Sperm: The Mythological Hero

The idea of “the way the past possesses the present” is composed of several different dimensions. If one confronts this idea superficially, the historical past comes to mind. Other dimensions include the psychological, religious, literary, and mythological past. The course is titled Tracings to infer that nothing is ever lost, but traces remain. Tracings from the past can found in all our literary works, including John Barth’s Night-Sea Journey.

                I found the most evident example of the way the past possesses the present in the sperm’s likeness to a mythological hero. The title alludes to a tale of adventure and tribulation. The “sea” itself in which the sperm are swimming is not enjoyable. The sea is described as dark and seemingly endless. The sperm swim amongst millions of their fallen comrades in search of a fate that they’re not even sure exists. The entire scene seems melancholy and futile.

In my experience, many mythological, literary, and historical heroes started out as unlikely subjects. As is often the introduction in fairy tales, the hero does not choose the responsibility, but rather it is thrust upon him. One account that comes to mind is the biblical story of David and Goliath. Young David, with only five stones and a sling, kills Goliath, the giant Philistine warrior.  Night-Sea Journey also describes an unlikely hero. The narrator of the story has no outstanding qualities that set it apart from the other sperm. The narrator even states, “A poor irony: that I, who find abhorrent and tautological the doctrine of survival of the fittest… may be the sole remaining swimmer! But the doctrine is false as well as repellent: Chance drowns the worthy with the unworthy, bears up the unfit with the fit by whatever definition, and makes the night-sea journey essentially haphazard as well as murderous and unjustified.” The sperm could be described as humble and pessimistic. It cannot believe that it, or anyone for that matter, would ever be the one to reach the “shore” and it is shocked to see that is the only survivor.

It is apparent that the narrator seems unusually thoughtful. It constantly questions what it may find at the end of the night-sea journey or if it is perhaps a part of something larger. The story begins with a slew of questions running through its mind as it is swimming: “Is the journey my invention? Do the night, the sea, exist at all, I ask myself, apart from my experience of them? Do I myself exist, or is this a dream? Sometimes I wonder. And if I am, who am I? The Heritage I supposedly transport? But how can I be both vessel and contents?” The sperm asks timeless questions about its origins and what will happen to it after it dies. These are age-old questions that have spurred the concept of religion and will probably never be answered. The presentation of these questions is just another example of the past possessing the present in the story.

The exhibition of the mythological hero on his traitorous journey to reach salvation is a great example of the way the past possesses the present in Night-Sea Journey. The sperm, the unlikely hero, braves the night-sea and along the way, contemplates deep, philosophical questions about is existence. The hero finally comes out on top when it reaches the ultimate destination: the egg. 

Displaced Fairy Tail... Can you guess which one it is?

James, John, and Edward were triplets born into a wealthy family. Though their mother had passed away many years ago, their father was a great mentor to them. As a young man, their father had started with nothing and slowly built his fortune as a successful commercial fisherman off the coast of Alaska. Shortly after the brothers turned 22 years old, their father fell victim to a mysterious accident in which his fishing boat sunk, drowning the entire crew. After his death, the family fortune was divided evenly amongst the brothers. In his will, their father made but one request: that they continue on his legacy.

Though James, John, and Edward were all brothers, they did not see eye to eye. Each brother was determined to carry on their father’s commercial fishing business, but on his own terms. The first brother, James, spent the majority of his inheritance on a long backpacking trip to Europe to “find himself”. When he returned, he could only afford a small fishing boat that had already been used for many years. The second brother, John, saw his newfound fortune as an opportunity to propose to his long-term girlfriend and he spent about half his inheritance on an illustrious wedding and a luxurious honeymoon vacation. When he returned from his honeymoon, he spent the remainder of his inheritance on refurbishing one of his father’s old fishing boats. The third brother, Edward, was determined to become successful and spent his entire inheritance on a brand-new, state-of-the-art fishing boat.

At the beginning of the fishing season, each brother set off in efforts to carry on their father’s legacy. Little did they know, an extreme environmentalist named Ralph was determined to foil their efforts in order to combat the commercial fishing industry. James was having a beer at the local pub one afternoon, when Ralph walked up and took a seat next to him at the bar.

“Did you have a good catch this afternoon?” Ralph asked.

“Not today,” said James, taking another sip of his beer. “Haven’t had a good catch for weeks actually.”

“That unfortunate,” answered Ralph. “Say, if you drop your net about 10 miles south of the bay, I bet you will have better luck. Just look for a bright green buoy.”

The next day, James set off feeling confident that he had received insider information and hoping for a large catch. Just as the sun was rising, he spotted the electric green buoy in the distance. He started full-speed ahead toward the buoy when suddenly, his boat was impaled by a large stake resting just below the surface of the water. The boat quickly filled up with water and sank, drowning James.

That same day, John was walking along the pier when Ralph came up to him as well. After talking for a while, Ralph gave John the same advice he had given James earlier that day. That afternoon, before John was able to hear the unfortunate news about his brother, he also set off in search of the green buoy, feeling equally confident with the newfound advice he was given. When he finally reached the buoy, his boat was also impaled by the same large stake and sank into the ocean, drowning John.

The next morning, just before sunrise, Edward was getting his boat ready to cast off for the day. He noticed neither of his brother’s boats were parked in the marina, but he thought little of it. They may have just gotten an early start, after all. As he was untying a rope from the dock, Ralph appeared as if he had been there for hours, waiting for Edward to arrive. Ralph approached him with a friendly greeting, “Good morning. Are you heading out soon?”

Edward stood up and hesitated for a moment. He had heard about Ralph before and some of the extremes he had gone to in order to foil the fishermen’s business.

“Pretty soon,” replied Edward. “Can I help you?”

“Oh just taking a morning stroll. Say, why don’t you try catching something about 10 miles that way?” He lifted his hand and pointed a finger to the south. “I bet you’ll have a good catch. Just look for a bright green buoy.”

Edward knew he was up to something. Quickly, he devised a plan to hold Ralph accountable for his actions.

“Hey, before I head out, come take a look at this rudder here. I think it may be bent…” exclaimed Edward.

Ralph climbed into the boat and walked to the other side so he could inspect the rudder. When he was securely in the boat at a point in which jumping to the dock would be futile, Edward pushed off and the boat drifted out to sea.

“What are you doing!?” cried Ralph.

Edward chuckled. “Oh have a little fun. You aren’t sea sick, are you? Now let’s go find that buoy…”

Ralph panicked, but he could not bring himself to reveal that they were about to enter a trap. He curled up nervously at the edge of the bow. Either he would fall victim to his own trap or he would be forced to confess and be prosecuted for the murder of Edward’s two brothers. Instead of suffering either of these fates, he thought, perhaps, he could swim back to shore. Edward watched as Ralph threw himself out of the boat and swim recklessly into the distance. Before Edward could even react, Ralph could no longer be seen.

By this point, the boat was slowly approaching the electric green buoy. Despite his better judgment, Edward was curious and wanted to know what he would find at this mysterious site . As the boat reached the buoy, a large bump shook the vessel, but it managed to stay afloat. Edward peered closely into the water and could vaguely make out a steak resting just below the surface of the ocean. He had hit the steak, but his boat was too strong and the steak was unable to penetrate it.

                Relieved, Edward sighed and headed back towards shore to explain to the authorities what he had discovered. A few days later, it was reported that Peter’s body was found washed up on shore, having drowned in the ocean a few days prior. 

Class 9/10/2013

One realization that I had in class today was Dr. Sexon's recognition of the lack of universal references in today's society. References, quotes, and sayings that were once common knowledge are no longer used, at least not commonly. Can this really be a crisis? Perhaps simply the greater population size, along with an increased acceptance of different languages, cultures, and ideas has made for less universal references. This is most likely true, but I also think that universal references still exist. They are still around, but have dramatically diminished in intellectualism. For example, very few people could probably tell you what Pascal sewed into his coat, but the majority of the population could state the advertizing slogans of popular companies like Mcdonalds or Subway. A shift has been seen from references to historical events and famous texts to pop culture phenomena and internet sensations. People are a product of their generation and I don't think it's the fault of the individual that these references have died out. We are simply born into different societal norms. However, this supports the notion that literature is not as highly regarded as it has been in previous generations.

Nothing is ever lost...

From my understanding, this course is titled, "Tracings" to exemplify the idea that all that was is what continues to be. In other words, nothing is ever lost, but traces persist into the future. Everything is connected in some way or another. I have already begun to realize this in our readings and class discussions. One parallel that I made was the idea of arriving where you start. This idea is perhaps most apparent in TS Eliot's The Four Quartets. The following passage is written:

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

In James Joyce's Finnegans Wake, the text begins mid sentence. The text also ends with an unfinished sentence. Therefore, in order to finish the last sentence, one must go back to the beginning of the book. It becomes, in a sense, a cycle of sorts. This cycle can also be seen in Dante's Four Levels of Interpretation. The levels of interpretation are arranged in a clockwise fashion, going from Literal to Allegorical to Moral to Anagogical and then back to Literal. Though I'm sure I have already encountered many other examples of arriving where you start already in this class, these three examples stood out to me the most.

Class 9/3/2013

Perhaps people place too much importance of the author's interpretation of any given text. Too often is the question asked, "What was the author trying to convey when he or she wrote this?" An excellent point was brought up in class, that every reading of a text is a misreading. Every person that reads a text has their own, personal interpretation and has something different to bring to the table. That is part of what makes honors seminars so interesting, is hearing every individual's opinion on a text. So really, writing to convey one, single idea or concept is practically impossible. The great thing about reading is the fact that one can take their experiences, beliefs, and memories and apply them to a text. Someone may read the text at two different points in their life and feel as if they had read two completely different texts.

If someone's personal experience contributes to their misreading of a text, does this mean one's ignorance makes for a poor misreading? For example, when reading Joyce Carol Oates' "Where are you Going, Where Have you Been?", I was unable to make the connection between Connie and Persephone due to my lack of knowledge pertaining to mythology. This made for a very superficial reading of the text. In this case, perhaps guidance from the author would be beneficial.

My Dream

My dream that I told in class is as follows:

Katelynn sat me down in the living room of her apartment just next door to me. We had grown distant over the summer, so I found it strange that we should be having a discussion now. She looked rather nervous and melancholy and I thought of all the possibilities of what she was going to say. "I'm pregnant," she blurted in a hopeless tone. I was taken aback and didn't quite know what to say. I thought about all the setbacks this would cause and tried to comfort her with no avail.

At that moment, I woke up. This dream was not particularly memorable because of its length, but because it was so realistic. It took me a few minutes to reason through things before I could decide if that event actually happened. The dream was so vivid that I thought it may even be a memory. Alas, it was simply fiction and I could rest easily.