A
Brief Analysis of the Humble Gabriel Betteredge
I wish I had a Betteredge, he makes
me laugh. Wilkie Collins has created a wonderfully entertaining character in
Gabriel Betteredge; he is the perfect person to set the scene and introduce us
to the characters in The Moonstone. I would say that he is an unreliable
narrator, but not to the point that the reader cannot trust him. For example,
when we first meet him he is talking about being asked to write what he
remembers and he says, “I modestly declared myself to be quite unequal to the task
imposed upon me – and I privately felt, all the time, that I was quite clever
enough to perform it.” He lets us in on the secret and in doing so, encourages
us to trust him. It also lets us see a glimpse of his character; he knows how
is expected to act in this situation and acts accordingly. This gives the
reader an idea of the phoniness of social propriety.
Betteredge seems to be fooling
himself more than the audience in many of the places where what he says
contradicts what the reader sees. One place where this happens is after he loses
his temper with Sergeant Cuff; he says, “For the moment, I suppose I must have
gone clean out of my senses. I seized the Sergeant by the collar of the coat
and pinned him against the wall.” This is completely out of character for
Betteredge. He prides himself on his level-headedness and his good manners; yet
in this scene we see him act before he thinks – which is exactly what he
accuses women of doing just a few pages later. When Penelope comes to him about
Rosanna’s behavior, he explains why he needs to calm Penelope down in order to
“improve” her state of femaleness. He says that when a woman wants him to do
anything, he makes them “rummage their own minds for a reason”; he then says
“it isn’t their fault (poor wretches!) that they act first, and think
afterwards; it’s the fault of the fools who humour them.” I think Collins puts these scenes so closely
together so that the reader can see the blind male chauvinism that was
prevalent in Victorian society. Betteredge accuses all women of being guilty of
doing what he (a superior creature) just did with Sergeant Cuff.
Of course, I could be way off base
with my assertion. Maybe Collins does not sympathize with the wrongly
stereotyped female; perhaps this is just my twenty-first century pro-female
mentality speaking. But I doubt it. I think that Collins wants us to see the
way that women were oppressed, but he still wants us to like Betteredge; we are
supposed to see him as a genuinely kind, appropriately proud man in Victorian
England.
I like Betteredge, he makes me
laugh. In particular, I like his take on marriage. He chooses to marry Selina
Goby, as a decision based on “economy – with a dash of love”; of course, she
also “chews her food well, and sets her foot down properly when she steps.” As
amusing as this view of marriage is to me, I think it highlights the
unimportance of love and romance in a society that viewed marriage as a social
and economic contract rather than a bond of love. As Betteredge says, “it will
be cheaper to marry her than to keep her.” Just as Lady Verinder does, I too, think
that this statement is funny…sad…but funny – an appropriate contradiction
coming from a man full of contradictions. Such is the Great Humble Betteredge!
A very thoughtful and entertaining take on Betteredge! :) I especially like how you point him out as being humble and likeable, yet still hypocritical in some aspects. The take on his view of women was quite insightful! Good job.
ReplyDeleteGood observation about Betteredge acting as he accuses women of doing. I think he's sort of torn between writing his account of events and his unquestioning loyalty to the family he has spent his whole life serving. He's not prepared to have to change his opinion of them, becuse indirectly that might undermine his whole sense of self and purpose.
ReplyDeleteSpot on with Betteredge! So funny, I couldn't really pinpoint what you seem to have said so well. After reading your blog, I couldn't agree more, he is more like a woman than he would ever like to admit. HA!!! There is little I enjoy more than proving a man is flawed and he is flawed in such a hypocrytical and funny way that he himself is oblivous to. Great irony and great blog!
ReplyDeleteI agree, I wish I had a Betteredge with me at all times! I like that you mention his hypocrisy about his view on women, and enjoy your connection with Sargent Cuff. I love how you describe his marriage, and why he had chose to marry her. It makes sense for him, which is why that makes me laugh. Oh Betteredge!
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