The desire to fit in exists in all of us, and we often pursue communities to fulfill that desire. The Master and other texts demonstrate that individuals desire a sense of belonging, but with that desire can follow negative psychological consequences; once admitted into a community, individuals may be taken advantage of and lose their morality, but if without a community, individuals descend into an unhealthy yearning for a new one, ultimately creating a cycle. The Master, set in post-World War II society, reflects the period’s sudden growth of the desire to find a sense of belonging. In the World Wars, individuals of all classes mixed with those of other cultures, creating new diverse communities and unions; however, as the Wars ended, the
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Freddie’s frustration is unavoidable, for his new job at the department store involves taking photographs of individuals already in unions and communities. He asks one of his customers: “Are you married? [Is] this [photograph] for your wife?” and begins to taunt him (Anderson 13:50-15:30). Freddie’s unconscious buildup of jealousy bursts in the scene, illustrating the degrading effects of the relentless desire to fit in. Consequently, Freddie’s failed search for a community that cares and accepts him reveals negative psychological consequences, which cause him to feel frustration, jealousy, and …show more content…
However, what the novel—and even Edna—fails to recognize is the psychological degradation that her desire to find her place causes: Edna’s jealousy in others’ bonds and unions distorts her morality and ultimately leads to her death. When Robert writes a letter to his mother rather than to Edna from Mexico, “Edna experience[s] a pang of jealousy” (Chopin 39). Throughout the novel, Edna “was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being,” and she sees Robert as the door to that very realization: “[Robert] … awoke me last summer out of a life-long, stupid dream” (Chopin 12, 89). However, seeing that Robert put his mother before herself, Edna descends into jealousy, revealing the psychological tension caused by the search for communities. Edna’s search—the desire to be with Robert—causes her to act naively, for she feels jealous that she, a stranger whom Robert meets at Grand Isle, does not come before Robert’s own mother. Edna also demonstrates that jealousy leads to even more negative psychological consequences and can drive unconscious
Freddie’s frustration is unavoidable, for his new job at the department store involves taking photographs of individuals already in unions and communities. He asks one of his customers: “Are you married? [Is] this [photograph] for your wife?” and begins to taunt him (Anderson 13:50-15:30). Freddie’s unconscious buildup of jealousy bursts in the scene, illustrating the degrading effects of the relentless desire to fit in. Consequently, Freddie’s failed search for a community that cares and accepts him reveals negative psychological consequences, which cause him to feel frustration, jealousy, and …show more content…
However, what the novel—and even Edna—fails to recognize is the psychological degradation that her desire to find her place causes: Edna’s jealousy in others’ bonds and unions distorts her morality and ultimately leads to her death. When Robert writes a letter to his mother rather than to Edna from Mexico, “Edna experience[s] a pang of jealousy” (Chopin 39). Throughout the novel, Edna “was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being,” and she sees Robert as the door to that very realization: “[Robert] … awoke me last summer out of a life-long, stupid dream” (Chopin 12, 89). However, seeing that Robert put his mother before herself, Edna descends into jealousy, revealing the psychological tension caused by the search for communities. Edna’s search—the desire to be with Robert—causes her to act naively, for she feels jealous that she, a stranger whom Robert meets at Grand Isle, does not come before Robert’s own mother. Edna also demonstrates that jealousy leads to even more negative psychological consequences and can drive unconscious