My initial feeling towards Lady Brett Ashley is that she is a woman with a false sense of self-understanding. She behaves as if she is in control, doing what she wants and taking what is hers, but is clueless to the fact that what she is after won’t give her contentment. Her aimless attempts to fill what is missing in her life at the expense of her lovers and friends makes me feel that she is a manipulative and harmful person. However, as the story continues and I reflect further on Brett as a character and her history, my relationship with her changes. I see her more as a victim of her environment than an agent of her inner desires, carelessly exploiting those around her. In the end I am left feeling as though Brett is a slave to her own need
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Her behavior is also unconventional and having more of an assertive and masculine feeling to it. The immediate impression that she gives me is that of a mysterious and interesting character, alluring in her beauty and fascinating in her attitude. My perspective changes when the first defining moment of my relationship to her occurs shortly after her introduction. As she rides a cab with Jake, she professes to him “oh darling, I’ve been so miserable” (13) and making it seem that she has been longing for him, followed by the unexpected refusal of Jake’s advances. She tells Jake that she is in love with him, as he is with her, but they cannot be together because she needs to have sexual intimacy to fulfill her needs. My view of her as a person shifts towards thinking that she is a woman who is aware of what she wants, and will accept nothing less than that. I feel that this is an enviable thing to have, and that this is going to be a good thing for her and her relationships. However, it quickly becomes apparent that her needs are unrealistic and, combined with her captivating effect on men, are going to be a source of grief for her. Though she always goes after what she wants, such as reaching out to Jake for emotional support, or sleeping with other men, she continually feels unsatisfied. What she wants isn’t doing her any good, thus she is a person who does not understand
Her behavior is also unconventional and having more of an assertive and masculine feeling to it. The immediate impression that she gives me is that of a mysterious and interesting character, alluring in her beauty and fascinating in her attitude. My perspective changes when the first defining moment of my relationship to her occurs shortly after her introduction. As she rides a cab with Jake, she professes to him “oh darling, I’ve been so miserable” (13) and making it seem that she has been longing for him, followed by the unexpected refusal of Jake’s advances. She tells Jake that she is in love with him, as he is with her, but they cannot be together because she needs to have sexual intimacy to fulfill her needs. My view of her as a person shifts towards thinking that she is a woman who is aware of what she wants, and will accept nothing less than that. I feel that this is an enviable thing to have, and that this is going to be a good thing for her and her relationships. However, it quickly becomes apparent that her needs are unrealistic and, combined with her captivating effect on men, are going to be a source of grief for her. Though she always goes after what she wants, such as reaching out to Jake for emotional support, or sleeping with other men, she continually feels unsatisfied. What she wants isn’t doing her any good, thus she is a person who does not understand