Introduction
When I look at stories like “The Immortals”, “Evermore”, “The Prospect from the Silver Hills”, “A Family Super” and “Intimacy”, one common theme I noticed from all the stories is the concept of being alone and how it affects how people view themselves, their lives and the place they are in. It is the view of this paper that loneliness in life comes about not through outside circumstances; rather, it is a result of a personal choice.
Belongingness Is Necessary to Avoid Loneliness
In the case of the story, “The Immortals”, we see how the isolation of a group of survivors has changed their view of reality to the point that they believe that they are actually immortal. In fact, I read that the narrator of the story believed that he has been an observer of mankind from the very start and will continue to observe the world when mankind is no longer around. However it is hinted in one section that this is far from the truth when the narrator states:
“Sometimes I have this weird idea that I am just a second rate New Zealand schoolmaster who never did anything or went anywhere and is now noisily dying of solar radiation along with everyone else.”
From this statement, it can be thought that the narrator could simply be making stuff up due to his/her loneliness. For instance, towards the end of the story it is shown that the narrator is part of a population in New Zealand that has been poisoned by water from a well. Evidence of this apparent loneliness can be seen in his/her views of the world around him/her as humanity slowly evolves and develops, yet, these views are strangely lacking in relation to feelings of association, friendship or even feelings of “belongingness” (Koger 126). What exists is instead an outside view of humanity that examines it from the perspective of someone that is outside of its norms, limitations and boundaries as opposed to someone that has examined human nature by being human themselves (Koger 126).
It seems as if despite the experiences of the narrator, there is no one that he is able to relate to, no one that he can talk to as an equal, and the end result is that he merely observes since that is all he can do (Lipsky 60). Evidence of this can be seen in the fact that the narrator does not seem to establish any form of long term relationships with the people he interacts with, he just drifts based on what interests him at that particular moment in time.
From this story, it is hinted that loneliness is often caused not by being alone, rather, it is often the case that it manifests simply because someone does not feel like they belong to the group that they find themselves in or that they cannot relate to anyone that they talk to (Lipsky 60).
One example of this can be seen in the case of the story “Evermore” where the main character of the story is sad about the death of her brother and the fact that many people have forgotten the sacrifices of the past. This can be seen in the following quote where the main character is sad over the arc of triumph in France and how it symbolizes the triumph of death rather than the triumph of humanity over death:
“An arch of triumph, yes, but of what kind, she wondered: the triumph over death, or the triumph of death.” (Evermore 78)
Yet, such actions are merely an excuse since the main reason behind her sadness is the fact that there is no one that can relate with her since not only has her brother died but many of the people that she knew have passed away due to old age (Hoffert 98).
Being alone despite Being Surrounded
In the story, “Intimacy” by Hanif Kureishi, we see that the main character is sad about his relationship and how in the end he leaves his wife for his mistress (Chalupský 61-62). What is interesting about this story is how it shows the concept of being alone despite being surrounded by people that you know. This can clearly be seen in the way in which the main character shows his dislike at being unable to find a sense of fulfillment when interacting with his wife yet finds what he seeks in the arms of another woman (Chalupský 61-62).
From this viewpoint, it can be seen that loneliness is not the absence of people; rather, it is the absence of relations. Relations in this case can include a variety of possible reasons such as the ability to understand the needs and wants of the other person, the ability to show care and compassion for the person that you are with, the desire to make them happy as well as the capacity to understand them and who they are (Chalupský 64). From this viewpoint, relations refer to the connection that one feels when they are with another person and does not necessarily include connections such as family, friendships or knowing someone. For instance, the author states in the book:
“Love cannot be measured by its duration….” (Chalupský 63)
This is a good statement to use when it comes to examining loneliness since it shows that just because you are with a person for an extended period of time does not mean that you are deeply in love with them. A man could be married to a woman and not actually love her, nor have any deep affection for her. Examples of this can be seen in various examples in the Middle East where arranged marriages used to be a normal custom between families in order to establish proper business relations. In most cases, the bride and the groom could have never met until the very day of the wedding and most likely have no affection whatsoever for each other.
Taking such an example into consideration, it can be seen that the main character in “Intimacy” is also feeling the same lack of connection wherein he is married to his wife simply to maintain the relationship and not because he loves her (Chalupský 61). Based on this, it can be stated that people feel lonely when they lack the capacity to connect with other people and feel isolated because they feel the need to stick to social norms (i.e. staying married) despite the fact that such a relationship merely makes them more miserable in the end. Evidence of this can be seen in the follow quote which showcases the inherent problems found in a relationship where there is a lack of connection:
“Both he and mother were frustrated, neither being able to find a way to get what they wanted, whatever that was. Nevertheless they were loyal and faithful to one another. Disloyal and unfaithful to themselves.”
While it may be true that people fall in love, they tend to fall out of love as well. It comes to a point that there is nothing new in a relationship where everything that is done is nothing more than a series of repeated events that are meant to conform to an established routine yet, deep down inside, people want something more (Katona 1). People want to feel special, to feel loved and to have some sort of connection with someone that shares their feelings and enhances it in their own way.
The problem when it comes to long term relationships as shown in the story is that love tends to disappear due to a lack of effort on the part of both parties. The end result is that the married couple just stays together for the sake of staying together without any true love between them (Katona 1). It would be the same as being alone since love is usually what holds a couple together, when it is gone all that is left is a sense of responsibility towards having the relationship. This can clearly be seen in the novel “Intimacy” where one of the major reasons why the main character has difficulty leaving his wife is due to his sense of responsibility towards her.
Loneliness Is a Product of Our Own Design
In the story “The Prospect from the Silver Hill” the very beginning of the story shows the very essence of loneliness when it states:
“The company agent – friendless, single, far from home – passed most days alone in a cabin at Ibela-hoy, the Hill Without a Hat.” (Crace 33)
It is immediately obvious to all the readers from the very first passage that the main character in the story is definitely lonely since he is friendless, single and far from the familiar groups of individuals from his home region. Yet, after going over the entire story, it seems to become a metaphor for the main character where his search for the value in the rocks he collects is almost the same with his own life that is relatively hard, cold, lifeless and lacking any company whatsoever. Thus, the search for value in rocks seems to be a metaphor for that person’s search for value in their own life where every rock can be considered an event that occurred (Ernst 1).
The lifelessness, the lack of feeling, the cold chill that descends on his fingers as he picks up a rock after a rock is similar to what a person who has lived a life with no companionship would do as they remember how they have lived (Ernst 1).
Through this story, we see how people who suffer from loneliness attempt to evaluate or even justify their choices in life by trying to find some hope, some meaning or even a shred of value in what they have done. This story is similar to cases where people are sad over the lack of company in their lives, how they have no one to be with, talk to, or share their lives with. However, in the end, they fail to realize that the source of their loneliness is their own selves.
Just as the choice of the main character was to be a company agent that evaluated stones ceaselessly, people tend to create for themselves personalities that are bare and lacking. They tend to imagine that companionship will come to them if they just sit there and wait, that merely spending the time living and waiting will bring the love they desire.
In the end, such actions are useless since companionship is only given when you seek it and become open towards potential possibilities. To put yourself out there, to interact with people, to make yourself vulnerable by exposing more of your true self is the only way people tend to open up and join you in your life. It is not enough that you act like the agent in the story, making for himself a delusion of a family and companionship; rather, it is important to understand the necessity of being open to new situations, new people and new events.
As seen in the story “The Family Supper”, people such as the man who committed suicide in the story, get so caught up in their work that when a potential alternative for liveliness and happiness is presented to them, they tend to be hesitant, even scared of change and do all that they can to avoid what could potentially be exactly what they truly wanted out of life (Ishiguro 136).
“My father lowered his eyes and nodded. For some moments he seemed deep in thought. ‘Watanabe was very devoted to his work,’ he said at last. ‘The collapse of the firm was a great blow to him. I fear it must have weakened his judgement.”
For example, despite the fact that the company miners were able to find silver, the agent attempted to hide the fact, since he foresaw the potential influx of activity into the general area that finding silver and other precious ores would bring.
From the company agent’s perspective, despite the fact that having more interactions with people was exactly what he wanted; his delusion of the rocks being his family had supplanted his desire to interact with people to the extent that he acted irrationally in order to preserve “his world”. The same can be said in cases where loners and shut-ins (ex: the person who committed suicide in the last supper) tend to isolate themselves from everyone that they encounter despite people trying to reach out to them.
The fact is that just like the company agent and the person who committed suicide, loneliness and isolation are all they know and all to what they are used. If you attempt to bring a person out of their comfort zone, it is usually followed by considerable resistance and even violence (Lewis 1-2). Loneliness in such cases becomes an ever present feeling that they simply cannot live without and it becomes a part of them despite the fact that being lonely is something that they do not truly want.
Conclusion
Based on what has been presented in this paper, it can be seen that loneliness in life comes about not through outside circumstances; rather, it is a result of a personal choice. The main characters in the stories simply got so wrapped up in their isolation that they neglected to put themselves out there in order to experience the full level of possible experiences they could receive by interacting with people. They stayed in their sadness to such an extent that sadness was the only thing they knew. Yet, the saddest part is that the despair that ruled their lives was a product of a personal choice that they failed to see.
Works Cited
Chalupský, Petr. “Prick Lit Or Naked Hope? Self-Exposure In Hanif Kureishi’s Intimacy.” Brno Studies In English 37.2 (2011): 61-78. Print
Crace, Jim. “The Prospect from the Silver Hills.” The Art of the Story. Ed. Daniel Halpern. New York City: Penguin Group, 1999. 33-41. Print.
Ernst, Stephanie A. “Jim Crace.” Guide To Literary Masters & Their Works (2007): 1. Print
Hoffert, Barbarqa. “Book Reviews: Fiction.” Library Journal 121.5 (1996): 98. Print
Katona, Cynthia Lee. “Intimacy.” Magill’s Book Reviews (2000): 1. Print
Koger, Grove. “Einstein’s Monsters (Book).” Library Journal 112.10 (1987): 126. Print
Lewis, Leon. “A Family Supper.” Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition (2004): 1-3. Print
Lipsky, David. “Martin’s Monster.” National Review 39.22 (1987): 60-61. Print