In the
chapter “Death and Love”, the reader sees two scenes between Gerald and Gudrun
demonstrating their relationship, both of which use similar metaphors. The
first scene takes place around page 331 of the Penguin addition: “…[Gerald]
seemed to be gathering [Gudrun] into himself…drinking in the suffusion of her
physical being, avidly. He lifted her, and seemed to pour her into himself,
like wine into a cup.” The metaphor continues in the next couple of paragraphs,
with Gudrun as the liquid and Gerald as the container.
The next
scene takes place on page 344 of the Penguin edition. Unlike in the first
scene, this scene has Gerald operating as the liquid and Gudrun as the cup. “Into
her he poured all his pent-up darkness and corrosive death, and he was whole
again…. And she, subject, received him as a vessel filled with his bitter
potion of death.”
In both
sections, the person becoming liquid is, in a way, losing control. They’re
allowing more base emotions to dominate them at these moments. The one who is a
liquid is allowing themselves to be shaped by the person who is a container,
allowing their form to follow that lead. The pouring also suggests a loose of
boundaries; in the case of Gudrun, she surrenders her restraint and allows
herself to be swept away by Gerald. In the case of the later scene, Gerald
allows his own restraint to disappear, but Gudrun is less willing. In any case,
I found the parallels interesting, especially considering that the roles were
switched around in the different scenes.
I don't know if I agree with Gerald losing control in the second liquid/container scene. It seemed more like he was ridding himself of these negative emotions and making Gudrun take it all. I mean, you're not really in control when receiving someone else's hateful emotions are you? At least, that's how I saw it.
ReplyDeleteCaitlin, I think that is a fair point. However, I think that maybe putting that scene in terms of dependance as a loss of control might offer a way to see Gerald's behavior as a loss of control. By depending on Gudrun to take all his "corrosive death" he is giving up the absolute control he desires to have.
ReplyDeleteTo put it in terms of Birkin's star equilibrium concept. Gerald is compromising his distinct solar sovereignty by pouring unstable parts of his solar mass into Gudrun rather than forming a equilibrium with her.