Monday, April 21, 2014
Forever Alone
F Scott Fitzgerald wrote in The Great Gatsby “The loneliest moment in someone’s life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly”. I think this perfectly describes Neville’s situation. He’s had his family and friends ripped from his life, but even worse he’s had to slowly watch them become entirely different creatures. I considered Neville’s refusal to move to be the most troubling part of the novel. I struggled to understand how Neville could possibly want to stay in his home when he could easily escape to a safer, more isolated place and I think this speaks to the way in which humans yearn for companionship and grow attached to people and places that summon pleasant memories. Neville attributed his reluctance to leave on the fact that his living arrangements were too good to leave behind but I think living in the house was really just a reminder of the way his life used to be. His well being may have been threatened by the presence of the vampires, but the vampires were the closest thing he had to a companion (that sounds really pathetic, but I think it’s kind of true). Cortman is the best example of this. At the beginning of the novel the reader is left with the impression that Cortman has always been a nuisance, but towards the end, as demonstrated in the scene when Cortman is killed, it becomes clear that Neville appreciated Cortman’s company. In some ways I think Cortman acted like an annoying little brother to Neville. He couldn't live with him, but couldn't live without him either. From this I was left with the impression that I Am Lengend is more of a novel that explores the human desire for companionship than it is a novel that explains the destruction of mankind.
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I think this is a great point, that the story is more about Neville's character and his emotional challenges than it is about the rise of the vampires. I do think that his attachment to his home, his love for the stray dog and his obsession with Ben Cortman indicate Neville's desire to make a human connection with someone again. On the other hand, Neville's relationship with Ruth is a little bit different. He desperately wanted to make contact with her when Neville saw Ruth in the field, but after Ruth spent a bit of time in his house he seemed to change his mind. First of all, he kept viewing Ruth as his wife, and when he realized that Ruth was not Virginia he lost interest. I think that after so much time on his own, Neville began to lose his ability to interact with other people, and his only desire to see other people was based in the past.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your interpretation that he lives in some kind of limbo with Cortman. I like how this existence with Cortman has become a purgatory for Neville. Cortman is a constant, nagging reminder that he will never be a vampire (hell), and yet Neville can never return to the way the world was before the virus (heaven).
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