Category Archives: isolation

February 28, 2022 · 9:53 pm

An Idle Dove; Rodoreda’s “The Time of the Doves”

The time of the Doves by M. Rodoreda follows the story of Natalia, and the tumultuous tale of romance, war and the harsh realities that grip her life. In the first half of the book, I was often left feeling confused about Natalia’s agency as a woman, mother and wife. I found it hard to come to terms with her decision to marry Quimet, given his controlling and obsessive nature and her early comprehension of these  flaws. I felt like there were vivid descriptions of her despair, and the mental and emotional pressures being put on her, but I felt like there was an overall lack of explanation behind her reasoning and thought processes that governed her actions. 

 

Another interesting observation I noticed was how the book’s title “The Time of the Doves” alluded to a larger theme in the text, which was the liminality between animals and humans. The blurry lines that were crossed between the realm of the human and animals were evident in instances such as men being torn up from war (like the grocer), Natalia scrounging for food and shelter, Natalia’s decision to kill herself and her children due to her instincts taking over. Additionally, the doves housed in her home, where she was “killing herself cleaning up after them”, and desperately wanting to separate her “heaven[ly]” house and the “hell it became” (p.100). The novel perhaps creates this blurring of boundaries to foreshadow how war brings out the animal in human beings, with humans being morphed into aggressive, uncontrollable creatures of instinct and conflict.

 

In addition to these broader themes, I noticed a sub-theme of isolation that ran through the book, carried by Natalia’s feelings of intense alienation. A particular instance where she described her role on p.82- “I was selling him my work..wholesale” highlighted the everyday commodification of humans, and reducing them as mere objects to be used, leading to a loss in sense of self for Natalia and others. It also connects to the broader themes of “things” in the book- the furniture, the markets, the house of the bourgeoisie family Natalia works for, and many more. War creates an image of the world disintegrating – like the things and people that occupy that world are living on the brink of destruction.like they are things that can be and will be destroyed. 

 

However, not all bad things come out of destruction. Natalia eventually does fall in love with the grocer, in imperfect ways (who suffers infertility and cannot bear children) and marries him to create a non-traditional family structure. She lovingly refers to him as her “little cripple” towards the end of the book, in a warm tone that lies in stark contrast to the tone implied in the rest of the book. Her found family has an inorganic solidarity, and it leaves us wondering whether the best stories are ones that are also inherently imperfect. 

 

Food for thought: 

In your opinion, do politics, war and societal standards mentioned in the book (and derived from its context) stand at the periphery of Natalia’s life, or the center of it? Why or why not? 

 

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Filed under commodification, despair, inorganic structures, isolation, war

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January 29, 2022 · 11:19 pm

Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” : Reflections from beyond the grave

It is certainly always a delight to hear female voices in modernist literature, and Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” is no exception. It is rare to see older female protagonists/ narrators depicted in literature, and that reason alone could suffice for making the book an interesting read. The novel is a narrated by the corpse of a Chilean woman, and depicts her reflections of life in death, as she lies to rest in her grave. Instead of providing a holistic review, I have chosen a few segments from Bombal’s writing that had a impacted me.

The book begins with the narrator’s taking delight in the gaze she is subjected to as a woman, even in death. Through unique self- reflexivity as a corpse, the narrator takes pleasure in her physical appearance at her own funeral and “she takes delight in submitting herself to the gaze of all” (p. 157). This speaks to the constant “gaze” women are subjected to and creates a paradox in defining the fine line between unwanted attention and enjoyment of it. Moreover, her reflexivity as a corpse creates interesting observations through the gift of hindsight, in a tone that is often perplexing and ambivalent. She wonders “must we die to know things” (p. 176), re-evaluating the subtle pointlessness of drowning in misery after her first heartbreak. It also provides commentary on the broader wasted opportunities to live life while one can, and to desire the gifts of hindsight earlier on in life.

Another recurring theme in the book that intrigued me was the narrator’s connection to God and religion. Through instances of questioning her faith, and the existence of God, Bombal creates a powerful concept of agency that is often not afforded to women, especially in patriarchal societies. She says, “God seemed to me so remote, and so sever”. This positions women as having agency in the form of strong ideas, independent thought and being curious. Their minds are depicted as free from capture from the patriarchal cage that surrounds them, which reads to me as an act of rebellion against the missionary movement of the West and the mandatory adherence to God that was demanded of all people, including women.

On an concluding note, another observation I made was that the male characters in the book- whether it was the narrator’s lover, father, or brother are depicted as deeply flawed in the narrator’s mind, which creates active space for women to shine in the book, even given the constraints of their material and worldly conditions. On page 182, she talks about the “price women have to pay” when they refuse to conform to the pillars of patriarchy, but she talks about it in a light which is celebratory of women who choose to do so.

Astha Kumar

Food for thought: 

What are your thoughts on this particular line that comes from the ending paragraph of the book- “Alone, she would at last be able to rest, to die. For she had suffered the death of the living.”

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Filed under abyss, inorganic structures, isolation, Memory, nostalgia