Oxymorons+and+the+Pathetic+Fallacy+in+The+Narrow+House.doc

OxymoronsandthePatheticFallacyinTheNarrowHouseOxymoronsandthePatheticFallacyinTheNarrowHouse:ALacanianReadingIntheopeningpagesofEvelynScott’sfirstnovel,,tritethings,buttakeustotheheartofclassicFreudianambivalence:loveandhateontheonehand;,’svisittothebutchershopdescribesdeathasarefuge:―‖(9).Thebutcherhimselfischeeryandpleasantabouthisdeath-dealingfunction;heassumesa―pleasantconfidentmanner...aswithdeftfingersheranhishandintothebirdandwithaslightclawingsoundtoreoutaheapofdiscoloredentrails‖(10-11).Thehanginghensthatdecoratetheshoppartakeinitsinherentcontradictions;their―toes,id,[anoxymoron]stillsuggestedthefatiguewhichfollowsagony‖(9).Theiragonyforeshadowsnotonlytheprotagonist’sdeath,butalsotheagonizedfatigueandparalysisofothermaincharacters,’epregnant,therearethreeattemptedorcontemplatedsuicidesinthisshortnovel,,’slanguage,particularlythedevicesofoxymoron,paradox,andpatheticfallacy,’sfamousformulation,theunconsciousisthediscourseoftheOther(Felman122).ToLacan,,Lacantheorizesaconstantplaybetweensignifierandsignified:―Signifiersgiveshapetosignifiedswhichinturnresurfacetolendanotherkindofmeaningtosignifiers‖(Ragland-Sullivan217).plicatematters,themakingofmeaninginLacan’sSymbolicOrderisnecessarilyatriangular,ratherthanabinaryendeavor,becauseitinvolvesobjectsinrelationtoego