{"id":674,"date":"2006-10-31T11:21:59","date_gmt":"2006-10-31T10:21:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/terresdecrivains.org\/index.php\/2006\/10\/31\/jamaica-inn-a-reflection-of-daphne-du-mauriers-cornwall-iii\/"},"modified":"2021-06-25T20:29:21","modified_gmt":"2021-06-25T18:29:21","slug":"jamaica-inn-a-reflection-of-daphne-du-mauriers-cornwall-iii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/terresdecrivains.org\/index.php\/2006\/10\/31\/jamaica-inn-a-reflection-of-daphne-du-mauriers-cornwall-iii\/","title":{"rendered":"Jamaica Inn : A Reflection of Daphne du Maurier’s Cornwall (III)"},"content":{"rendered":"

INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER
\n
A biography<\/a><\/p>\n

WRITING CORNWALL
\n
a Setting and plot<\/a>
\n
b Suspense and mystery<\/a>
\n
c Daphne du Maurier’s rewriting of Cornwall<\/a>
\n
d Fact versus fancy<\/a><\/p>\n

DAPHNE DU MAURIER AND GOTHIC IMAGINATION
\n
a Ghosts in Jamaica Inn<\/a>
\n
b The \u00ab\u00a0uncanny\u00a0\u00bb<\/a>
\n
c Boundaries of the self<\/p>\n

SYMBOLISM AND lMAGERY lN JAMAICA INN
\n
a Animal farm
\n
b Escape
\n
c Treasure island<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

b\/ Suspense and mystery<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of the most obvious characteristics of Jamaica Inn<\/em> lies in the fact that the author obviously spins out the story and holds back information in order to feed the reader’s interest and to arouse his curiosity. Thus, from the very first chapter of the novel, the reader is in a state of anxious expectancy concerning the outcome of Mary’s situation. Questions such as : What is going to happen next ? Will Mary survive the situation ? or, will she escape Jamaica Inn and return to Helford, and if so, how ? keep on arising in the reader’s mind. The reader’s imagination consequently races ahead of the story, creating possibilities and imagining answers to the numerous questions put by the narrative. The devices likely to arouse suspense derive from the dangerous situations in which the main character of the story is repeatedly involved.<\/p>\n

ln the following passage, suspense heightens during Mary’s first real attempt to escape the squalid universe of her uncle’s inn. ln order to avoid being discovered and, having no time to climb the stairs back to her bedroom, she hides behind the door of the parlour :<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u00a0Trembling with excitement
\nand
\nfear,
\nshe waited
\nin
\nthe parlour, and she heard the landlord pass across
\nthe hall and climb the stairs to the landing above.
\nHis footsteps came to a halt above her head, outside
\nthe guest-room, and for a second or two he waited,
\nas though he too listened for some alien sound.\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (55)<\/p>\n

The reader is anxious because he experiences Mary’s fear of
\nbeing discovered. This effect is extended by the point of
\nview of the narrative. Indeed, the narrative is restricted
\nto Mary’s point of view, everything is perceived exclusively
\nthrough her eyes and ears, and consequently, the reader is
\nmore likely to identify with Mary’s feelings and actions.<\/p>\n

Suspense, moreover, is reinforced by the extensive use of
\nsounds. The reader’s emotional response to the situation is
\npreviously conditioned by the disturbing sounds which emerge
\nfrom the darkness. ln this particular scene, \u00ab\u00a0the creaking
\nof the board\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> which occurs several times, \u00ab\u00a0the footsteps of
\nthe unknown guest\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>, those of Joss Merlyn, the \u00ab\u00a0loud beating
\nof [Mary’ s] heart\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> and the \u00ab\u00a0slow shocking tick of the clock\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>
\ninterplay to work on Mary’s nerves as well as on the
\nreader’s. <\/p>\n

The use of stressful sounds is not only restricted to short
\npassages in the novel. The whole novel, in fact, seems to be
\nunder the menace of time, symbolized by the strikes of the
\nclock which only momentarily cease at Joss Merlyn’s death,
\nto resound again in the vicarage, before the final climax (233). The endless echo of the passage of time certainly influences the reading of the novel because it gives an infernal rhythm to the story and consequently urges the reader to turn the page.<\/p>\n

ln order to emphasize the growing fear experienced both by Mary and by the reader, the writer also makes constant use of words such as \u00ab\u00a0sudden\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> or \u00ab\u00a0suddenly\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>. These words surprise the reader and also give a steady rhythm to the narrative. Throughout the novel, many other gripping scenes keep the reader in expectation. For example, other devices combine to increase suspense towards the end of the novel :<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u00a0The scraping continued, persuasive and undaunted,
\n\ttap… tap… \tlike the drumming of a beak :
\n\ttap…\ttap… \tlike the four fingers of a hand.
\n
There was no other sound in the kitchen except the frightened breathing of Aunt Patience, whose hand crept out across the table to her niece […] Mary swallowed, her throat dry as dust ; whether the thing behind the window was friend or enemy to herself made the suspense more poignant, but in spite of her hopes the thumbing of her heart told her that fear was infectious, as were the beads of perspiration on her uncle’s face.\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (178-179)<\/p>\n

ln this extract, the writer uses punctuation, consecutive dots, to be precise, to create suspenseful expectation. As a result the mysterious and frightening sound successively associated with \u00ab\u00a0the drumming of a beak\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>, with the fingers of a hand and finally with \u00ab\u00a0the thing\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>, intensely plays on
\nthe reader’s curiosity.<\/p>\n

Moreover, the sound is not only described, but is also
\nimitated with the use of the onomatopeic \u00ab\u00a0tap\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> so that the
\nreader’s imagination is intensely stimulated.<\/p>\n

Daphne du Maurier’s skill in the creation of suspense also
\nlies in her ability to withhold information. As clearly
\nshown in the previous extract, the reader is kept in
\nsuspense until the last moment when the writer finally
\ndecides to reveal the identity hidden behind the enigmatic
\nsound. \u00ab\u00a0It was Harry the pedlar…\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (179).<\/p>\n

Compared to the long and descriptive passage which gradually
\narouses the reader’s interest, the short sentence delivering
\nthe long-awaited information acts as an unexpected lash on
\nthe reader’s nerves. Several short sentences, built on
\nexactly the same pattern, which follow passages of intense
\nsuspense in the same way, punctuate the whole novel up to
\nthe very last page. \u00ab\u00a0It was the Vicar of Altarnum\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (143) or
\n\u00ab\u00a0I am the Vicar of Altarnum\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (227), for example, appear many
\ntimes throughout the story to keep up the suspense and also
\nto create an intense sense of mystery.<\/p>\n

Another obvious characteristic of the plot concerns the
\nVicar of Altarnum’s true identity which is not revealed
\nuntil the end of the book. The Vicar’s identity is not only
\nlinked with the witholding of information. Indeed, Daphne du
\nMaurier cleverly introduces clues implicating the apparently
\ninnocent character in order to send the reader off on the
\nwrong track and to intensify the mystery. <\/p>\n

At first convinced by Mary’s suspicions which present Uncle
\nJoss as the villain of the story, the reader is primarily a
\nvictim of the author’s strategie manipulation. But as the
\nstory progresses towards the d\u00e9nouement, the reader is given
\ndiscreet clues and thus wonders about the Vicar’s true
\nidentity. The stranger in the guest room is the first
\ndisturbing element introduced in the story, for the reader
\nis deluded by Mary’s suspicions : \u00ab\u00a0Could it have been Jem
\nMerlyn who had hidden in the empty guest-room that Saturday night ?\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (107). Then the Vicar’s strange attitude heightens
\nthe mystery in the story. The impression of mystery is
\nindeed closely connected with the Vicar’s enigmatic physical
\nappearance. Mary is therefore extremely disturbed by her
\nfirst encounter with the alleged saviour : \u00ab\u00a0They were
\nstrange eyes, transparent like glass, and so pale in colour
\nthat they seemed near to white ; a freak of nature she had
\nnever known before\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (87).<\/p>\n

It is not only his physical appearance which apparently
\nseems to belong to another universe, but also the enigma
\nconcerning his origins that set the reader thinking. The
\ndescription of the interior of the Vicarage is in keeping
\nwith the Vicar’s strange personality :<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u00a0Here it was different. The room in which she was
\nsitting had the quiet impersonality of a drawing
\nroom visited by night. The furniture, table in the
\ncentre, the pictures on the walls, were without that
\nlook of solid familiarity.\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (88) <\/p>\n

Different, abnormal, impersonal, unfamiliar, belonging to
\nanother age, are the adjectives and expressions which sum up
\nthe Vicar’s identi ty. Later in the novel, and before the
\nreader entirely manages to solve the mystery concerning his
\nidentity, the Vicar defines himself as \u00ab\u00a0a freak of nature
\nand a freak in time\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (243).<\/p>\n

If the mystery is undoubtedly built up around Mary’s
\ndiscovery of the smuggling process, it is largely thanks to
\nthe characters’ possible involvement in suspicious murders
\nthat the reader is likely to wonder who the real murderer is
\nand why the Vicar is so mysterious. The plot is in fact
\ncarefully organized around possible crimes and murders
\ncommitted by possible criminals such as Jem Merlyn or Joss
\nMerlyn because of their dubious line of descent. For example, Mary is convinced that Jem Merlyn plays a role in
\nthis macabre business :<\/p>\n


\n\u00ab\u00a0The stranger in the bar that night had talked of
\nmurder, and now Jem himself had echoed his words
\n[ … ] What part Jem Merlyn played in all this was
\nhard to say, but that he was concerned in it
\nsomewhere she did not doubt for a moment.\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (108-109)<\/p>\n

It is only in chapter seventeen that the reader finally
\nresolves the enigma linked to the Vicar’s real identity.
\n
As a consequence, Daphne du Maurier’s compelling storyline
\nskilfully creates a sense of suspense and mystery which
\nreigns throughout the novel and constantly calls upon the
\nreader’s logic. However, these elements are inextricably
\nlinked with the narrator of the story. Indeed, the feelings experienced by the reader are also due to the omniscience of
\nthe narrator. The following extract establishes the status
\nof the narrator which remains constant throughout the whole
\nnovel :<\/p>\n

\u00ab\u00a0Jem was silent. The news had evidently come as a
\nsurprise to him, and he was turning it over his
\nmind. Mary watched him, tortured by doubt and
\nindecision ; she was thrown back now upon her old
\nsuspicion of him.\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> (192) <\/p>\n

As the narrator is all-knowing, not only does he reveal the
\ncharacters’ behaviour (\u00ab\u00a0Jem was silent\u00a0\u00bb<\/em> ; \u00ab\u00a0Mary watched
\nhim\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>) but he also takes the reader into the characters’
\ninnermost feelings and thoughts (\u00ab\u00a0turning it over his mind\u00a0\u00bb
\n\u00ab\u00a0tortured by doubt and indecision\u00a0\u00bb<\/em>). The characters are
\nfocalized internally and emotional identification is thus
\nmade easier for the reader. The narrator also has the
\nknowledge of what happens in the past, present and future
\nand is thus able to manipulate the reader and to create a
\nfeeling of immediacy.<\/p>\n

ln Jamaica Inn<\/em>, suspense, mystery, point of view and
\ncharacterization complement each other, as we have tried to
\ndemonstrate, encouraging the reader to get involved in the
\nstory. Yet there is no doubt that any reader could also
\nsuspect the subjective view of the main character and even
\nrefuse to be caught out by this fictional story. However,
\nbehind these elements, quite obvious to detect, lies a very
\nspecial atmosphere, which discreetly infuences the reader’s
\nreactions and makes his involvment almost inevitable. The atmosphere carefully drawn in the background does not, contrary to what one might think, emanate from any Cornwall in existence. Daphne du Maurier’s Cornwall is undoubtedly imaginary and, paradoxically, the main character directly emerging from this atmosphere seems to be more real than imaginary. <\/p>\n

A suivre…<\/p>\n

Copyright : Ombeline Belkadi (odalavie@wanadoo.fr).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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