Previous
Motifs
Definition of Paradox
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason. Oscar Wilde's famous declaration that "Life is... read full definition
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason. Oscar... read full definition
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel... read full definition
Part 4, Chapter 2
Explanation and Analysis—Ashamed of Shame:
When Bride reads Booker’s letters at Queen’s house, Booker uses a paradox about shame:
I refuse to be ashamed of my shame, you know, the one assigned to me which matches the low priority and the degraded morality of those who insist upon this most facile of human feelings of inferiority and flaw simply to disguise their own cowardice by pretending it is identical to a banjo’s purity.
The first sentence of this passage hinges on the idea of "refus[ing] to be ashamed of [...] shame." Booker acknowledges his shame but rejects the idea that he should feel bad about having it. In turn, the fact that he has been made to feel shame at all becomes evidence of other people’s “degraded morality,” not proof of his own inferiority. In this framework, to carry shame without fully internalizing it is a form of resilience.
Booker's letter resonates with Bride's experience as someone with dark skin whose mother has always made her feel inferior. There's a kind of permission in Booker's idea that it's possible to carry around a traumatic emotional history without having to apologize for it. And this, in turn, perhaps means that Bride's traumatic upbringing doesn't have to define her, as she can decide to own that past however she wants.
Related Themes:
