Representations of Individuals and Culture through Literature

In the Tibet through Film and Literature course I am taking, while recently trying to catch up on my reading, I have read numerous articles about the Tibetan people and how non-Tibetans view them. Although this is not specifically directed toward the English 110 course, I think it is applicable because no matter what genre we read, the author is presenting a situation, a culture, or a person in a certain way that affects the reader.

In the class about Tibet, I have come across many articles by Western authors that depict Tibet as what is commonly called a “Shangri-La,” which is a utopian, mystical society with magical powers. Because creative writers, and even some scholarly writers, portray Tibet as a spiritually enhanced place, the average Western readers thinks of Tibetans as primitive people who are seriously spiritual and have clairvoyance. However, the reality is Tibet is not a Shangri-La society with magical influences. Because many Westerners are unknowledgeable of the Tibetan way of life, they accept this depiction of Tibet.

Another example of people being portrayed a certain way is found in Natasha Tretheway’s Native Guard. Her deeply personal life paralleling a historical truth is the muse for her outstanding poems. An issue to think about is how Tretheway represents the groups of people found in her poems: herself, her mother, the African-American Union Soldiers, and her mother’s second husband. One interpretation is Tretheway compares herself and mother to the African-American Union soldiers are martyrs while demonizing her mother’s second husband and history’s lack of recognition for the Union Soldiers. This causes the reader to sympathize with Tretheway, and the reader takes in exactly what Tretheway intends for him or her to: Tretheway, her mother, and the Union Soldiers story evokes sorrow and a sense of courageousness, while society and Tretheway’s stepfather play the role of the bad guys. Tretheway constructs her poems with purpose to make the reader see a particular situation the way she does.

An final, primary example of people being depicted in a specific light according to the author or narrator is in the novel Atonement. Ian McEwan purposefully offers all of the main characters’ perspectives, and what the reader learns from this literary technique is the story changes depending on the teller. Subject to who is narrating at the time, the reader’s thoughts are influenced by that person, regardless of whether or not he or she agrees. The point is the narrator is revealing an event or person in the manner the narrator wants the reader, as well as other characters, to see. A case where this is obviously evident is with Briony. Through Briony’s representation of Robbie, she convinces most of the other characters in the novel to follow her suit. Even though the reader is set up to hate Briony and does not agree with her portrayal of Robbie, she manipulates the other characters to see her point of view.

Now, I am left with thoughts when reading new texts about how a person, situation, or culture is portrayed. As I write more papers, essays, journals, or blogs, these thoughts further develop into wondering how I am portraying a group of people. What perspective am I trying to convince to my reader? Am I biased because of lack of knowledge, personal upbringing, or culture? I encourage you, classmates, to look for this in both academic and pleasure readings. What is the author telling you about a person or culture? Are they believable? Also, as I will strive to do, we might try taking a step back to look at our own writing.