Analysis of The Hunger Games and White Noise - Essay Example

College New Orleans in Literature and Number Paper Due New Orleans in Literature Uniqueness of New Orleans has always been a source of inspiration for artists who used to live and create in this city. Although it was not a big metropolis, New Orleans always impressed its guests with the diversity of cultures, peoples, languages, traditions, architecture, music, and, finally, literature. New Orleans literature is absolutely peculiar and does not resemble any other literary school of the US. Of course, one can wonder why literary New Orleans happened to be so unique. The answer is most likely to lie in the city’s geographic isolation by water and cultural background of its inhabitants. It is worthy to cite Grace King, an American author who was born in New Orleans, ‘there follows for the smaller metropolis a freedom of development’. King believes that to live in a small city means to have more personal fate and be closer to God. In fact, it seems that King is quite right. Isolation, cultural diversity, and comparatively small number of population made New Orleans literature a distinctive or even an exceptional phenomenon in the literature of the US (Kaser, 2014). In order to analyse literary New Orleans it is necessary to pay attention to the historical background of the city, first of all. The most important thing which made New Orleans so unique and different from anything else is the fact that the city used to be the busiest northern port of immigration in the Gulf of Mexico throughout the whole 19th century. Being founded by French, New Orleans became the wealthiest and third-largest city in the US in the early 19th century. According to estimations of 2014, the population of New Orleans is approximately 384,320 (50th largest city in the US). Despite of being a major metropolis, New Orleans is often claimed to have a small town feel. Cultural history of New Orleans is quite vibrant. This city is known as a centre of Creole culture. At the same time, New Orleans used to be the largest slave market in antebellum America. For this reason, this city is often associated with slave trade, segregation, colour stereotypes, and miscegenation, which may be seen in many literary works (Eckstein, 2005). In general, quite a lot of poems about New Orleans are somehow related to the black historical experience of its inhabitants. Authors and their works mentioned below may illustrate this. At the same time, readers may easily come across what is known as the New Orleans myth, or the concept of popular vision of the city (Harrington, 1993). Within the myth, New Orleans is often represented as a city of sin, temptation, and decadence (Wilson, 2011). Thus, New Orleans is represented in many literary works, written by different authors. First of all, it is necessary to mention Sybil Kein, a poet, playwright, and musician, born in New Orleans in 1939. She dedicated her life and work to preserving the Louisiana Creole language and culture (Sybil Kein Collection, 2005). She often wrote about slavery, stereotyping of people of colour, dilemmas mixed-race Creoles faced, and so on. A lot of Kein’s works concern New Orleans, one of the centres of Creole culture (Kennedy, 1998). New Orleans used to be and still remains one of the biggest centres of Creole society since the early 19th century. For this reason, the image of this city is so important in her works. The poem From the French Market is one of them. That is what critics write about Kein and this her poem: ‘In a series of books creating an American South different from the one most often depicted in U.S. literature, Sybil Kein has herself reinvigorated the Creole language in current usage and represented the history of Creoles of Color’ (Davis, 2011). It is necessary to say that the old French Market may in some contexts be referred to as a symbol of New Orleans and Creole people in it. That is the place where Creoles of Colour were selling their goods, food, fruit, vegetables, and hot coffee for centuries. Old French Market in New Orleans is often called a melting pot where people of all stations and races came together. From the French Market is based on particular moments in history, this time – on slavery. This poem ‘moves back and forth in space and time. The effect makes the past, particularly the long centuries of enslavement, live within spaces of memory, language, and gesture or the present’, writes (Davis, 2011). There is an impression, consequently, that the French Market is not just the place where different races meet. That is the place where the old blends with the new. This says much about the atmosphere of New Orleans, especially if to take into consideration that some literary critics view French Quarter (where the French market is situated) as the only setting in the city which is worthy of attention. Although many other critics disagree with this opinion, French Quarter, as well as French Market, are still central images in literary works about New Orleans. This is possible to see that love and devotion to the small mother-city and, therefore, Creole culture, is what unites writers, born in New Orleans. Both Grace King and Sybil Kein are devoted champions of the city’s Creole past. ‘In a word, we are our past; we do not cling to it; it clings to us’, writes King in her memoir (King, 1932). New Orleans is an inextricable part of lives of both authors. They both never forget where they came from, who their ancestors were, and what language they spoke. Citizens of great metropolises hardly ever feel such a devotion to their cities. It seems that they lose their identity and forget where their roots are. In a small isolated city like New Orleans, there are much more chances not to lose this part of oneself. One more example of literary representation of New Orleans may be found in a poem A Ballad of Remembrance, written by Robert Hayden, an American poet and essayist. In order to interpret the poem it is necessary to pay attention to biography of the author. He was born in Detroit, Michigan. In order to understand the whole tragedy of his career it is necessary to cite words of William Meredith, a poet from New York ‘Hayden declared himself, at considerable cost in popularity, an American poet rather than a black poet, when for a time there was posited an unreconcilable difference between the two roles’ (qtd. in Hayden, 1984). Taking historical circumstances into attention, there is no surprise that Hayden sometimes happened to become a victim of raw racial prejudices and stereotypes. One of such incidents took place in segregation-era New Orleans, when Hayden wanted to have coffee together with his friend in one of the restaurants in the French Quarter. Robert Hayden visited New Orleans in 1946, when he was asked to participate in a US bond rally with other writers. The author was feeling rather dispirited during his first visit to the Deep South. In his interviews, he calls the atmosphere of this part of the country terrible and menacing. The gap between blacks and whites was felt especially distinctly. At the same time, Hayden was pleasantly impressed when he saw New Orleans ‘Nevertheless, I found New Orleans, the first big city down South I’d ever been to, fascinating. New Orleans was exotic, different from any place I’d seen up to that time, a foreign city’ (Hayden, 1984). In A Ballad of Remembrance Hayden recorded his personal experiences after his visit to the city. In the poem, New Orleans is referred to as ‘arcane city’. In other words, the city is described as secret, or hidden. The poem contains a number of images which are usually prescribed to Mardi Gas, a splendid carnival New Orleans is known for. This poem may be called a metaphorical representation of realities around the author. Hayden uses some elements of fantasy in order to speak about harsh reality. Hayden says in his interview: ‘In the poem, therefore, the Zulu king symbolizes accommodation to segregation and racial injustice. The saints, the angels, the mermaids, the gun-metal priestess represent various aspects of New Orleans culture’ (Hayden, 1984). This poem is rather surrealistic and leaves readers with ambiguous impressions. Its whirling images and rhythm seem to be absolutely irrational. One may think that the general atmosphere of the poem resembles a nightmare. New Orleans is shown as an isolated world, leading its particular life according to its own rules. Life seems to be really concentrated in this city. It is hardly possible to imagine a great metropolis being full of such chimerical images. Life in big cities is more mundane, more ordinary, and more civilized. This is not the case with New Orleans. Being a small isolated metropolis, this city still retains the exotic and a bit wild atmosphere of the culture of its first settlers, which would definitely vanish in a great city. It is impossible not to mention Harriet Beecher Stowe and her ground breaking novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Being an abolitionist, she tries to convince her readers that slavery should definitely be ended. In her novel Stowe manages to create quite a realistic picture of slavery in the Deep South and reveal the horrors slaves face. The novel itself is partially set in New Orleans. It is necessary to add that the image of the city is quite sexualized. New Orleans finally becomes a new home for Tom, where he becomes especially close to Eva, his new owner’s daughter. In the novel, readers come across a scene where Augustine St. Clare (Tom’s third owner and Eva’s father) discusses slavery with his cousin Ophelia. St. Clare does not feel any kind of hostility against blacks, but tolerates slavery as an institution. Ophelia insists that slavery should not exist, but at the same time she holds strong prejudice against blacks. This episode, as well as some other scenes within the novel, points at feminist beliefs of the author. Thus, it is possible to see that Stowe tries to prove that all people are equal in the sight of God. Thus, readers may come across at least two kinds of literary representations of New Orleans. On the one hand, the city is shown as a fascinating place, different from any other city in the US. Its image is rather romantic, and it is in harmony with the New Orleans myth. In some other literary works, readers finally understand that in New Orleans one may face grim reality in all its aspects, just like in any other place. There is nothing romantic about it. Nevertheless, this does not affect the popular vision of the city (Rubin & Lemay, 1969) At the same time, New Orleans could be seen from a little bit different perspective. It is worthy to mention Philip Larkin, an English poet and novelist, and his famous poem For Sidney Bechet. Although Larkin has never been to New Orleans, the poem is set exactly in this city. The phrase ‘reflected on the water’ indicates at its maritime location. One may be curious why Larkin chose New Orleans. In order to understand this, it is necessary to pay attention to specificity of his works in general. It is difficult to overestimate the role of jazz in his life and work. Quite a lot of his poems are about jazz, and For Sidney Bechet is one of them. Jazz is the reason why the image of New Orleans appears in Larkin’s poem – that is the place where jazz and blues emerged. The poem itself is a dedication to the talented Jazz musician, Sidney Bechet, a clarinettist and an outstanding soprano saxophonist. Born in New Orleans in 1897, he became one of the earliest representatives of jazz in the city (Dickinson, 2010). Larking has once written: ‘There are not many perfect things in jazz, but Bechet playing the blues could be one of them’. This is interesting that one of Bechet’s recordings was performed at Larkin’s memorial service in Westminster Abbey (Dickinson, 2010). In this poem, New Orleans is also referred to as Storyville and Crescent City. Readers may easily imagine the atmosphere of the city. It is quite romantic, relaxed, and soulful. The image of ‘Everyone making love’ imparts it with intimacy. This is the atmosphere of a small city, with flower-baskets on the balconies and quadrilles in the streets. It is hardly possible to imagine a big metropolis living such a life, it would be totally different. This is worthy to mention Grace King’s words once again. In smaller cities, lives of people gain ‘intrinsic value’. This is true that life in small cities is absolutely different from life in great central metropolises. New Orleans may be a good example. This poem, in turn, is a great illustration of the New Orleans myth. The list of writers and poets who devoted some of their works to New Orleans is far from being completed. It is possible to mention William Faulkner, who began his career as a writer in this city; Walker Percy, whose six novels are set in New Orleans; John Kennedy Toole, who represents the city in his comic novel A Confederacy of Dunces (Wilson, 2011). In general, the city is usually represented as an exotic place with rich cultural and historical heritage (Folks, 1997). Thus, it is obvious that New Orleans always fascinated writers and readers. Both New Orleans natives and outsiders often chose this city as a setting in their works. The variety of writings about it shows what New Orleans is itself. In imaginations of readers, New Orleans is the city of voodoo magic, temptation, sin, and cultural eclecticism (Larson, 1999). That is what creates the famous New Orleans myth. The city is often associated with Creole society, too. In literary works, New Orleans is also often shown as a small lovely city with charming home atmosphere. It is possible to say that those poets and writers who represented New Orleans in their works are among the most notable authors of the US. Very often, those were people of colour. The city attracts so many writers and poets because of two reasons – its exoticism and vibrant history. New Orleans itself may be called a melting pot, which impresses its guests with its cross-cultural and multilingual heritage. On the one hand, New Orleans is often called eminently southern. On the other hand, it is absolutely different from all the other southern cities. Although every city is unique in its own way, many of them still resemble each other. This is not the case with New Orleans. After all, quite a lot of Americans consider New Orleans to be one of the most ‘exotic’ and European cities of the US. The same thing may be said about its literature and culture in general. The city managed not to turn into a great metropolis. That is what made the atmosphere of the city so peculiar. It cannot be compared to the one of big cities, which seems to be more civilized and more ordinary. Lives of people in New Orleans are indeed more personal, as King writes. That is what readers may feel when they come across literal representations of this city. Works Cited Bryan, Violet Harrington. The Myth of New Orleans in Literature. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1993. pp. 193-211. Eckstein, Barbara. Sustaining New Orleans: Literary, Local Memory, and the Fate of a City. New York: Routledge, 2005. Folks, Jeffrey J., and James Perkins, eds. Southern Writers at Century’s End. Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky, 1997. Grace Elizabeth King. Memories of a Southern Woman of Letters. New York: Macmillian Company, 1932. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Toms Cabin. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, Aug 2005. James A. Kaser. New Orleans of Fiction: A Research Guide. New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Oct 2014.  Kennedy, Richard S., ed. Literary New Orleans in the Modern World. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1998. Larson, Susan. The Booklover’s Guide to New Orleans. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1999. Louis Decimus Rubin, Joseph A. Leo Lemay. A bibliographical guide to the study of Southern literature. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press, 1969. Peter Dickinson. For Sidney Bechet. Philip Larkin. Web. Jan 2010. Philip Larkin. For Sidney Bechet. The Whitsun Weddings, 1954 . Web. 18 Jun 2004.  Robert Earl Hayden. Collected Prose. Ed. F. Glaysher. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 1984. Sybil Kein Collection. Louisiana and Special Collections Department. Earl K. Long Library, University of New Orleans, 2005. Thadious M. Davis. Southscapes: Geographies of Race, Religion, & Literature. Chapel Hill, NC: The University of North Carolina Press, 2011. p. 250. Wilson, Anthony. New Orleans in Literature. KnowLa Encyclopedia of Louisiana. Ed. David Johnson. Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities, 8 Jun 2011. Web. 27 May 2015. Read More