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[thewillfang]

The Price of Jealousy

This book was nothing close to the story I thought it would be. Instead of a normal love story, it is a twisted dark fantasy of a family of freaks and their lives. However, the book does have one factor that all good love stories have, jealousy. Jealously is a theme that is prevalent throughout the book, especially in the children. As the children in the family grow up, they realize that their self-worth is directly related to how well their tent does. Everything in the children’s lives revolves around the freak show. They have to pull their weights as freaks in order to have a home and a job. In fact the more successful they are at being freaks and hosting successful shows, they not only have more value as a performer, but also more value under their parent’s eyes.

A prime example of this behavior is shown in Arty. Jealousy dominates his younger life as he is one of the first among his brothers and sisters to realize the importance of doing the best. He resorts to schemes and plots to underhand his competition. In fact, his younger sister Leona died “accident”, thanks to Arty's inability to control his jealous rages. If Chick had not had the telekinetic powers he did, he would have suffered from the same fate. This type of behavior is understandable since his parents drilled into his head that anyone that is not useful will be disposed of. In fact, his entire life depends on his usefulness and morals will not come above his well-being.

[thewillfang]

Cheap Thrills

Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit takes place during the Victorian period of the nineteenth century. Victorians were prone to the paranormal, supernatural and occult, of which the most popular forms in the late Victorian period included clairvoyance, crystal gazing, thought reading, and above all, spiritualism. People were fascinated with contacting the dead and deceased through mystics and séances. These upper-class households would host mediums for a thrill. These supernatural thrills were only accentuated through the mysteriousness of spiritualism. The basis of Noel Coward’s play is to satirize the people and the time.  

Madam Arcarti is the medium hired to contact the dead. She is a peculiar character that shows the audience the truth about spiritualism. Her attitude and disposure to life really shows the satirical nature of the play. She really shows the audience the ridiculous nature of her character through her disposition and the acts of mysticism she performs. As an spectator previewing Madam Arcarti’s séance, it is almost comical. Contacting the dead has never been easier with grown men and women holding hands with one another while a crazy woman runs around in circle singing nursery rhymes. Along with her performances, Madam Arcarti’s  quirky nature of biking everywhere she goes and fainting on command only adds to the ridiculousness of spiritualism. The entire play is absurd and really shows how bored and gullible these high-class people were.