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I wasn't offended by her calling him "Negro", I was offended by the way she talks about him and treats him. I don't understand how pointing out that she says several culturally insensitive things is "sensitive". This novel is considered feminist literature and feminism means eqaulity for EVERYONE, so its ironic when she discriminates people by saying ignorant things.
Thats fine, I understand where you're coming from. You raise some good points. Agree to disagree.
Books have a massive effect on our culture and how we think. I don't think it is being over sensitive if you investigate the way they portray different races.
"I wasn't offended by her calling him "Negro", I was offended by the way she talks about him and treats him". I had a similar reaction: did she not like the guy, and he just happened to be black? Or was she immediately distrustful of him because he was black? After all, the term was not *merely* descriptive: she doesn't describe everyone else as "white". Since she seems to find something to dislike about everyone she meets (pebble eyes, horse teeth, etc), I was left with the impression that what she didn't like about this guy was that he was black. So, while the use of the term "negro" was descriptive and not racist, the character herself was rather racist.
^ Very, very good points.
This is not so much about Plath herself, or the characters even, but your comment sparked a memory of something I read about how racism as a mental illness has been debated among psychologists. Interesting.
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Joshua
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May 09, 2014 01:24PM
I wasn't offended by her calling him "Negro", I was offended by the way she talks about him and treats him. I don't understand how pointing out that she says several culturally insensitive things is "sensitive". This novel is considered feminist literature and feminism means eqaulity for EVERYONE, so its ironic when she discriminates people by saying ignorant things.
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Well I saw it as insensitive because "culturally insensitive" can be a subjective term. What if she just didn't like this particular person who just happened to be black? She described him as black in order to give you an idea who he was? The colour of someone's skin is an identifiable trait and is an effective way of describing someone's appearance.
Feminism is a lot of things, but equality for everyone? I don't agree.
Feminism is a lot of things, but equality for everyone? I don't agree.
"Well I saw it as sensitive" sorry typo.
Thats fine, I understand where you're coming from. You raise some good points. Agree to disagree.
Books have a massive effect on our culture and how we think. I don't think it is being over sensitive if you investigate the way they portray different races.
"I wasn't offended by her calling him "Negro", I was offended by the way she talks about him and treats him". I had a similar reaction: did she not like the guy, and he just happened to be black? Or was she immediately distrustful of him because he was black? After all, the term was not *merely* descriptive: she doesn't describe everyone else as "white". Since she seems to find something to dislike about everyone she meets (pebble eyes, horse teeth, etc), I was left with the impression that what she didn't like about this guy was that he was black. So, while the use of the term "negro" was descriptive and not racist, the character herself was rather racist.
I can't escape the fact that no one mentions that fact that you are talking about someone who suffered from severe mental illness. She was paranoid, she misremembered her childhood, she felt hated by her parents and her husband. And there was little medical treatment back then. I've been in mental hospitals, as I'm sure many of you have. There are fears and delusions and "bad bahavior" that stems from a plethora of conditions. And that's today, 21st century. Imagine what it was like in the 60's? I remember during that time period people (I volunteered as a teen) who spent all day in the hall or in their beds, tied to the bed, tied to the chair, the symptoms of their illnesses compounded by the poor treatment. I do not understand why Sylvia Plath's sensitivity to how people treated her is not seen as a symptom of her disease. I simply do not understand why so many people act as though her mental illness SIMPLY DID NOT EXIST.
^ Very, very good points. This is not so much about Plath herself, or the characters even, but your comment sparked a memory of something I read about how racism as a mental illness has been debated among psychologists. Interesting.
