Starting Secret River
Hi everyone! Welcome back to my world literature blog!
I think in our discussion there was a lot we talked about that was new for me about late 18th-century London. I admittedly am not a super big history buff, so almost any historical knowledge is new to me! One of the first things that stood out to me was when on page 13, William was shoveling "pure" with his father to make money, "At five, William was old enough to go with Pa round the streets at dawn with a stick and a sack, gathering the pure for the morocco works" (Grenville 13). This surprised me because I never knew this was a way people would make money! I think, for me, it really showed how dire the situation was and the lengths people would go (and force their children to go) in order to make enough to provide. Other things that stood out to me was the apprenticeship process detailed on page 26 (getting "bound" and receiving a license), and how common hangings were at the time, even for minor crimes.
A concrete image I noticed in part one was the green silk slippers of the woman who boarded William's boat (Grenville 31). It is described in great detail on page 32, "the slipper on the end of the leg was a miracle of frivolity... It seemed impossible that such a substantial person as this woman could be supported on two such tiny slips of poison-green silk." Later on this same page, her slipper is ruined, "the poison-green silk gleamed with river water" (Grenville 32). Thornhill seems to interpret the green slipper as an act of women's defiance. Each time she shows her slipper, she exposes her leg, appearing "unfaithful" to her husband. In this viewpoint, the slipper could act as a symbol of resistance and noncompliance to typical societal rules. I also think the slipper getting ruined could represent the fragility of socioeconomic status, as we talked about in class. This woman is currently part of the gentry, using her fancy slippers as a way to make this known. However, just as quickly as her slippers are seen, they are ruined. This happens to the Thornhills when their amassed funds quickly go down the drain. Although it is unclear what becomes of this woman after the boat ride, I think a symbol of wealth being so quickly destroyed can clearly represent the class status itself being destroyed.
Hey Cassi! I wrote a similar thing about the dog feces in my own blog as well. I too came to realize the extent to which people, especially the poor working classmen have had to go to in order to just survive and have some sort of money to provide for their family. I remember that there was even one point where Will mentioned that in places with wide gaps he had to scrape the feces into the bag with his finger nails at times. I can't imagine how disgusting that would have been as well as really show that this family really needed every piece of the feces in order to help their family. I also wanted to bring up the general question of why exactly Will calls the dog feces "pure." Was that just a general name for it at the time, or is there something more to the alternative name?
ReplyDeleteHey Cassi! I was also really interested in the interpretation of the wealthy woman's slippers. It seems like in The Secret River, Grenville is attempting at showcasing different forms of women empowerment and resistance against social structures. For instance, Sal uses her wits and clever networking to save Thornhill from being hanged. While her mind is her weapon against the system and standards she disagrees with, the wealthy woman uses her body. In 'exposing' herself to Thornhill in front of her husband, she commands her sexuality instead of it being used to place her as her husband's property and prize. I'm curious to see what other forms of female resistance occur in the rest of the novel.
ReplyDeleteHi Cassi! I kind of forgot about dog feces part for a second! Thank you for reminding me about that! It's crazy how people had to do this to get money. I wonder if the fact that children were also forced go foreshadows how children were used as labor, even though it was dangerous for them. It brings to question: what else did children do in order to support the family (willingly or forcefully)? This whole situation with the dog feces seems so minute and one might easily glance over it, but once you really think about it, you get to see all the complexities associated with and all the questions it raises.
ReplyDeleteHi Cassi, the jobs they had surprised me along with how young they started "working". I almost feel like "work" in that time is closer what we consider "labor" to mean now. Every job available to Will and his family was extremely unappealing. I like the point you brought up about how families go to such great lengths to survive because the jobs they had to find were so difficult and exhausting. I also shared your surprise at how extreme the punishments are for such petty crimes. Theft was taken so much more seriously back then and I had no idea until I started reading this book.
ReplyDeleteCassi, I also though the section about shoveling pure was fairly eye-opening. It really goes to show the lengths people at that time and place had to go through to make ends meet. It also showcases some shocking exploitations of children and their labour. This harshness can also be seen in your examples of the apprenticeship programs and the hangings, too. I think this may all be leading up to a contrast in his new life in Australia, where he may have more economic power. It all fits nice with the themes of classism. I'm glad you pointed out these important images and how they relate to and further the theme of classism and how dangerous it is.
ReplyDeleteHey Cassi! I agree that this book has really shown the drastic measures people living in poverty will go through to ensure their survival. I, too, am not a history buff so it's been interesting to see how Grenville has portrayed this struggle. I'm curious to see if we will see differences between Thornhill's class status in Australia vs London since it's been a pretty important theme thus far in the book!
ReplyDeleteHey Cassi! I agree that Grenville's The Secret River shows how tough poverty is for the Thornhills and the desperate measures they took to earn any money, including shoveling dog feces off the streets. I also agree strongly with your interpretation of the green slipper. The slipper getting destroyed definitely is a symbol that shows how fast status can be destroyed. I also agree that the slipper getting destroyed is a symbol of defiance. By exposing her leg to Thornhill, the woman becomes humanized by demonstrating her natural human desires.
ReplyDeleteHey Cassi! The dire situations in London really stood out to me too. I think especially the fact that the family's only options were incredibly degrading work for little to no money or stealing. This in turn lead to more of the working poor becoming thieves and that coupled with the fact that the punishment for theft was so violent such as Collarbone's gruesome hanging made me feel as though the goods being taken were more valuable than the lives of these poor people which is terrible. These people are being hung for stealing which they were forced to do due to the oppressive upper class. Although Thornhill was able to work his way up for awhile, it seems as though the working poor may have more of a shot at a real life in New South Wales than in London. It is hard to say though as we get a sense in Strangers that Thornhill doesn't see it this was and feels as though he is naked with no hope but to die with his family there. I am excited to see what New South Wales brings for him and his family in the next chapter.
ReplyDeleteHi Cassi, I really liked your analysis on the image of the slippers. The woman's status was probably as a result of the man's status, and it is clear the man treats her as a trophy wife. After making the man so angry on the boat, her status may have changed if the man decided to leave her which shows just how fragile her status is since it is solely dependent on the man.
ReplyDeleteThat's very insightful, Paulos. In some ways, does EVERYONE's status in this book depend on how someone else sees them?
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