Bette Davis’ crippled sister in “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane.” Tennessee Williams’ tragic heroine in “A Streetcar Named Desire.” The Blanches of our literary world are destined to live out horrible fates not of their own making. At the mercy of circumstances beyond their control, they live out their ends oblivious to the possibility of change.
In literature, comedy is distinguished from tragedy in that comic characters are the victims of their own foolishness, whereas tragic characters are doomed from the start. Real life tends to be much more comedic than tragic. As three-dimensional, free-willed beings, we are always free to change our circumstances. We have, no matter how bad our circumstances, the ability to face up to what is wrong in our lives, and to turn things in our favor.
And yet, tragically, we often forget we have this choice. We are held captive by perceived responsibilities, cherished concepts of right and wrong, dreams long withered yet still clung to. Or, worse, we wrap ourselves in bitterness and self-preserving shells of denial. Like Baby Jane’s apparently self-sacrificing sister, we become more and more bound up until we are utterly helpless. We no longer contemplate escape. We become mute and alone and desperate.
It doesn’t have to be that way. (more…)
