I loved this essay, Kate! When I read The Guest this summer, I too kept thinking of The Awakening. I’m struck by how dependent both women are (Alex and Edna) on men who don’t care about them or who seem incapable of loving them. Despite their attempts to make some other way, the path society wants them to follow is so insistent.
When I finished The Guest, I was also thinking of Cheever’s “The Swimmer.” I feel like Cline is playing with the modernist obsession with watery metaphors. I also felt reminded of Patricia Highsmith’s Talented Mr Ripley--because I felt that I was kept waiting for Alex to do something wayyyyy over the line, but she never did.
There’s something there, about immobility or treading water, that feels very 19th century American Realism to me.
Thanks Haley, and you're so right! I'm sure Cline must have been playing with these ideas and metaphors, as well as reading her 19th century realist novels whilst writing!
Fantastic newsletter! After reading both of these books, I can definitely see the similarities - and I love your discussion of female punishment, particularly in the case of Edna’s affair. The Awakening must have been shocking when it first came out, and I really enjoyed it as a modern reader. I thought The Guest left some things a little too open for me (such as Alex’s backstory, as you mentioned) and the ending seemed so abrupt when I first read it. On reading your newsletter and other online reviews, however, I can see that ambiguity can be satisfying in itself sometimes. Thank you for sharing :)
Thank you so much! 💓 I'm glad it wasn't just me who saw the similarities in the two books 😅 that's why I love looking at both women's writing of the past and more contemporary ideas 😀
Have not read Cline yet - thank you for another on my list!
The Awakening is likewise one of my favorites, although its meaning for me has changed over the years (and since becoming a mother). It was so avant-garde in dealing with a woman's feelings of entrapment / guilt / shame. I like your focus on ambiguity. I find it is in these types of stories or endings (specifically) that we can think more deeply of implications. Of course, it takes an active reader, but that's also why I like it. I think it's also interesting to look at it as a response or perhaps extension to The Scarlett Letter, another of my favorites. Although written by a man, I think Hawthorne is able to go deep into the nuances of a woman's 'place' in connection to some of the themes you picked out here.
Thank you for reading and your comment. I would definitely recommend the Cline book, even with the ambiguity! I would be really interested to see what your take on the ending would be!
I'm glad you also enjoyed 'The Awakening', although you raise an interesting point about how meanings sometimes change when we re-read a book at different times of our lives. I felt this way about 'Wuthering Heights' after reading it again as an adult, (as opposed to an idealistic teenager!!) Although I still enjoyed it.
I really enjoyed reading this. It draws parallels really well between the books. Think it’s time for me to widen my reading.
Thanks! :)
I loved this essay, Kate! When I read The Guest this summer, I too kept thinking of The Awakening. I’m struck by how dependent both women are (Alex and Edna) on men who don’t care about them or who seem incapable of loving them. Despite their attempts to make some other way, the path society wants them to follow is so insistent.
When I finished The Guest, I was also thinking of Cheever’s “The Swimmer.” I feel like Cline is playing with the modernist obsession with watery metaphors. I also felt reminded of Patricia Highsmith’s Talented Mr Ripley--because I felt that I was kept waiting for Alex to do something wayyyyy over the line, but she never did.
There’s something there, about immobility or treading water, that feels very 19th century American Realism to me.
Thanks Haley, and you're so right! I'm sure Cline must have been playing with these ideas and metaphors, as well as reading her 19th century realist novels whilst writing!
Fantastic newsletter! After reading both of these books, I can definitely see the similarities - and I love your discussion of female punishment, particularly in the case of Edna’s affair. The Awakening must have been shocking when it first came out, and I really enjoyed it as a modern reader. I thought The Guest left some things a little too open for me (such as Alex’s backstory, as you mentioned) and the ending seemed so abrupt when I first read it. On reading your newsletter and other online reviews, however, I can see that ambiguity can be satisfying in itself sometimes. Thank you for sharing :)
Thank you so much! 💓 I'm glad it wasn't just me who saw the similarities in the two books 😅 that's why I love looking at both women's writing of the past and more contemporary ideas 😀
Have not read Cline yet - thank you for another on my list!
The Awakening is likewise one of my favorites, although its meaning for me has changed over the years (and since becoming a mother). It was so avant-garde in dealing with a woman's feelings of entrapment / guilt / shame. I like your focus on ambiguity. I find it is in these types of stories or endings (specifically) that we can think more deeply of implications. Of course, it takes an active reader, but that's also why I like it. I think it's also interesting to look at it as a response or perhaps extension to The Scarlett Letter, another of my favorites. Although written by a man, I think Hawthorne is able to go deep into the nuances of a woman's 'place' in connection to some of the themes you picked out here.
Thanks for another great read!
Thank you for reading and your comment. I would definitely recommend the Cline book, even with the ambiguity! I would be really interested to see what your take on the ending would be!
I'm glad you also enjoyed 'The Awakening', although you raise an interesting point about how meanings sometimes change when we re-read a book at different times of our lives. I felt this way about 'Wuthering Heights' after reading it again as an adult, (as opposed to an idealistic teenager!!) Although I still enjoyed it.
Now I want read Wuthering Heights again!
Fascinating!