Behind a Mask Part Two, The Goophered Grapevine, The Sheriff’s Children, and Jean-ah Poquelin

Behind a Mask is still by far the best book we read all semester (with Northanger Abbey coming in a close second) I did not expect the story to progress exactly the way it did. I really thought that Jean would marry Ned and then when she rejected him, Gerald.  The twists in the plot keep you on your toes and the ending really threw me for a loop. Between marrying Sir John and burning all the “evidence” you really see past her mask.  Jean was right when she said “is not the last scene better than the first?”

The Goophered Grapevine was a good story once you deciphered the dialect. I liked that the author tried to be true to the people he was writing about by keeping the language authentic and the story teller’s character believable. The whole story reminds me of an urban legend that is passed down to scare people and keep them in line. I like how the elements are gothic but not creepy and the underlying north versus south struggle that takes place. As with most southern gothic stories the north ruins a good thing for the south and in the end the north triumphs and the south learns to deal with it.

To me The Sheriff’s Children was the least gothic thing that we’ve read. While I understand that it falls into the southern gothic category, I did not see anything else that made it gothic. The southern aspect of owner and slave relationships speaks to the pre-Civil War ways of the south and the freeing of the slaves plays a large role in that.  The new versus old south battle is seen here in full force with the sheriff being confronted by his illegitimate half- black son. The inability for the sheriff to make things right with his son is symbolic for the new south not being able to make peace with its past.

Jean-ah Poquelin was a bit hard to understand. I liked the main plot but had problems getting past the French.  The way that the story was set up was interesting and the plight of Jean makes you want to sympathize with him. I also liked the twist of the brother, I would never in a million year have expected him to have leprosy but the fact that Jean takes care of him makes me like him more. The ending of the story was sad and it shows that the old south just can’t win against the new south and that if you can't progress and change with the times, you die.