Through out the novel of Brighton Rock, women are definitely treated as lower than men, as they are constantly referred to as 'bitch' when being described or spoken about. Also a lot of the imagery associated around women, is to do with sensual pleasure, or a more obviously degrading role. 'A little bitch sniffed at him and then talked him over with another little bitch on a settee'. The phrase 'little bitch' is very degrading as the world little connotes the idea of being powerless and weak, and this is Pinkie referring to more than one women. The time this book was written this insult would have not been a massive deal, however in current times, it's deemed as completely unacceptable. However the character of Ida breaks out of this idea, despite the fact a lot of her acts are rather promiscuous and sensual, she very much is in control and does what she wishes to do, and does not feel she needs a man, which is rather unusual, if you compare it to the time she was living in. Overall Brighton Rock has elements of sexism in as the women are all described to be 'made up' or 'fake' and all need a man to complete themselves. Eleanor Lambert
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are unattainable: Throughout the novel Brighton Rock, Greene insinuates that happiness and peace are unattainable from the breakdown of the characters and relationship of Pinkie and Rose. For example, the characters of both Pinkie and Rose are depicted by Greene as having had harsh lives, from the wreckage of their childhood to the desperation in their adulthood. Pinkie being shown as having an abusive and neglectful childhood and Rose living in the same poverty stricken area. This has then led not to an improvement within their adult lives but a struggle as both characters struggle desperately at having control over their lives which they cannot gain access to. Greene conveying this through the ending of the novel by emphasising Pinkie's death which is partly his fault and Rose's continuing struggle being pregnant, left alone, and unloved, " he was at the edge, he was over: they couldn't even hear a splash. It was as if he'd been withdrawn suddenly by a hand out of existence... whipped away in to zero-nothing" and, "...And if there's a baby...they;d take her back- just as if the boy had never existed at all...walked rapidly in to the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all." The words 'existence' emanating from both quotes highlighting how Pinkie's life has culminated in to nothing, not having an impact even on Rose with the baby - she's still accepted back in to Snow's. The structure of the novel being emphasised as Greene implies to the reader that like Pinkie's first description as 'the Boy' - meaningless and non identifiable, he is again exaggerated as being this child-like person at the end of the novel. The third person perspective and omniscient narrator being proven as the use of the term 'the Boy' foreshadowing the penultimate events over the course of the novel, both Pinkie and Rose effecting the reader by inferring that they have no more or no less of a meaning as they did at the start of the novel. This linking to the theme of appearance versus reality as Pinkie and Rose are proven to having a bigger 'appearance' throughout the course of the novel, being seen in lights of innocence and brutality - this essentially meaning nothing as the 'reality' of the novel comes to place in the final events of the book seeing Rose and Pinkie back to where they started - Rose struggling and Pinkie before his death - in a disturbed state unsure of how to go about the rest of his plans. Therefore, the overall 'overriding message' of Brighton Rock being that happiness and peace are unattainable. - Amy
Brighton Rock challenges the traditional views on gender In Brighton Rock we see different portrayals of women in the book. Ida is presented in a contrasting way which seems to present her as an extremely complex, independent woman, contrasting 1930s society’s stereotypes of women. She is both a woman rich in motherly traits and a vivacious, sexual woman. This can be seen in “You thought of sucking babies when you looked at her, but if she’d borne any she hadn’t let them pull her down.” This juxtaposition of both these differing viewpoints of women causes the description of Ida to be uncomfortable to read as they are not two ideas often displayed in close proximity to each other. These ideas show the complex nature of Ida and by her very nature Ida is independent and self sufficient. This is epitomised at the beginning of chapter 3 part one where Ida dodges cars and “she grinned back” at the drivers. This reflects her independent nature and her lack of need for a man for safety as she can look after herself. Rose however conforms to gender stereotypes by blindly following Pinkie throughout the novel. She does this as she believes it her only way out of her current life. She therefore focuses solely on becoming Pinkie’s wife and nearly blindly following Pinkie to her death. Rose is however a far more two dimensional character than Ida and as the victim in the novel, it can be seen that she needs to be saved from Pinkie and his misogynistic views such as his constant references to the females in the novels including Rose herself, as “polonys” and “bitches”. Therefore Rose’s role as a dutiful, doting wife can be seen as a negative attribute as it also leads to her death. Therefore I conclude that due to positive presentation of Ida as an independent women and the heroin of the novel Greene is challenging the traditional views on gender, and the fact that Rose adopting the traditional values of a wife being detrimental to herself is another foundation for the argument that Greene is challenging gender stereotypes of the time.
"Brighton Rock is a novel with no moral centre" Throughout Brighton Rock it is vague towards whether or not the correct moral values lay within religion or the idea of 'right and wrong'. "Now it was as if he was damned already and there was nothing more to fear ever again." This quotation is emblematic of the darker compel of religion. Despite the belief of a greater power, Pinkie still feels reasoning behind his ruthlessness due to his inevitable damnation. Religions lack of direction towards ethically correct actions questions its ability to influence correct moral decisions. Pinkie believes that his actions are unforgiving and therefore the religious world has no more that can be offered to him that he desires, only encouraging his animalistic persona to extend to an even more ruthless character. Some argue that Ida's idealism towards right and wrong is morally correct due to her sourcing justice but due to Ida's fixated personality, the reasoning behind her finding the cause of Hale's murder to be sparked by selfish means. The pride she would obtain from solving such a case is more meaningful than finding Hale's murderer for the sake to justify his death. This righteousness is fuelled by jealously and self pride, making it also a morally incorrect act. Despite this arguably religion is a topic of moral centre due to its affect to influence others, such as Rose, to scarifies themselves to assist others. Despite this incentive not being morally correct, it symbolises how people are willing to scarifies their most precious belongings in order to create someone else's happiness. Due to these juxtaposing ideas towards whether or not religion and right and wrong are morally correct, the idea of any moral centre is blurred. It is dependant upon the perception of the reader to decide whether or not these influences are morally correct, making each of the characters actions strongly contra versional as to whether they are right or wrong. Natasha
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are unattainable. The argument surrounding the statement is ultimately dependent each character’s idea and concept of “happiness” and “peace”. For example a character such as Pinkie believes that his inevitable fate of damnation is when and where he will find his ‘peace’ from the physical world, and he takes pleasure or ‘happiness’ from knowing it. the quote about Pinkie “He tried in a half-hearted way to picture ‘peace’- his eyes closed and behind the lids he saw a grey darkness going on and on without end” illustrates that his concept of ‘peace’ is his death and the eternality of his damnation. The phrase “he saw a grey darkness going on and on without end” could suggest that Pinkie believes his ‘peace’ is his damnation as implied through the word “darkness” which connotes the imagery of evil, hell and being ominous and that it is “without end” further implying the immortality of his ‘happiness’ after death. Overall, the presentation of Pinkie in ‘Brighton Rock’ shows that peace and happiness are attainable due to his pessimistic idea of ‘peace’. On the other hand, Rose is demonstrated as achieving her own ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’ after the marriage herself and Pinkie. The narrative voice describes that after the wedding “She was married. She was a woman. She was happy” emphasising that despite her very achievable and basic goals in life, she is able to be at ‘peace’, conveying that due to her new level of maturity and loss of innocence, she can now be happy. The short sentences in this quote suggest the simplicity of her ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’ exemplifying that despite the basic ideas and goals surrounding happiness she is still able to achieve it. Overall, the presentation of Pinkie and Rose demonstrate that due to their own ideas of ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’, it conveys that they are attainable within ‘Brighton Rock’.
“Brighton Rock challenges traditional views of gender” Rose conforms to “traditional views of gender” as she attempts to do her best as a wife despite it not being a true marriage and not knowing what it entails for her to do. This is evident in the quote “she didn’t lie long – that was frightening, the unusual passivity… if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too”. The phrase “unusual passivity” demonstrates how she conforms to the stereotypical view as she appears to be afraid of having time to herself whereas normally she is working; therefore not having any time to do what she wants. By declaring “if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too” she is conforming to the traditional views as she is following him wherever he goes despite not deserving this fate, demonstrating how she blindly follows him and appears to not have any free will after marrying Pinkie. In contrast to this Ida challenges this traditional view as she doesn’t allow herself to be controlled by any man and is instead driven by her desires. This can be seen in the quote “you thought of sucking babies when you looked at her, but if she’d borne them she hadn’t let them pull her down”. This directly contrasts to Rose as she appears totally independent despite her maternal appearance while at the same time appearing to be in total control of herself, contrasting to the “traditional view” as she allows herself the freedom to do whatever she wants to do while at the same time seeming to be a typical housewife due to her maternal appearance.
Brighton Rock does not have a satisfying ending as it leaves so many questions unanswered, this does not however make it any less of a novel as Greene’s intentions throughout the book have been varied and open to interpretation deeming Brighton Rock to be whatever the reader makes of it. The quote ‘she walked rapidly in the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all’ presents to the reader a very open ending of the book. The fact that this is the last line of the entire novel suggests that the entire story is based on the readers own interpretation of it as this is quote is so very vague. It could easily be referring to a number of things; the most obvious being the record with Pinkies hateful messages that awaits her, but it could also be referring to the idea that she may be carrying Pinkies child or in a larger sense, that she is stuck in an eternal cycle of hellish poverty. Despite the numerous possible interpretation, one thing is clear; that is that Brighton Rock is not a fairy tale, it is a pessimistic novel which highlights the grim reality of poverty stricken life that many face even today therefore deeming Brighton Rock a truly unsatisfactory book. Jack Wright
"Brighton Rock does not have a Satisfying ending" For the duration of the novel, Greene leaves the reader asking new questions as the story evolves, however he leaves them all unanswered. The ending of the novel is not satisfying as it leaves the reader with no answers, thus making it more ambiguous and open to interpretations. The quotation "she walked rapidly in the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all", being the last line in the book helps Greene keep his inconclusive feel to the novel. This is because it leaves the reader to decide what they believe 'the worst horror of all' is. This could be in reference to her possible pregnancy, or it could be the abusive message awaiting her from Pinkie, which would possibly destroy her as she cannot have any closure with the situation. It is very much so a fatalistic, depressing novel, leaving nobody in a truly 'happy ending', most obviously within the character of Rose, as the last chapter is focalised through her. Although, also within the character of Ida, even though she finally grasps justice, it is apparent that she has not fulfilled happiness. As a result of this, it leaves the reader feeling unsatisfied with the ending, however Greene succeeds in his intentions of forcing the reader to generate thoughts/questions. Alfie Narborough
“Brighton Rock challenges traditional views of gender” Brighton rock has two contrasting female characters with Rose and Ida. Ida is a strong independent women who is very self righteous and believes that her gender does not hold her back in any way. This is shown at the start of the book with the way she acts with Hale and her appearance in the Bar where she is surrounded by men that she is laughing and joking with. Aswell as this Ida also isn't afraid to challenge the conventions of how she should behave, she is a cosmopolitan women who has a husband yet doesn't live with him and has monogamous relationships with other men, shown in part 6 when she awakes from a night of passion with another gentlemen. In direct contrast with this new modern approach to gender is Rose. Rose is a young girl who is very subservient to Pinkie, she feels that after marrying him her sole perperse in life is to serve Pinkie. “she didn’t lie long – that was frightening, the unusual passivity… if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too” this quote shows how little experienced she is and how she is almost lost without Pinkie being around her, she is incapable of functioning accordingly. These two contacting views and approaches to womanhood show that Brighton rock does challenge the traditional views on gender, even today to a modern reader.
In Brighton Rock, the varied attitudes towards females evidences the sexist prejudices that are present throughout the novel. This often displayed in the relationship between Rose and Pinkie as Pinkie often uses derogatory statements associated with females to refer to Rose. For example, Pinkie describes Rose as a "little bitch", this statement insinuates that Pinkie does not view women equally or complexly and elements such as gender alone have an influence on Pinkie's perception or a character. Greene does this to show the extent that sexist attitudes where present in society in in the early twentieth century. It also allows the audience to be aware that despite Pinkie being repulsed by the society he is surrounded by, his personality is still influenced by it.
This statemnet is true to a certain extent, in the sesnse that misogyny, or at least an ingrained disrespect for women is a characteristic of all the 'men of violence' in Greene's novel. This is shown through Colleonis' dismissal of the empress Eugenie as a 'foreign polony' which proves that the male figures have the attitude of disproval towards women of any class. Pinkies distatse towards women is also clear through the quote "glassy innocence... held by her hair" this is reference to a doll he wins as his prize on the raffle range. This quote shows how Pinkie believes himself to be above women, not only in his physical state, but also his mental one too. Another character that can be used to reinforce this statement is Rose. This is becuase throughout the novel we see her being physcially and mentally abused by Pinkie, without her taking any action or standing up for herself to him. This shows how the women in the novel believe it is not their place to challange the men, showing a sexist heirachy. However one character that disproves this statement is Ida; the reason for this is because she is the complete opposite to the women such as Rose in the sense that she uses the men, to fulfill her desires (mainly sexually driven). This is a complete contrast to the other female characters, as they are seen to be used by the men, for 'their own' sexual desires, thus flipping the the ideology of men being the dominant, abusers in this twisted world of violence and sin. -Tom Brooks
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are essentially unattainable.
Brighton Rock is ultimately a hopeless novel, no matter how hard the characters try to swerve off the path that is laid out for them, they can never succeed in this endeavour. Pinkie, Rose, Prewitt, they all eventually end up back where they started, returning to their origins: Pinkie back to Hell (commits suicide and has committed the worst possible sin), Rose back to her menial job, and Prewitt to his meaningless existence as a second rate solicitor; even Ida, who seemingly lives for herself and nothing else. "maybe i ought to go back to Tom?" Ida, the character in this novel dedicated to living to enjoy the present, for nobody but herself, for the pleasures that you get in life, not believing that there is anything past life on Earth - and so lives every moment for the present... The irony being that even she succumbs to the draw of normality, giving up on the attempt to make anything of her life in terms of both ambition and new ground: she isn't only settling for a marriage, but for someone she was previously in a relationship with, afraid of even finding some uncharted territory, perhaps disheartened and beaten back into submission by the fact that despite the justice she brought to Hale, despite everything "Right" she achieved, nothing changed. This point is highlighted further when she returns home and everything is "where it always was" acting as a microcosm for her life, cyclical, even her life is a microcosm of life in Brighton, potentially even the world. Despite apparent successes and journeys travelled throughout the novel, everything returns to its initial state without a legacy, even a scratch on the surface, left behind.
Through out the novel of Brighton Rock, women are definitely treated as lower than men, as they are constantly referred to as 'bitch' when being described or spoken about. Also a lot of the imagery associated around women, is to do with sensual pleasure, or a more obviously degrading role. 'A little bitch sniffed at him and then talked him over with another little bitch on a settee'. The phrase 'little bitch' is very degrading as the world little connotes the idea of being powerless and weak, and this is Pinkie referring to more than one women. The time this book was written this insult would have not been a massive deal, however in current times, it's deemed as completely unacceptable. However the character of Ida breaks out of this idea, despite the fact a lot of her acts are rather promiscuous and sensual, she very much is in control and does what she wishes to do, and does not feel she needs a man, which is rather unusual, if you compare it to the time she was living in. Overall Brighton Rock has elements of sexism in as the women are all described to be 'made up' or 'fake' and all need a man to complete themselves.
ReplyDeleteEleanor Lambert
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are unattainable:
ReplyDeleteThroughout the novel Brighton Rock, Greene insinuates that happiness and peace are unattainable from the breakdown of the characters and relationship of Pinkie and Rose. For example, the characters of both Pinkie and Rose are depicted by Greene as having had harsh lives, from the wreckage of their childhood to the desperation in their adulthood. Pinkie being shown as having an abusive and neglectful childhood and Rose living in the same poverty stricken area. This has then led not to an improvement within their adult lives but a struggle as both characters struggle desperately at having control over their lives which they cannot gain access to. Greene conveying this through the ending of the novel by emphasising Pinkie's death which is partly his fault and Rose's continuing struggle being pregnant, left alone, and unloved, " he was at the edge, he was over: they couldn't even hear a splash. It was as if he'd been withdrawn suddenly by a hand out of existence... whipped away in to zero-nothing" and, "...And if there's a baby...they;d take her back- just as if the boy had never existed at all...walked rapidly in to the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all." The words 'existence' emanating from both quotes highlighting how Pinkie's life has culminated in to nothing, not having an impact even on Rose with the baby - she's still accepted back in to Snow's. The structure of the novel being emphasised as Greene implies to the reader that like Pinkie's first description as 'the Boy' - meaningless and non identifiable, he is again exaggerated as being this child-like person at the end of the novel. The third person perspective and omniscient narrator being proven as the use of the term 'the Boy' foreshadowing the penultimate events over the course of the novel, both Pinkie and Rose effecting the reader by inferring that they have no more or no less of a meaning as they did at the start of the novel. This linking to the theme of appearance versus reality as Pinkie and Rose are proven to having a bigger 'appearance' throughout the course of the novel, being seen in lights of innocence and brutality - this essentially meaning nothing as the 'reality' of the novel comes to place in the final events of the book seeing Rose and Pinkie back to where they started - Rose struggling and Pinkie before his death - in a disturbed state unsure of how to go about the rest of his plans. Therefore, the overall 'overriding message' of Brighton Rock being that happiness and peace are unattainable. - Amy
Brighton Rock challenges the traditional views on gender
ReplyDeleteIn Brighton Rock we see different portrayals of women in the book.
Ida is presented in a contrasting way which seems to present her as an extremely complex, independent woman, contrasting 1930s society’s stereotypes of women. She is both a woman rich in motherly traits and a vivacious, sexual woman. This can be seen in “You thought of sucking babies when you looked at her, but if she’d borne any she hadn’t let them pull her down.” This juxtaposition of both these differing viewpoints of women causes the description of Ida to be uncomfortable to read as they are not two ideas often displayed in close proximity to each other. These ideas show the complex nature of Ida and by her very nature Ida is independent and self sufficient. This is epitomised at the beginning of chapter 3 part one where Ida dodges cars and “she grinned back” at the drivers. This reflects her independent nature and her lack of need for a man for safety as she can look after herself.
Rose however conforms to gender stereotypes by blindly following Pinkie throughout the novel. She does this as she believes it her only way out of her current life. She therefore focuses solely on becoming Pinkie’s wife and nearly blindly following Pinkie to her death. Rose is however a far more two dimensional character than Ida and as the victim in the novel, it can be seen that she needs to be saved from Pinkie and his misogynistic views such as his constant references to the females in the novels including Rose herself, as “polonys” and “bitches”. Therefore Rose’s role as a dutiful, doting wife can be seen as a negative attribute as it also leads to her death.
Therefore I conclude that due to positive presentation of Ida as an independent women and the heroin of the novel Greene is challenging the traditional views on gender, and the fact that Rose adopting the traditional values of a wife being detrimental to herself is another foundation for the argument that Greene is challenging gender stereotypes of the time.
"Brighton Rock is a novel with no moral centre"
ReplyDeleteThroughout Brighton Rock it is vague towards whether or not the correct moral values lay within religion or the idea of 'right and wrong'. "Now it was as if he was damned already and there was nothing more to fear ever again." This quotation is emblematic of the darker compel of religion. Despite the belief of a greater power, Pinkie still feels reasoning behind his ruthlessness due to his inevitable damnation. Religions lack of direction towards ethically correct actions questions its ability to influence correct moral decisions. Pinkie believes that his actions are unforgiving and therefore the religious world has no more that can be offered to him that he desires, only encouraging his animalistic persona to extend to an even more ruthless character. Some argue that Ida's idealism towards right and wrong is morally correct due to her sourcing justice but due to Ida's fixated personality, the reasoning behind her finding the cause of Hale's murder to be sparked by selfish means. The pride she would obtain from solving such a case is more meaningful than finding Hale's murderer for the sake to justify his death. This righteousness is fuelled by jealously and self pride, making it also a morally incorrect act. Despite this arguably religion is a topic of moral centre due to its affect to influence others, such as Rose, to scarifies themselves to assist others. Despite this incentive not being morally correct, it symbolises how people are willing to scarifies their most precious belongings in order to create someone else's happiness. Due to these juxtaposing ideas towards whether or not religion and right and wrong are morally correct, the idea of any moral centre is blurred. It is dependant upon the perception of the reader to decide whether or not these influences are morally correct, making each of the characters actions strongly contra versional as to whether they are right or wrong.
Natasha
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are unattainable.
ReplyDeleteThe argument surrounding the statement is ultimately dependent each character’s idea and concept of “happiness” and “peace”. For example a character such as Pinkie believes that his inevitable fate of damnation is when and where he will find his ‘peace’ from the physical world, and he takes pleasure or ‘happiness’ from knowing it. the quote about Pinkie “He tried in a half-hearted way to picture ‘peace’- his eyes closed and behind the lids he saw a grey darkness going on and on without end” illustrates that his concept of ‘peace’ is his death and the eternality of his damnation. The phrase “he saw a grey darkness going on and on without end” could suggest that Pinkie believes his ‘peace’ is his damnation as implied through the word “darkness” which connotes the imagery of evil, hell and being ominous and that it is “without end” further implying the immortality of his ‘happiness’ after death. Overall, the presentation of Pinkie in ‘Brighton Rock’ shows that peace and happiness are attainable due to his pessimistic idea of ‘peace’. On the other hand, Rose is demonstrated as achieving her own ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’ after the marriage herself and Pinkie. The narrative voice describes that after the wedding “She was married. She was a woman. She was happy” emphasising that despite her very achievable and basic goals in life, she is able to be at ‘peace’, conveying that due to her new level of maturity and loss of innocence, she can now be happy. The short sentences in this quote suggest the simplicity of her ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’ exemplifying that despite the basic ideas and goals surrounding happiness she is still able to achieve it. Overall, the presentation of Pinkie and Rose demonstrate that due to their own ideas of ‘happiness’ and ‘peace’, it conveys that they are attainable within ‘Brighton Rock’.
“Brighton Rock challenges traditional views of gender”
ReplyDeleteRose conforms to “traditional views of gender” as she attempts to do her best as a wife despite it not being a true marriage and not knowing what it entails for her to do. This is evident in the quote “she didn’t lie long – that was frightening, the unusual passivity… if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too”. The phrase “unusual passivity” demonstrates how she conforms to the stereotypical view as she appears to be afraid of having time to herself whereas normally she is working; therefore not having any time to do what she wants. By declaring “if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too” she is conforming to the traditional views as she is following him wherever he goes despite not deserving this fate, demonstrating how she blindly follows him and appears to not have any free will after marrying Pinkie.
In contrast to this Ida challenges this traditional view as she doesn’t allow herself to be controlled by any man and is instead driven by her desires. This can be seen in the quote “you thought of sucking babies when you looked at her, but if she’d borne them she hadn’t let them pull her down”. This directly contrasts to Rose as she appears totally independent despite her maternal appearance while at the same time appearing to be in total control of herself, contrasting to the “traditional view” as she allows herself the freedom to do whatever she wants to do while at the same time seeming to be a typical housewife due to her maternal appearance.
Brighton Rock does not have a Satisfying ending
ReplyDeleteBrighton Rock does not have a satisfying ending as it leaves so many questions unanswered, this does not however make it any less of a novel as Greene’s intentions throughout the book have been varied and open to interpretation deeming Brighton Rock to be whatever the reader makes of it. The quote ‘she walked rapidly in the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all’ presents to the reader a very open ending of the book. The fact that this is the last line of the entire novel suggests that the entire story is based on the readers own interpretation of it as this is quote is so very vague. It could easily be referring to a number of things; the most obvious being the record with Pinkies hateful messages that awaits her, but it could also be referring to the idea that she may be carrying Pinkies child or in a larger sense, that she is stuck in an eternal cycle of hellish poverty. Despite the numerous possible interpretation, one thing is clear; that is that Brighton Rock is not a fairy tale, it is a pessimistic novel which highlights the grim reality of poverty stricken life that many face even today therefore deeming Brighton Rock a truly unsatisfactory book.
Jack Wright
"Brighton Rock does not have a Satisfying ending"
ReplyDeleteFor the duration of the novel, Greene leaves the reader asking new questions as the story evolves, however he leaves them all unanswered. The ending of the novel is not satisfying as it leaves the reader with no answers, thus making it more ambiguous and open to interpretations. The quotation "she walked rapidly in the thin June sunlight towards the worst horror of all", being the last line in the book helps Greene keep his inconclusive feel to the novel. This is because it leaves the reader to decide what they believe 'the worst horror of all' is. This could be in reference to her possible pregnancy, or it could be the abusive message awaiting her from Pinkie, which would possibly destroy her as she cannot have any closure with the situation. It is very much so a fatalistic, depressing novel, leaving nobody in a truly 'happy ending', most obviously within the character of Rose, as the last chapter is focalised through her. Although, also within the character of Ida, even though she finally grasps justice, it is apparent that she has not fulfilled happiness. As a result of this, it leaves the reader feeling unsatisfied with the ending, however Greene succeeds in his intentions of forcing the reader to generate thoughts/questions.
Alfie Narborough
“Brighton Rock challenges traditional views of gender”
ReplyDeleteBrighton rock has two contrasting female characters with Rose and Ida. Ida is a strong independent women who is very self righteous and believes that her gender does not hold her back in any way. This is shown at the start of the book with the way she acts with Hale and her appearance in the Bar where she is surrounded by men that she is laughing and joking with. Aswell as this Ida also isn't afraid to challenge the conventions of how she should behave, she is a cosmopolitan women who has a husband yet doesn't live with him and has monogamous relationships with other men, shown in part 6 when she awakes from a night of passion with another gentlemen.
In direct contrast with this new modern approach to gender is Rose. Rose is a young girl who is very subservient to Pinkie, she feels that after marrying him her sole perperse in life is to serve Pinkie. “she didn’t lie long – that was frightening, the unusual passivity… if they damned him they’d got to damn her, too” this quote shows how little experienced she is and how she is almost lost without Pinkie being around her, she is incapable of functioning accordingly.
These two contacting views and approaches to womanhood show that Brighton rock does challenge the traditional views on gender, even today to a modern reader.
In Brighton Rock, the varied attitudes towards females evidences the sexist prejudices that are present throughout the novel. This often displayed in the relationship between Rose and Pinkie as Pinkie often uses derogatory statements associated with females to refer to Rose. For example, Pinkie describes Rose as a "little bitch", this statement insinuates that Pinkie does not view women equally or complexly and elements such as gender alone have an influence on Pinkie's perception or a character. Greene does this to show the extent that sexist attitudes where present in society in in the early twentieth century. It also allows the audience to be aware that despite Pinkie being repulsed by the society he is surrounded by, his personality is still influenced by it.
ReplyDelete- Dylan Peters
'Brighton Rock is a sexist novel'
ReplyDeleteThis statemnet is true to a certain extent, in the sesnse that misogyny, or at least an ingrained disrespect for women is a characteristic of all the 'men of violence' in Greene's novel. This is shown through Colleonis' dismissal of the empress Eugenie as a 'foreign polony' which proves that the male figures have the attitude of disproval towards women of any class. Pinkies distatse towards women is also clear through the quote "glassy innocence... held by her hair" this is reference to a doll he wins as his prize on the raffle range. This quote shows how Pinkie believes himself to be above women, not only in his physical state, but also his mental one too. Another character that can be used to reinforce this statement is Rose. This is becuase throughout the novel we see her being physcially and mentally abused by Pinkie, without her taking any action or standing up for herself to him. This shows how the women in the novel believe it is not their place to challange the men, showing a sexist heirachy.
However one character that disproves this statement is Ida; the reason for this is because she is the complete opposite to the women such as Rose in the sense that she uses the men, to fulfill her desires (mainly sexually driven). This is a complete contrast to the other female characters, as they are seen to be used by the men, for 'their own' sexual desires, thus flipping the the ideology of men being the dominant, abusers in this twisted world of violence and sin. -Tom Brooks
The overriding message of Brighton Rock is that happiness and peace are essentially unattainable.
ReplyDeleteBrighton Rock is ultimately a hopeless novel, no matter how hard the characters try to swerve off the path that is laid out for them, they can never succeed in this endeavour. Pinkie, Rose, Prewitt, they all eventually end up back where they started, returning to their origins: Pinkie back to Hell (commits suicide and has committed the worst possible sin), Rose back to her menial job, and Prewitt to his meaningless existence as a second rate solicitor; even Ida, who seemingly lives for herself and nothing else. "maybe i ought to go back to Tom?" Ida, the character in this novel dedicated to living to enjoy the present, for nobody but herself, for the pleasures that you get in life, not believing that there is anything past life on Earth - and so lives every moment for the present... The irony being that even she succumbs to the draw of normality, giving up on the attempt to make anything of her life in terms of both ambition and new ground: she isn't only settling for a marriage, but for someone she was previously in a relationship with, afraid of even finding some uncharted territory, perhaps disheartened and beaten back into submission by the fact that despite the justice she brought to Hale, despite everything "Right" she achieved, nothing changed. This point is highlighted further when she returns home and everything is "where it always was" acting as a microcosm for her life, cyclical, even her life is a microcosm of life in Brighton, potentially even the world. Despite apparent successes and journeys travelled throughout the novel, everything returns to its initial state without a legacy, even a scratch on the surface, left behind.
Forgot to write my name.
Delete^ Ed