Although the protagonist of Jennifer Craig’s Gone to Pot, Jess is a grandmother; the book tells the story of initiation or at least personal development. Over the course of the story, Jess completes a journey of self-discovery, and her relationship with her young coworker-friend-accomplice Swan is one of its main drivers. One of Gone to Pot’s story-telling tools is humor, which, in this case, represents the humor’s superiority theory: one tends to laugh at another person because of and for the sake of feeling superior. Thus, when Jess ridicules Swan in the first half of the novel, her humor comes from the place of illusory superiority she feels toward herself and the other characters. Yet, the reader soon realizes that Jess’s judgment of Swan’s character actually reveals her own insecurities. Once Jess realizes this as well, any superiority from her jokes about Swan is gone.
While she rarely does so out loud, Jess makes fun of Swan and looks down on her throughout almost the entire novel. This is true for Jess and Swan: from the first time Swan is introduced in Gone to Pot, it is clear to the reader that the protagonist does not take Swan seriously primarily because of the way she looks. Jess’ common sense seems to dictate that “unusual” is synonymical with “wrong” (Graff and Birkenstein 23). Consequently, Jess repeatedly comments on Swan’s appearance, which emphasizes how “weird” and even inappropriate Swan looks. For instance, Jess notes: “[Swan] might have looked normal, but she was draped in multi-colored scarves of varying lengths and textures so that she resembled a tropical insect-borne on the wind” (Craig 48). Similar passages highlighting how unconventionally Swan is dressed (in Jess’s opinion) are ubiquitous throughout the book. These passages reveal a certain degree of condescension on Jess’s part, for one is hardly inclined to compare a person they respect to animals and suggest that they would be someone “better” if they dressed or styled differently.
It might seem that in contrast between Jess and Swan, the author wants us to favor Jess since she is presented as the book’s protagonist. However, something hidden behind Jess’s mental jokes at Swan’s expense slowly becomes apparent. In many places in Gone to Pot, the author leads us to understand that the story’s central point is comedy. Yet elsewhere, the text sheds some light on Jess’ background, indicating the true reasons for her jokes, proving them to be rather ambivalent (Graff and Birkenstein 234). According to Weitz, laughter provocations often represent “contradictory impulses” (12). Those unfamiliar with this humor theory may be interested to know that it basically boils down to tragicomic reciprocity (Graff and Birkenstein 84). Originating from ancient dramaturgy, comedy has always been accompanied by tragedy – in many ways, they represent different sides of the same coin. In addition, comedy is much more dependent on tragedy than it is in reverse since the latter provides the reference point necessary to indicate the former’s comicality (Weitz 13). Consequently, the author uses Jess’ humor to showcase her inner conflict, simultaneously representing the story’s central conflict.
As the reader gets to know Jess more, it becomes apparent that while she might feel superior (more intelligent, capable, and “proper”) than Swan, she is also overcompensating, at least to an extent. Her apparent condescension masks her feeling of inadequacy. When Swan appears in the text of the novel for the first time, Jess not only comments on her unique appearance but also adds: “Why did youngsters want to show their underwear? In my young day, we did our best to hide it” (Craig 8). As these lines (among other similar passages throughout Gone to Pot) suggest, Jess has internalized society’s ageist views. She feels like a failure because she is old, lonely, out of a job, and not on particularly good terms with her family. Society tells her that she is no longer desired as an employee, mother, or woman, and she has come to believe this herself. Unbeknownst even to herself, Jess masks her sense of not belonging and failing to find her place in the world under the disguise of superiority.
Furthermore, the immense difference between Jess and Swan’s respective personalities and lifestyles (beyond age difference) add to the ambiguity in Jess’s humorously condescending view of Swan. Most of Jess’s jokes targeting Swan emphasize how “unconventional” Swan is; it is as if Jess sees her as some kind of an exotic species. Jess has lived a more or less “traditional” life; she has not done anything extraordinary or defied society’s expectations (until deciding to grow pot in her basement), whereas Swan has. Combined with her appearance, this makes Jess view her as someone who is not prone to anything “normal,” meaning conventional. For instance, when Swan tells Jess about her new boyfriend, Sam, Jess laughingly responds: “Sam? You mean you have a boyfriend with an ordinary name?” (Craig 111). At first glance, an apparent sarcastic tone behind this comment indicates Jess’ condemnatory attitude. However, it might also hint at a certain degree of envy on Jess’s part. Possibly, not only does she wish to be young too, but she also craves the same inner freedom and independence Swan has.
Still, since Jess does not seem to realize that her sense of superiority over Swan is but overcompensation, she lets her ignorance take over, which prevents her from seeing all of Swan’s layers. When it comes to the topic of prejudices, most people will readily provide their estimates. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of empathy (Graff and Birkenstein 25). While the protagonist slowly warms to Swan and comes to love her, she cannot seem to get past her prejudice; Jess makes the centuries-old mistake of judging the book by its cover. Ignorance also leaves Jess blind to herself and her self-indulged loneliness and abandonment that does not allow her to change her perspective. The meltdown occurred only in the second half of the story, with Jess deciding to invite Swan for dinner with her family as one of its signs (Craig 113). Nevertheless, at that moment, she was still concerned about what her relatives might think when they met Swan.
It does not become a revelation that Jess feels genuinely surprised to hear other people’s opinions about Swan. When Jess’s daughter-in-law Amy calls Swan “intelligent,” Jess does not believe it. She sees this as a poor judgment on Amy’s part and thinks: “Fortunately I had my back to her. Swan intelligent?” (Craig 122). Another example of Jess’ disbelief can be seen in her dialog with her co-worker Maggie, who too considered Swan unusual but bright nonetheless (Craig). As is often the case with condescending humor at someone’s expense, Jess’s frequent silent jokes targeting Swan reveal her own failure to see past the persona Swan puts on. Her overconfidence (which is at least partly the result of her age, seeing as other people, including Amy, seem capable of seeing the true Swan) makes her underestimate Swan. Jess feels better than her, which is why, when it is revealed that it is actually Jess who has shown poor judgment, she feels humbled.
Ultimately, as the story progresses, Jess’s jokes at Swan’s expense become less and less frequent, or at least their tone changes. The more the protagonist gets to know Swan, the less condescending her internal comments become. Although she fails to see all of Swan’s layers for a long time, her perception of Swan’s “weirdness” changes. What initially came from a sense of superiority (masking a sense of inferiority) turns into sympathy and, eventually, love. When Swan is telling Jess about Sam and how he is different from both herself and her previous boyfriends, Jess thinks: “If he tried to control her and squash her spirit, he’d be ready to join the Vienna Boys’ Choir if I had anything to do with it” (Craig 113). Moreover, these thoughts are shortly followed by an acknowledgment of Swan being endearing in a way how kindly naïve she was (Craig 113). Such a comment reveals that Jess has actually started to sympathize with Swan and her willingness to be different. She no longer treats Swan’s uniqueness as utterly “weird” or “improper” (which is what she seemed to believe before they became friends).
Jess might still make silent humorous comments about Swan’s appearance or language, but the condescension in them has been slowly replaced by fascination. Closer to the end of the story, the negativity has wholly disappeared, being replaced by warmth and appreciation. In the last chapter, after more than a year apart, Swan comes to Jess’ café to meet her. Jess shows no signs of her previous self, greeting Swan tear-eyed as the dearest of friends (Craig). In addition, the last chapter uncovers one of the main reasons why Jess’ attitude toward Swan changed so drastically. When Swan openly refers to the time they spent together as the best years of her life, Jess’ hidden desires to be accepted completely fulfill themselves (Craig). By admitting that Swan changed her life, Jess finishes her protagonist’s development arc.
To conclude, Jess’s humor at Swan’s expense in Gone to Pot aligns with the superiority theory of comedy, but only to an extent to prove the point. Humor in the book serves as a tool for readers to compare and contrast what is on the surface and what lies deep within the character. Jess does look down on Swan because of her appearance and language, particularly in the first half of the novel. Directly and indirectly, she ridicules Swan’s features and habits that she finds inappropriate due to how she used to live and perceive her surroundings. However, even despite being unaware of this herself, Jess is laughing at Swan because of the envy of her way of life. As an older woman who no longer fits into the society, she lives in and feels less useful and interesting as she perhaps once was. She wishes she had Swan’s youth, freedom to express herself, and openness to whatever life brings her way. As her failure to understand Swan is revealed, Jess is humbled, which is a learning experience and a major part of her evolution in the novel.
Works Cited
Craig, Jennifer. Gone to Pot. Second Story Press, 2017. eBook.
Graff, Gerald and Birkenstein, Cathy. They say / I say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing. 5th ed., W. W. Norton & Company, 2021.
Weitz, Eric. “Introduction: Thinking about Comedy.” The Cambridge Introduction to Comedy, 2009, pp. 1–19., doi:10.1017/cbo9780511816857.002.