Communities in Literature by Devangini Mahapatra Chauhan - Essay Example

Comparison of Communities in Literature By Devangini Mahapatra Chauhan Literature has demonstrated the birth and of various kinds of people and communities. It is a platform where authors let their imaginations reach out to derive various concoctions of people to form communities. This paper is a study in community depictions through a comparison of two pieces of highly acclaimed literary work. The first piece of work is The Spire by William Golding, while the second one is Iris Murdoch’s The Bell. In the course of this paper, I will discuss the authors and these two works independently before drawing a comparison between the community aspects of both books. Officially known as Sir William Gerard Golding, the author of The Spire was a prize winning British novelist who had written the famous novel titled Lord of the Flies. Little known facts about this author include his tenure in the war as well as his love for animals. Apart from the Booker Prize, Golding was famous for creating stories with people who were different in their very approach to life. He was also one of the few authors who supported the cause of Popular Science by openly subscribing to the belief system portrayed by Lock Ness Monster. (ww.wikipedia.com) Golding’s novels are a departure from the tried and tested in the sense that he portrays specific elements of what those states of being that most people may not ordinarily pay attention to. In his book, The Spire, Golding has told a deep and enchanting story of a spire waiting to be built. The Dean of the Cathedral, Jocelin, is a man of great conviction and even greater mysteries. This book is set in the times where religious fervour played a special role in people’s lives as far as their lifestyle and preferences were concerned. With the backdrop of such a setting, Golding tells the story of Jocelin and the spire he wants to built by tracing it in the form a journey that Jocelin embarks upon in order to indulge in unintentional soul searching as he follows a vision that he believes to have come to him from none other than the original source of existence – God. While his sometimes feverish pitch scares people, he also manages to spread a good amount of knowledge and enlightenment in an era when deviation from certain set theories regarding the Almighty and human beings, was shunned and avoided like the plague. With his bold ideas for following the vision, Jocelin becomes a visionary and paves the way for many changes and especially for the successful building and development of the spire which heralds his success as God’s own. In doing so, he spreads God’s word through the nuances set in the book. The underscore of irony that marks this piece of literature finds primary form in the fact that a spire – straight and pointed – makes headway for the heaven up above. But the paradox here is the fact that this spire is shrouded in a cloak of corruption and the inherent weaknesses of society at large, especially when it comes to embracing the truth and leading a life devoid of falsity. Thus, through this piece of work, Golding has set about spreading an important and powerful message through the voice of Jocelin. The end of the book shows how the spire was erected after going through great expenses and even greater sacrifices. In this statement of the power of the truth and the expenses as the stark reality, the combination of various positive and negative elements shows that the spire is as complicated as humanity itself. On the other hand, waiting to be compared to this great piece of work is an equally great example of literary genius. Iris Murdoch, a writer and lecturer, was also a novelist par excellence, especially where matters of perfection were concerned. Born in Dublin, this hard willed Scot completed college at Oxford. Having made her writing debut with Under the Net, she went on to win many laurels with her revolutionary books like A Severed Head, In the time of the Angels, The Black Prince and The Bell. Keen on studying Freudian theories, this novelist had a strong ethical streak which came across in the characters and settings she created. In her book titled The Bell, Murdoch has used her usual elements of gothic and fantasy based nuances and characters to develop a plot line unlike any other of that time. This book was a detective novel with a captivating story line and a fast, yet haunting pace. Set along the usual lines of moral psychology that she so often used in her books as a tone for various settings, this book deals with a story told by the leader of a religious community, who also has a variety of secrets to keep regarding his past. Starting out on a note similar to a British comedy, this book is one that holds the promise of complete entertainment with an escapist feel when it comes to the gothic elements with a strong fantasy based undertone. This leader also tells his story through the perspective of two visitors. The first of these two visors is a free spirited and fun loving woman on her way back to her husband who is studying at a nearby convent besides being a complete opposite of what she is by nature. The second visitor is an innocent youth hoping to be motivated to reach his goal in life and better his chances for the future by embracing the communitys spiritual atmosphere before he goes to Oxford for scholarly and academic pursuits. The plot revolves around a bell missing for centuries and the resulting efforts on the communitys part to replace the same with a new one. Extremely interesting in its ability to grip the reader and carry on a sustained level of entertainment throughout the book seems to be a part of Murdoch’s forte. In her book, Murdoch poses a variety of questions that have to do with complicated ethics as she explores aspects like whether or not the visitors were responsible for destroying the communitys equanimity or were they simply the catalyst that exposed the hypocrisies and self-centeredness of the communes members. Further, she seems to wonder if a person is required to delve into selfishness in order to influence others for the better apart from asking it a tragedy is all it takes to bring out the best in people. This comedy of manners ends by asking if it ever really possible to wall oneself away from the rest of the world. The revolutionary thing about this book is the fact that even in that period of time, Murdoch’s foresight took her to a place in time where she could casually sympathise for two characters she has portrayed in her book. This is where we begin a systematic comparison of the two communities described in both books. To begin with, both communities are similar in the fact that their characters leave the reader with a variety of questions to be answered once the book has been put down. Both writers have played with elements that have to do with fantasy and forward thinking as far as traits and interactions are concerned. In both books, the striking similarity is that of the religious undertone of the communities shown. Further, both books have a haunting, almost dark feel when it comes to the posing of moral and ethical ironies and the questions that follow. But while Murdoch has indulged her ethical side by asking questions regarding the role of religious responsibility when she talks of the visitors disrupting the life of the religious leader, Golding plays with words to create a more general feel in terms of infrastructure and material amenities that a community as a whole must be concerned with. The quality of the community life depicted in both books is quite similar. To begin with, both are based in religious practices which are inherent in the lives and times of the protagonists and supporting characters. Yet, Murdoch plays up a lighter vein by depicting a humorous and almost scandalous side to things, while Golding seems content to leave things as they are. He does not want his protagonist to have anything to do with matters that transcend certain boundaries like the vision of God and His work that he has been granted in his dreams. Humour seems more like Murdoch’s forte as she sets her story in the midst of a comedy based on the typical British manner. On the other hand, not one to play that generously with comedy depicts a typically rustic setting where the characters are a little less predictable in their approach to life. True, the questions are there in both communities, but the tone they are asked in, is what sets these two communities apart. This has genesis in the portrayal of and times where both communities are set. The bell has elements that demonstrate people in transition – a community where change is waiting, almost pleading, to happen so as to usher the new era where being gay and not having to take all religious duties seriously is an acceptable fact of life. On the other hand, the spire endeavours to bring a community in ignorance face to face with that mode of enlightenment which owes its existence to love for all living beings irrespective of material benefits or needs. The spire is the story of a visionary and his community, while the bell is a story of a stubborn leader and his secrets which could wreck his community. In both community, these leaders are full of conviction, yet they are complicated beings who are no more sure than any ordinary person of the path to take in leading their people and communities and the fate tied to these actions. While the community in The Spire is bent upon fulfilling a certain aim, the characters of The Bell seem lost in the past. Both communities are faced with extraordinary situations, yet they deal with these in their unique ways. While Murdoch’s pace is more casual, Golding demonstrates tragic endings and gory beginnings – all for a spire that is to point towards the sky where God resides. Deep as this may sound, the community created by Murdoch is a little more realistic despite overtones of Gothic and fantasy based elements. True, Murdoch also makes use of tragic elements that set forth a chain of events that change the life within the community, but she does so in context of asking whether or not human are frivolous enough to require the staging of an elaborate tragedy in order to get them to sit up and take notice of certain things. Is this how the world goes round, is what she seems to be asking. Even though Golding asks the same question, he seems to take the support of tragedy to show how a cause built of material benefits can be achieved through tragic based events. These events are what shape both communities at the end of the day as far as their basic perceptions regarding life are concerned. The spire makes the people of Golding’s community sit up and tale notice of weaknesses that are an integral part of society in the form of selfishness and corruption, while Murdoch uses the case of a religious community going ashtray due to a visit by two strangers who are selfish enough to unwittingly sabotage the peaceful existence and functioning of this community in search of their so called spiritual purposes in life. Purpose based events are another similarity between the communities in the two books. While Golding has used the excuse of a spire to help the visionary called Jocelin show people their real purpose as civilised citizens in the face of dying humanity, Murdoch has made use of a missing bell to depict the missing elements that should hold a religious community as well as the rest of the world together. In doing so, they both answer the questions in the same way at the end of their respective books. With crisp characterisations and story telling paces, both books are examples of how moral thrillers should be, apart from demonstrating how moral thrillers can suit the tone of any period of time through the use of communities and characters that suit these times. Both books are studies in human personalities, apart from bringing out the best and worst aspects of community living. The principles and questions set forth in these books are ideal for any period of time owing to the foresight shown by both authors. Further, there are many lessons regarding the furthering of causes like self interest as well as fear, to be learnt from both the books. Also, both books show communities that are held together merely by the existence of the variety and concoctions of characters – a strong advisor of how we must conduct ourselves in a world ridden with globalisation and international terror scenarios. In this way, both books are perfect for studying the nuances that hold communities together, without disrupting the normal flow and pace of life as lived by the people who form these communities. Also, the description of both communities is more an expression of self identity than an experiment in ethical practices. This is owing to the fact that self identity is the phenomenon that gives rise to the feeling of secularism and brotherhood within the community, depending on the freedom and strength of this expression. With unique ideas and even more unique characters, both books are memorable in their descriptions of the communities portrayed and the challenges they face – the challenges that will get even the most average reader thinking. In this way, both writers manage to effectively play with words to show the state of nature when it comes to holding different kinds of people and their differing ideas together. References: 1. Golding, William (2006) The Spire. Prentice Hall, UK. 2. Murdoch, Iris. (1992) The Bell. Vintage Books, UK. 3. Wikipedia – the free encyclopaedia. URL: www.wikipedia.com (Accessed on: 24th February, 2007) Read More