Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Magawisca
As we briefly noted in class, Magawisca throwing her arm in front of the blade, saving Everall from death, was deeper then the actual act, and I would like to continue down that trail. We spoke in class that she was embarrassed because of the loss of her arm. Maybe, but I read it slightly differently; It seemed that the embarrassment was not actually the "nub", but the combination of desperation and rejection that she was feeling. She went all in on her attraction, did not get the reaction she so dearly hoped for. It was the realization that she did not have a romantic future with this man that was crushing. I compare it to one getting turned down when asking someone to marry them; it changes everything. One moment can undo all prior work, and I truly think this is the feeling. Magawisca is a strong woman, undoubtedly, and had this been a different situation, I think she still would have held her head up with pride at such a heroic act, an act that would have only strengthened her legitimacy as being a potential leader, which is certainly what she wanted. This was deeper then that. I think the author is trying to portray the message that love can hurt you worse then physical pain. I would love to hear what you guys have to say about my blog. It was slightly a spontaneous thought, so I apologize if it is at all scrambled. Thanks.
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I agree with this comment and would say that it also extends to Everall. When his mother and siblings were killed, his pain for the death of his family members exceeded his fear of what Mononotto would do to him. He is calm throughout the ascent to his almost certain death (90-91). He is even admired by Mononotto as a worthy sacrifice because of his strength during a dangerous time. At the time, Everall must have felt that losing his family was losing what was most important to him. He might have questioned the quality of a life spent without him. Therefore in a time when most people would reasonably feel afraid, he was dealing with the emotional pain he was going through.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment as well. I see your comment as an extension of the idea we spoke of in class when we discussed the phallic description of Magawisca's arm being cut off. This event represented her losing her sexual future with Everall. It seemed to me that she made her decision to defend Everall and lose her arm with full knowledge that in the end, her decision was also severing any potential relationship between them. However, I do believe that your closing argument about her emotional pain being worse than her physical pain is well developed and intriguing. I strongly support your argument and believe that this also explains Magawisca's attitude after the incident.
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