maurice pt 1. and Halperin

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Maurice pt 1. and Halperin
As I was reading Maurice, i was very interested. Ive never really read anything like it for a class before. To be honest, it took me a while before i realized that Maurice was actually gay. I think the reason why it took me so long to was because they never really just came out and said it. Instead references to Synogism were used. Afterwards, I felt silly that i did not see it sooner.

when we reread the passage from chapter one, it all was alot more clear for me. I could see why Maurice became so upset at Mr. Ducie. Not only may it have been because he did not relate to the diagrams Ducie had made, but he was also upset because Mr. Ducie was so afraid for people to see the diagrams. Perhaps this is why Maurice has felt so confused about his sexuality. Because he was talk to never ever talk about it, he pretty much just went along with everything. The topid of sex was hidden for Maurice.

From the experiences of some of my friends, there seems to be a trend in regards to sexuality and how much it is talked about at home. Some of my friends' parents, who are more open in talking about sexuality, seem to know themselves better. When sex does come up, its not such a shocking thing. They seem to be more mature when dealing with relationships ans sex. With some of my other friends who come from very strict religious homes, where sex is a forbidden topic, it seems like they are less adjusted. I knew a girl whos parents would fast-forward through the kissing scenes in PG-13 movies in middle school. In highschool, she was very promiscuous; the exact opposite of everything her parents tried to hide. Sometimes i think when people try to hide talking about things, like sex, it makes the topic more valuable or desireable to the person that it is being hidden from.

All that is only from the experiences of my friends, and does not mean everyone is like that.

To me, Maurice seems more like a follower rather than a leader. He has grown up that way. He followed the path of his father, never wanting to be anything different. Even with the discussions he had with Clive, he would just agree. Maurice is someone who is struggling to find himself. I think everyone can relate to Maurice in some way. Not necessarily with his sexuality, but rather everyone is constantly trying to find themselves. they want to be positively looked at from by the people whom they are trying to impress. Finally, towards the End of Part one, Maurice seems to finally see who he is, realizing that like loves Clive.