Category: Student posts

Herman Melville’s The Paradise of Bachelors and the Tartarus of Maids consists of two short stories that relate through heavily contrasting descriptions. In The Paradise of Bachelors, the narrator explains a world where the characters are all given the opportunity and privileges to be important in their world. The elite dinner explained serves as an example showing how little the attendees have worked for their access: “the apartment was well up toward heaven. I know not how many strange old stairs I climbed to get to it. But a good dinner, with famous company, should be well earned,” (Melville 1261). This location of the dinner shows great insight into Melville’s opinion on the differing lives of the elite and working-class. A ‘well earned’ meal for the elite is walking up a few flights of stairs, but for the women working in the paper mill in the Tartarus of Maids, a well earned meal is working “twelve hours to the day, day after day, through the three hundred and sixty-five days,” (1278). Unlike the feasting, happy men, the workingwomen work brutal hours to provide for themselves. The contrasting lives in these dissimilar stories reveal an immense amount of information about the divisions in society. Another example of differences in the two stories lies in the characters’ descriptions and features. The men in the first story do not have spouses of children because they did not want anything giving them “an anxious thought” (1264). The women in the second story, however, the manager of the mill, Cupid, tells the narrator “we will not have married women” (1278). The men have the choice to marry, but the women cannot decide for themselves. During their long hours of working in the mill, the women slowly transform into the products of the machines they command. Their lack of freedom physically turns them into the paper produced: “at rows of blank-looking counters sat rows of blank-looking girls, with blank, white folders in their blank hands, all blankly folding blank paper” (1270). Paper’s appearance, white and blank, starts to read in the women’s faces. Furthermore, the women’s brows also transform with the paper as the woman’s face and paper both go into the machine blank, and the paper and the other worker’s face come out ruled and wrinkled. Lastly, Melville connects these two contrasting places and explains why they differ. During the narrator’s journey to the paper mill, he states realizes that “[The Devil’s Dungeon] is the very counterpart of the Paradise of Bachelors, but snowed upon, and frost-painted to a sepulchre” (1269). The paper mill has the potential to be the beautiful, thriving city of elite, but the snow of the factory imagery disrupts the workingwomen’s ability to live freely.

There are many more hidden examples of contrasting lives within these two stories, like the men’s hoping for the greatest health for their neighbors and the manager’s dictatorial attitude toward the women. I ultimately think, however, that Melville believes that factories destroy mankind and obstruct the thriving potential of a society.

Depiction of Hugh’s gloomy life in “Life In The Iron Mills” speaks out for the lack of opportunities during the cognitive stages of the Industrial Revolution in the United States. It is impressive how Harding, being from a well to do middle class family, writes with such insight on the poor conditions of the labor class; the tone of dialogue is significantly different for the three prosperous men and the working class men.

Every person strives, given the prospect to improve their socio economic status. Due to high migration rates at the time, there was a huge supply of labor leading to lower wages and thus poor living standards. The story of Hugh is of an internal struggle. Hugh as an introvert and a social outcast is moved by the words of a well educated doctor who is impressed by his artwork. Hugh is frustrated by the fact that he doesn’t have money. Subsequently, he leaves his job at the iron mill in search of other opportunities as he believes he is capable of doing better. His decision to keep Mitchell’s wallet, leads to an unfair 19 years of imprisonment. After consecutively being unsuccessful to improve his conditions in jail he becomes mentally unstable and commits suicide.

The article portrays that the world is unfair as some people, such as young Kirby, are born with a silver spoon in their mouths while others have to struggle to improve their conditions. When provided with minimal opportunities, the lower class becomes a victim of an unjust society. In a capitalist market structure businessmen, in an effort to earn maximum profits, can become inconsiderate of the situation of the labor working for them. Similarly, the controversy of Sodexo’s employees being paid less, serves an example of how unreasonable society can be. The importance of employees at Emory’s dining halls should not be undermined. Arguably, what they are being paid is a minute amount of they deserve. The finishing statement of the essay intends to awaken the lower classes that God has promised a better future for them if they realize and revolt.

It is clear that Davis’ life, specifically graduating from Seminary, played a vital role in “Life in the Iron Mill”. I could not help but notice the influence faith and Christianity had in Davis’ writing. Throughout the entire short story there were constant references to God, angels, Judgment Day, Hell, Heaven , Esau and his birthright, a story directly from the Christian Bible as well as the mentioning of the soul and body being separate.

To me, Wolfe’s dilemma with stealing and then being sent to prison for nineteen years is a direct parallel to the Christian belief that God judges and punishes people for their sin. I thought it was ironic that when Wolfe was struggling with his decision to stea,l that “Thou shall not steal” is one of the Ten Commandments. The story mentions that Wolfe’s, “faith was sublime”, but in that moment he made the decision to not follow his faith. Then once Wolfe is punished and imprisoned, it seems as if he is now living in Hell, as if God has judged him. This parallel between what happens in the afterlife, according to the Christian faith and what is happening to Wolfe is evident to me when the story says, “His dumb soul was alone with God in judgment” (2786) Wolfe is miserable and his life behind bars seems even more like Hell when Wolfe cries out, “ How long, O Lord? How Long?” (2786). Since he was sentenced to nineteen years, it seems like he will be in prison for an eternity, which is how long a person’s soul will be in Hell (or Heaven).

I also thought there was reference to Christianity, specifically Hell, with all the dark imagery used throughout “Life in the Iron Mill”.  With words life “alley”, “muddy”, “city of fires” and also the metaphor used to describe the men as “revengeful ghosts” illustrated the dark imagery to not only to describe Wolfe’s predicament, but life as a factory worker.

In contrast to Gibson’s Neuromancer and our society today, where nobody seems care from where, how and at what cost our products reach us, Life in the iron mills, paints a picture of the harsh reality that defined a 19th century factory worker’s life, and where the technology really originated. The life of a factory worker, described by Davis, “is a Drunken test, a joke-horrible to angels perhaps, to them, commonplace enough” (Davis, 2764). The Iron Mills are “a reality of soul starvation,” for all who work in them. Although each man living in this world longs for just glimpse of beauty, there is none to be found. This is shown in the plot as Deborah even mentions that Hugh is sickened by her deformity, despite her extreme kindness, longs for something beautiful. In Davis’ mind, the only beauty that can be found in this day age is what lies ahead in the future. As Davis states, “no perfume-dawn will be so fair with promise of the day that shall surely come” (Davis 2764). Davis emphasizes that this was a necessary time, one with great sorrow and countless lives wasted, yet one that would change the course of our countries history forever. The industrial revolution almost acted as a springboard, for technology to exponentially bound off of. Without it, who knows where we would be today.

It is through these types of literature that the past is also trying to warn us about the cost of technology. But even in this day age, we still seem to forget that. When you purchase some item, you are rarely thinking about the child labor, or the bad conditions overseas that play into making this item cheap and available for you. As is shown from this excerpt, “Man cannot live with work alone” (2766). When work consumes your life as it did for the mill workers, you no longer live. It also seems like the author poses an additional warning about the future here. Finally, the authors true purpose is once again highlighted when she describes the “mill-woman cut in korl” (2788). There are characteristics about it, that hint at a “Master plan,” one that will set the stage for a world full of “nebulous crimson” and uncertainty, yet at the same time hope. Thus was this description of life in the iron mills really the end? According to Davis, it is only the beginning of a better world.

Throughout “Life in the Iron Mills” Rebecca Davis draws attention to the struggles of women. Davis emphasizes women’s struggles when Wolfe builds the korl statue. The statue goes against the typicality of a female. The statue was of a woman but was “muscular, groan coarse with labor”(Davis 2773). The statue represents the struggle of the typical working class woman. She was not beautiful, graceful or happy, the typical qualities defining a female. She was instead compared to qualities of a man. This statue expected and longed for something out of her life. Wolfe claimed the statue was hungry, not only for food, but also for life. The woman was not content, and wanted to be more than a meager female in her lifetime. This emphasizes the women’s low role in society and how one day they hope to grow out of this stereotypical role and create a more meaningful fulfilled life.

Contrary to what the women of this society crave to become, the males keep the term ‘female’ under submission. While Hugh Wolfe grows weaker, more haggard and is not able to fight in the cockpit, he is referred to as “Molly Wolfe” (Davis 2769).  When the males in this society call Wolfe a female name, they emphasize women as inferior. They underscore females to be not as strong and unable to do the work males are able to do. Davis even compares Wolfe’s face to a “meek woman’s face” (Davis 2769); again his weak demeanor is automatically equated to a female.

However at the end of the novella, when all the people gather around Wolfe’s jail cell, there is a Quaker woman there. She is the one to comprehend Wolfe, to give him a proper burial and to assure Deborah that life will move on.  Davis perhaps adds in this strong female character to allude to a future of gender equality. The women in this novella are struggling throughout and want to gain more out of their life, and the Quaker women shows that this someday will be able to happen.

It is common in our society to think of technology as a device that is beneficial to humans. Whether it be a computer or a vehicle, humans appreciate these appliances because they make tasks easier or quicker to accomplish. Although this is a valid perspective, people often fail to realize the deleterious affects that technology can have on humanity. In Rebecca Harding Davis’ “Life in the Iron Mills,” she sheds light on this sobering truth by allowing us to see the life of a factory worker through her eyes.

The monotonous and cumbersome lives of Deb and Hugh are perfect examples of how technology can have a negative effect on humans. The demanding factory jobs wore them down until they had, “besotted faces bent to the ground, sharpened here and there by pain or cunning; skin and muscle and flesh begrimed with smoke and ashes…” (Harding Davis 2764). The grim and ugly images not only show the hardships that Deb and Hugh endured, but also the terrible conditions that they lived and worked under. In addition to being physically worn down, they were also mentally and morally broken. Workers in the factory had their hopes and dreams shattered, and the two protagonists were desperate enough to steal in order to escape factory life.

Working in the factory dehumanized Deb and Hugh, similar to the dehumanization that took place during slavery or racial cleansings. In response to observing the wretched conditions of the factory, one of the wealthy overseers commented, “I wash my hands of all social problems, — slavery, caste, white, or black” (Harding Davis 2774). The comparison of factory work to slavery shows just how terrible and degrading Deb and Hugh’s lives are. They were both physically and mentally devalued, constantly working like robots in the horrid conditions of the factory.

Although technology does have its beneficial purposes, well off citizens often choose to ignore its harsh consequences because it does not concern them. A story like Harding Davis’ is important to read because it causes readers to think more deeply into the ramifications of technology.

When we are children, our parents constantly remind us to be appreciative for the things we have because there are those less fortunate that are incapable of receiving the essentials needed to live. When we are adults, we often ask ourselves, ‘to what degree would we go too if we lost it all.’ It is difficult to fathom what it means to be ‘desperate’. In Life in the Iron Mills, Davis portrays the life of backbreaking, ‘desperate’ workers who experience the meaning of poverty. Davis establishes this slimy and stagnant setting absent of “green foliage of apple trees” (Davis 2764). This depressing setting and the social misfortunes associated with it establish the movement away from an agrarian economy toward an industrial-based economy and the deadening lifestyle it inflicts upon its workers. I believe through both deprivation and desperation, one develops a strong sense of vulnerability as a result of the hardships experienced.

Life in the Iron Mills encompasses the impoverished existence of Hugh and Deborah, a mill-worker and his cousin. Concealing her unreciprocated love for Hugh, Deb, a “deformed, almost a hunchback” (Davis 2766), delivers to him every night a supper of bread, salt pork, and ale. She looks to love to motivate her to live through her “pale life” (Davis 2766). In addition to Deb’s deformed body yearning for food, her soul hungers for love and spiritual support. The denial of love and feeling of hunger leaves Deb to have a “face more ghastly, her lips bluer, her eyes more water” (Davis 2766). As the readers see, the result of deprivation from love and food ultimately portrays her to be extremely vulnerable.

In addition to Davis portraying Deb as a vulnerable character, she also draws a connection between the physical labor of the iron mills and the depletion of the workers masculinity. The iron mills has caused Hugh to lose his energy and strength that he ultimately becomes vulnerable: “He had already lost the strength and instinct vigor or a man, his muscles were thin, her nerves weak, his fake (a meek, woman’s face) haggard, yellow with consumption.” (Davis 2769). Adjectives such as ‘thin’ and ‘weak’ are the same adjectives that described Deb earlier on in the short story, drawing a parallel between the two characters and their vulnerability. Characterized as a girl-man, Hugh was often referred to by the others as “Molly Wolfe” (Davis 2769), once again shining light on Hugh’s weakness. As the readers can see, Davis highlights how one develops a strong sense of vulnerability as a consequence of the hardships experienced.

While Jane Atteridge Rose argues that the narrator in “Life in the Iron-Mills” is male, I believe that the narrator is female. The reason is not only because of Rebecca Harding Davis’s background, attending an all girls school and being a wife and a mother, but also because the story has a theme of feminist, as Leo indicates. Davis’s daily life gives her opportunities to think over the roles of women in the industrialized society she lives in, and she indirectly points out the social issues as a female narrator in the story.

In “Life in the Iron-Mills,” the omniscient narrator describes the poor conditions women are living in in a feminist way. She deliberately portrays the women as “a crowd of half-clothed women” and “[a mulatto] needed the post to steady her, so did more than one of them,” (Davis 2765). From these descriptions, Davis shows how vulnerable and mistreated the women are, which are careful observations men usually do not notice. Being a feminist, the narrator and Davis depict men into women features. One of the main characters, Hugh Wolfe, has a nickname of a girl, “Molly Wolfe.” This nickname has feminized the main character. Also, unlike the stereotypical men, Hugh “was never seen in the cockpit, did not own a terrier, drank but seldom… He had the taint of school-learning on him,” (Davis 2769). From this passage, it is obvious that Hugh does not conform the social expectation of a man, which is to be tough and rough. All of Deborah’s hard work, trying her best to get Hugh’s attention and taking supper to Hugh no matter how cold and hungry she is, represent Davis’s struggle between her family and artistic fulfillment. Narrating as a woman, Davis makes the story female-centric, as she focuses on women’s conditions and makes Hugh less manly, and the existence of a female narrator is a way for Davis to express her dissatisfaction in her multi-tasking life.

In her short story Life in the Iron Mills, Rebecca Harding Davis stresses the importance of finding one’s voice through Deborah. Although Deborah can be seen as strong and independent, as she acts as a caretaker for Wolfe and is ultimately the one who causes Wolfe’s life to change completely, I see her as merely as shadow of Wolfe and an image depicting how women should be able to have a voice.

After Deborah brings Wolfe dinner, despite the troubles she must go through in order to get it to him including her overbearing tiredness as well as the long, morbid journey through the smoggy city, she goes into a dark corner and is described as “lying there on the ashes like a limp, dirty rag…her thwarted woman’s form, her colorless life…Was there nothing worth reading in this wet, faded thing?…She lay quiet in the dark corner….shrinking back whenever the man Wolfe happened to look towards her. She knew…that there was that in her face and form which made him loathe the sight of her” (Davis 2768). Here, Deborah is described as “thwarted,” a “thing,” a “limp” and “dirty rag,” and “faded.” She is constantly aware that her deformity makes Wolfe uneasy to look at her, and so she feels that she is required to shrink back into the corner on top of the ashes, as if she were already dead. Also, she is objectified and seen as some useless thing that is there for no greater purpose. The narrator questions sarcastically and offended if there is “anything worth reading” in Deborah. Through this emphasis on how worthless Deborah is on all levels, including her physical deformity as a hunchback, as well as the narrator’s seeming frustration about how she is sent to a corner like some animal, Deborah represents how women felt and were treated in the 1800s.

As Deborah represents the typical stereotype of women in the 1800s, Davis then goes on to show how influential and strong women can be and should be recognized as.  In the beginning descriptions, the narrator describes a “little broken figure of an angel” as “pointing upward from the mantel-shelf; but even its wings are covered with smoke, clotted and black” (2763). This angel parallels Deborah. Its figure is broken and shelved away as well as “clotted and black.” Deborah, too, is deformed and often shelved away both physically and metaphorically. Also, the gloom of the city hovers over her as a burden, as does the smoke here in this description to the angel. Therefore, Deborah is compared to an angel, or guardian. Also, Deborah literally places temptation in Wolfe’s hands. It is because of her that he is able to attempt to gain “his rights” as a human under God’s world. Lastly, Deborah is able to tell when Wolfe is going to die. When she peers into his face in the jail cell, she sees, “that gray shadow—yes, she knew what it meant” (2783). As his guardian angel, Deborah knows when it is his time to finally rest. She then proceeds to ask the Quaker  if he can rest on the other side of the hill. She is able to give Wolfe his dying wish, which is to be able to see the other side and live life out of the mills. Overall, Deborah is used as a metaphor of how women were perceived and then how influential and important they actually are.

Everyone recognizes a love story as soon as they see one. Man falls in love with woman, woman falls back, happily ever after. Right? Wrong. For Deborah, happily ever after is something that isn’t even in her vocabulary. Deborah is in love with her cousin, Hugh Wolfe, something that is evident right from the start of the story. She is willing to brave extreme cold and torrential downpour simply to bring Hugh his supper. Even when Janey suggests she stays home, Deborah is adamant, responding with “No, no. The boy ‘ll starve,” and sharply pushing the child to the side. Deborah is in terrible condition physically, and her willingness to walk miles upon miles to bring Hugh his food speaks volume about her desperation. Not only does she risk her health for Hugh, she risks his life. She knows that he is desperate to be more than what he is – just a mill-hand – and do more with his life, despite the fact that he has no money to do so. While Hugh is speaking to Mitchell and the Doctor about his potential, she finds an opportunity to rob Mitchell.  When Hugh is telling Deborah about his despair, she proudly hands over the money, exclaiming “I took it! Me, me!—not hur! I shall be hanged, I shall be burnt in hell, if anybody knows I took it! Out of his pocket, as he leaned against t’ bricks. Hur knows?” before walking away, as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Yet, once again, Hugh is ungrateful for her actions and does not reciprocate her feelings.

There are many other places in the story that show Deborah’s affection for Hugh and just as many places where her effort falls short. Hugh is too wrapped up in his own life to care for another person, especially Deborah, who he will forever see as just another family member. Even in his death, Deborah wants a good place for Hugh to be buried. Her final showing of her love.