Minor Watt - Literary Analysis Essay

Introduction

"Minor Watt" short story details activities of Minor watt an art collector who perseveres in destroys the arts he has been collecting for several years. His actions torment not only the artists but also the collectors as well as his wife. Some of the arts are vases as well as skulls made of cowrie shells (Theroux 6). He destroys the pieces of art in the presence of those who value them as this makes his power to grow. Destroying the arts makes him have a sense of ownership and this is something that cheers his spirit. People who value these pieces of art feel the loss when he destroys them but they cannot stop him from doing so they are in his possession.

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The remarks made from the people who had given out their arts to Watt indicates the extent to which they valued their work. Some of the pieces possessed by Watt were obtained husbands who agreed to give them without being coerced. One of the people whose pieces were destroyed was Watt's wife (Theroux 7). They had obtained a vase during a trip taken during the best time in their marriage and was symbolic in the taste she had acquired from her husband as well as her perception and understanding about his husband's personality.

This piece was so precious and the trip to Shanghai China was one that they two remembered. The husband wanted to present the vase to her wife as he felt he had a better and reserved place to keep it (Theroux 9). However, it fell and broke into pieces something which made her burst into tears. She valued the vase and the loss to her was unimaginable. This seemed to be the worst time in her life as he had never seen her at such a loss in the many years they had been married. It was painful and agonizing to her but he laughed loudly.

Watt enjoyed destroyed the arts since even when his wife cries uncontrollably because of the vase he was laughing (Theroux 9). Hearing him laugh made her cry and sob more and when he approached to comfort her he never cared about the vase but rather stepped on the pieces and crushed them into finer pieces. The initially precious vase was not ground into small pieces and there was no hope of the art anymore. They could no longer be put together and maybe stuck with glue. The art was gone and for his wife, this was a huge defeat which was evident in her posture as well as the way she walked. He said sorry but this seemed ironic because of the prowess witnessed when he was smashing and grinding the Ming vase. His words and actions were contradicting and nothing could comfort her.

Watt was keen and skillful in artwork and whenever he was walking he could take an object and keenly observe it. He could take an object and hold them to the light, keenly observe it as well as establish its texture. He was interested in establishing the things that made each piece unique thereby evaluating the value of each object. Watt was pleasured whenever one saw him destroy the paintings. He felt low when he destroyed the Study for Head of George Dyer without anyone observing (Theroux 10). When he destroyed this piece only his servant Manolo was a witness and he felt that he had no idea or treasure for the art. He wished somebody such as Sonia was present hence the reason why he called Redman who was a painter whose work was admired.

Watt's dedication and passion for destroying the arts are witnessed when he calls Redman to see what he is doing. He enjoys it when someone is watching when he is destroying the paintings (Theroux 11). He feels pleasure, power, and pride when the people who value their arts are agonized by his ruthless destruction. Upon entering the room he saw the destroyed Bacon and could not stop but wonder what happened to it. Watt boasts that he did it and picks it and throws it in the fire. The canvas immediately caught fire and Redman tried to retrieve it but it was already into soot. Nothing could be saved from the precious art.

Redman's reaction towards Watt resembled that of Sonia. He wondered what was wrong with Watt but his sorrow seemed to please Watt (Theroux 11). This is exactly what he expected from this art collector but he did not care since he owned the art and he had the authority to do whatever he wanted. Redman saw this as a waste of money but to Watt, he did not care. He told people that he had destroyed the bacon as he felt that making it public was going to make him famous. He achieved his wish of agonizing someone who knew someone who knew the value of the bacon. No one knew more about the bacon and could feel the loss than Redman.

The third art destroyed by Watt was painted by Kenneth Noland. Just like in other paintings he had destroyed he ensured he did it in the presence of someone knowledgeable about arts and their value (Theroux 11). He invited the painter to his house and after he remarked that the piece was his favorite he destroyed it. The painter was angry towards Watt and he protested as he felt Watt could have sold the art if he no longer valued it. He, however, was not willing to do so as he derived joy from destroying the most precious arts and not trading them for anything. All he wanted was the destruction to be witnessed and known by those who knew how precious they were. His destruction also proceeded to destroy all the plates that he had used for many years. The crockery had been used in his house especially when he had guests but now he no longer seemed to value it. All he wanted was to destroy it in front of his friends and derive pleasure by making them witness him destroy something that was valuable to him and something that they also admired.

Conclusion

In conclusion, "Minor Watt" is a story analyzes the life of a wealthy art collector. He owns many pieces of art that he destroys systematically to portray a sense of ownership. He ensures that the destruction is witnessed by someone who knows their value. He is happy when the people are angry and agonized by his actions. He feels that since he owns the collections he has power over them and can, therefore, do whatever he wants. He is a controlling, manipulating and selfish man. He is wealthy so selling the arts would not make any impact on his ego.

Works Cited

Theroux, Paul. Mr. Bones. Singapore Books, 2007.

Theroux, Paul. "Minor Watt." The Virginia Quarterly Review 86.2 (2010): 181.

Theroux, Paul. "Mr. Bones". Google Books, 2014, https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=WDRqBAAAQBAJ&pg=PP6&lpg=PP6&dq=Minor+watt+story&source=bl&ots=rcRjc7Ij69&sig=ACfU3U1XvKhUYQaVw3XBMaMUS-RX8KRZZg&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false.