Steven
During the discussion in class the other day we compared the tram ride Steven has with Emma to what he wrights about in his poem. I thought the discussion was really interesting. Steven's interaction with Emma is made up of small conversation and Steven not sure whether to make a move or not, or if she actually likes him. In the end nothing ends up happening with Emma but then Steven goes home and the next day he decides to wrights a poem about the encounter. I am not sure if one could say the poem is about the encounter because it is so different then what actually happened in real life. I think that the poem was not about the encounter but inspired about what it could have been. The poem is about what could have been if Steven was a count and they were living in the south of France. Poetry is art and art is not always like reality so I think it is okay that Steven changed the story completely and made it into something form his dreams.
In class we also discussed how we thought Steven saw Emma. We talked about if he saw her as a sexual object, as a romantic interest, or an image. I think Steven sees Emma as a image that he is able to distort and make into his dream. He likes the idea of them being together because it actualizes his dreams. I do not think that to Steven it matters who Emma is, he just needs someone. We never get a description of Emma or anything about their conversation because I think Steven is too infatuated with this idea of her and what they could be. I think Steven needs to his dream world of being someone who he is not and focus on his reality.
In class we also discussed how we thought Steven saw Emma. We talked about if he saw her as a sexual object, as a romantic interest, or an image. I think Steven sees Emma as a image that he is able to distort and make into his dream. He likes the idea of them being together because it actualizes his dreams. I do not think that to Steven it matters who Emma is, he just needs someone. We never get a description of Emma or anything about their conversation because I think Steven is too infatuated with this idea of her and what they could be. I think Steven needs to his dream world of being someone who he is not and focus on his reality.
I agree with you that Stephen doesn't really care who Emma is, he just needs someone to embody his fantasies. Stephen assumes that she would be able to understand his mysterious and deep personality, and that's a lot to expect of someone. He likes the idea of her more than the reality. He's infatuated with the idea of love more than love itself.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what to make of Stephen here. He could be a creep, objectifying and distorting Emma into what he wants her to be, or he could have just been nervous and wanted to get his feelings out in a poem. Either way, she seems to be important to him in some way since he keeps ties with her throughout university.
ReplyDeleteOne thing about this scene I could never really figure out how to interpret was the way that Stephen kept telling himself that Emma was into him. I couldn't tell if that was just him hyping himself up so he'd finally make a move or if that reflected a sense of entitlement on Stephen's part. After reading this I think I'm leaning more towards the latter.
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