Historical Background of Wide Sargasso Sea
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Transcript Historical Background of Wide Sargasso Sea
Historical Background of
Wide Sargasso Sea
By Malka Hirsch
Authors background
Wide Sargasso Sea was
Written in 1966 by a
Dominica born author
Jean Rhys.
She was born in 1894
and moved to England
when she was 16 years
old (1910).
Upon her arrival Jane
Eyre was one of the first
novels she read.
Rhys’s life difficulties
Rhys never adjusted to the
move from the west indies to
England.
Rhys always felt cold and
removed and imagined that the
character Bertha Mason from
the novel Jane Eyre must have
felt the same.
Rhys had chronic financial
difficulties, she was marries
three times and two of her
husbands spent time in jail.
She was also a heavy drinker
Reasons for writing her Novel
The portrayal of Bertha in Jane
Eyre always disappointed her.
Since she came from the west
indies and had difficulties
adjusting in England the story
had special significance to her.
Rhys wrote Wide Sargasso
Sea as a response to
stereotypes informed by
Bronte’s nineteenth century
English culture and social
status.
Rhys’s many difficulties led her
to empathize with all kinds of
human suffering regardless of
the cause.
Rhys develops the complex
character of Antoinette
Cosway, who Bronte describes
as a mere lunatic in the novel
Jane Eyre.
Rhys’s empathy for
Bertha/Antoinette leads her to
chose Bertha Mason’s ill fated
marriage as a perfect subject
to explore. Rhys takes the
reader deep through her
psyche as a way to better
understand Bertha/Antoinette
and the cause of her madness.
Colonialism in Jamaica
Rhys and her character Antoinette both grew up in the
British controlled colony of Jamaica.
The British Empire formally ruled Jamaica from 1670 as
a result of the Treaty of Madrid.
Sugar became a luxury
commodity ever since the
development of large
scale sugar plantations
during the 1640’s.
There was a high
demand for sugar after
the British Empire seized
control of the Island.
By 1750 Jamaica was the
most important British
colony in the west indies.
In 1834 the British
parliament abolished all
forms of slavery in their
colonies.
The sudden loss of a
large slave population
was devastating for the
Jamaican economy.
Antoinette: Life in the West
Indies
Antoinette, the narrator
for the first half of the
story describes the
difficulties of growing up
in the 1830’s in Jamaica.
There was a strong
feeling of isolation and
loneliness that she
experienced as a white
Creole child in a
predominantly black West
Indies.
Antoinette’s character’s family
were once rich and owned
many slaves, but experienced
a decline in their fortunes and
status after the abolition of
slavery.
One night locals surrounded
her house and burnt it down
leaving both Antoinette and her
mother scarred.
Antoinette was so traumatized
that she is forced to go to a
convent to recover. On the
other hand the extent of the
trauma leads her mother to go
insane.
Antoinette: Marriage to
Rochester
Antoinette’s step father
arranges her marriage to
Rochester when she is 17
years old.
Rochester moves to
Jamaica to be with her
and early on they are
happily married.
When Rochester leans
about her mother's
insanity he distances
himself from her and their
marriage deteriorates.
As a result of a distanced
marriage Antoinette
begins to drink and
attempts to use Voodoo
to renew his interes.
Rochester tries to subdue
his wife but none of his
tactics work, so he
decides to take her back
to England and lock her
in the attic.
Works Cited
• Lagretta, Lenker T. "Cyclopedia of Literary Characters."
MagillOnLiterature Plus. Salem Press, Feb. 1998. Web. 10 Apr.
2011.
• Meyers, Linda J. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Salem Press, Mar. 1995.
Web. 10 Apr. 2011.
• Mikolajek, Stanley J. "The History of Jamaica: From Colonialism and
Slavery to Emancipation and Independence, Page 8 of 8."
Associated Content from Yahoo! - Associatedcontent.com. 4 Feb.
2011. Web. 11 Apr. 2011.
<http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/6261402/the_history_of_j
amaica_from_colonialism_pg8.html?cat=37>.
• Stiffler, Tiffany E. "Masterplots." MagillOnLiterature Plus. Salem
Press, Nov. 2010. Web. 10 Apr. 2011.
• Ziskin, Alan. "Identities & Issues in Literature;." MagillOnLiterature
Plus. Salem Press, Sept. 1997. Web. 10 Apr. 2011.