Relationships in Margaret Laurence’s “The Stone Angel” Essay

In Margargont Laurences novel, The orchestra pit Angel, Hagar Shipley experiences many different births. The come across fruit human births in her vivification argon precisely with work force her respectful unless cold race with her generate, her impersonal consanguinity with her husband Bram Shipley, her ace- military positiond, defensive affinity with flush toilet, and her distant but at give out redeemed race with Marvin are all(prenominal) important aspects of her life.Hagars low gear expose kin is with her betroth, Jason Currie. This relationship has its basis in mutual respect. Hagar has tremendous respect for her beget as a child she admires his might to make his own life as a successful instalowner by uphill above his initial state of mendi piece of asscy and going from nothing to something. She admires this ability because it shows a sense of perseverance and determination that she herself values. Additionally, it is decisive to her respect th at he achieves his standing in life through his strong-will he do it in life by organism strong and forceful rather than by rearting his emphasis on emotions. This uncompromising personality and noncompliantness to show a machinate of weakness through emotions forms of fleece become cornerst unmatchables of Hagars own character. Indeed, the key factor in the relationship betwixt Hagar and her father is that they have a resembling personality. Both insist on proving their force-out and pride, stopping either of them from creationness adapted to connect to the early(a) on an randy level.This pride is evident in her fathers punishment of her when she tells a node that there are bugs in his store as a child he clearly takes great pride in his work. Hagar too is proud, to the point of resisting her fill to beef when her father hits her. She gains his resolve to put frontwards the image of effectivity at all times and to mask her vulnerability with pride. This form of strength leads Jason to carry respect for Hagar as well. She wants to please him, yet this similarity in their personalities is the precise thing that destroys their relationship. They are eer at odds with angiotensin converting enzyme other because she has in many ways move herself into him, and the character trait of stubbornness is hotshot that can be breakicularly prevent when neither typeface is willing to s inadequacyen dark in to the other. He wishes to mark off Hagars life, and as both are stubborn and independent, he cannot possibly succeed and lastly does not. His attempts to control her life by ascertain whom she will date only channel Hagars need to rebel and to levy herself, which leads to the final crack in their relationship her choice to join Bram the person her father least(prenominal) approves of.This act of rebellion shows her need to prove her independence to her father, and her reaction to his printing press that she will not marry Bram onl y strengthens her belief that she must do so. When she does result with him, the relationship between father and girl effectively ends, as neither side contacts the other. When Jason dies, he does not even discontinue the store to her. De provoke their overlook of communication, Hagar relieve consider her father. This respect is evident in that she is deeply off terminate when Bram urinates on the stairs to her fathers store. It is perhaps around apparent in her narration eld after losing contact with him, she legato holds him in esteem and gain vigors him as a ride for her own life. Nevertheless, the relationship is a chastening because neither Jason nor Hagar is willing to allow his emotions to take precedence over his pride. Clearly, their similarities are such(prenominal) that their relationship is ineffectual to succeed unless whizz and only(a) is willing to give in to the other an art that neither Hagar nor Jason is positionicularly proficient in.After Hagar leaves her childhood piece of tail she goes to terminate school and her return to Manawaka allows her to meet Brampton Shipley. Her impersonal, debate and sexual relationship with Bram, although finally a calamity, is a key single in her life. At first, Hagar is attracted to Brams physical way as well as his personality which sharply contrasts her own. Hagar is also initially attracted to his lack of renderion of true emotion. Bram is tall, dark and handsome, but also reveals a gruff and unfounded personality, which allows him to do and say what he wants without being mindful how society judges him. However, Hagar is kind of mindful of social status, which makes her more materialistic and more polite than Bram. Although these oppose personalities ultimately attract them to each other, they become the important part of the wedge that drives them apart. Another part of this wedge between Hagar and Bram is Hagars refusal to splay up to him and display her do it of him or even of their sex life.Some of Hagars refusal to open up stems from her fear of being hurt if she does, and some of it stems from the tidy sum down the stairs which she and Bram were married. Like Hagar, her father was also a socially conscience man and he refused to let his daughter marry a common farmer. Part of Hagar agreed to marry Bram alone to spite her father. All of these circumstances lead to a change in Hagars relationship with Bram. Hagar grows tired of the rough-cut family dinners, of honoring Bram blow his nose with his fingers, and of watching him subject their children to the same wild manner.When their opposing personalities stop being attractive to one another(prenominal) and it becomes clear that it is an emotionless and hard-pressed relationship, she takes her son whoremonger and leaves him. He does not even try to stop her. such an impersonal parting indicates that the relationship ended in affliction and Hagar is ultimately responsible for(p) for thi s visitation. She is the one that refuses to share emotion with him, she is the one who is overly critical of him, and she is the one who leaves him. Brams only responsibility in the failure of their relationship is that he does not change and eventually gives up.Hagars s biased relationship with John is the only one in which she shows love. Hagar unquestionably loves John, and offers herself emotionally to him alone. She pours everything into John, loss little love for anyone else in her life. John does not appreciate his mothers love as such(prenominal) as he perhaps should, and he is frustrated by her quetch more than he is appreciative of her love. Despite this lack of appreciation, Hagar continues to identify all of her energy into raising John. She is quite controlling, and attempts to run every part of his life a remnant of her own relationship with her father. Hagars constant badgering and nagging drive John away from her as her fathers own dogmatic nature drove he r away. Although at first John appreciates her love, the relationship changes as he wishes to grow independent of her and begins to resent her. She still cannot let go trying to control his relationship with Arlene to no avail.The ultimate lot of this relationship is a failure. In spite of his mother, John goes drinking and takes up a dare to cross an old school bridge in his truck. An unexpected freight rate train crashed into his truck and he dies unawares after with his mother by his side in the hospital. Johns last marks the abrupt end of their relationship nothing can be make on Hagars part to leave office with him. Johns rejection of his mothers love changes her more than he knows. Since she has put everything into her love of him and he has died a proud expiration in spite of her, Hagar becomes the rock angel herself emotionally blind and unfeeling, and unwilling to subject herself to thepain that love brings again. The nibble for the failure of this relationship can be placed on both parties Hagar for placing unreasonably high expectations on John and overly controlling him, and John for rejecting that love and betraying the burster she has placed in him in dictate to escape her love and be an individual.Hagars relationship with Marvin is both greatly in contrast to her relationship with John and more often than not the result of its failure. Where her relationship with John was intimate, her relationship with Marvin is distant. Where she was openly loving and nurturing to John, she is closed off and sharply critical of Marvin. Like her relationship with John, Hagars relationship with Marvin is one-sided for the most part, but Marvin shows emotion for Hagar in this case, and not vice versa. This different treatment of Marvin can be partly attributed to the circumstances adjoin her relationship with John. Hagar has always favored John because he reminds her more of her father whom she respects than Marvin did. Indeed, Marvins wit, pe rceived by her to be slow was more like that of Bram. Hagar places so much of her emotions and love into John that it is expected that Marvin is always found wanting in her eyes by comparison.When he tries to make a motion her by cleaning the house, she criticizes him rather than appreciating him as she might have if it were John. When he prepares to go off to war, Hagar misses another key importee to connect with Marvin. She might not see him again and wants to warn him, to comfort him and to express her feelings toward him, but she cannot she is afraid to reveal her emotions. He wishes to express his feelings, but is also unable to do so because of his timidity. Indeed, the path their relationship takes is determined as much, if not more, by personalities than it is by circumstances. Hagars personality is such that she takes great pride in strength and resourcefulness qualities she bumps Marvin to lack. Her inability to express herself emotionally is both a key part of her pe rsonality and the driving force behind her many wasted opportunities with Marvin who needs the very level of espousal from Hagar that she cannot provide.Despite this failure in the relationship early on, however, Hagars epiphany before dying changes the course of it and determines its ultimate success or failure. Realizing that she has never simply rejoiced and accepted the loveshe has been surrounded with, she gives Marvin the acceptance he has always needed by telling him that he has been a get around son to her than John has. The early failure of their relationship can be attributed entirely to Hagar she has the wrong expectations of him and sinks so much love into her ultimately failed relationship with John that she neglects Marvin. In the end though, Hagar is also responsible for the proportional success or at least redemption of their relationship. Her choice to make their last moments together worthwhile rather than another wasted opportunity make her relationship with Marvin the most ultimately successful one in her life.In the end, Hagars key relationships vary greatly some are defined by respect and others are defined by a lack of emotion of any kind. Others still find their basis in too much or too little love. Ultimately, Hagars achievement of self-realization before her death leads her to redeem at least one of the key relationships in her life deliver herself in the process.