I am really struck by the difference in the representation of society in The Bell Jar and The Crying Of Lot 49. The openness of sexuality and lack stigmatism of with drug use are two areas that seem to me most striking.
Sex comes to the surface as an important part of life for many of the charters. Oedipa falls into an affair with Metzger rather quickly. Their relationship is not represented as love but rather an experience. This compares to Esther’s want for a sexual experience. Esther’s experience need to be a close held secret with the possibility ruining her future, however, Oedipa’s, even though married, is fine. The teenage Paranoids are also a far cry from Esther’s peers in their frank, perhaps embellished, talk of sex.
The portrayal
Sex comes to the surface as an important part of life for many of the charters. Oedipa falls into an affair with Metzger rather quickly. Their relationship is not represented as love but rather an experience. This compares to Esther’s want for a sexual experience. Esther’s experience need to be a close held secret with the possibility ruining her future, however, Oedipa’s, even though married, is fine. The teenage Paranoids are also a far cry from Esther’s peers in their frank, perhaps embellished, talk of sex.
The portrayal