Monday, September 16, 2019
Lytton Stracheyââ¬â¢s excerpt on Florence Nightingale Essay
Lytton Stracheyââ¬â¢s excerpt depicts the popular misconceptions and the actual reality of who Florence Nightingale was. Stracheyââ¬â¢s euphemism of calling Nightingale ââ¬Å"the Lady with the Lampâ⬠as opposed to the ââ¬Å"agitations of her soulâ⬠portrays the idea that her reality was much more different than her false perceptions. Though he admires Nightingale with awe, he conveys his opinion by using dark and tainted diction ââ¬â ââ¬Å"morbidâ⬠, ââ¬Å"Demon possessed herâ⬠. Though this might suggest into the thinking that Nightingale was evil and beyond human capabilities, it manifests that she was an extraordinary human with suffrages that make her a stronger individual. Stracheyââ¬â¢s syntactical style enables the reader to dilute a clear view of Nightingaleââ¬â¢s life. His creative tone in using rhetorical questions eradicates Nightingaleââ¬â¢s courageous endeavor and capabilities. From lines 20 to 22, Strachey exhibits the truth that even when her sister had shown a ââ¬Å"healthy pleasureâ⬠in tearing up her dolls, she should a ââ¬Å"morbid oneâ⬠sewing them back up. This idea seems particularly demonic and malevolent (the feeling she expresses while sewing her dolls) because she feels a sense of guilty enjoyment in fixing something that is not perfect. Her gratification is that of healing and ââ¬Å"herself as matron moving about among the bedsâ⬠. Continuously, these rhetorical questions delineate a fact and expound it further enhancing the reader to fully understand the structure of Nightingaleââ¬â¢s motivations and drive. Another strategy that Strachey uses is the use of long and ornate sentences that are broken off by telegraphic ones. This technique enables the audience to feel an utmost sincere admiration for Nightingale (line 2 through 12). With the readerââ¬â¢s emotions at a peak, Strachey quickly halts your train of thought and hits you with a complete opposite idea. This makes the reader more vulnerable to what the author has to say because it catches them at their weakest moment (overflowing with sentiment). Strachey further commends in making Nightingale look like a legendary women who has undergone apotheosis causing the story to become an epic one. By living in the era of the Victorian age, Florence Nightingaleââ¬â¢s story is an even more honorable one. This period came with the discrimination of women and their societal roles which intervened with Nightingaleââ¬â¢s bourgeoisieà life. Opposing all the luxuries and dealing with the struggle pushed upon her makes her an immense figure in time. She fought for what she wanted: she opposed her family, the elite society, and the status quo that women didnââ¬â¢t work. With this, she possessed the energy to collect knowledge and achieve what she had ââ¬Å"determined she would do in the endâ⬠: ââ¬â gain her independence. Unlike the myths that casted Nightingale to a simple life, she ââ¬Å"was not as facile fancy painted herâ⬠. She was a courageous woman who fought for what she believed in, even if it was morbid. In the last paragraph, Strachey defies a quote that her mother gives about Miss Nightingale. In this, she mockingly states that ââ¬Å"We are ducksâ⬠¦ who have hatched a wild swanâ⬠. This quote, though given by Mrs. Nightingale, represents Florence Nightingaleââ¬â¢s perception of her family (taken from the mother viewpoint). In reality she is blind that the idea that Florence has a different path to follow which involves helping the ill-fated humans. It is as if Mrs. Nightingale is embarrassed that she has done something with her life. In reality, Miss Nightingale is ââ¬Å"an eagleâ⬠. She casts a brave, bold and independent shadow that wants to soar above the limitations of her family and social class. Florence Nightingaleââ¬â¢s strive is marked with accomplishments and greatness because she surpassed all her obstacles, ââ¬Å"held firm, and fought her way to victoryâ⬠. This suffrage has made her stronger which is one of the reasons Strachey admires her. She did not get her life job on a silver platter; she worked for it, and passed through much hardship, making the prize the more rewarding. His via from the popular perceptions to reality permits the reader to comprehend the illusion and see that the reality was even superior and audacious; ââ¬Å"in the real Miss Nightingale there was more than was interesting than in the legendary oneâ⬠. Even his melancholic tone and diction towards Nightingale renders the stance that she was an amazing woman and worked her way out of the ââ¬Å"tortures of regret and remorseâ⬠that were compelled deep inside her mind.
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