The book “Gone with the Wind” by Margaret Mitchell captures readers’ attention because this story illustrates the process of overcoming difficult situations. The novel is a romantic historical fiction, and the story’s background is American Civil War. The book describes the life of Scarlett O’Hara, which was changing due to the Civil War in America, and the story illustrates the way the main character lived through these changes. Margaret Mitchell emphasized that self-reliance is the key to success, and it is the book’s central theme, especially the survival process. The war showed the necessity of characters to live through catastrophes, be independent and rely on themselves, but the problems of social class, racial inequality, and slavery were avoided.
Firstly, in the novel everyone suffered because of war, great destruction was made, and each person needed to survive, but the author did not fully reveal the problem of slavery. Mitchell may sympathize with the Confederacy; however, she failed to show that the war was aimed at ending slavery. Moreover, the characters in the novel are not happy because everyone lost something or someone in the war, which supports the thesis, that war has no winners (Mitchell, 2020). In addition, the author illustrated the glorious South but avoided describing the role of slavery in this. However, Mitchell used different black characters who were strong, admirable, and proud, even as enslaved people. Lastly, Mitchell romanticized the Negro slaves on plantations but showed that everyone suffered from the war. Hence, the author stated that war has no winners and brings destruction, so the need to survive occurs, but the problem of slavery and racial inequality was not fully described.
Secondly, the characters’ independence develops throughout the story, and Scarlett OHara makes different decisions to survive. In the beginning, we saw Scarlett as a naïve girl, who believed that everyone loved her, but she changes due to the necessity to live through tough times. However, the decision to mourn after Scarlett’s husband’s death showed that the main character accepted changes in her life, but did not want to give up. On that day, these actions were regarded as unacceptable, and a person, who acts so suffered judgment from society, but Scarlett did so because it was the only way for her to move on. However, the main character should have moved on to survive, especially during Civil War. In addition, Rhett played a crucial role in the decision, as Rhett convinced Scarlett to make a decision (Mitchell, 2020). These actions show that Rhett did not depend on society’s thoughts, but he chose unordinary ways to show this independence. Nevertheless, while Scarlett was living in Atlanta, traditions changed, and women behaved the way that earlier was unacceptable (Mitchell, 202o). Therefore, Scarlett OHara should take into account the circumstances, she lived under and make appropriate decisions, so she could move on and survive.
Thirdly, the social class inequality at that time created many obstacles for people, and only strong ones could overcome them. Social classes in the novel have conflicts, creating many obstacles to the survival process. According to the novel, enslaved people from rich plantations look down on the whites, who are poor (Mitchell, 2020). In addition, human nature and conformity were clearly described to emphasize the problems due to social class inequality. The authors stated that each person has features that are hidden to fit into society. For instance, Scarlett O’Hara is ruthless, opportunistic, and greedy, but she tries to hide these features to fit perfectly in society (Mitchell, 2020). This moment proves that each person would like to do everything to live through catastrophes, even if it is necessary to hide their personality, but this does not save them from social class inequality. Thus, many difficulties were created by social class inequality, and only strong people with high survival skills could overcome them.
Lastly, the whole novel is based on events during Civil War, and each character involved in it shows the idea of survival, self-reliance, and dependence on no one. Many characters took part in the Civil War; some survived, but others did not. For instance, Charles, Scarlett’s husband, failed to survive. According to the novel, Charlies died without participating in battle (Mitchell, 2020). On the contrary, Rhett survived despite unordinary methods and participated in the Civil War. Scarlett O’Hara, the main protagonist, illustrates her survival ability because she relied on herself and depended on no one. Moreover, during the novel, it is possible to observe that each of Scarlett’s decisions was made to improve her life and to live through Civil War events. Hence, war is the central theme that makes characters survive and understand the role of self-reliance.
To sum up, the novel uses the historical background of the Civil War to show the necessity of surviving through harsh life circumstances. The author used different characters to show their process of survival, which was successful or not. The main survivor of the book is Scarlett O’Hara, and her development from naïve to conscious is seen through the text. The main character showed the ability to live through catastrophes and different life circumstances. However, the author did not fully describe the racial and social problems, and she even romanticized slavery.
References
Mitchell M. (2020). Gone with the Wind. Random House. Web.