Sue Monk Kidd wrote The Mermaid Chair in 2005. This novel is about a woman, Jessie who is called to her home on an island where there is this chair. This is a chair in which legend states, was a mermaid before the conversion. Jessie has had to deal with multiple things throughout her life including her mother’s acts of violence against herself, because of her leaving to this island she leaves behind her husband, Hugh, who she is in love with but is not the life in which she wishes to live. On this island she is drawn to Brother Thomas, a monk who is about ready to take his vows. After meeting Brother Thomas her marriage with Hugh unwinds as she has new ideas spiritually, artistically, and erotically. While at this island, Jessie is drawn to the beauty of the land, struggle of everyday life, and the denial of the freedom that she feels while on the island. Jessie later decides that the qualities of the chair are no way to fix the problems that she incurred in this book including the behavior of her mother and her feelings for Brother Thomas.
This story parallels many themes that are discussed in our class. One of the themes in particular discussed in the class is about how a woman belongs to the man she marries. This is seen in marriage vows when a man says he will be loving and faithful while the woman says she will be obedient and faithful. In the book this seen when Jessie says, “All my life I’ve thought I needed someone to complete me, now I know I need to belong to myself” (Kidd 55). Jessie believes that she needs Brother Thomas and her husband Hugh to make her complete or to make her life worth what it is supposed to be but she soon realizes that all she needs is to be her own person and before she can make others happy she first needs to make herself happy. This theme is prevalent throughout all of the readings in class. Many of the times, for example, in Medea, she gives everything up to be with her husband and when he does her wrong she is lost and does not know what to do when in fact all she needs is herself and she belongs to herself and not to her husband. I believe these two stories go hand in hand because they both have the same meaning in the end. The meaning that woman do not belong to the men that they marry, they are not objects, but in fact their own separate persons. I also think those women who believe their only job in life is to have children and to take care of the house may not be living their lives to the fullest. It is those women who go out and live life to the fullest without cares and realize themselves come first are those women who are getting the most out of life.
I read this book one summer a few years ago. I think it must have been soon after it first came out because it was still advertised in the newspaper and on television. This summary does a good job of covering the basic plotline. I remember not liking the main character, Jessie, right off the bat. I felt as though she was incredibly greedy and selfish. I also remember Jessie making love to the monk, Brother Thomas. This scene, like the sex scene in Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye involving Cholly and his wife, repulsed me in a way. I didn't respect the characters or the actions they were responsible for, and so I was disgusted by their lovemaking. Even though those scenes were meant to describe the beauty and trust in the character's relationships, I was put off by it. I was especially disapproving of Jessie's actions since she had a husband. Do you think Sue Monk Kidd realized that some of her readers would feel that way about Jessie, or do you think that Kidd believed the readers would be forgiving of her affair because she was unhappy in the life she had with her husband? How do you think Kidd wanted her readers to feel about Jessie as a main character in general?
ReplyDeleteReading your blog about Sue Monk Kidd's book, "The Mermaid Chair" I noticed how right you are about the feeling women have to be with a man. Even now when women have almost as many opportunities as men we are still considered "incomplete." Even something as influential as religion endorses this false belief. In Christianity Eve was only made by god to entertain and keep Adam company she was never her own person and you cannot mention Eve without Adam. I really liked your blog and how you tied the two stories, "The Mermaid Chair" and "Madea" together. Your theme and how you explained it seems very well thought out and overall I really like your blog.
ReplyDelete-Giau
Kim:
ReplyDeleteI think that what Kidd was trying to get across is that there is no need to be unhappy. Most people think that to come out of a relationship something bad has to happen. In this book she has a "perfectly loving" relationship with her husband. Here when she finds Brother Thomas she thinks she has found something better whether it be just a crush or not. I think that Kidd in the end wants her readers to see that what Jessie was doing was for herself and that sometimes thats okay. I think it depends on the person whether you take that as a bad thing or not. I personally don't.
Gwendolyn:
ReplyDeleteI am actually really glad your brought up the Adam and Eve story. I didn't even really think about that story until after I read your post. I think that story is just so second nature to me, as I was grown up with that belief in my household, that I didn't even think to parallel those stories. You are completely right though it seems in most religions the women are made for the man, and even in today's times the women are made to serve men. If we surround our lives with our religion then is our religion, do you think, oppressing those women who believe in it?
I really liked the comparison you did with this book and Medea. Although people may not see these themes as outright as a myth such as medea, it is good that you recognized the main character's feeling toward the want and need for someone to be with. I once read a book I believe it was called "A gift from the sea" by Lindbergh and it addressed the need for not only women, but all beings to be alone and find themselves. It was addressed that all beings need that alone time to find themselves. This book popped up when you mentioned that this main character struggled with knowing she could be alone. This thought resonanted with me as being very familiar. I'm sure ill enjoy this book!
ReplyDelete-Caitlin Wilenchik
It seems that Jessie is a very powerful women. In the situation of loving her husband yet hating her life, she could have been put into a double blind. However her being the strong person that she is decides what is important to her and leaves to really experience and enjoy life. Am I on the right track? Secondly, How does she come about finding these ideas of spiritually, artistically, and erotically emotions? Is there any one instance that sticks out?
ReplyDeletecwilenchik:
ReplyDeleteI find this particular topic interesting for the fact that women are seen as weak because they want someone to be with and that men are not because they are "okay with being lonely". I find it hard to believe that men a there okay with that but the topic is never written about. Its interesting because I was thinking about how old movies like cowboy movies usually the man is alone or with one of his friends out camping at night or something and has been away from his wife for a while and when he returns home she is always happy and crying that he is finally back and he takes on the attitude like whatever. How do you feel about this?
Taylor:
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in the sense that she is damned if she does and damned if she doesn't (double bind) with staying with her husband, she loves him but on the other hand is experiencing something completely different and on a different level for the rest of the book. Her whole experience with loving Brother Thomas is what really opens her mind that allows her to do what she thinks is best for herself.