Spare Part
~Blog Post 2~
Topic A
April 24, 2015
April 24, 2015
By Teresa Fernandez
Lady fantasizes how comfortable and quiet life would be if she were someone who was placid, "someone who was never anxious, never tortured by
doubt and indecision, someone who never stood as [she] did, hopeful, eager,
frightened, tearing at bitten nails, uncertain which way to go, what star
to follow"(80). Lady wishes to continue running the house as if Rebecca had never left, hoping to stay out of the limelight, but still desperate to live up to the expectations of her husband, his friends, family, and staff. Lady (this is the name we've given our nameless narrator) is trying to replace a cog with a role too great for such an unpracticed, shy second-rate girl. The new Mrs. De Winters often finds herself fumbling as she struggles to keep up appearances to satisfy her desire to please. She knows she can't fill Rebecca's shoes, or top her penmanship, but she's determined to prove her usefulness yet afraid to be herself. Lady wishes she were someone else, someone tactful and brave. Only ten chapters inside her story, hopefully Lady still has time to prove to herself, my self, and her new family exactly how strong she can be.
I agree with what you're saying here about how Lady is trying to fill Rebecca's shoes and live up to the expectations that everyone has for her. She is simply too young and inexperienced to fill the role of someone long dead and evidently well-valued.
ReplyDeleteI believe that what Lady is experiencing hinders her judgement when it comes to who she should be and how to act. Her overwhelming desire to please along with the anxiety may actually have an opposite affect. Instead of doing things that would make her husband and others happy with her, her anxiety can cause her to fumble which in turn makes her believe she is not fulfilling the expectations of everyone. This can cause more anxiety, and it's a vicious cycle. I agree that she feels too inexperienced for the role she is in but perhaps she is doing it to herself.
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