As The Bible advises in Proverbs 12:18, “There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” The proverb suggests that while conflict often catalyzes violence, people must peacefully handle disputes or hostility in their lives. John Ames religiously follows this proverb in Marilynne Robinson’s novel Gilead. A dying pastor, husband, and father, Ames appears to lead the typical quiet life of a Midwestern man. Though as he writes a final letter to his young son, readers learn that multiple hidden conflicts afflict the virtuous life of John Ames.
When Gilead begins, Ames reveals that he is rather old and will die soon. Ames discloses that if he had known about “leaving a wife and child” behind, he would “have been a better father” (4). Frankly, Ames also writes, “I regret very deeply the hard times I know you and your mother must have gone through” (4). Despite openly admitting his feelings, John Ames does not address the conflict in such a manner. Ames chooses to write an extended letter about life rather than verbally explain the situation to his son. Through the medium of the letter, Ames reinforces his choice to have a passive, reflective nature and follows the proverb’s lesson to employ wisdom for healing.
Readers discover that Ames’s father, grandfathers, and great-grandfather have all been pastors (6). And now, Ames is also a pastor. Therefore, many people have influenced Ames and his perception of the proper preacher. While Ames’s preaching style better matches his father’s, he also can sometimes see his grandfather’s perspective. Ames’s father finds the description of God as a “Purifying Fire” (99) horrific and erroneous; however, Ames recognizes that “there are passages they could be said to summarize fairly well” the message and symbol (99). Ames struggles to find the unifying factor between himself, his father, and his grandfather. He instead chooses to become a quiet, unassuming, and meditative figure in the church.
Throughout Gilead, Robinson divulges the complicated history and relationship between Ames and his namesake, John Ames “Jack” Boughton. Ames describes Jack’s frustrating personality, specifically with processing words. Jack “doesn’t listen to the meaning of words” (130) and “decides whether they threaten him or injure him, and he reacts at that level” (131). Jack’s demeanor noticeably contrasts Ames’s tendency to think in a deeper, contemplative state. Ames eventually recounts the upsetting reason why he distrusts and dislikes Jack; he had a child with a young woman, abandoned the family, and the child died prematurely of infection. Ames writes, “Jack Boughton had no business in the world involving himself with that girl. It was something no honorable man would have done” (156). Everything about Jack’s attitude and decisions counteract Ames’s personal and religious values of life. Similar to the letter format, Ames still does not directly confront the conflict. Jack represents the clashing practice of forgiveness for Ames. To Ames as a human, Jack’s actions prove inexcusable. To Ames as a pastor, he must forgive. Ultimately, Ames chooses to forgive and bless Jack but still does not directly resolve the core conflict.
Throughout Gilead, Robinson divulges the complicated history and relationship between Ames and his namesake, John Ames “Jack” Boughton. Ames describes Jack’s frustrating personality, specifically with processing words. Jack “doesn’t listen to the meaning of words” (130) and “decides whether they threaten him or injure him, and he reacts at that level” (131). Jack’s demeanor noticeably contrasts Ames’s tendency to think in a deeper, contemplative state. Ames eventually recounts the upsetting reason why he distrusts and dislikes Jack; he had a child with a young woman, abandoned the family, and the child died prematurely of infection. Ames writes, “Jack Boughton had no business in the world involving himself with that girl. It was something no honorable man would have done” (156). Everything about Jack’s attitude and decisions counteract Ames’s personal and religious values of life. Similar to the letter format, Ames still does not directly confront the conflict. Jack represents the clashing practice of forgiveness for Ames. To Ames as a human, Jack’s actions prove inexcusable. To Ames as a pastor, he must forgive. Ultimately, Ames chooses to forgive and bless Jack but still does not directly resolve the core conflict.
The Bible. The New Oxford Annotated Version, 3rd ed., Oxford UP, 2001.
Another central conflict that impacts the narrator’s letters throughout Marilynne Robinson’s novel Gilead is the conflict between the narrator’s father and grandfather. The two men, although both preachers, have different philosophies, causing conflict in their lives.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator’s father is a pacifist while his grandfather is an ardent abolitionist who advocated for the civil war. The narrator’s father would rather have his hopes in peace “because peace is its own reward. Peace is its own justification” (84). The narrator’s father seems to use his belief in peace to ignore turmoil. As the narrator explains,“All best forgotten, my father used to say. He didn’t like mention of those times, and that did cause some hard feelings between him and his father” (76). As the narrator notices, his grandfather feels the exact opposite from the narrator’s father, and he insists on war to facilitate the end of slavery. The grandfather aides John Brown, and joins the war as a Chaplain. Ultimately, the differences and conflicts between the grandfather and the father cause the two to grow apart, and the grandfather moves to Kansas.
John Ames’s father feels this tension in his life, and he regrets some of his actions in the face of conflict. The narrator writes, “My father spoke once in a sermon about how he regretted the times after the war that he’d gone off to sit with the Quakers while his father struggled to find words of comfort to say to his poor remnant of a flock” (109). The tension between the father and son leave the narrator’s father regretting his strained relationship with his father, inspiring the father and the narrator to seek out the grandfather’s grave in an effort to set things right. The narrator writes, “It grieved my father bitterly that the last words he said to his father were very angry words and there could never be any reconciliation between them in this life. He did truly honor his father, generally speaking, and it was hard for him to accept that things should have ended the way they did” (10). For the narrator’s father, finding the grandfather’s grave creates a sense of closure in their conflicted relationship. Throughout the novel, the conflict between the narrator’s father and grandfather adds depth to the narrator’s tale to his son, commenting on the significance of fatherly relationships and the importance of forgiveness in their lives.