[Hardy-l] The grotesque in Hardy

[Jackie Wilkinson]

     I began studying the grotesque as part of my art courses for my degree
and gradually became increasingly fascinated by the form, and when I
discovered Bakhtin the interest flourished into a wider canvas, taking in
the carnivalesque as well. The development of the grotesque form is complex
but perhaps the best starting place is its utilisation in Renaissance Italy.
According to Vitruvius the 'grotesque' style came into being when, during
the late fifteenth-century, grottos (thus grottesche) or caves were
excavated in Rome in which there were motifs depicting pillars which
portrayed plants growing upwards from the base which gradually metamorphosed
into animal or human head shapes (See Kayser 'The Grotesque in Art and
Literature'). It soon became a fashionable art form among the princes of the
city states and represented a reaction as it were to the classical form with
its smooth lines and closed apertures. Giganticism was also an expression of
this 'rebellion', and perhaps the Palazzo del Te with its Sala dei Giganti
is an excellent expression of its opposition to the classical. As I have
said it is, however, a complex development and if anyone were interested in
its development I would suggest either Kayser's book or Philip Thompson's
'The Grotesque' which is a simpler and perhaps more succinct read. 
     For literary purposes it becomes a reaction to the Enlightenment and
the Rational, defying logic. One would probably begin with Swift and
progress on to the Romantic grotesque and its relationship to the sublime,
then on to the gothic mode and thus on to the exponents mentioned in my
previous posting.. For the purposes of my work on Hardy, however, my
starting point was Robert Browning's  'Caliban upon Setebos' and 'Sibrandus
Schnafnaburgensis', particularly the latter, for when I read it I was
immediately reminded of the sequence in 'Far From the Madding Crowd' when
Bathsheba spends the night in the open on an 'entangled bank'. This lead on
to the connection with Darwin and then I was hooked! My intention was to do
my MA thesis on Browning but it was metamorphosed into the grotesque and the
carnivalesque in 'Far From the Madding Crowd'. Having completed my MA I then
decided to explore these two modes along with masking and gender issues in
other Hardy novels.
     I now find that the grotesque in Dickens is so blatant and obvious
(sorry, Charlie!), whereas in Hardy you have to tease it out of its
surroundings, his use of it is much more subtle and controlled and, indeed,
for me, much more fascinating in that it progresses from his first gothic
fumblings in 'Desperate Remedies' to the stark psychological grotesque of
'Jude the Obscure'. Hardy is fascinating for the grotesque in his work
reflects the path of the grotesque mode through the nineteenth-century to
the doorstep of the twentieth.
     All the best,
     Jacky Wilkinson
     
     -----Original Message-----
From: Rosemarie Morgan [mailto:Rosemarie.morgan at yale.edu] 
Sent: 01 April 2008 17:29
To: hardy-l at coyote.csusm.edu
Subject: RE: [Hardy-l] The grotesque in Hardy
     
     In the original French (circa 16th century) the grotesque was a 
     painting/carving/sculpture representing the ugly, horrid and crude.
Later 
     this included chimerae, mutants and human creatures with animal 
     characteristics. The outer image would reflect comparable inner
qualities 
     of bestiality etc.   No doubt modern-day vernacular applies the word 
     loosely ---  as in "fantastic" and "fabulous."
     Cheers
     Rosemarie
     
     >is there any generally accepted literary definition of "a grotesque
     >human character"?
     >
     >Chuck Anesi
     >charles.anesi at wellsfargo.com
     >office 480-575-3478
     >cell 612-940-3345
     >fax 480-575-3519
     >
     >** These opinions are strictly my own and not necessarily those of
Wells
     >Fargo **
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