Stumbling Upon Injustice in Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life - Essay Example

Elizabeth Gaskell’s “Manchester” novel Mary Barton has often been critically discussed in the light of industrial life and the relations between workers and masters, labor and capital. What the novel focuses mostly on are the turbulent working class feelings, how this working class lacks control over their emotions and this is exactly where Mrs. Gaskell shines: in her representation of her characters’ emotional and psychic states in the context of unforgiving social changes. Elizabeth Gaskell does not shy away from the grim realities of Victorian England and it portrays the social injustice in a vivid manner. The novel is fueled by her observations of the deprivations of daily life for the mill workers of Manchester, and it criticizes the way these rich mill owners treat the people in their employment. Mary Barton isn't a polemic, but it does offer quite vivid descriptions of lower-class life in an urban environment during that period. In the midst of all the foulness in the streets, the dampness of cellars and the general suffering in the whole community, the plot, a very wildly used one at that time, does creek with coincidence and much melodrama. However, taking into account that this was Mrs. Gaskell’s first novel, which she took upon herself to write as a distraction from a great personal tragedy, it is safe to say that she possesses the gift for inner observation and an ear for dialogue which lifts this occasional melodrama above mere sentimental drivel. By introducing an epigraph for Chapter 1, Gaskell makes it evident that this is a story of social injustice: Oh! 'tis hard, 'tis hard to be working  The whole of the live-long day, When all the neighbors about one Are off to their jaunts and play. (Gaskell 6) Gaskell incorporates songs and poems in her desire to give these Manchester laborers voice and to reiterate their daily hardships. She chooses to use the Manchester dialect to include additional verisimilitude and to acknowledge the distinctive voice of her subject even more powerfully. Because, as Victorian England witnessed the rise and development of technology, this was unfortunately at the expense of the laborers. The large numbers of skilled and unskilled people looking for work kept wages down to a barely subsistence level, and they were forced to endure harsh treatment from their employers just so they would be able to put food on their table. It is more than evident how sympathetic Gaskell was to their fate, and was trying to present them as more than mere clogs in the big machinery of the mill works, which are thrown away after they have been used up. She also presents evidence to the compassion and sympathy these menial laborers have to those around them, and how most of them assume responsibility out of sympathy for those weaker than themselves. For example, it is John Barton and George Wilson who relieve the utterly desperate Davenport family, by helping them with small menial tasks. Gaskell looks deep into their souls and sees their care for their fellow man. Gaskell details the importance of the mother in a family, as is seen from the visible decline in John Barton's physical and moral well being after his wife's death: At times it is a bewildering thing to the poor weaver to see his employer removing from house to house, each one grander than the last . . . concerts are still crowded by the subscribers, the shops for expensive luxuries still find daily customers, while the workman loiters away his unemployed time in watching these things and thinking of the pale, uncomplaining wife at home, and the wailing children asking in vain for enough of food, -- of the sinking health, of the dying life of those near and dear to him. The contrast is too great. (Gaskell 34) Here, Gaskell is portraying the devastating effects the death of a beloved person has for the ones who remain behind. As one of the novel’s most complex characters, John Barton’s plight is shown in much depth, from how he lost his beloved wife and how he rejects Esther, to how he commits murder and finally collapses under the weight of his own guilty conscience. For most part of the novel, his actions and words describe him as a taciturn and morose man, but at the same time he possesses one extremely relevant characteristic: he is very articulate, and as a Chartist delegate he appears to be blessed with an eloquence that enables him to put the feelings of his fellows into words. This is exactly what the author is reaching for, truthful verbal presentation of her characters’ inner conflicts and emotions. One of the most truthful portrayals of his torn inner state of mind rests in the following description: Day by day he became aware that the space between the walls of his apartment was narrowing, and then he understood the end. Those painted walls would come into hideous nearness and at last crush the life out of him. And so day by day, nearer and nearer, came the diseased thoughts of John Barton. (Gaskell 243) John Barton’s mental condition is conveyed very imaginatively through the use of an architectural metaphor about a room the walls of which are drawing nearer and nearer and that will crush the criminal inhabiting it. The guilt is eating away at his mind, like a blind worm, biting left and right, and he finally realizes he cannot take it anymore. The second half of the novel is mainly aimed at the murder plot. It becomes evident that besides love, of which more shall be discussed later on, redemption is the second key aspect of the novel, not only because of the eventual positive, Christian outcome of the relationship between Carson and Barton, but also in the author’s presentation of Esther, the fallen woman. She generously provides Esther with a selfless nature and brutal honesty when it comes to expressing her own faults and mistakes, all in an attempt to make the readers’ perception of Esther a more sympathetic one. At that time, having understanding and sympathy for a prostitute was quite uncommon. In addition, Gaskell continues to have compassion for her outcast character Esther by providing her with a love story of her own, which commences like a sentimental romance and ends as a tragedy. Esther is lulled in her naïve expectation that her beloved soldier will marry her, but is soon brought down to harsh reality. She is forced to face pregnancy and poverty alone, because John Barton shuns her away for fear of his daughter becoming like her, and she is barred from returning to the only family that she has left. Shunning an outcast was a social imperative. But, Gaskell does not make her despised character despicable. On the contrary, she uses humane characteristics, to show that she is not much different from everybody else who pushed her aside and labeled her an undesirable member of society. She is one of them, she is flesh and blood, just like they are, with the only difference being in her making a mistake that others were not forced to make. Gaskell urges the society, as well as the readers, to reexamine their perspectives and morals, because making a mistake is human thing to do and all too easy. The difficult part is acknowledging the mistake, and with a head held up high, picking one’s self up and continuing one’s life trying to make a wrong right. Being a female writer, Elizabeth Gaskell undoubtedly knew what it felt to be an outcast. In a time of male literary dominance, such as that of Charles Dickens and similar writers, it was hard for a woman to make her voice heard, let alone it being given the attention and praise it deserves. This is exactly why Gaskell is able to sympathize with her heroines, providing a great insight into their life stories, giving them not only faces and physical characteristics, but also minds, souls and hearts to express their joy, hate, love, dissatisfaction, anger. The story that has immersed most readers is of course the love story happening between Mary Barton and Jem Wilson. It is an ancient story of a woman finding her happiness with the man she loves, after overcoming numerous difficulties with an innocent heart and the immense power of her love, while the man endures all his hardships with a valiant effort, not knowing of her affection. The story itself is pretty straightforward and widely used. Despite occasional melodrama, which every woman is sometimes subject to, Gaskell manages to provide this old story with a fresh perspective not lacking in emotions. One might state that their story is no different than any other literary love story and that somehow, the young couple seems to be completely swallowed by the events that surround them. But, this could be ascribed to the fact that during the course of the novel, she might have decided to give equal attention to the social conditions of the workers, and this might be the answer to why the love story itself lacks in some respect. Mary’s two suitors are as different as possible, and this is exactly how they view and feel about each other. For example, Jem’s vision is as follows: Jem's heart beat violently, when he saw the gay, handsome young man approaching, with a light buoyant step. This, then, was he whom Mary loved. It was, perhaps, no wonder; for he seemed to the poor smith so elegant, so well appointed, that he felt the superiority in externals, strangely and painfully, for an instant. Then something uprose within him, and told him, that "a man's a man for a' that, for a' that, and twice as much as a' that." And he no longer felt troubled by the outward appearance of his rival. (Gaskell 254) At first, he is painfully aware of his social inadequacy and the fact that he would be able to provide very little for Mary. But then, pride ignites in him and he sees himself equally worthy as the son of a rich mill owner. It seems that he reaches a certain peace of mind which will later encourage him to face difficulties head on. It is clear that Gaskell is rooting for the young, hard working Jem, but in order for her heroine to deserve her “happily ever after,” it is necessary for the author to throw some tragedy and bad luck along their way. Harry Carson, the later victim of the murder, also perceives Jem in a hostile way, due to the fact of the two of them being rivals, fighting for the love of the same woman: And (strange stinging thought) could he be beloved by her, and so have caused her obstinate rejection of himself? He looked at Jem from head to foot, a black, grimy mechanic, in dirty fustian clothes, strongly built, and awkward (according to the dancing master); then he glanced at himself, recalled the reflection he had so lately quitted in his bedroom. It was impossible. No woman with eyes could choose the one when the other wooed. (Gaskell 255) Mary, too, is aware of the difference between the two of them, and guided by her fear of poverty and the aching desire to provide financial security for herself and her family, she succumbs to the illusionary vision of escaping from poverty by having a rich husband. Being devastatingly aware of her social status, she knows that her ticket out would be marriage to a rich man. In a way, she is putting financial security above her desire to be in a loving marriage. And, Gaskell is not condemning. Again, she offers understanding and sympathy, and asks the same of her readers. In order to appeal even more to the audience’s tear ducts, she offers a tear evoking speech by the heart-broken Jem: ‘And is this the end of all my hopes and fears? The end of my life, I may say, for it is the end of all worth living for!' His agitation rose and carried him into passion. 'Mary! You'll hear, may be, of me as a drunkard, and may be as a thief, and may be as a murderer. Remember! When all are speaking ill of me, you will have no right to blame me, for it's your cruelty that will have made me what I feel I shall become.’ (Gaskell 187) This is where Gaskell’s occasional melodrama surfaces, but it is possible that to poor Jem, Mary’s decision seems cruel, heartless and final, and thus it results in his need to pour out all his frustration in such a melodramatic manner. In addition, female readers must have loved such outbursts of emotion coming from hard working men who rarely, if at all, spoke about their emotions. In the end, as in all fairy-tale like stories, the heroine realizes her mistake and chooses the right one. Together, they manage to overcome all the obstacles that fate has in store for them, and end up living happily every after in Canada. Even if ultimately one must concede that Mary Barton might be considered a flawed work, Gaskell is understanding of human nature and realistic in her characterization. Mary Barton isn't as passionate in its voice as for example, the contemporary novel, Jane Eyre, but Jane as a heroine cried out against the social forces immediately touching her personal status while Mary is brought face to face with larger social structures that may destroy, not just her own happiness, but the economic and social network of her world. Throughout the novel Gaskell appears to refer to her characters as being out of her control, acting as not so much a narrator but a guide for the observing reader. This implies that Gaskell is presenting the characters in the novel not as fictional creations but as examples of the people occupying the world she and her readers live in. Each of the stories portrayed in the novel possesses a process throughout which each character discovers their inner truth and proceeds toward the realization of this truth by following one’s feelings. On this spiritual journey, each one of them is able to attain their inner calm which cannot be substituted with any other feeling, nor obtained in any other way. Is it possible for them to obtain happiness is not the goal of their effort. The ultimate end is to always stay faithful to this inner truth, and happiness will follow. References: Gaskell, Elizabeth Cleghorn. Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life. Ed. Stephen Gill. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd. 1970. Print. Read More