Dear E.T. Essay - 508 Words

Dear E.T. I am continue reading Breath, Eyes,Memory. In this several chapters the plot is convoluted and the action sprawls. Martine's illness on the plane is a barometer for her charged emotional state. Just as her deep horror of the rape manifests in insomnia and violent nightmares. When Martine first arrived in New York, her surprise at the abundance of food and her deep fear that the food would run out translated into a weight gain of sixty pounds. And then, Sophie's violent assault on her own virginity represents a choice to resolve her emotional problems by attacking her physical body. By contrast, the infant Brigitte's ability to sleep calm and untroubled suggests that she has not inherited her mother's and grandmother's ghosts. Martine's pregnancy represents the final rebellion of her body against her. It is rather a deeply troubling effect of the use of her body by men. Marc is neither violent nor anonymous, and his answering-machine messages seem to evince a respectable affection for Martine. Though he often sleeps with Martine and wants her to be happy, Marc seems to have no more idea of the depths of her pain than the man originally responsible for it. Martine's struggles with the baby come as Sophie is finally settling down into her role as wife, mother and daughter. Thus, the similarities and differences between Martine's two pregnancies lie in emotionally difficult territory.Though the objectification of Martine by Marc and by the rapist is very different, there is a troubling commonality that threatens once again to destroy Martine. Sophie's meeting with her sexual phobia group represents the novel's first attempt to incorporate canonical support groups and psychotherapy. The contents of the letter are not discussed in the book. Not even the reader is allowed to intrude on Sophie's wish and Atie's private satisfaction. Finally, Sophie's trip to Haiti for her mother's funeral takes on the full mythological significance of a third and final

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