The Relationship Between Survival and Resilience - Paper Example

Introduction

'Survival for the fittest' is one of the notions which was first coined by the father of evolution Charles Darwin in an attempt to explain how animals with smarter traits are likely to live longer compared to their counterparts with weaker characters. The term has however proved to apply to people in everyday life. Only those with the ability to withstand the different constraints get the chance to live through for a victorious day ahead. The relationship between resilience and survival have been observed since time memorial and is still accounted for today. The connection between the two has been demonstrated through writing in the form of novels, scientific journals and even through making of films. The award-winning authors Emma Donoghue and Alice Walker have demonstrated a stronger link that exists between survival and resilience in their two literary works " room'' and "the color purple" respectively. "Room" is a story of focusing on a woman who stays kidnapped for seven years but manages to escape later, having born a son who has become five years old by the time of their escape. "Colour purple" on the other hand talks of a woman who experiences both emotional and physical abuse from her childhood but does not succumb to her sorrows and pains and later attains freedom and happiness in her marriage. The paper set to present a comparison of how the two award-winning novels demonstrate the relationship which exists between resilience and survival.

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Childhood Resilience

The story in the 2010 novel "room, "is told in the perspective of a five-year-old boy named Jack who had never seen elsewhere apart from the room in which he had lived for the five years with her mother. Little jack demonstrates the resilience ability of children and the capability to cope with every situation. In the midst of all the evil and the nasty occurrences which jack experiences in the room, he is so much adapted to the room and even thinks that the outside world seen on television does not exist (Donoghue 15). To him, the room is the beginning and the end of the world, and he has become comfortable living there. Jack getting fond of the room is seen when the story begins. He is in a celebratory mood for his 5th birthday. The Irish born author tries to bring out the loyalty that there is in kids, which make them resilient to every situation presented to them. Jack survives in the room for the five years because he has some form of loyalty to the case in which he was born. Whenever Jack is hidden in the closet, he stays loyal so that Old Nick doesn't hurt Ma'. In comparison to Alice Walker's depiction of the relationship between resilience and survival in children, Celie, the main character is highly comparable to room's jack. Just like jack, Celie does not seem to have a healthy childhood. Her situation is more or less the same as that in the imprisonment "room."Celie is repeatedly raped by the man she considers her father; she doesn't seem to know of a life different from that of physical and emotional abuse. Just as Jack is loyal and accepts to live on through his situation, Celie chooses to keep her ordeals to herself to save her mother.T he father warns her against telling anyone that he rapes her, threatening that her mother would bear the consequences in case Celie has to speak out (Walker 26). For the adaptation and the resilience of the two characters jack and Celie from the two literary works, survival manifests as the two get to live through and get out of their imprisonments.

Sexism

Sexism is one of the aspects that have placed women in the receiving end of the several social injustices in the society. Men have considered themselves to be superior to women and therefore treat them as subordinates. It takes strength and high resilience for women to survive in such injustice dominated societies. Both Alice Walker and Emma Donoghue in the two works of literature showcase how different women have gone past the feminism notion and can survive the various forms of injustices. In "room" the author focuses on how ma', Jack's mother, regardless of being a woman, survives the hardship for seven years, being repeatedly raped but does not give up. She lives with a hope of getting out of the room one day. Ma' uses her feminine ability in the end and can trick Old Nick that Jack is dead, creating a path for their escapade (Donoghue 45). In "color purple" on the other hand, several women can overcome the societal injustices imposed on them on account of them being women. Celie, for example, gets the strength to confront her abusive husband and in the end gets her freedom leaving her husband, Albert. As for Sofia, Harpo's wife, her resilience enables her to overcome the male domination as she refuses to submit to mistreatment by her husband and the father-in-law. Sofia gets ordered by the mayor to work as a maid in his household, but she refuses, leading to her being jailed (Walker 53). She, however, survives the ordeal and comes out stronger. All the women depicted in the above illustrations have demonstrated that their resilience and adaptations made them survive the horrible atrocities committed against them on account of them being women, representing the feminine aspect in the midst of the male-dominated societies.

Slavery

Slavery in this context refers to when a person is treated by the others as if they own the individual, making a decision on their behalf and acting as if they are the surrogates of the slave's thoughts. The theme of slavery is highly magnificent in the two works of literature authored by the female artists, walker, and Donoghue. The authors, however, try to demonstrate how the individual slaves, through resilience manages to survive and emerge victorious from the slavery. Abducted as a young girl, Donoghue tells the story of Ma who has spent seven years of her life as a slave while having no say over her life. The narrator is jack, Ma's son, describing the events of Ma's life in captivity. Old Nick has kept Ma' in room, using her as a sex toy for the seven years. Jack vividly narrates how Ma would always scream in the night and how Old Nick would even physically harm her several times (Donoghue 112). Through the rape ordeals, Ma gets pregnant three times in room but still has the physical strength to move on. She is always there for her son, not thinking of giving up her chance of escaping. Narrating from the aspect of a black American woman, Alice Walker presents through her novel, the endurance which the black American women have to go through as men treat them as slaves. In her first letter to God Celie writes about how her mother is being sexually oppressed and about the sexual abuses she receives from her father (Walker 78). The novel displays how the black Americans especially women experience slavery which makes their survival difficult. Celie is one of the women who can stand against the different acts of slavery. She appears victorious in the end as she even reclaims their mother's land which was grabbed by their stepfather.

Motherhood Resilience

For the sake of her children, a mother is always able to withstand all problematic thoughts and acts that may come her way. For a mother, her children are always a priority, and she puts them before anything else. The two award-winning authors who are both mothers have depicted how the love of a mother makes them resilient through all seasons, and they often emerge victors. Starting from Emma Donoghue's text, two mothers are shown in the story. From Ma', her motherly love for her son enables her to cope with the pathetic condition of the room. Regardless of the fact that Jack is her son with her kidnapper, she does not resent him. Jack narrates how Ma' would always prevent Old Nick from laying his hands on her son (Donoghue 172). The other enduring mother in this text is Ma's mother, who is Jack's grandmother. The fact that Jack is her daughter's son surpasses her feelings of him as the son of her daughter's rapist. Ma's father on the other end does not recognize jack as his grandson as she considers him a product of an atrocity against her daughter. With the enduring heart of a mother, Jack's grandmother can survive through, and her resilience pays off as she builds an excellent relationship with her grandson. In the other text "the color purple," Celie does not forsake her children as well. With doubts ringing her mind of whether the children are her siblings, she deeply regrets that her supposed father had killed them. When her sister Natty, through her letters tells her of the children's whereabouts she gets delighted and looks forward to their reunion (Walker 428).Celie and Naty's mother, on the other hand, seems to have endured the sexual abuse from her husband for the sake of her daughters. She even allows her piece of land to be taken from her by the man. Seemingly; she wants her girls to have a father figure and does not disclose to them that he is just a stepfather. Her sacrifices do not fail, as her daughters are exposed to a similar hardship, learning from their mother's experiences and they are eventually able to conquer their secret dreams and ambitions.

Family Resilience

It takes resilience in the face of adversity for a family to stick together. Several families have broken up due to lack of resilience either from the partners, spouses or the children. Families which stood the test of time, as well as those who succumbed to different pressure, are illustrated in the two works of art, depicting how a family can survive as a result of the perseverance of the members in the midst of the difficulties. The only families discussed in "room" is ma's family, consisting of her parents whom she found divorced upon her return from captivity (Donoghue 112). The other family which is not much talked about is that of Jack's grandmother and stepfather. Ma's family seems not to have been resilient enough to withstand the challenges which came through time. The author, however, does not show whether ma's kidnapping is one of the contributing factors to their family breakdown. The family tie between Ma' and her father also seems to break since the father does not want to accept his grandchild. Similarly, Harpo and Sofia's family depicted in " the color purple" could not survive the different challenges. The failure of Sofia to be submissive and the husband failing to change his dictatorial ways leads to the breaking of the family ties. However, Celie's two families can live through the difficulties. In the family from which she was born, only the parents die, but her bond with her sister Natty lives. In her matrimonial home, Celie is too submissive to stand against Mr when Albert's sister visits and advises Celie to fight against her husband's dictatorship, Celie responds that she does not have to fight, but she surely must survive (Walker 128). Her response gives a clear indication that he was hopeful in the midst of her sufferings. Even after their separation, Celie can reconcile to Albert, and their marriage and family thrives with love after that.

Love and Resilience

Love is one of the key factors which make people survive in the midst of difficulties. Love enhances resilience and one's ability to survive to the next level. Thinking of the loved ones makes people persevere through the different hard occurrences that come their way. The protagonist in Donoghue's novel narrates how the love between him and his mother plays a role in their escape from the room and their survival. While in the room the narrator tells of how he would cooperate and sleep in the closet so as not to create trouble for Ma' this aspect, therefore, helped ma' to survive the cruelty. On the other Hand, the protagonist speaks of how ma' would defend him from Old Nick and would struggle to ensure that the evil does not lay his hands on Jack (Donoghue 1...