“Everybody called him Crazy Joe. He was always walking around the streets, talking to everyone he met, especially children. He rarely made sense to us.” (81) People in a society are given labels according to their social class and status, this includes speculations of mental state. In Reading in the Dark, Seamus Deane challenges the stereotypes of sanity and mental wellbeing accompanying social status, he portrays this message through the use of character actions. In this paper I will be focusing primarily on the characters of Crazy Joe and the narrator’s mother, and how their actions cause the reader to question their sanity. The character Crazy Joe is referred to as being mentally deranged in multiple passages throughout the novel. However
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“ “What do you think he was doing?…I’m surprised the police bothered to take care of him…” Then he spread his arms out and sang” (200). Although Crazy Joe’s delivery of information may seem unorthodox, it contains evidence of higher logic. In a review of Reading in the Dark, Jean Dunne reinforces the statement that although Crazy Joe’s thought process may be sporadic it contains logic which some characters who are considered sane do not possess. “depiction of a different infection in the misogynistic mind of Crazy Joe only to attain a different level of meaning through associational logic by being placed alongside a vignette of a priest whose pride one begins to perceive as venom.” (379) She goes onto compare this logic of thought to that of the priest. A priest would have an important role in the community in the 1900’s, due to the importance of religion in Ireland. Essentially Crazy Joe’s role in the reveal of the truth is a major character action to support that Crazy Joe, despite all the labels in his society of his mental instability, is indeed one of the most sane characters in the …show more content…
Deane utilizes these incidents for a spectrum of varying symbols, a primary one representing the repression which leads to the mother reaching an apparent level of insanity. In the article by Liam Harte he states “a past which is seldom spoken about and not fully understood by all. Throughout the novel this secret past exists at the level of shadows and hauntings. Because it cannot be spoken of and has no substantial presence, it takes many phantasmal forms” (…). In Harte 's statement, it is evidently said that the mother has a past that is incapable of being verbally expressed, which leads to the use of supernatural events, a strong symbol of madness. Deane creates a past that is not completely apprehended, which further supports his depiction of the mothers lack of sanity. Additionally, the introductory chapter “stairs” sets a scene of the mother and narrator being separated by “something between [them]” (3), this physical separation is representative of the emotional barrier between the two. The mother goes onto say “It’s just your old mother with her nerves. All imagination. There’s nothing there.” (4) Deane eases the
“ “What do you think he was doing?…I’m surprised the police bothered to take care of him…” Then he spread his arms out and sang” (200). Although Crazy Joe’s delivery of information may seem unorthodox, it contains evidence of higher logic. In a review of Reading in the Dark, Jean Dunne reinforces the statement that although Crazy Joe’s thought process may be sporadic it contains logic which some characters who are considered sane do not possess. “depiction of a different infection in the misogynistic mind of Crazy Joe only to attain a different level of meaning through associational logic by being placed alongside a vignette of a priest whose pride one begins to perceive as venom.” (379) She goes onto compare this logic of thought to that of the priest. A priest would have an important role in the community in the 1900’s, due to the importance of religion in Ireland. Essentially Crazy Joe’s role in the reveal of the truth is a major character action to support that Crazy Joe, despite all the labels in his society of his mental instability, is indeed one of the most sane characters in the …show more content…
Deane utilizes these incidents for a spectrum of varying symbols, a primary one representing the repression which leads to the mother reaching an apparent level of insanity. In the article by Liam Harte he states “a past which is seldom spoken about and not fully understood by all. Throughout the novel this secret past exists at the level of shadows and hauntings. Because it cannot be spoken of and has no substantial presence, it takes many phantasmal forms” (…). In Harte 's statement, it is evidently said that the mother has a past that is incapable of being verbally expressed, which leads to the use of supernatural events, a strong symbol of madness. Deane creates a past that is not completely apprehended, which further supports his depiction of the mothers lack of sanity. Additionally, the introductory chapter “stairs” sets a scene of the mother and narrator being separated by “something between [them]” (3), this physical separation is representative of the emotional barrier between the two. The mother goes onto say “It’s just your old mother with her nerves. All imagination. There’s nothing there.” (4) Deane eases the