The color red is used at a few different points in the book in order to show the details like the inside of Martine and Sophie’s house, the testing, and Martine’s favorite color, which also is the reason for her burial in a red dress.
Furthermore, red is always compared with bleeding which is mentioned by menstruation and Sophie losing her virginity. There is a difference between bleeding from a wound and having the period. The menstruation happens once a month, which is a necessity for the woman’s body to function properly. Blood plays a role once Martine starts testing Sophie because she was afraid that she might have lost her virginity to a man. This happens when Sophie returns home late one night. Martine wants to make sure she is a virgin and thus pure, since this affects the marriage. The testing is a very annoying, embarrassing and painful act for Sophie.
And also, I think that the red dress for Martine’s burial shows the anger Martine had kept for herself, due to the disappointment she had towards Sophie.
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I also noticed that red played a big role in the novel through blood and furniture in the house. Also it was used in some of the folk tales that where told. The folk tale that came to mind when i read the final scene was the one with the woman bleeding and not being able to stop. The bleeding represents the everyday torture that Martine goes through living with the thought that she was raped. Finally when the woman was tired of bleeding, she was asked to be transformed into a butterfly. Martine was also transformed after her suicide into a spirit who doesn't have to feel and go through the trauma that she lived with every day.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with the comments made above. Color does indeed play a very important role in any literature. The notion of using color gives us the reader a perspective. We can clearly and easily differentiate between gloomy verus cheerful colors. I also noticed that in this novel as mentioned earlier the color red is used a lot. When I think of red, immediately I think of blood, violence, anger etc. and this novel does explore these aspects. At the end of the novel, the women bleeding and turning into a butterfly was far stretched. I didn’t quiet understand the transaction besides the fact that she was now liberate from the daily suffering.
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