own feelings and perspectives about life. One may argue that the narrative perspectives adopted by the two authors may be used to determine the distinction on personal biases and the true facts found in the society at large. Sometimes, such feelings are the real measure of the real circumstances in life as is depicted by Durrenmatt in his story. It is however more realistic when one presents the matches of the society as does Bowles without including the personal biases as this distorts the whole information being conveyed to the general public. Moreover, the characters used in the two novels are very much in contrast with each other as the books reveal. Durrenmatt builds a character Matthai as a very determined character and a soldier always up to the task envisioned to find out the course he is trying to chat out. He presses on in search of the serial killer despite the difficulties, discouragements and challenges met on the way. On the other hand, Bowles characters in sheltering sky seem to be unaware of the ill fate that lies on their way. They seem to be dependent on nature rather than on their strength and determination as in the pledge. “Above all we must remain objective. That applies to me, as the one who holds the suspicion, and to you, as the one who will conduct most of the inquest… I await the results of the investigation… If the person I suspect is in fact the killer, you will find him in your own way – which unlike mine is impeccably scientific (Agee 137). As opposed to the Bowles’ characters in sheltering sky, Durrenmatt’s characters are well aware of the course they are pursuing and the end results of their pursuit. Matthai is not driven by chance as in the case of Bowles’ characters but rather by optimism and his personal charm In conclusion, the two novels portray the sharp contrast that exists in the course of life, though romantic in nature, they more the society in a manner that is more realistic conveying both the romantic aspect as well as the pursuit for the course of justice as in the case of the pledge. Besides, fate has a bit of influence on the way people live and relate with nature as seen in sheltering sky by Bowles. A convergence point is however reached in the stories where the two ends in suspense as the murderer I the pledge is actually located but not found while Bowles’ characters face the wrath of nature that belied their way unknowingly. Works Cited Agee., James. The Pledge. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2006. Bowles, Paul. Sheltering Sky. New York: John Lehmann, 1949. Read More