Lauren Olsen

Class Summary: February 24, 2011

“Often times you find more questions than answers [in literature]—especially in BRL,” said Professor Foss during today’s class discussion. Today’s assigned readings came from the works of Charles Lamb, Thomas De Quincey, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and Felicia Dorothea Browne Hemans. At the beginning of class, Professor Foss mentioned that it was probably difficult to understand why the readings for today were put together and how they were related to one another. “It was the most complex [arrangement] yet,” he admitted.

All of these texts were related, however, in the sense that they were joined together by the complex questions of truth that they provoked. Within the texts there was always some degree of a blurring between illusion and reality and Professor Foss asked us to consider whether this blur begged confusion or understanding. For example, De Quincey was under the influence opium as he wrote. What would his writing have been like without it? Which perspective would have been more accurate? We thus ventured into our last study of the Society & Political Economy unit exploring how the roles of opium, work, and Orientalism affected English society.

As is usually the case, class began with a rewards quiz. Once that was wrapped up, as a class we considered the role of work within Lamb’s “The Superannuated Man.” Professor Foss began the discussion with details of Lamb’s life, noting that like many of the authors that we read this unit, Lamb went through much suffering—particularly within the context of his family. He was not, however, a poor man and had a stable job working for the East India Company. His middle-class stature distinguishes him from the majority of other author’s that we read in this unit and thus offers a different yet important insight into the English mindset at the time. Lamb was a hard worker and his essay suggests how integral work was to him. Professor Foss mentioned that this was true for many of the Romantic poets.

As a result of the British economic occupation in India and other parts of South East Asia, a concept called “Orientalism” was introduced. Professor Foss explained that this term refers to the xenophobia that the English developed for foreign cultures, particularly those of the Middle East and South East Asia. He called the selections of the reading “nightmarish” as the racism prevalent in them is undeniable and strongly felt. Professor Foss asked us to break up into small groups and consider the role of this phenomenon in regards to the relationship between the East and the West. He encouraged us to focus on questions like: “How does England define itself in contrast to the Orient?” “How is 'Englishness' detected?” “How is the East constructed?” “Does [Orientalism] give any insight into the Romantic imagination?”

The group that I was in focused on aspects such as the dehumanization of the Malay. He is referred to as a “demon”, a “tiger-cat”, and is described as having “fiery” eyes. We concluded that the narrator’s perception of the Malay makes him seem wild and savage to the extent to which he seems no longer a human, but a creature. The words “fiery”, “demon” and “tiger-cat” also indicate a certain distrust on the part of the narrator. My group agreed that his discomfort with and disrespect for the Malay reveals how vehemently English society feared and distrusted the “Other”.

The narrator’s reaction to the Malay also reveals his ignorance of other cultures. His recitation of the Iliad shows his lack of knowledge in thinking that Greek should even moderately resemble the Malay’s language. My group discussed that there is also a larger metaphor within this anecdote. Greece is one of the foundations of Western Civilization and the narrator talking to the Malay in Greek serves as a metaphor for the lack of understanding between their respective cultures. We decided that the theme of Orientalism prevalent in De Quincey’s essay thus served as an insight into the English society’s relationship with the East, characterized as one of ignorance, racism, fear, distrust, and a general lack of understanding.

Professor Foss additionally asked us to consider the role of opium in De Quincey’s essay. He explained that De Quincey focuses on the pains of opium but he urged us to consider the pleasures of taking opium as well. How might opium consumption it be linked to the Romantic Imagination and/or Romantic Irony? My group focused on how opium could be associated with Romantic Imagination and we discussed the ways in which it could enhance creativity and provide everlasting memory (which we agreed could be either a blessing or a curse.)

Once we were done discussing the topics within our small groups, Professor Foss had us share the insights that we took up from our discussions with the entirety of the class. When we talked about Orientalism within De Quincey’s essay and in addition to sharing more examples of Orientalism within it, Professor Foss welcomed inclusions of Hemans’ “The Indian City” and much of the discussion focused on that. He encouraged us to consider whether this text allows readers to construct ideas of the East similar to those of De Quincey.

For example, the feeling of woe after losing a child is a universal one which could be perceived as Hemans’ effort to bring the world together. At the same time, however, the character takes revenge too far—so does this story fuel stereotypical notions of the East or crush them? Students ranged in their beliefs, with some agreeing that the text was concerned with the commonality of the human experience while others thought it more destructive. Still others saw Hemans as writing from a neutral standpoint solely enlisting the ‘Indian City’ as a backdrop for the epic that she wanted to write.

In conclusion, today’s class was one of great variety of opinion and the discussions provoked more questions that they did answers. The readings offered extensive insight into the societal xenophobia, vocations, hobbies, and struggles thus giving us a better understanding of what it was like to be English during the Romantic Period. This perspective allowed our class to explore how a society defines truth and reality, and how its individuals choose to understand that definition.