Literary Elements in Maryse Condé’s “Three Women in Manhattan”

Answer

Literary Elements in Maryse Condé’s “Three Women in Manhattan”

Maryse Condé is a respected and renowned author for her smoothly running literal texts. She is the recipient of prestigious awards including the Le grand prix litteraire de la Femme. One of her prominent literal works is the book “Three Women in Manhattan” which narrates the story of three black women with varied social statuses (Condé 56). For instance, one is a maid, the other is an employer while the third is a political refugee. It is upon this understanding that this paper discusses two literal elements used in this book.

Characterization and Themes

Literal elements are considered to be the building blocks of any literal work. They include plot, theme, tone, and characters. This paper discusses characters and theme. The book centers around three characters; Claude who is the main character, backed by Vera and Elinor. All the three characters are black women having diverse social conditions and statuses. Claude was born and raised in Guadeloupe. However, since her mother was overwhelmed by responsibilities, she was adopted and raised by a Godmother (Condé 58). She worked in a hotel, but also had a passion for literature and writing. She could write in secret as she was afraid of showing her literal works. However, when she moved to Manhattan to work as a maid, she met two women who completely transformed her life. Her first employer was Elinor who engaged her in an interview. It is through this process that she learns of Claude’s background as a writer. Elinor further realizes that Claude is hopeless about her future. She then meets Vera who has written books but has never had the confidence to publish them. She is older and tells her story of a painful past where she escaped Haiti as a political refugee seeking asylum in the USA. Claude notes that Vera is critical of Elinor’s literature (Acheson slide 5). From their conversation, she also realizes that Vera is hopeless. Vera advises her to attend English classes which she does. Her experiences later on make her to appreciate Elinor. She learns that Elinor is demotivated by the negative reviews on her work. This inspires Clause who finds renewed courage and hope.

The narration by Condé also embodies the literary element of theme. The main theme is courage and hope in life. It is explicated through Claude’s experiences and reactions to life.  For instance, she paints the picture of a hopeless Vera who later finds the courage to pursue her life’s goals and dreams. She describes Vera as having a fiery spirit and passionate about her roots in Haiti even though she lived a hopeless life on the Manhattan Island for many years. Through their interactions, Claude develops an intense liking for Vera. At the end of the book, Vera is presented as a renewed person full of life and eager for major life changes (Acheson slide 6). Elinor also goes through a similar transformation as she drifts from hopelessness to having hope and courage. This is after the negative reviews made against her work. However, her perseverance not only inspires Claude, but also enables her to regain her confidence and hope.

In summation, Condé’s book embodies two main literary elements that makes it outstanding. These are the characterization and themes. Her selection of characters is succinct.  Condé chooses to focus on three main characters which makes it easy for the reader to monitor their perception towards life and the resultant transition. The three characters promote the theme of hope and courage as they move past their challenges and gain new confidence in their abilities.