The Body- Secret Agent Flashcards
Mr and Mrs Verlocs relationship
Mr Verloc lies to his wife about what he does for 7 years- cannot confide in the person closest to him- those around the characters never know the true nature of their self.
Links to the fact women are not supposed to understand- gender issues of the time
Mr Vladimir changing languages
Suggests his self is not a set structure of constructs- no principles and no core belief system. A cultural chameleon.
‘At once with contemptuous perversity, mr Vladimir changed the language and began to speak idiomatic English without the slightest trace of an accent’
Verlocs own voice
Lies about his own voice- personal aspect of a person that can hide their true sense of selfhood.
Book may be critical of how easy it is to fool people and shows that all is not what it seems.
What type of society is the novel set in?
Observant and automatic society
Shift in Mrs Verlocs character
Begins as traditional wife and turns into explosive character- society effects individuals. Escapes from life given to her by men- true selfhood and identify can now be explored
‘I’m a free woman now’- free from patriarchal constraints
Foundation of identity
Reflected in the emergence of machines at the time- transforming into robots with secrets and suppressed feelings- society is killing identity
Only violent act in the novel?
The only violent act was committed by mrs verloc- breaking stereotypes and satarsises the male characters- sexual anarchy of females in 1890s- the real anarchists
Internalisation of Mr Verloc
Becomes deconstructed and internalised due to a war between different aspects of his life- fracking his identity
Ending of the novel
Report of Winnie’s suicide- shows she could not continue in the world and saw no other option.
We will all succumb to the pressure of society and a madness fuelled world- selfhood is never secure.
Masses and mass culture
Dismissive of mass culture. Conrad hates the snooty upper classes and it’s ironic that Verloc is trying to protect high society and class. Ties in with satire of selfhood- no one is true to themselves
Verlocs appearance
Looks respectable but underneath he acts in a way that is far from respectable. Shows superficial nature of society.
‘Trod the pavement heavily with his shiny boots and his general get up was that of a well to do mechanic in business for himself’
Vladamir and superficial society
‘He was something of a favourite in society’
Completely superficial society- we see him as disagreeable but he is adored in a twisted and dark society
Importance of the voice
Instruments of idealogical persuasion.
Always links the voice and ideology- the sense of self is very superficial.
Satire of lazy modern people
Think Verloc should be punished. He came from a very hardworking family but there is a basic laziness in him that the narrator doesn’t know how to describe.
‘Born of industrious parents for a life of toil’.
Steaminess rating
No sex in the novel apart from allusion to porn shop and stabbing when Verloc tries to get Winnie to have sex.
Anti aphrodisiac as focuses on the negatives of the city, not the positives.
