Melanctha.

Overall I found “Melanctha” to have very interesting flow of writing. It seemed like everything was simply being stated with no reaction from the narrator. For example, in the very begging the narrator discusses the birth and death of the baby in a very nonchalant manner. She states “Here the baby was born, and here it died, and then Rose went back to her house again with Sam.” (342) There is very little discussion of the sadness surrounding the death of the baby or the funeral or anything. It is simply stated that the baby died of “negligence” and nobody really seemed to dwell at all on the death of the baby. There are other parts throughout the text in which general statements are simply made with no further explanation.

Another part I found perplexing in this story is the ongoing discussion of Melanctha and her “wisdom.” On 348 and 349 the Narrator discusses Melanctha’s path to wisdom and makes several confusing statements. Melanctha is said to be “always seeking but never more than very dimly seeing wisdom”(347) in her childhood years. What is the definition of wisdom in this case? It seems to be in some way defined as the wisdom to be with and entertain men. However, in other parts the narrator goes on and on about Melanctha’s general intelligence within school. Wisdom also seems to be defined as a “power” and tool for getting what one wants. There is a great deal of discussion about seeking the power of wisdom. In addition on 349 there is a mention of how Melanctha relates to the notion of” wondering.” The narrator states “ Melanctha herself did not feel the wonder, she only knew that for her it all held no real value.”(349) If wondering holds no value why is she seeking out wisdom?