Altered States of a Grieving Mind: Contemplation of Suicide, Seclusion and Selfhood in A Widowâs Story by Joyce Carol Oates

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Altered States of a Grieving Mind: Contemplation of Suicide, Seclusion and Selfhood in A Widowâs Story by Joyce Carol Oates

in 'And Then the Monsters Come Out': Madness, Language and Power

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Katarzyna MaÅecka

Katarzyna MaÅecka
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Art:: Kapitel

Seiten:: 1â10

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9781848883239_002

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The psychological turmoil that frequently comes with the loss of someone dear to us is nothing abnormal, and, yet, normally, it is not a state in which most individuals would ever wish to be. In spite of certain research-proven grief stages that all who mourn go through, the grieving process frequently varies depending on oneâs social and cultural background, education, emotional development and numerous other factors. Everyone grieves in their own unique way, which sometimes makes it difficult to assess where normal grief ends and problematic grief begins. In A Widowâs Story, Joyce Carol Oates grieves the sudden death of her beloved husband, Raymond Smith. The loss shattered Oatesâs life. The author goes through such commonly described stages of the grieving process as numbness, anger, bargaining and depression. In the two central sections of her bereavement memoir, entitled âThe Basiliskâ (III) and âPurgatory, Hellâ (IV), Oates offers her own take on the clinically sanctioned stages of grief and painstakingly analyses the altered states of mind caused by the loss of her husband. She frequently resorts to the world of imagination and literature to express her confusion and pain. For instance, the Basilisk she continues to see at the edge of her vision appears to be associated with her overwhelming guilt, anger and remorse resulting from this unexpected loss. Gradually, the Basiliskâs eyes reflect Oatesâs increasing despair and urge her to contemplate the usefulness of suicide in the face of the emptiness and loneliness she cannot assuage. This chapter explores those stages of Oatesâs grieving journey which stress how emotionally and physically devastating bereavement can be and how impossible it seems to resume oneâs normal life, if such even exists, after as profound a loss as hers.

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'And Then the Monsters Come Out': Madness, Language and Power

ISBN:: 9781848883239

Verleger:: Brill

Print-Publikationsdatum:: 01 Jan 2014

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Altered States of a Grieving Mind: Contemplation of Suicide, Seclusion and Selfhood in A Widowâs Story by Joyce Carol Oates

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'And Then the Monsters Come Out': Madness, Language and Power

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Altered States of a Grieving Mind: Contemplation of Suicide, Seclusion and Selfhood in A Widowâs Story by Joyce Carol Oates