This paper examines Margaret Laurence’s volume of short stories "A Bird in the House" from the point of view of its concern with the relation between civilized order and inchoate nature as this is ambivalently perceived by the protagonist, Vanessa MacLeod, during different phases of her life. The tension between contrasting conceptions of the Order/Chaos dichotomy is manifested in particular in the conflicted relationship between Vanessa and her grandfather Timothy Connor, a pioneer of the old school who has achieved prosperity through unflagging industry and relentless self-discipline, and who insists on inflicting these values on those obliged to live under his shadow to the detriment of more personal exigencies. Ironically, however, if Connor’s stern pioneer ethic is seen from one point of view as repressive and stultifying, from another it is recognized to be a necessary defence against the harsh vicissitudes of life, and ultimately as a source of strength that Vanessa herself learns to tap as she progresses towards maturity.
Setting Our House in Order: Margaret Laurence's "A Bird in the House"
David Lucking
2020-01-01
Abstract
This paper examines Margaret Laurence’s volume of short stories "A Bird in the House" from the point of view of its concern with the relation between civilized order and inchoate nature as this is ambivalently perceived by the protagonist, Vanessa MacLeod, during different phases of her life. The tension between contrasting conceptions of the Order/Chaos dichotomy is manifested in particular in the conflicted relationship between Vanessa and her grandfather Timothy Connor, a pioneer of the old school who has achieved prosperity through unflagging industry and relentless self-discipline, and who insists on inflicting these values on those obliged to live under his shadow to the detriment of more personal exigencies. Ironically, however, if Connor’s stern pioneer ethic is seen from one point of view as repressive and stultifying, from another it is recognized to be a necessary defence against the harsh vicissitudes of life, and ultimately as a source of strength that Vanessa herself learns to tap as she progresses towards maturity.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
