Psychoanalytic Criticism and Post-structuralism/Deconstruction
I am choosing to write my blog response through the use of Psychoanalytic Criticism in relation to Snowman, along with Post-structuralism/deconstruction in regard to just Oryx. If I remember correctly we were discussing how Oryx can be seen in two ways, one as a completely immoral being, and the other as a very morally advanced being. In my opinion Oryx would be a very morally advanced individual because she is able to see passed the unethical treatment she received in the past. Oryx was put through traumatizing events, yet she seems to be in a normal mental state. The whole situation with child pornography would cause one to think Oryx was angry at the men who stripped away her innocence at such a young age. Yet in reality she copes with it quite well. She is able overlook the bad in life and indulge in the good. She is very optimistic and even tells Jimmy that he himself becomes too angry when she tells him stories about her past. She tells him that he should not worry if she herself does not care that much. Oryx understands that in order for her to live she had to be sold, she had to do as she was told, and she had to do a good job. Regardless of the fact that this seems completely immoral and disgustingly wrong, she accepted the truth and the reality of the situation. By doing this Oryx made it easier on herself to live her life to the fullest. I believe her experiences in life did not harm her psychologically but instead constructed a whole new outlook on life for her, a whole new perspective. Furthermore, by accepting her past and fully understanding the reason as to why she was put through such difficult situations, made Oryx the person she is today, it made Oryx a morally advanced being who does not dwell in the past but instead strives to change her present and future.
As for Snowman in relation to Psychoanalytical Criticism, I would say he would fit into the Ego category. Evidently he does not have much in his current situation so his first priority is to actually survive. He needs to find ways to find food so he sets off on a journey to a place with several memories of him and his old friend Crake. He needs a spray gun which will help him fight off the animals that will eventually become aware of the fact that he cannot defend himself without a weapon. He doesn't really strive to live a better life morally, or ethically, but at one point in his life I believe he did. I believe in Snowman's past, when he was referred to as Jimmy, he began to gain a greater sense of morality. He suddenly began to feel viewing live suicides, and child pornography was wrong, especially when he saw Oryx in one of the movies. He gained a moral conscience and tried to help Oryx and find out where she had lived and who had "abused" her, but Oryx herself did not mind as much. Jimmy was making assumptions.
In conclusion, I don't actually really like analyzing text and literary compositions through Psychoanalytical Criticism, but I thought I would include it in this Blog post. I enjoy analyzing the text with the use of post-structuralism/deconstruction by breaking down the psyche of the characters within the literary work. Although there might not be a solid basis of proof or fact, I do believe you can look at the characters in this novel and come to a conclusion as to why they do what they do (act, speak, think, etc).
Yours Truly, yummyichigo;)
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