I found “The Shrouded Woman” by Maria Luisa Bombal to be my favourite of the three texts we’ve read so far. Unlike the other novels, this one felt more like a story, with more structure and characters to tell it. It was more focused on life and relationships. It felt similar to a TV drama … Continue reading Week 4: Bombal’s “The Shrouded Woman” →
I found that I really enjoyed reading The Shrouded Woman. The first few pages really set up the general gist of the narrative, which was a very interesting concept in my opinion. I thought that Bombal did a great job of engaging readers (or me at least; and sometimes I find it difficult to enjoy […]
Prout’s “Combray” section was extremely interesting because of it’s work in defining and analyzing temporal states and changes. “Combray” dig into this topic specifically in memory. Character’s memories we’re altered after large events took place, reshaping their past experiences as they drew them back up.
In The Shrouded Woman, Bombal experiments with these ideas as well, but rather, focuses on death as the ultimate “looking back” point (which it essentially is), and uses this sense of finality to address Ana Maria’s life. In the end, Ana Maria is many things: a mother, a wife, a young lover and a paramour. The use of the finality of death to analyze these past relationships, and the love that they shared works similarly to ‘Combray’ in that it brings definition to a life.
An idea that springs from this is, why the obsession with defining and analyzing the past? One thought is this; in the present, reality is a blur–a confusing mix of emotion, cruelty, passion and thought. Every human has unanswered question in the present, but the past, this confusion is clarified, defined and now final–nothing can be changed (which is ironic, as looking back from the present to the past in essence changes how the memories and livelihood is perceived). In a sense, it is this confusion which is critical to the human condition. By reliving the past with a conclusion having been appended, the tyranny of the present is destroyed. This constant reminder of our mortal state has been recorded, filed and remembered, it’s confusion and questions now relieved.
This is why I believe Proust and Bombal used these themes and wrote in this way, analyzing the past and one’s temporal state. The human need for order and clarity is great, and memories give use a god-like power to now control the confusion which once controlled us.
1. How would you remember your loved ones if you were in Ana Maria’s position?
2. Which relationship did you most relate to?
Prout’s “Combray” section was extremely interesting because of it’s work in defining and analyzing temporal states and changes. “Combray” dig into this topic specifically in memory. Character’s memories we’re altered after large events took place, reshaping their past experiences as they drew them back up.
In The Shrouded Woman, Bombal experiments with these ideas as well, but rather, focuses on death as the ultimate “looking back” point (which it essentially is), and uses this sense of finality to address Ana Maria’s life. In the end, Ana Maria is many things: a mother, a wife, a young lover and a paramour. The use of the finality of death to analyze these past relationships, and the love that they shared works similarly to ‘Combray’ in that it brings definition to a life.
An idea that springs from this is, why the obsession with defining and analyzing the past? One thought is this; in the present, reality is a blur–a confusing mix of emotion, cruelty, passion and thought. Every human has unanswered question in the present, but the past, this confusion is clarified, defined and now final–nothing can be changed (which is ironic, as looking back from the present to the past in essence changes how the memories and livelihood is perceived). In a sense, it is this confusion which is critical to the human condition. By reliving the past with a conclusion having been appended, the tyranny of the present is destroyed. This constant reminder of our mortal state has been recorded, filed and remembered, it’s confusion and questions now relieved.
This is why I believe Proust and Bombal used these themes and wrote in this way, analyzing the past and one’s temporal state. The human need for order and clarity is great, and memories give use a god-like power to now control the confusion which once controlled us.
1. How would you remember your loved ones if you were in Ana Maria’s position?
2. Which relationship did you most relate to?
The Shrouded Woman was the first book (up until this point) that I enjoyed reading. I appreciated the female author, and I found it was easier for me to identify and empathize with the narrator, Ana Maria. I found it fascinating to read a story from the perspective of a dead person, as this is …
Posted in Blogs, Bombal | Tagged with Femininity, identity
The Shrouded Woman, in my opinion, really captured the theme of being modern in comparison to the texts I’ve reviewed in previous weeks. There were many different ideas being explored, such as the point of view being someone reflecting on themselves being dead and the main character being a woman, as opposed to a male. […]
Posted in Blogs, Bombal | Tagged with dead, deceased, Edgar Allan Poe, joy, modern, reminiscing, repetition, woman
The Shrouded Woman
The Shrouded Woman is my second text I have read for this course, and compared to the first novel Swann’s Way, I really enjoyed it. When I first began reading I was worried I was not going to understand the story as i found Swann’s Way difficult to understand. Despite going into it thinking I wouldn’t understand, after the first page I was completely hooked to the story.
Similarly to Swann’s Way, one thing that stood out to me was how beautifully descriptive and visual this story was. The language used was intense and thoughtful, but not to the point where it overcomplicated the story, it was the perfect amount. This aspect of the novel allowed me to feel as though I was there in all of these different situation with Ana Maria, and experiencing these things with her. It felt like a real journey into her mind where she wasn’t necessarily telling me as a reader these stories, but almost like I was in her mind without her even knowing. These memories that she is reminiscing felt so personal and intimate which made the story very real to me and provoked many different emotions.
I also really enjoyed that not only was the story told through her thoughts but the fact that she is dead makes it even more interesting. I’m not too much of a reader so maybe other novels exist from this perspective, but in my personal experience I have never heard of or read a novel from the perspective of someone that is dead. This made her memories even more emotional and beautiful to read.
I loved how Ana Maria was still feeling emotion for past lovers, her children etc.. as they were visiting her casket. Death is not something I think about often, but this novel had me wondering, will I be able to watch over people in my life visit my casket? Will I be able to reminisce on memories of past lovers and family members one day? The way the story is told made me believe that this is how it is when you pass away, just watching people from your life visit you one by one and begin to remember every experience you shared. It also made me think about how I perceive situations in my life. Ana Maria has her own memories but I wonder if we are seeing these memories being told to us in a bias perspective because we are in her mind, or if things played out differently according to who’s mind we are in?
In conclusion I thought this story told beautifully real stories of love, family, and memories. I enjoyed it a lot 🙂
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The Shrouded Woman
The Shrouded Woman is my second text I have read for this course, and compared to the first novel Swann’s Way, I really enjoyed it. When I first began reading I was worried I was not going to understand the story as i found Swann’s Way difficult to understand. Despite going into it thinking I wouldn’t understand, after the first page I was completely hooked to the story.
Similarly to Swann’s Way, one thing that stood out to me was how beautifully descriptive and visual this story was. The language used was intense and thoughtful, but not to the point where it overcomplicated the story, it was the perfect amount. This aspect of the novel allowed me to feel as though I was there in all of these different situation with Ana Maria, and experiencing these things with her. It felt like a real journey into her mind where she wasn’t necessarily telling me as a reader these stories, but almost like I was in her mind without her even knowing. These memories that she is reminiscing felt so personal and intimate which made the story very real to me and provoked many different emotions.
I also really enjoyed that not only was the story told through her thoughts but the fact that she is dead makes it even more interesting. I’m not too much of a reader so maybe other novels exist from this perspective, but in my personal experience I have never heard of or read a novel from the perspective of someone that is dead. This made her memories even more emotional and beautiful to read.
I loved how Ana Maria was still feeling emotion for past lovers, her children etc.. as they were visiting her casket. Death is not something I think about often, but this novel had me wondering, will I be able to watch over people in my life visit my casket? Will I be able to reminisce on memories of past lovers and family members one day? The way the story is told made me believe that this is how it is when you pass away, just watching people from your life visit you one by one and begin to remember every experience you shared. It also made me think about how I perceive situations in my life. Ana Maria has her own memories but I wonder if we are seeing these memories being told to us in a bias perspective because we are in her mind, or if things played out differently according to who’s mind we are in?
In conclusion I thought this story told beautifully real stories of love, family, and memories. I enjoyed it a lot 🙂
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‘Why, oh why must a woman’s nature be such that a man has always to be the pivot of her life?’ (p. 226). What a fantastic question! I have yet to quite be able to put that into words. This week’s reading was a great refresh from Proust and Aragon and gave me hope that […]
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I really enjoyed this week’s novel of The Shrouded Woman. I was looking forward to this week’s novel since it is the first one with a female author and I was intrigued if there was a noticeable difference between the previous books. One thing I noticed was a difference through the characters as the women …
