Okay, so I haven't checked out if anyone else has written about this yet, but I was re-reading the last couple pages of our last reading assignment when I came along something that made me jump in my "mind-seat!" On page 289, Gould writes "& my shame is such that I can only refer to myself in this regard in the third person--Billy Gould felt the urge to throw up." As soon as I read this line immediately I was drawn to the chance that maybe all his use of the third person narration was when he was ashamed to be telling it from the first person--suggesting that narration in the first person, leads to a direct claim of actions and reactions. In the context that this appeared, I was quite surprised because this was the one of the most G-rated scenes in the novel (Gould is just throwing up.....) and his does not want to claim it. The sex scene with Twopenny Sal (begins page 273) remains in first person for the entire time, not one moment he switches to the third person--and in my opinion I found this scene to be way more explicit that reading about Gould throwing up from drinking too much; but, I guess this is his own form of censoring himself from situations. He is proud of the sexual interaction with Twopenny Sal; however, he is ashamed of his inability to hold his alcohol and his discovery of the lies in his life.
Following the idea of him being ashamed of certain actions, at the beginning of "The Striped Cowfish" chapter, Gould switches to the third person before his recount of hooking up with Mrs. Gottliebsen. Could this be because he was trying to validate that it was a "different" person that was unfaithful to Twopenny Sal? He writes that the reader is 'entirely right & entirely wrong' because he goes on to say that Twopenny Sal was not being faithful to him. I don't know if you see this going along with Gould trying to differentiate that "Billy Gould," told from the third person perspective is not as honest as the "Billy Gould," from the first person perspective....just an idea....that I am still working on.
My eyes were drawn to that line as well! It does seem that Gould may switch to the third person sometimes out of shame. In this way, it seems that he may do so to distance himself from the situation.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that the random switching between third person and first person may point to the of deterioration of Gould's mind as he spends time on Sarah Island. Gould has referenced on multiple occasions that the island is making him crazy. and this transition between first and third person may point to his insanity.
I also see it as a defense mechanism. By distancing himself from events that he deems embarrassing or particularly brutal, he can retain a some of his sanity. I guess in his world, he doesn't want to associate himself with emasculating behaviors like not being able to hold his liquor. Referring to himself in the third person here allows him to protect his ego. At the top of page 173, he does this again when talking about painting fish. He says "Billy Gould has always felt if something was worth doing, it was worth doing badly. Worry about doing it too well, he believed, & you may well be crippled by your ambition." At this point in the story, he's not quite comfortable with his talent, and seems to feel embarrassed about it. By using the third person here, he can escape his feelings about his paintings and not have to deal with them.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with what Matt has said about the use of third person as a reflection of his ever growing insanity. Clearly he feels the need to differentiate himself from actions that he is not proud of....even more so it could be due to the disintegration of his mental health. It sounds a lot to me like multiple personality disorder...even if it is in a more subtle way than most situations. Like Thomas said today in class, 'crazy' can be seen on a scale of 1 to 10 and if we're looking at his use of third person as a symptom of mental illness it seems to be gauged at about a 3.
ReplyDeleteIn support of the mental illness/multiple personality disorder claim, his reference of himself in the third person is a way of dissociating himself from the reality that is his life. This in itself is a symptom of mental illness. Evidently, its safe to say that his time on Sarah Island, combined with his horrible treatment, has damaged his mental health for the time being, if not for forever.