Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit Blog #4

Chapter 4 of Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit feels like a major part of the story because Jeanette finally falls in love and goes against her upbringing. The fact that Jeanette is a lesbian is a good payoff from the buildup in previous chapters. Before, I didn’t know for sure if she was a lesbian, but the earlier chapters hinted at her being different and independent in her own way. I overall found Jeanette and Melanie’s relationship to be very wholesome and good so far, so I look forward to seeing what will happen in the future. Going back to the beginning of the chapter, I am getting used to the fantasy/dream parts of the book and how they connect to the story. The beginning of this chapter involved Jeanette dreaming about marriage to a man and how she is unsure if there are any good men in the world. It’s interesting to see how Winterson uses these dreams and fantasy stories to tie into the real world of Jeanette. Now that we have read a lot of the book, I am more comfortable understanding how Winterson writes and how I can better understand what is happening as well as any context. Overall, I enjoy reading about Jeanette and Melanie’s relationship but I am confident that something bad will happen later if and when the mother finds out. Since we talked about the Hero’s Journey and how this book can relate to it, I am sure that Jeanette will find trouble down the line and she will be tested in many ways.

I was a little confused about the fantasy story at the end of this chapter so I will focus on imagery for the next part of this post to try and figure it out as best I can. Like many of these other dreams and fantasies, I had to re-read them several times to understand them and also realize when they are beginning and ending, as this can sometimes be difficult to see. At the end of this chapter, Jeanette describes some kind of society that seems to be very old because she describes them as “always been this way… Getting old, dying, starting again. Not noticing” (Winterson, 195). Additionally, she describes it as a very cold place where people, especially women, are suffering and sleeping on straw. Throughout this short little fantasy story, she mentions how sometimes there are small “tremors” that shake their home and at the end, some rebels are invading. This makes it seem like she is talking about an old palace or institution where nothing changes and it feels like it will last forever. Meanwhile, some outside forces are making their way inside to harm them. I think that overall the imagery in this short story represents the church and religious way of life that Jeanette grew up in, and these rebellious forces are her own thoughts and feelings that are challenging that way of life. Jeanette’s homosexuality are the rebels storming the winter palace, and the winter palace represents the catholic and traditional lifestyle that has stayed the same for centuries.

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