Chapter 40 of GWTW is all about Gerald's funeral. But before I get to my analysis of this fairly important chapter of GWTW, I've gotta say a little bit about the new Bravo tv show Southern Charm.
Is anybody else watching this?
Southern Charm is a reality show--and it's not a very good reality show when all is said and done. Most of the main characters are a touch too obvious in their quest for attention, and T-Rav and the guy who lives with his mother (I'm blanking on his name at the moment, but I believe he also does documentary films or something?), clearly want to be famous and are willing to do or say anything on camera to increase their notoriety. Having said that, though, Cameran Eubanks is one of my favorite Real Worlders of all time, so I was thrilled when she introduced the topic of GWTW smack in the middle of a post-polo (yes, polo. Yawn) dinner they were all having at T-Rav's "plantation."
"Are you an Ashley or a Rhett?" Cameran asks the male cast members, in a question that was clearly a producer plant since I don't believe for a moment that these reality tv stars are interested in even basic discussions about American literature. But anyway, all the guys immediately say they're Rhett and it is all quite predictable and phony, except--
And here's the thing--
T-Rav is a native Charlestonian and he's wealthy and his family is old and exceedingly well connected. And so, although he's clearly an arrogant douche who probably hasn't read a book since he left the University of South Carolina business school, he leans back in his chair and starts quoting GWTW and discussing MM's survival of the fittest theme. And then, in a totally different conversation that happens later that evening, he starts quoting Shakespeare. It wasn't so much the words he quoted/paraphrased, but the way he did it that got my attention, because his casual approach to repeating famous words reminded me so much of Rhett Butler that I actually did a double take.
I visited Charleston a few years ago, but we didn't meet any native Charlestonians. And we certainly didn't engage with anybody from any of the old families, so now I'm wondering if quotations from famous works of Western literature is a common feature in the speech patterns of native Charlestonians? And if so, why? I'd always chalked Rhett's proverbs and random chatter was his own verbal tick, but now I'm starting to think MM was using Rhett's speech pattern to both connect him to his Southern roots and to demonstrate how even an infamous black sheep can never truly break away from the lessons he learned during his youth.
I dunno, but it's something to think about.
Alright, so anyway, Chapter 40 of GWTW is all about Gerald's funeral. There are a few levels of tension in this chapter, with the first being what kind of service will be held at the burial. Ashley is officiating the funeral because it's impossible to find a priest in that part of Georgia that can arrive quickly enough to pray over Gerald, but Ashley is torn between using the formal, dry Catholic/Ecclesiastical funeral that Gerald undoubtedly would have expected, and the less formal, more common, lengthier funeral the county neighbors are undoubtedly expecting. Ashley being Ashley, he settles on middle-ground by beginning with the Catholic prayers, but then skipping the part about Purgatory he was supposed to read, then he begins reciting the Lord's Prayer, then the Hail Mary, then he begins reciting stuff from memory, which is fine. Except, of course, this stuff happens to be part of the Episcopal burial service. And so "a devoutly Catholic Irishman was being laid to rest by the Church of England's service."
And how's that for characterization? As one of my favorite writers Jacob Clifton always says: "The thing that makes you awesome is also the thing that makes you suck." Isn't that the truth? It's certainly the truth in GWTW. Scarlett loves Ashley because he's clear-eyed and philosophical, and we can't help but love and admire him for being so diplomatic and regal. But Ashley's diplomacy is ultimately the cause of his disasters because he always chooses the middle ground or the easy way out, rather than risk injuring anyone's feelings.
The second source of tension in this chapter is the friction between Southern manners/traditions and the true feelings that are bubbling underneath the surface of the people in the county. The neighbors are angry at Suellen and they can't wait to light into the middle O'Hara girl for attempting to trick her father into signing the loyalty oath (and ultimately causing his death). However, because they're southerners they have to follow custom at all times. And local custom dictates that all sass-sessions have to take place after the more formal parts of the funeral have come to an end. So the ladies hold their tongues for a little while, but mentally count down until they can tell Sister Sue exactly what they think about her chicanery.
But this never happens because Will and Ashley are conspiring to use the rules to their own advantage. So when the time comes for Ashley to cede the floor to the neighbors so they can all have a chance to "say a few words" about Gerald, Will steps forward and starts de-fanging the vipers by saying some good, smooth, words about Gerald. Oh and by the way, he's also going to marry Suellen so....thanks for coming everybody, exit stage left, grab your gift bags on the way out.
Everybody's furious, of course. But there's nothing they can do, especially when Will asks Grandma Fontaine (yay!) and Mrs. Tarleton to usher the very pregnant Scarlett into the house. Most likely because he knows that these two women were ready to be the ring leaders in whatever trouble was getting ready to start.
Crisis averted. Well done Will and Ashley. Well anyway, well done Will and thanks for not screwing everything up like you usually do, Ashley.
Grandma Fontaine is pretty amazing, isn't she? She's so blunt and perceptive, one of those people in GWTW who sees things clearly and dishes out good advice--although Scarlett is too stubborn and self-centered to actually listen to the older woman. But I always listen and smile whenever I read Grandma Fontaine's words, words that I don't think you can truly appreciate until you've lived through a few personal crises. I won't transcribe every line of it, here, but I'll leave you with one of my favorites:
"When trouble comes we bow to the inevitable without any mouthing, and we work and we smile and we bide our time. And we play among with lesser folks and we take what we can get from them. And when we're strong enough, we kick the folks whose necks we've climbed over. That, my child, is the secret of the survival. I pass it on to you."
Great advice from a great lady.
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