РефератыИностранный языкThThe Unlikely Protagonist Mr Carmichael Essay Research

The Unlikely Protagonist Mr Carmichael Essay Research

The Unlikely Protagonist: Mr. Carmichael Essay, Research Paper


On this campus, a student has probably only communicated


with approximately one-third of the population. The other two-


thirds he or she learns about through heresay picked up in


conversation. This gossip creates a stereotypical view of these


unfamiliar faces in the individual’s mind since there is no


previous interaction to rely on. A returning student may tell me


of a visual art major that has an offending hair color and body


piercings, and I can gullibly infer that the artist will develop


into a convict. This is a completely subjective opinion without


any justification, but with time, I may gain more perspective and


learn that the student’s personality is quite the opposite of


what I presumed. The reader is led through the same circumstances


in To the Lighthouse, by Virginia Woolf. The characters that


describe Augustus Carmichael are contributors to the rumor mill,


and it is easy for the reader to slip into the assumption that he


is a pathetic, washed up, opium addict. Yet, through seemingly


innocent, but pivotal scenes, Mr. Carmichael becomes paramount to


the development of other characters and objects in the novel.


During “The Window,” the reader may easily slip into the


thinking patterns of the other characters and “take their side.”


Mrs. Ramsay’s subjective views are the only ones offered during


her stream-of-consciousness, and the reader may swallow them


wholly as the truth. Conclusions can be drawn, since Carmichael


takes opium and refuses to interact with Mrs. Ramsay, that he is


a cold, callous, and even virulent houseguest; one may even refer


to him as the anti-Mrs. Ramsay! He makes no attempt to go out of


his way to aid others, and he shrinks away from her, imposing a


selfish, indifferent feeling. Since other males slip into their


books in order to escape, Mr. Carmichael is easily lumped with


Mr. Ramsay and Bankes, who distance themselves from the feminine


and maternal qualities of Mrs. Ramsay. Carmichael appears to


portray Victorian society’s worse nightmare; asking for another


bowl of soup is a definite faux pas. Also, Mrs. Ramsay circulates


to Tansley, Carmichael’s unstable past: “an affair…an unstable


marriage; poverty;” (10) Carmichael is made to appear like a


pariah. But does Mr. Carmichael really threaten the morals,


stability, and prudence of the era? Closer reading destroys the


negative image that the reader perceives from a third-person


view.


There are periodic, but profound events that prove Mr.


Carmichael is very involved with the Ramsays; his expression,


though, is very subtle. After the image-damaging “Boeuf en Daube”


scene, he sings his praise of dinner to Mrs. Ramsay. He is


completely understood and she appreciates that much more than any


eloquent “thank you.” Little is known about his wife, other than


she was rather brutal and abusive. It is very possible that the


trauma caused his fear of intimacy and distrust

with Mrs. Ramsay.


Very surprising about this “inadequacy of human relationships”


(40), as referred to by Mrs. Ramsay, was that he had a close bond


with Andrew, one of the Ramsay children. Carmichael had “lost all


interest in life” (194) when the young man was killed in the war,


which is one of the few times we see his vulnerability to outside


prevailing conditions.


Not only is Mr. Carmichael’s connection with other household


members nurturing, he also holds a special significance in


relation to the Lighthouse. They are both constant, unchanging


presences in the novel, and they take in only what they desire.


“Time Passes” is a very gloomy and somber portrait, the only


thing that avoids the increasing darkness within this frame is


the steady candlelight of Mr. Carmichael, reading Virgil. The


candlelight and Virgil, author of The Aenead, seem to go hand in


hand. As The Aenead journeys into the depths of hell, the


candlelight exposes the personality of Carmichael, as it did for


most characters in the dinner scene. This brief passage puts us


in limbo until coming to a resolution in “To the Lighthouse.” But


Carmichael is the reassuring protector, as is the Lighthouse,


which pierces into the soul of many characters. This especially


includes Mrs. Ramsay, who feels “relief and gratitude” (111) for


the silent, but assumed harmony between them. Both Carmichael and


the Lighthouse are detached, giving them both an unobstructed,


objective view, and perhaps, a greater outlook than the other


close-minded characters. Carmichael lives not for the moment, not


for others; perhaps that is the reason why that he and Lily


survive the war, but Mrs. Ramsay doesn’t. They both do not give


into Mrs. Ramsay’s serpentine charm, nor society’s pressure to


conform; therefore, Carmichael is able to keep “his candle


burning longer than the rest” (125).


The reader is not allowed to judge Carmichael for him or


herself, since Mrs. Ramsay’s opinions are forced upon the reader.


He is perceived as useless and parasitic, yet Carmichael is one


of the few practical characters: neither superfluous, fastidious,


nor overbearing. His different perspective is refreshing; one may


expect to find only eloquent and metaphorical descriptions in


this novel, however, Mrs. Ramsay spies Carmichael looking at a


bowl of fruit simply as sustenance. This simple man is


misunderstood, like Tansley and Lily, but Carmichael is the only


character that cannot defend himself because he has no thoughts


to follow. It is ironic that he is overlooked, yet he is always


an observer. Carmichael could possibly be a guardian angel,


indirectly affecting all characters. Perhaps, since the reader


least expects a lazy oaf with a “capacious paunch (10)” to be the


protagonist, his actions are more startling and highlighted than


Mrs. Ramsay’s. As time progresses, so do the reader’s first


dangerous impressions of this unlikely, but benevolent


individual.


356

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