Oh, now where have I stumbled into? Is this my long forgotten English blog? Why yes it is! Oh how I missed you so (for my three viewers that was sarcasm). Indeed, I have returned from my writing hiatus to amuse the internet with my often mindless ramblings and silly shenanigans about military ordinance. Following my journey through the seemingly endless pages of Hamlet, I have began a new chapter in my literary odyssey. Which is this new book I have begun you may ask. The answer to this question is non other than Kate Chopin's The Awakening. For those unacquainted with this book, it is a late 19th century piece often considered as being a pioneer text in the feminist movement.
Not since Gabriel Garcia Marquez' masterpiece, Cien años de soledad, have I been so intrigued by the opening in a novel:
A green and yellow parrot, which hung in a cage outside the door, kept
repeating over and over: “Allez vous-en! Allez vous-en! Sapristi! That’s all right!”
He could speak a little Spanish, and also a language which nobody understood, unless it was the mocking-bird that hung on the other side of the door, whistling his fluty notes out upon the breeze with maddening persistence.
At first glance, it appears to be a simple image of a parrot and a mockingbird. However, this is being a course focusing greatly on the analytical aspect of literature, there must be an explanation behind this apparently unassuming scene. Birds are commonly represented in literature as being symbols for freedom. This generalization is too broad, which is why I believe that it is important to analyze each bird individually, seeing how they are in different situations and behavior, specially their speech patterns.
The protagonist in this paragraph is the parrot trapped within the cage rambling about. While I don't understand french at all, I was inevitably drawn to the bird's exclamation: "Allez vous-en! Allez vous-en! Sapristi! That’s all right!" Using one of the internet's most reliable tools, Google Translate, I was able to decipher the meaning behind the bird's French mouthful. However it was quite an unpleasant exclamation: "Go away! Go away! Damn it! That's All Right". Now why would the parrot exclaim such an impolite statement? I believe it is quite evident that the parrot feels taunted by the mockingbird, considering their radically different situations. The parrot is often kept as a domesticated bird, and as a result it is many times kept inside a cage and has its wings clipped. This along with the fact that it is trapped within the confines of its cage prevents it from flying and being free. A parrot is also cursed with the ability to repeat simple speech patterns, over and over again.
The mockingbird on the other hand is radically different from the parrot. It is commonly found in the wild and is known for singing beautiful melodies. The other side of the door could represent the barrier between wildlife (social ignorance) and the house where the parrot is kept (society). Considering the novel's feminist background, it could be highly possible that the parrot and the mockingbird represent the women and men during this time, respectively. This is definitely possible simply considering their habitats. The parrot cannot fly due to both its clipped wings and its cage. Women during this time faced a considerable amount of social oppression and were not allowed to take part in society in the same way as men. It wasn't until recently that women have been allowed a place in the government and in the economy.Men, however have had social, political and economic dominance over the world for eons. This would explain the parrot's (woman's) remark, perhaps it felt the mockingbird (man) was taunting her and showing off his liberties and opportunities she is not able to achieve. The parrot's speech pattern is also akin to women often taking a second role in society doing things after men. The mockingbird's melody could be interpreted on the other hand as men being
However what is perplexing is the fact that the author states that the parrot spoke in a "language which nobody understood, unless it was the mockingbird that hung on the other side of the door". Could this mean that men understand what women have to endure? If this is the case why are women still oppressed by society in the eyes of the author? I must admit that analyzing a feminist text is a somewhat grueling task, considering that a lot of it often deals with the social injustices women must face from men. As a man I believe that I must put my discomfort aside and move forth with the text, for the sake of Chopin's legacy in the world of literature.
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