putting the 20th century in the 2020 graduating class

In Wide Sargasso Sea (WSS), names are very important and have power. We can see the power of names in this universe by looking at the eerie similarities between Antoinette and Annette, and the effects of Rochester renaming Antoinette "Bertha". Antoinette being a diminutive form of Annette foreshadows how Antoinette's and Annette's fate are similar. Both of them eventually get labelled by society as mad, get confined (Antoinette was locked in an attic and Annette was sent away for care), and they both die offscreen. Curiously, when Antoinette becomes more similar to Annette, Antoinette's name is abandoned and replaced with the name Bertha. Bertha is the name associated with the crazy woman in the attic, not Antoinette even though that name has more ties to the family "madness". Of course, Antoinette is not completely like her mother, whereas we don't know the circumstances surrounding Annette's birth, we do know Antoinette act of rebellion by...

So I know Meursalt's trial isn't meant to be a good portrayal of the justice system but I just have so many problems with it. First off, Meursalt's on trial for killing an Arab man but there are no Arabs at the trial. There are no Arab witnesses. You'd think that Raymond's mistress or the other Arab who went to the beach would be great witnesses or at least be at the trial. But they aren't. At this point, the trial is less about Meursalt's murder of an Arab man but whether Meursalt is threat to society as determined by the French people. Throughout the trial, Meursalt's crime is interpreted through the lens of French society, instead of from the Arab perspective, or even from the point of view of people Meursalt regularly interacts with. The fact that the mistress's brother is seeking vengeance for what Raymond did to his sister never really shows up in any significant manner in the trial. Meursalt is characterized in the trial by the court as a so...