When Father's gone...Dynamic shift
Mother, Father, Mother's Younger Brother, the Grandfather, and the Boy who is also the Son.
It's interesting to see how this family's dynamic shifts over time. At the beginning of Ragtime, written by El Doctorow, we see that the people in the house believe Father is the most powerful, it almost seems like they fear a side of Father that we haven't seen before. It was already established that he was the head of the household and that everyone was inclined to listen to him. The book starts out with Father and continues to talk about Father for a whole page before introducing other family members. Doctorow depicts Father as someone who is dependable and stable because he built the house himself so that everyone could happily live in it. Father was also the only character mentioned to have an income. In comparison to father, Mother seems quiet and demure. Page 10, it reads, "He was not without charm. He smiled and Mother, a large blonde woman, lowered her eyes."
Father seems like this great guy, good at everything and supports the entire family while the mother barely has enough confidence and courage to be comfortable around Father. Even during sex, Mother thinks of the intercourse as a daily to-do list that she wants to avoid but would rather get it done sooner, and also because Father pressures her. When I first read about this relationship between Father and Mother, I was expecting a story about a difficult and abusive relationship. This was because Mother seemed so uncomfortable around Father. I think Doctorow does a great job showing the "insignificance" of Mother in the first couple of pages; there are no lines of Mother to be found while everyone else converses with each other.
Mother's Younger Brother and the little boy wander off doing who knows what. Younger Brother is occupied with feelings for some girl he's never met before. The Little boy is in his sailor suit and busy flatting away the flies in front of the porch, typical behaviors of a little boy. The family members don't seem to be independent or well-developed characters. However, drastic change occurs as Sarah and her baby appear. The greatest change I saw, was when Mother stepped up to take "responsibility" for the baby and mother. Mother finally seems to gain confidence and control as Father is far away in the middle of the North Pole. She manages to work out everything with cost and problems that Father used to take care of. They sleep in the same bed together every day and she initiates intimate moments between them.
The little boy grew smarter and brighter. He picks up a lot of clues that everyone leaves behind, such as the picture thrown out by Younger Brother. His psychic? powers seemed to have grown into his character. Father definitely notices his sons' smartness as he struggles to catch up with certain topics in discussion.
Younger Brother probably had it the worst out of all the family members. He was in supposed "mourning" because the woman he had stalked and loved didn't love him back. Father noticed Mother's Younger Brother's attention was now on working and tiring himself out, often bombing different things.
Father most definitely noticed how his family treats him as a "convalescent". This is a super big change in the family. Father is ignored. To be very honest, no one seems to need him anymore. Even Sarah doesn't bat an eye as Father comes back from his trip.
It's interesting to see how much growth everyone went through during a short period of time. It was also funny to see how the Father was reduced to nothing but as an ignorant, not-trying-to-be-racist-but-is-racist person.
It's interesting to see how this family's dynamic shifts over time. At the beginning of Ragtime, written by El Doctorow, we see that the people in the house believe Father is the most powerful, it almost seems like they fear a side of Father that we haven't seen before. It was already established that he was the head of the household and that everyone was inclined to listen to him. The book starts out with Father and continues to talk about Father for a whole page before introducing other family members. Doctorow depicts Father as someone who is dependable and stable because he built the house himself so that everyone could happily live in it. Father was also the only character mentioned to have an income. In comparison to father, Mother seems quiet and demure. Page 10, it reads, "He was not without charm. He smiled and Mother, a large blonde woman, lowered her eyes."
Father seems like this great guy, good at everything and supports the entire family while the mother barely has enough confidence and courage to be comfortable around Father. Even during sex, Mother thinks of the intercourse as a daily to-do list that she wants to avoid but would rather get it done sooner, and also because Father pressures her. When I first read about this relationship between Father and Mother, I was expecting a story about a difficult and abusive relationship. This was because Mother seemed so uncomfortable around Father. I think Doctorow does a great job showing the "insignificance" of Mother in the first couple of pages; there are no lines of Mother to be found while everyone else converses with each other.
Mother's Younger Brother and the little boy wander off doing who knows what. Younger Brother is occupied with feelings for some girl he's never met before. The Little boy is in his sailor suit and busy flatting away the flies in front of the porch, typical behaviors of a little boy. The family members don't seem to be independent or well-developed characters. However, drastic change occurs as Sarah and her baby appear. The greatest change I saw, was when Mother stepped up to take "responsibility" for the baby and mother. Mother finally seems to gain confidence and control as Father is far away in the middle of the North Pole. She manages to work out everything with cost and problems that Father used to take care of. They sleep in the same bed together every day and she initiates intimate moments between them.
The little boy grew smarter and brighter. He picks up a lot of clues that everyone leaves behind, such as the picture thrown out by Younger Brother. His psychic? powers seemed to have grown into his character. Father definitely notices his sons' smartness as he struggles to catch up with certain topics in discussion.
Younger Brother probably had it the worst out of all the family members. He was in supposed "mourning" because the woman he had stalked and loved didn't love him back. Father noticed Mother's Younger Brother's attention was now on working and tiring himself out, often bombing different things.
Father most definitely noticed how his family treats him as a "convalescent". This is a super big change in the family. Father is ignored. To be very honest, no one seems to need him anymore. Even Sarah doesn't bat an eye as Father comes back from his trip.
It's interesting to see how much growth everyone went through during a short period of time. It was also funny to see how the Father was reduced to nothing but as an ignorant, not-trying-to-be-racist-but-is-racist person.
I think that father's decreasing importance throughout the novel is a very interesting topic, and I enjoyed your take on it. For me, Father is a very sad individual as we see him return from the Arctic and suddenly have no clout in his own family. I see this as a progressive message, as it shows that the patriarch of the family is no longer the only person who makes decisions and has sway.
ReplyDeleteDoctorow portrays father as a very subtly nasty person, and he takes pleasure in making Mother cry (after he feels she wrongs him) and uses the N-word to describe Coalhouse. Even through the end of the story, Doctorow, whenever narrating the story from Father's eyes, refers to Coalhouse as "the black killer" and reduces him to his race.
I feel Father gets what he deserves, to be honest.
I agree father got what he deserves and the thought of father losing his clout is interesting. The way I saw it, father was a chain holding everyone back from thriving as a family and as individuals. Mother feels more confident taking over the business and realizing she doesn't actually even really *like* father, even the little boy seems to thrive. Its almost as if Father represents this old world, with his "boomerlike" beliefs (if you want to connect it todays terms) and once he leaves, the family has a way to progress. As you said, father overall however, is just a mean dude. Taking pleasure in making your wife cry and being racist to the dude who has more skills than you, says a lot, and its clear sympathy is not found for Father when his life takes a turn for the worst.
DeleteA generation feels as if they rule an era only for them to one day wake up and see that it is a newer younger generation that has control. Father is part of the old generation and views his family in a very patriarchal manner. Father is not in tune with the revolutionary ideas of the era and he is somewhat oblivious to the changes around him until his world is swept out under his feet. I think Doctorow added many different eras and methods of thinking in this novel to show us how they clash, evolve, and change our society.
ReplyDelete