MY CHARACTER THURSDAY [ 15 ] : "Thérèse Raquin"

MY CHARACTER THURSDAY HOP ( 15 )

This month I enter another project called Zoladdiction, which the main purpose to introduce his works on new readers like my self and explore more to everyone who already known and love his works. As the first attempt I choose Therese Raquin, who already translate into Bahasa Indonesia, and the reaction while reading it is quite confusing by mixed-feelings. Between interesting, confuse, curious, awful and sadness, I finished this book only within two days. The themes really quite simple, but the description on those characters are really bad, I meant the author never gave even slight a chance to make them more postive in many ways. No one quite good, all of them gotten worse than their condition before. But now let’s talk about one of those main character : Thérèse Raquin.  

~ Elizabeth Olsen as Therese ~ [ source ]

• Are they protagonist or antagonist?

The author choose her as protagonist with not so pleasant characteristics. Through the story, she can be put as the antagonist too, and by the end her destiny puts her nowhere accept as the victims too.

• Who are they? What was their role in the book?

Thérèse Raquin is a young woman, who raise by her aunt, force to marrying her cousin simply because she think there’s no other ways, then when she had to face the reality of her future, only regrets, feeling sorry for her-self and unhappines all over her face. Outside looks she calm and looks like accepted her life, but deep inside she burning by unsatisfied and rebellios.

~ Tom Felton as Camille ~ [ source ]

• What was your strongest impression on the character(s)? You can quote the dialogue or narration you got the impression from.

Thérèse Raquin is a victim of abuse mentaly since childhood. She cannot make her own decision and taking responsiblity on her action. If something goes wrong or makes her unhappy, she will blame it on others mistake. But when she get something good in return, her gratitude only appears in very short moment of her life. She actually not such bad person, but her great flawless is when she confront with something that makes her to take more responsibility on her own life.

• What are the strengths or weaknesses of your character(s)?

Thérèse should be a strong character, she have dreams and determination to fulfilled what she want, and even when the situaton did not gave her a slight chances, she (at first) can still manage to build her dreams. But this condition rapidly turn into something worse. I think the main event that trigger her self-destruction start when they all move from Vernon to Rue du Pont-Neuf. Force to live in such devastated place, gloomy and unattractive environment, makes her personality become more and more sad and desperate. Like a bird who lost her freedom, her mind already being held hostage and she even build another walls to protect her self from all the things she hope for but never dare to even tried to reach it. When Laurent appear in her life, and when he make the first move to seduce her, Thérèse find another door to gave all out her frustation for all those years of her life. She think she is in love, but the truth is she just trying to find away to escape from all the burden she already puts and build around her self. 

~ Oscar Isaac as Laurent ~ [ source ]

• How do they develop throughout the book?

Thérèse Raquin was something we can called as ‘broken-product’ because of the way she raise by her aunt. As a healthy and normal child, she should develop more on her ability and social interaction to others. Mme Raquin who thought the best way to protect her children, since she always frightening to lose her only son from illness, she kept them under very stricted survellience. Even she never raise her voice or even gave physical punishment, but she already torture and abuse those children because of her selfish reason. Thta’s why being grown-up and consider as an adult, Thérèse cannot makes wise decision, everything she think and do when it come the terms to make a choice, she will avoid something that need responsibility, something that usually the correct one. 

Reading her journey, I’m almost sure Thérèse develop her ability and character just like all victims of kidnapping, when they finally gave-up to search a freedom and just take the easy ways to avoid confrontation or something they know will hurts them later, it’s called a ‘Stockhlom Sindrom’ – but here is something really strange, the author also gave a glimpse on Thérèse’s under conscience that she actually know what is the right path and which is the wrong path to follow. But eventually she still choose the path that will destroy her life. When she meets with Laurent, she thought that man is her dreams, simply because he is not like Camille, event the opposite characters. I guess she already bore and cannot care anymore of her life, so she choose to ignore anything good of her family. Rather to correct and make reconsile, she choose (again) the easy ways : runaway from the problem and turn-over her mind into something else. And this path are repeated again when she face the similar situation with Laurent as her husband. So in short, Thérèse’s character never quite develop in many ways, just running in the devil’s circle of life.

~ Jessica Lange as Mme Raquin ~ [ source ]

• What makes you love/hate them?

First I feeling sorry her because at very young age she force to accept the way of life that she never agree or even asked to consider by her aunt. Her freedom are slowly taken away, and her spirit screaming inside to choose another life, but her aunt shut them out in the name of love. Because she always such a vulnareble person, all the act that imprison her mind changing her temper like fire who keep hidden inside deep hole, waiting to explode. Then when she thinks there’s no ways to have what she want in normal ways, she choose to act impulsif – something that makes her had to face another catastrophies in life. She began act selfishness, never quite thinking about others, except when she blame it on them of her unhappiness. She caught between feeling guilty but never want to confess even to her self – that’s makes her life more and more miserables. At the end, I just feeling sorry simply because she wasted the whole life looking at the wrong path.

• What lessons or influences you got from them? 

Never runaway from any obstacle or problem, ‘cause they all always be there, just waiting for us to confront and finished it. When you runaway from any problem and mistake we make along the way, is more hard to face it later because is gonna be a pile of problems, not just one or two to be taking care. But if someday those problems are came in such hurry and in the same time, never-never take the easy ways to finished it, just take your time to do it one by one. We are only ordinary human being with many flawless and imperfect, but if we focus and put our mind into something, the result would be achieve with a better result. Don’t forget to enjoy it every moment, bad-worse-and happiness, ‘cause they all are part of makes our life more colourful. Stays in posstive attitude, that’s for sure, or we will end-up living in nightmare day by day like those characters (^_^)

MY CHARACTER THURSDAY HOP ( 15 )

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Best Regards,