"Triumph" C.L.R James

     In the short story, "Triumph" by CLR James I feel that it falls under a similar short story as "Some People are Meant to Live Alone" by Collymore as by the end of the story Irene is poor and isolated and labeled as the town liar. She follows the theme that a lot of these stories tell, the tale of isolation and being like the ugly duckling. The story originally makes you want to feel bad for Mamitza as the story progresses though I personally grew a dislike toward her and feel like she got what she deserved. 

    James pays close attention to people's race and ethnicity throughout the story making some races look better than others. As typical fashion for this time he makes African American's look like a bad part of society. If we look at Nicholas he was looked down upon throughout the story he's referred to as, "low island people." The socioeconomic description James puts on characters in the story is something we've throughout the pieces we've read as during this period of time your status was the most important thing. As you notice throughout the piece the African American population is looked down upon. James seems to focus on people of lower income and economic status throughout the piece showcasing the hardships of their lives. All in all, this piece by James pays very close attention to people's socioeconomic place in society and how it affects what you are able to do with your life.  

Comments

  1. shawnSeptember 11, 2020 at 12:43 PM

    I grew a dislike to Irene as well. I understood her dislike towards the other people in the story, she easily had her reasons. However, she overstepped boundaries and got herself involved with peoples personal lives to which she had to business being in.

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  2. Craig SpellSeptember 11, 2020 at 12:44 PM

    I also felt that this story was similar to some of the previous ones we have read in the sense that these women and people living in the barracks were isolated and a bit ostracized from the rest of society. Irene, specifically, is looked down upon by everyone else.

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  3. JP RicheySeptember 11, 2020 at 12:52 PM

    There are certainly parallels between Irene and Uncle Arthur. Both are outcasts from society and people aren't necessarily drawn towards them.

    ReplyDelete

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