Enhancement of “Grotesque”Theme：On Justified Paralepsisin Anderson’s Death in the Woods

摘要：This paper analyses the justification of paralepsis adopted by Sherwood Anderson，a great American novelist，in his short storyDeath in the Woods.By using the changing the perspective，typical Anderson’s theme “grotesque”is enhanced.

關(guān)鍵詞：GrotesqueTheme Justified Paralepsis Death in the Woods

Sherwood Anderson（1876-1941），whose reputation primarily rests upon his masterpiece Winesburg，Ohio，was proclaimed by William Faulkner as “the father of my whole generation ofwriters.”His stylistic and structural features haveexerted an everlasting influence upon such writers as Faulkner，Hemingway and John Steinbeck.Relying upon a prose style of direct and colloquial speech，Andersonembodies some characteristic themes in his novels as well as remarkable short fictions：small-town environments，distrust of modern industrial society，and the American quest for self- and social improvement.Unveiling the deceptive simplicity，the reader can surely capturehis experimental psychoanalysis and the uncompromising conflict between the individuals’inner world and the outer world of experience. The repressed and inarticulate characters depicted with sympathy and empathyfully represent the mid-westerners throughthe author's intended epiphanies.It is held thatthe seemingly twisted and abnormal characters make a joint effort to convey to the reader whatis later called the\"grotesque\"theme.The\"grotesques\"are deprived of theirright to voice theirlongings for life and pent-up desiresdue to the deteriorating alienation caused by the accelerating industrialization.Thus they are trapped in a dilemma and frustrated one way or another.As Toming puts it，Anderson’s grotesques“are so handicapped by theirability to communicate that their behavior seems odd and theirisolation becomeshaunting.”This prevailing theme is culminated inWinesburg，Ohio，and recursin Anderson’s forthcoming short stories，for instance，“Death in the Woods”（DW）.As mentioned above，closely related with this particulartheme，another point to be mentioned is the unique point of view adopted in Anderson’s works.The choice of a certainpoint of view undoubtedly determines or influences the underlying theme conveyed to the reader.It is stated that Anderson\"madeattractive use of the point of viewof outsider characters as a way of criticizingconventional society.\"Based on the recurring\"grotesque\"theme andthe unique point of view outlined above，this paper attempts to explore the decisive role of point of view in enhancing thisparticular theme in DW（the singular short fiction considered comparableto Anderson’s novels），notably the justified paralepsis which is conducive to thematic enhancement.That the remarkablefeatures of point of view in DW demand due attention can be accounted for by the following two instances.Shen Dan sheds some light on the paralepsis in DW in her work Narratology and the Stylistics of Fiction.Then in Literature： fiction，poetry drama，the editors choose DW to illustratethe matters concerning point of view by posingsome insightful questions.Therefore，the present author aims at probing into the inextricable link between paralepsis and thematic enhancement embodied in DW.Setting from this introduction，the succeeding parts are respectively devoted to the elaboration of paralepsis，the analyses of paralepsis in DW，and how the thematic enhancement is achieved.Then，a conclusion is drawn that paralepsis in DW is justified for its role in enhancing the “grotesque”theme，thoughscholars like Shen Dan and Chen Hong merely point out the seemingly“ambiguous”（theirown words） paralepsis without mentioning its thematic function.

Percy Lubbock states that “point of view is the mostimportant device of the fiction writer.”As one of the prominent and persistent concerns for novelists，point of view indisputably draws ever-increasing attention from the critics.M.H.Abrams generally states that“point of viewsignifies the way a story gets told—the mode （modes）established by an author by means of whichthe reader is presented with the characters，dialogue，actions，settings，and events whichconstitute the narrative in a work of fiction.”In Narrative Discourse，Genette classified pointof view into three kinds of focalization：zero focalization，internalfocalization and external focalization.Apart from that，he proposed paralipsis（省敘）and paralepsis.The former means that the narratordeliberately withholds some essential information from the reader；whereas thelatter denotes that the provided information exceeds the amount assigned to a certain narrative mode.Genette considers both of them as intrusion of point of view（Iam excused to use this expression here.）.As for Shen Dan，however，paralipsis is excluded for the confusion of the narrative perspective and narrative voice.Therefore，paralepsis can de considered as theequivalent for intrusion of point of view.In this paper，this constantly ignored phenomenon is the key point.Then，whatdeserves mentioning is the reason why paralepsis frequently occurs in literary works.Shen Dan states that since each point of view has its merits and limitations，paralepsis inevitably happens if a certain mode tempts to transcend its own limitations.She further pointsout thatregardless of thefact that the narrator is either thecentral character or the peripheral outsider，the first personnarrator typically attempts to intrude the omniscientpoint of view.Then，it is necessary to have a brieflook of the merits and limitations of both the first and third person narration.As for the first person，he“offers the advantage of being persuasive and immediate，lending the storya built-in consistency and coherence.”He，however，“cannot delve into the interiorsof another person’s mind，nor can he plausibly know too much，”and“imposes a severe limitation upon what can be known and revealed in the story.”It is apparent thatthe first personnarrator cannot makeany comments on the inner thoughts of thecharacters，nor can he relate the events he does not experience by person.On the contrary，a third-person narrative can be omniscient or“all-knowing”，the most commonly used point of view.“Not only can he tell us at will whatdifferent characters in differenttimes and places are doing，saying，thinking and feeling.”most importantly，“he can also freely interpret and comment on their behavior.”The“all-knowing”narrator entitles us glimpses into the inner thoughts and feelings of different characters.Not only can he temporally and spatiallyshift about，he can also“intrude to explain or to offer interpretations.”In this sense，the drawbacksof theomniscient point of view，being artificial and lack of immediacy，are obviously overshadowed by its merits，being flexible and all-inclusive.Throughthe comparisons drawn above，it is safe to say that the frequent occurrenceof paralepsis from the first-person to thethird-person point of view is inevitable and conducive to the creation of remarkablepieces.

If paralepsis is a recurring phenomenon，the short fiction DW can be indisputably considered as a telling example to illustrate.This part is to present the analyses of paralepsis manifest in this fiction. In DW，Mrs.Grimes is an old farm womanwho weathers the adverse situations throughout her life.She is nameless and not known by anyone in the town.From her girlhood as a bound girl，she inarticulately endures the mistreatment imposed by her German employer.After getting married，she suffers the intolerable abuse from her husband and son.Till her death in the woods，Grimes’s primaryconcern throughout her life is to feed the animal life，stock（horses，cows，pigs anddogs）and men.Yet she has no complaints about that and remains inarticulate during her life time.In this sense，she can be considered to be another“grotesque”depicted by Anderson.Although this story is seemingly simple，it is rendered to be profoundand thought-provoking by the unique choice of point of view.The narrator“I”in DW is actually an outsider relating the scenes which he experienced and witnessed in his childhood，no doubt，part of which was based on whathe overheard.The loosely-structured five parts are organically united by the“I”narrator’s comments，interpretations，and narrative.As Davis puts it，“‘Deathin the Woods’…is not a narrative of events but a story of a young man and his thoughts about these events.\"The fragments of thisstory are mainly basedon his overhearing and memory.And a deeper understanding of this tragic scene happenedin his childhood is achieved througha mature perspective.As the narrator puts it，“The whole thing，the story of the old woman’s death，was to me as Igrew older like music heard from far off.The notes had to be picked up slowly at a time. Something had to be understood.”As a young boy，he cannot fully understand what thescene suggests.Therefore，Andersonchooses a retrospective outsiderto appeal to the reader’s sympathyto Grimes’s tragic fate.Then what deserves asking is how the reader’s sympathy and empathy are demanded by an outsider narrator，merely relating what he experiences without making any comment.There is no doubt that paralepsis must be takeninto account.But for the commentsand interpretations deriving from a mature perspective，some distinctive values would definitely vanish in thisfiction.The paralepsis is mainly achieved by the outsider narrator’s commentson Grimes’s lifeexperience and on other matters.An instance to illustrate the occurrenceof paralepsis is the following frequently quoted part：

How was she going to get everything fed？—that was her problem. The dogs had to be fed.There wasn’t enough hay in the barn for the horses and the cow. If she didn’t feed the chickens how could they lay eggs？Without eggs to sell how could sheget things in town，things she had to have to keep the life of the farm going…

Shen Dan offers two possible interpretations for this part. On one hand，the first- person narrator adoptsfree indirect speech to express Grimes’s interior thoughts. On the otherhand， the narrator makes comments in a sympathetic way.She holds thatonly the first interpretationsuggests theparalepsis.Based on that，she states thatthe paralepsis in DW is ambiguous.The presentauthor，however，disapproves of this argument.As noted earlier，thefirst-person narrator cannot make any comment when relating the scenes.Actually，either the use of free indirect speech （virtually a way to express the narrator’s commentsby slightly altering the originalmeaning）or the commentscan surely be deemed as indicators of the paralepsis phenomenon. And thenarrator shows great sympathy to this “grotesque” throughintruding the omniscient point of view， allowing him to delve into the inner worldof the central character and to make indispensable comments. Another instance is the sentence“When theywere all killed she wouldn’t have any eggs to sell when she went to town， and whatcould she do？”The narrator offers the reader an advantage of knowing Grimes’s dilemma by making such a comment.And this comment solicits the reader’s sympathyand compassion to her miserable life. Being exhausted of climbing the fence to feed her stock， Grimes “foolishly”stops on the clearing for arest. Here another instance indicating the paralepsis phenomenon occurs：

It was a foolish thing to do. When she got herself placed，the pack against the tree’s trunk，it was nice，but whatabout getting up again？The adjective “foolish”definitely suggests the narrator’s comment，and the sentence“whatabout getting up again？”equally serves as an indicator of the paralepsis.It seems thatthe first-person narrator becomes “all-knowing”，capable of predicting what is awaiting Grimes if she does not wake up promptly.All these instances suggest thatthe paralepsis phenomenon in this remarkableshort fiction deservesthe reader’s attention.If it is a distinctive feature，then what’s the point of making frequent intrusion of point of view？The succeeding part is to center upon its role in enhancing the “grotesque”theme.

Paul Negri states that“nothing escapes his （Anderson） compassionatetake on humanity as he weaves in his themes of the down-trodden souls of the underclasses：women，‘negroes’…（NegriⅤ）.”In DW，Grimes is undoubtedly a down-trodden soul and deserves the reader’s sympathy and compassion.Being repressed and inarticulate，she is reduced to be a “grotesque”incapable of voicing her own thoughtsand desires，only to endure the tough situations.The narrator relates that“She had got the habit of silence anyway，that was fixed.”She always is scared to death and “was used to it”.Whether in her family or in the town she remains silent，which“was her way of gettingalong.”It is repeatedly mentioned that Grimes is unknown and nameless around the town for her commonness，being ugly and shabby-looking.To a great extent，being inarticulate and ugly（at least ordinary-looking）lends support to the conclusion that she is a “grotesque”，being“beautiful”regardless of her ugliness. As for Anderson，the“grotesque”seems like a gnawed apple，which is the sweetest althoughit is discarded in the garden for its flaws.He treats the “grotesques”as the sweetest gnawed apples since he fully understands the fact thattheir natureis trivial compared to theirinherent value.Therefore，the“grotesque”equally deserves the reader’s understanding and compassiondespite his or her“ugliness”.Closely related with this specific definition of the “grotesque”，it is apparentthat Grimes in DW is rendered as a gnawed apple.During her life time，she is despised and ignored by the townspeople.Yet her inherent value and “beauty”are fully revealed after her departure.One way to achieve this purpose is the introduction of paralepsis.Andersonwould not remarkably develop the“grotesque”theme had he not assigned the first-person narrator a privilege to intrude the omniscient pointof view，whichallows him to give a full play to his capability of commenting on that particular scene from a grown-up’s perspective.With thehelp of offering “all-knowing”comments and interpretations，the purposeof appealing to the reader’s compassion is safely achieved.And a deceptively simple story is definitely rendered more profoundand pitiful to the reader.Thus one aspect of the “grotesque”，deserving the reader’s understanding and compassion，is demonstrated by the device of paralepsis.The other aspect，being“beautiful”despite his or her“ugliness”，also deserves the reader’s attention.In“Brothers”，Andersonstates：

The leaves of the trees that line the road before my window are falling like rain—the yellow，red and golden leaves fall straight down，heavily.The rain beat them brutallydown.They are denied a last golden flash acrossthe sky.In Octoberleaves should be carried away，out over the plains，in a wind.They should go dancing away.（Negri V）

This part reveals Anderson’s concerns about humanity.It seems thatthe unknown，under-trodden and inarticulate are deprived of every basic right in the way autumnal leaves are brutally beaten down and carried away in the wind.Yet what underlies the deceptive simplicity demands the reader to give a second thought.Actually Anderson\"sees to it that his characters are not deprived a last golden flash across the sky'，since he has made it his literary mission to bestow it upon them（V）.”In DW，Andersonundoubtedly renders dead Grimes beautiful by assigning her “a last golden flash across the sky.”To the narrator’s surprise，the frozen flesh of Grimes in the snow-covered woods looks“so white and lovely，so like marble.”That an old woman’s dead body seems like girlish-looking figure surely reveals that the inherent beauty of the“grotesque”is appreciatedonly at the last moment. At the end of the fiction，the narrator says “A thing so complete has its own beauty.\"Aweathered woman can become known and beautiful only when she softly and quietly passes away in a moon-lit wintry night.Yet the narrator's words cited above equally render the reader to be sympathetic to Grimes and to reevaluate her inherent \"beauty\".What deserves mentioning is thatparalepsis plays an equal role in achieving this secondaspect of \"the grotesque\".DW is roughly divided into two parts：account of Grimes’s life time and that of her departure.Although theparalepsis phenomenonin the second part is not so evident and frequent as thatin the first one.Its role of enhancing the“grotesque”theme cannot be ignored.The first person-narrator makes interveningcomments on Grimes’s death，which in turn evokes the reader’s sympathy and compassion. Therefore，it is safe to say that throughout the fiction the paralepsis plays a decisive role in enhancingand facilitating Anderson’s full development of the“grotesque”theme ever haunting him.

DW which costs Anderson’s ten-yearhard labor is considered a match to his masterpiece Winesburg，Ohio.The prominent feature of theparalepsis occurringin it demands thereader’s due attention.Throughthe first-person narrator’s delving into the central character’s inner world and making commentson the events，Anderson’s “grotesque”theme is enhancedand fully developed while the fiction unfolds. Epiphanyor moment’s insights are achieved through theunique choice of point of view and theintroduction of paralepsis.As Malcolm Cowley puts it，Andersonwas endowed with“a gift for pouring a lifetime into a moment.”Grimes’s death in the woods surely provokes the readerfor deep thinking and their compassion to this weathered and nameless woman.And Grimes is a miniature of all women of this kind livingin Midwest at that particularperiod.The evidence comes from the sentence at the beginning of DW：“All countryand small-town peoplehave seen such old women，but no one knows much about them.”It is apparent，therefore，that Grimes in this concise fiction serves as a representative for all women of such kind，and her lifetime is condensed into an insightful moment.The reader isshocked and awakened when realizing the implied epiphany.It goes without saying thatthe intended epiphanywould not be manifest itself had the role of the paralepsis been ignored.

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