Englsh 341

Discussion Essay

Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick's Between Men: English Literature and Male Homosocial Desire discusses the phenomenon of the love triangle. While she focuses much of her energy on the triangle involving two male suitors and a female beloved, general statements apply to the opposite situation.

Sedgwick puts forth the idea that one rival picks a love object by deciding with whom they want to rival for the object's affection. In viewing the triangle comprising Hollingsworth, Zenobia, and Priscilla, a question that concerned me was whether Zenobia desired Hollingsworth because of his merits or because Priscilla desired him. The same question could be applied to Priscilla. The reader knows that Priscilla worships Zenobia, does this worship extend to the object of Zenobia's desire? The ultimate question is, who loved Hollingsworth first, Zenobia or Priscilla?

But, perhaps more ambiguous is the triangle comprised of Priscilla, Hollingsworth, and Coverdale. The question discussed above, that of whether a rival chooses an object or a rival can be applied here to both Coverdale and Hollingsworth. The reader does not hear of Coverdale's desire until the last sentence, though there are some hints at his state. Hollingsworth admits to Coverdale towards the end of The Blithedale Romance that he did not view Priscilla as anything more than a little sister until recently.

Sedgwick makes a second assertion that the bond between rivals more heavily determines the actions and choices of the rivals than the bond between the rival and the beloved. This is amply shown in the case of Zenobia and Priscilla. But, is it true in the case of Hollingsworth and Coverdale? I believe that it is and will share examples in class.

The second part of my discussion will include E. M. Forster's essay "Flat and Round Characters" specifically in reference to the roles of the characters in the triangles. Are any of them flat? Are they round? How does this affect our perception of the love triangles? I believe that Coverdale is a flat character until the last line of the romance, where the reader learns of his love for Priscilla. Zenobia is also a flat character. Hawthorne, by making the two thwarted lovers flat and the happy couple round is subtly manipulating the reader into blending Coverdale and Zenobia together. The reader begins to see the similarities between Coverdale and Zenobia and pay less attention to the differences.