Thursday, June 11, 2020

Symbolism in Astronomer's Wife

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In many short stories symbolism can play an immense part. For example in Kay Boyle's "Astronomer's Wife" one could find symbolism throughout the whole story. The difference between the husband and plumber is symbolized covertly at many different periods in the story. The figurative language used in "Astronomer's Wife," represents the depth of the main character's thirst to understand why her husband is acknowledged with such high regard but represents restraint, while a plumber is recognized with such low regard but is the perfect person to set her free.


"Astronomer's Wife" has three main characters Mr. Ames, Mrs. Ames, and the plumber. For some strange reason Mr. Ames is placed on a high pedestal, "Mr. Ames would never go down there alive. He likes going up," (5) is just one of the few examples that demonstrates how he likes to "be on top" of things, never below. Mr. Ames is perceived to be too good to succumb to any level beneath him. Truthfully, Mr. Ames is indigent, he is a grown man who should be handling the matters of his home, but instead he has his "youngish" wife deal with them. He would rather "…linger in bed, with the sun pouring yellow as wine all over the place."(5)


Mrs. Ames is use to having men look down on her but "when she looked down she saw that he [the plumber] was looking up into her face,…"(5) This symbolizes a new turn in her life; evidently her husband is always looking down upon her, but for once a man looked up at her. The plumber has no reason to look down upon her; he sees her as his equal. He and Mrs. Ames show each other her mutual respect and he gives each other the attention they deserve. Not only does he see her as his equal but she also sees him in the same way. Another symbol is their lifestyle, the plumber is nothing but a mere plumber and Mrs. Ames is nothing but a house wife. A plumber and a house wife are low occupations this allows them to start off at the same level. Mrs. Ames listens to him when he speaks; she understands what he is talking about. The narrator states "This was speech that touched her flesh and bone and made her wonder. When her husband spoke of height, having no sense of it, she could not picture it nor hear."(5) After listening to the plumber speak, "She sat down on the grasses, bewildered that it should be a man who had spoken to her so."(5)


For a woman to allow her husband to sleep all day and to speak softly around men, she must have a feeling of detestation for herself. It seems her husband has such high regards for himself, she has the same regard but for the plumber. "…he went down the trap. Mrs. Ames saw a bright little piece of his hair still shinning, like a star, long after the rest of him had gone."(5) Long after the plumber went down the trap she still pictured his hair like a star; a star that is from up above. Stars are found at the highest place and this symbolizes her personal view on him. She refers him to a star, sees him at a high place event though a plumber is looked down upon.


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At one point the narrator states that "Life, life is an open sea, she sought to explain it in sorrow, and to survive women cling to the floating debris on the tide."(5) What does this mean? Symbolically, Mrs. Ames's life is an "open sea" and her husband is the "water" that is weighing her down, but luckily the plumber is the "debris" holding her afloat. As a young lady, she has been deprived of living her life; she possibly lives her life according to her husband's. The plumber is an awakening call for her; he allowed her to feel something she has never felt before and that is why she is so intrigued by him. The plumber is bringing her back to life; he is also showing her that not all men are like her husband. In the beginning of the story, we detect that she is young, probably younger than her husband. It is possible that her husband is the only man she has ever been with and that is why the plumber comes to her as such a shock.


Mrs. Ames more than likely never placed her husband on a high pedestal, but she probably is scared of him. She probably never realized that her husband is taking advantage of her. Just by having her handle the matters of the house shows this. Occupations are real important Mrs. Ames compared to the plumber demonstrates Mr. Ames being in a higher position in reality. Not to Mrs. Ames in her eyes that usual stereotype has been inversed. The plumber symbolizes the light brought into her life. She may not leave her husband but hopefully there will be a drastic change in their relationship.



Work Cited



Boyle, Kay. "Astronomer's Wife." Literature Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Ed.


Robert DiYanni. 5th ed. NY, NY, 00. 57-60.


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