In Edward P. Jones’s novel, The Known World, the word ‘right’ is ever present in multiple
forms. One particular form that stands out to me is the use of ‘right’ in regards
to temporal significance; by ‘temporal significance,’ I mean that ‘right’ is
usually referring to ‘right here and now’ or ‘right in that moment,’ where
right gives more meaning to the time frame of the scene. I believe this use of
the word is intended to put us as readers in the setting of the novel to
further immerse ourselves into the story.
At the beginning of the novel, we are faced with Henry’s
death. He is described as coming up to his eternal reward, a rented house of four
rooms. He had turned to tell Caldonia, his wife, that the rooms were not
fitting when “God told him right then, ‘Not a wife, Henry, but a widow’” (11). The
use of ‘right’ indicates that God spoke to Henry in that exact moment. We as
readers feel like we are there with Henry, in his death, being told Henry has
finally died. Jones does not allow us to feel like we are merely hearing a past
story, but instead he forces us to experience the moment with that use of
‘right.’
As a second example, we see Stamford becoming aggravated due
to Gloria and Cassandra’s rejections. He begins to harass the children and is a
general pain to the community. When Stamford is acting this way, we learn that
Delphie thinks “I will strike that fool man down right out here in the open”
(63). Delphie will not strike Stamford down tomorrow or the day after, but
immediately in this moment. This strong temporal indication emphasizes the seriousness
behind her intentions and gives us a sense of urgency surrounding the
situation. Again, we are put there in the moment.
Finally, much later in the novel, Dora and Patience, the two
daughters of William Robbins, finally meet each other. The two women are
described as being identical in all aspects save for their skin tones. Jones
writes, “God really didn’t want to wait for the day Robbins and Philomena would
conceive Dora, so he made her right then because he knew he wouldn’t be in the
same state of mind when Dora came along years later” (362). The use of ‘right’
here is strong; God took the time to make Dora and Patience at the same time in
order to keep them near-identical. This second use of a temporal ‘right’ in a
scene with God again puts us there in the moment. We are ‘forced’ to imagine
God making two persons and saving one for later. This moment becomes alive for
us as we can envision it happening, well, ‘right then.’
These three examples are just a sampling of the temporal uses
of ‘right.’ We discussed multiple times in class that this novel, despite its
‘information overload’ and large number of characters, we have found it engaging.
I believe that this temporal use of ‘right,’ which happens frequently,
facilitates this engagement; it constantly reminds us that we are there with the
characters. This feeling of being in the moment gives us intimacy with the characters,
and this catches our attention more than if we were merely observers to the
story.
Reading your post, I found it intriguing that you focused on this use of the word “right” because it seems that it is the least utilized form of the word throughout the novel. I agree that using the word “right” as well as the present tense in these certain situations really brings us closer to the characters and to the moment itself. Although the novel bounces between characters and settings quite often, kind of like in A Visit from the Goon Squad, it is not as confusing because so much detail is given, in particular about the time during which the events occur.
ReplyDeleteThis is a little bit far-fetched, but I could see another meaning behind the use of right in the three situations you mentioned. If someone were to read the sentence and stop after the word right, it would still make sense, although grammatically it would not be entirely correct. If one were to read it like this, it would mean that first, God told Henry ‘right,’ meaning accurately, that his wife is now a widow. Second, Delphie will strike Stamford down ‘right,’ meaning justly, out in the open for bothering Gloria. Finally, God made both Dora and Patience ‘right,’ meaning He did it without fault. Overall, I think that the use of right in these situations can be looked at in more than one way: it makes events more present to us and it shows the correct nature of certain events.
I would go along with the definition of right as temporal in the novel. It is certainly represented that way in certain instances, but I think this is just one of the many ways the novel defines "right." In fact, some of the character's definitions of right seem to completely oppose each other. Early in the novel, William Robbins tells the sheriff Gilly Patterson, "Well Gilly, you don't know then. You don't know the difficulty in keepin this world goin right." (38)This definition of right implies that slavery is what keeps things "right" for William Robbins. This definition opposes what Augustus's definition of right. Augustus worked hard to move his family out of slavery, supporting what he views as "right." The word right is used in many different ways in the English language, and this novel. Within the novel the word right can even mean the complete opposite of itself. The various definitions bring forth the question, which definition of right is right? The definition changes based on the context it is used in.
ReplyDeleteThat’s a very interesting point that I would not have thought of, and I think you’re entirely right. Consciously, I find that what immerses me in the book is the amount of detail in the characterization and setting, but subconsciously, the temporal uses of “right” really do help to immerse me in the book as well.
ReplyDeleteAccording to my tally, the temporal use of “right” is almost the most frequent, second only to the use of “right” to mean correct. This frequency says a great deal about the book: the most frequent use means “correct,” and the book has a lot to say about correctness, both moral correctness and correctness as in a master telling a slave the proper way to accomplish a task. The second most frequent use is the temporal usage of “right,” which, as you say, contributes a great deal to the book’s immersive style. If I were to sum up The Known World in one word, the word would be “immersive.” For me, the detailed (sometimes overly detailed) characters and landscape are the key feature of the book and the chief reason that I find it so immersive, but the frequent temporal usage of “right” greatly contributes as well.