Monkey Paws and Unreliable Narrators
What life lessons can stories teach us (or drive home)?
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is still on my mind (because George R.R. Martin is awesome if you haven’t gotten the memo yet) but also because other recent narratives (and life) have forced me to think about unreliable narrators and monkey paws.
As an avid (and fast) reader I typically give my narrators a lot of grace - especially if I connect with them or feel sympathy for them in some way. This is probably why I struggled so much with Wuthering Heights when I read the book (put a pin in that thought). It has been a while since I read A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, but I did not pick up how unreliable a narrator that Dunk is but the show hits you with it often and early. Through the first season of the show we learn that Ser Arlan is indeed a true knight who is well endowed (if not as much as Dunk imagines) with many good qualities, but like other humans (and especially other knights) is also a flawed and broken man who does not always make good choices. We can forgive both Dunk and Ser Arlan their narrative embellishments because of their underlying truth. There is an important life lesson here and one that we humans (OK, this human in specific) really need to learn and reinforce on the regular. To be human is to be an unreliable narrator, but we need to constantly check our narrative against the narratives of others to make sure that our embellishments have not stretched the truth out of all recognition.
I was already thinking about unreliable narrators when I went to the theater with my family book/movie club to watch Wuthering Heights. None of us enjoyed the book and, in fact, I was the only one of us to finish it. But I was glad, after the fact, that I had read the book because reading enhanced my viewing and discussion of the movie as well as helps me argue with those who think that Emerald Fennell’s adaptation is not a good one (and I feel compelled to argue because I think it is an excellent one!).
The truth is that Emerald Fennell made me feel better about reading the book. This movie is not for everyone. Every movie version fails to encompass the scope of Bronte’s story, but I believe Fennell captures the true essence of Bronte’s story because it leans into the gothic/horror of humanity. The movie was stunningly beautiful and disturbing (and definitely worth watching on the big screen) and made me think more about the themes and messages Emily Bronte was exploring. The movie trailers lean into the erotica, but do not prepare you for the gothic horror of it all. I am struck by the reaction of many people to Fennell’s interpretation of Bronte’s work. I logged Wuthering Heights into my movie challenge spreadsheet as the remake/reimagining instead of book on the big screen category because this is not a simple retelling of the book, but that does not diminish the power of the movie. As W magazine notes: A feminist text or a Gothic nightmare? The Conversation writes: undercutting of the myth of the civilized society. The reason I did not like the book was the fact that there were no redeemable characters, but the movie showed me that this was the point. Humans are amoral and obsessive and destructive. We should not be trusted to raise children without check and certainly not control the lives/choices of women (even when they are horrible people).
Both A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and Wuthering Heights (plus some Road to Doomsday content) have me thinking a lot about monkey paws or the old adage to be careful what you wish for. In The Monkey’s Paw we learn that tampering with fate (and the chaos lottery of life) can bring even worse consequences than we imagine. I recently finished reading Edna Ferber’s Giant for my America250 Book Club and that reinforced for me both lessons (about unreliable narrators and monkey paws). I haven’t had time to fully process Giant yet but it does not leave me with warm and happy thoughts about America, capitalism, or patriarchy (not that I entered the reading in a warm happy frame of mind because have you looked at 2026?).
I brought both of these lessons into my most recent reading assignment of The Stand for the Slow Read Book Club and my side quest related to that reading with George R. Stewart’s Earth Abides. I am not yet done with Earth Abides, but it is an interesting companion piece for both The Stand and Giant. How much do we shape our own narratives and what happens when we try to do so (both good and bad)? What happens when we let fear rule our decisions and relationships? How many important decisions have you made in the face of opposition (and possibly because of that opposition)? How do our families and friends influence our life path? I know recent events in my personal life have made me think about this for myself as well as how I parented. All of the narratives above should certainly make you think about parenting choices!
What do you think about the importance of unreliable narrators, monkey paws, and examples of good/bad parenting in the stories we read? While I have been slow to learn important life lessons from my beloved stories, I do think that being a lover of stories and sharing that love with my son made me a better parent.
Check out my recent writing invitation (that touches on some of these ideas and inspired others) and reading updates on Fable.