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Midwife's Apprentice: Dimensions
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From: Kathleen Horning <horning>
Date: Thu, 02 Nov 1995 10:46:00 -600
In response to Michele's comments about the characters in "Midwife's Apprentice" being one-dimensional, that's what I thought initially as I was getting into the book but I think Karen Cushman constantly surprises us with small details that make us look beneath the surface of the character "type" to show us there's a three-dimensional person there. Just when I as a reader thought I had a character all figured out (the midwife, for example), she'd do something unexpected (run off to the woods for a romantic encounter, for example) that would cause me, as a reader, to completely reevaluate my assessment of the character. In fact, I found I was reevaluating the character of the midwife right up to the very last page of the book!
I think Karen Cushman uses a lot of folkloric devices and motifs, as Michele points out, but I think she is playing with them by putting them into a realistic recreation of medieval life. By doing so, she is also playing with the reader's expectations: we think we know exactly what is going to happen because we are so familiar with European folktales but instead historical reality dictates the course of events. For example, when Emma Blunt specially requests Alyce, instead of the midwife, to help deliver her baby, folkloric wisdom leads us to believe that the good, kind, innocent heroine will succeed brilliantly and outshine the midwife. Instead, we are surprised when the story takes a realistic turn and experience triumphs over inexperience.
This constant interplay between folkloric motif and reality adds a lot of substance and tension to the story and, in my opinion, makes the book stand out as completely original.
I also thing that a lot of the "one-dimensional" aspects of the characters have to do with the main character's point of view, but I'll save those comments for next time.
KT Horning, CCBC
UW-Madison
I agree that the book presents a positive female role model and Alyce is spunky , but I just wasn't moved by the book at all. It seems to me that the book has a fairy tale, folk tale quality in which the characters seem to be one-dimentional. Alyce is good, the mid wife is bad, the boys are bad, etc.
Michele Missner Appleton High School West 610 N. Badger Appleton, wi 54914 voice (414) 832A62 (business)
73068 (home) fax (414) 832b39
Bitnet - missnerm at oshkoshw Internet - missnerm at vaxa.cis.uwosh.edu
Received on Thu 02 Nov 1995 10:46:00 AM CST
Date: Thu, 02 Nov 1995 10:46:00 -600
In response to Michele's comments about the characters in "Midwife's Apprentice" being one-dimensional, that's what I thought initially as I was getting into the book but I think Karen Cushman constantly surprises us with small details that make us look beneath the surface of the character "type" to show us there's a three-dimensional person there. Just when I as a reader thought I had a character all figured out (the midwife, for example), she'd do something unexpected (run off to the woods for a romantic encounter, for example) that would cause me, as a reader, to completely reevaluate my assessment of the character. In fact, I found I was reevaluating the character of the midwife right up to the very last page of the book!
I think Karen Cushman uses a lot of folkloric devices and motifs, as Michele points out, but I think she is playing with them by putting them into a realistic recreation of medieval life. By doing so, she is also playing with the reader's expectations: we think we know exactly what is going to happen because we are so familiar with European folktales but instead historical reality dictates the course of events. For example, when Emma Blunt specially requests Alyce, instead of the midwife, to help deliver her baby, folkloric wisdom leads us to believe that the good, kind, innocent heroine will succeed brilliantly and outshine the midwife. Instead, we are surprised when the story takes a realistic turn and experience triumphs over inexperience.
This constant interplay between folkloric motif and reality adds a lot of substance and tension to the story and, in my opinion, makes the book stand out as completely original.
I also thing that a lot of the "one-dimensional" aspects of the characters have to do with the main character's point of view, but I'll save those comments for next time.
KT Horning, CCBC
UW-Madison
I agree that the book presents a positive female role model and Alyce is spunky , but I just wasn't moved by the book at all. It seems to me that the book has a fairy tale, folk tale quality in which the characters seem to be one-dimentional. Alyce is good, the mid wife is bad, the boys are bad, etc.
Michele Missner Appleton High School West 610 N. Badger Appleton, wi 54914 voice (414) 832A62 (business)
73068 (home) fax (414) 832b39
Bitnet - missnerm at oshkoshw Internet - missnerm at vaxa.cis.uwosh.edu
Received on Thu 02 Nov 1995 10:46:00 AM CST
