Paper One: “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber”

    “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” by Ernest Hemmingway brings out several aspects of psychoanalysis in an exciting way. Through the analysis of this story it would be deemed easy to have the want to apply many different and complex psychoanalytic theories to the same characters along with the progression of the story. The foundation of the constant back and forth between these theories is caused by the very close yet dynamic relationships held and how the actual story transforms.

    Initially one could want to support Francis Macomber and give him the defense of denial based on the quote “He was very wealthy, and would be much wealthier and knew she would not leave him ever now” (Hemmingway 11). Along with associating and comparing defenses with Francis one could do the same with the core issue of “fear of abandonment”. This idea would eventually solidify during the back and forth arguing when Francis woke up in the middle of the night and Margot was just walking inside the tent claiming to have gone “out to get a breath of air” (Hemmingway 12). As for the analysis of Margot Macomber, she possessed the same defense of denial to justify her core issue which was supported by the quote “Margot was too beautiful for Macomber to divorce her and Macomber had too much money for Margot ever to leave him’’(Hemmingway 11). This quote directly portrays the assurance that the couple tends to give each other as support for staying married.

    The core issue where Mrs. Macomber was identical to her husband, “fear of abandonment”, was supported by the quote “His wife had been a great beauty and she was still a great beauty in Africa, but she was not a great enough beauty any more at home to able to leave him and better herself and she knew it” (Hemmingway 11). Additionally, observations pertaining to the quotes showed reciprocal characteristics, for each and could equally support both of the characters.

    As the story developed and the plot began to change, that’s when one could begin to apply several differentiating psychoanalytic theories to each of the characters. One can see the completely different sides of Francis and Margot unraveling along as the plot continued. This was particularly interesting because the changes within the story affected dynamics which should have stayed constant.

    It is possible that one could compare a bed with the story and how we would normally analyze it.  A bed naturally has layers, whether it is the stretchy sheet, regular sheet and then the comforter. The bed would be synonymous with the story/analysis because when we read, it’s for the most part the comforter level. Furthermore one would try to go deeper or for themes sake, to the next layer. This idea isn’t only exclusive to this story because when analyzing one has to understand the top layer to interpret the next, but this story is different. When the top layer, or plot, begins to change the entire 2nd and 3rd layer, or analysis, changes regardless if it’s a drastic or subtle change. When one begins to observe the story in this way it begins to become even more unique and interesting.

     To support this bizarre comparison, identification of the moment the story took a twist is crucial; and that was when Francis’ cowardly attitude switched to a courageous one. By this time, for Francis, the core issue “fear of abandonment” changed to “Insecure or unstable sense of self”. According to Tyson “this core issue makes us very vulnerable to the influence for-good or ill-of other people, and we may have a tendency to repeatedly change the way we look or behave as we become involved with different individuals or groups”(27). This was true with Francis’ change from his coward like demeanor into a tough hunter. Moreover, Francis was “vulnerable to the influence for good of the other people” (Tyson 27) and that influential individual was Wilson. The quote in support of Francis’ change was “you know I don’t think I’d ever be afraid of anything again” (Tyson 17).

    Lastly, the story’s plot change equally tweaked Margot’s core issue, which arguably, was the reason why most readers think she intentionally shot her husband. Prior to the buffalo scene Margot’s core issue was “fear of abandonment”. The changed in her core issue appeared the moment she shot her husband. Support for this is present when Wilson described Francis’s actions as “coming into age” as opposed to the situation with the lion and how frightened he was. Searching deeper, the quote “Macomber felt a wild unreasonable happiness that he had never known before” (Hemmingway 17) supports the justification for why she changed because while it was describes Francis, Margot sensed the same feelings and despised it. At this moment Margot knew that her condescending ways would not help Francis remain with her if he chose to leave.

Psychoanalytic Theories for "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber."

  “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber’’ wasn’t altogether short and happy. I would much rather call it “Short and Ended Happy Life of Francis Macomber” because it wasn’t until the end of the safari and end of his last moments that you really felt how elated and excited he was. The main characters in the story were the aspiring sportsman Francis Macomber, his wife Margot Macomber and the safari hunter/guide, Robert Wilson. This story proved to be a difficult read, but I was able to associate some theories with Mr. and Mrs. Macomber.

    The husband, Francis Macomber, was a very difficult character to analyze more so than Mrs. Macomber. Francis was described very early on as a coward. What’s more, is that this description was very subtle and followed by how perfect of a man he was. Mr. Macomber was very wealthy, handsome, and smart but the author wasn’t so quick to say confident which struck me as odd because of man of that stature would probably possesses some sort of arrogance. As I re-read the story, that exclusion of confidence and arrogance guided me towards the defense Francis used to hide his core issue. I chose my defense first because it was easier to then locate the actual core issue.

  The irony is that I applied Tyson’s denial defense, in which Francis used exactly what he lacked, arrogance. I came to this conclusion through many points in the story but one quote stood out to me especially.  “He was very wealthy, and would be much wealthier and he knew she would not leave him ever now”(Hemmingway 11). This theme ran throughout page 10 and 11 but it wasn’t until later that I could pinpoint Francis’s core issue. His core issue in this particular situation would be the exact opposite of how he defended it. While I understood his defense, I gave Francis Tyson’s “fear of abandonment”. This thought was solidify during the back and forth arguing when Francis woke up in the middle of the night and Margot was just walking inside the tent claiming to have gone “out to get a breath of air” (Hemmingway 12).

  When I tried to analyze the wife, Margot Macomber I used similar methods. With Margot, just as I did for her husband, I found out that it appeared they shared the same defense of denial and in the very same instance. Margot also used arrogance as a way to defend her core issue. It was clear when she spoke so dismissive towards Francis when she questioned her that late night in the tent on page 13. For support’s sake the quote “Margot was too beautiful for Macomber to divorce her and Macomber had too much money for Margot ever to leave him’’(Hemmingway 11) showed how both husband and wife used denial to assure themselves of their relationship. Despite both Margot and Francis sharing Tyson’s defense, they didn’t share the same core issue. 

  With Margot I settled on Tyson’s core issue “low self esteem” although I felt that she possessed the same core issue as her husband. I chose “low self esteem” because the core issue was behind the stories drastic twist of her shooting her husband at the end. I supported this with the moment in the story when Robert Wilson described Francis’s actions as “coming into age” as opposed to the situation with the lion and how frightened he was. Francis changed and was injected with fearlessness when he shot the buffalo. The quote “Macomber felt a wild unreasonable happiness that he had never known before”(Hemmingway 17) was exactly what Margot sensed and hated. With Francis’s new sense of bravery, Margot had nothing to ridicule him with. The impression I received was that Margot’s self esteem was lowered because she felt she would have less leverage in the relationship and Francis would realize he didn’t need Margot after all. This made her act foolishly when she became “brave” and tried to shoot the buffalo, or so it seemed.

  As the story progressed, I noticed the psychoanalytic theories changing alongside the story. When Francis killed the buffalos he felt less like a coward, which made his fear of abandonment subside. Now with Margot, she noticed her husband’s bravery and that caused the arrogant, irreplaceable mindset to diminish.  

Psychoanalytic Theories for "Everyday Use"

The approach I took in analyzing Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use” was a simple one. While reading, I identified all the main characters. The next step was to read the entire story and try to focus on any “dysfunctional” or abnormal behavior, because then it’s possible to implement the psychological concepts from Tyson’s “Using concepts from Psycohoanalytic Theory”.  

The main characters in the passage are Maggie, Dee and Mama. Maggie and Dee are sisters with Dee being the oldest and Mama is who the story is told by. As I noticed the abnormal or “dysfunctional” behavior with Maggie and Dee, I realized that they were polar opposites. 

Maggie has the core issue of “insecure sense of self” which is actively defended by the avoidance defense mentioned by Tyson. Mama, as the narrator, helped me comprehend Maggie’s behavior thoroughly.  Early In the passage Mama says “Maggie will be nervous until after her sister goes: she will stand hopelessly in corners”, which to me is the first indication that avoidance is her tactic to cover her “insecure sense of self”. The next important observation that supports my theory is when Mama mentions how Maggie walks. Mama stated “That is the way my Maggie walks. She has been like this, chin on chest, eyes on ground, feet in shuffle.” The description clearly describes someone who insecure with their self or surroundings.

As I studied Dee, or Wangero, I realized how great the difference is between the sisters. As mentioned earlier, Maggie has an “insecure sense of self” and goes about handling the issue through avoidance. Now, while Dee has a similar core issue as well, she handles it differently. Dee’s core issue is “unstable sense of self”, which means she behaves or changes the way she looks when involved with different individuals. I recognized this when Mama called Dee and she replied “not Dee, Wangero Leewanika Kemanjo.” The response from Dee correlates with being “unable to sustain a sense of knowing ourselves” (Tyson27). 

Now that her core issue was found, my next step was answering the question, how does she cope with it? I was quick to identify Dee’s defense as displacement which is simply taking out her negative feelings on someone else.  Dee would say very harsh, mean things to Mama and especially Maggie. One example was when Dee said “Maggie’s brain is like and elephants” or even when she wrote to Mama “no matter where we choose to live, she will manage to come see us. But never bring friends.” This last quote solidified my evaluation of Dee’s core issue and Defense. Next, was to see if the sisters suffered together in any way.   

The connection between the two sisters and their behavior is shared through the experience of their previous house’s fire. The fire is what created both Maggie and Dee’s behavior and how they interact with each other and Mama. The sisters both use repression to attempt to subdue the experience, but use different defenses to cope with their core issues. This connection to a single experience made my psychoanalytic theories accurate because it’s often all people react differently to tragedies or negative experiences whether their family or not. 

About Me!

I’m a freshmen student from the Cayman Islands. I've been living in New York for over a year now and I’m currently in my second semester. I’m pursuing my Associate Degree in Business Management here at Bmcc. After, I hope to continue my studies at Baruch College with a concentration in Finance and Banking. My interests are music, movies, video games and sports, particularly skateboarding. My favorite genres of music range from Rap to Rock. I love foreign films and documentaries. My favorite video games are first person shooters and sports games. If I had to select items to survive with, music, Netflix, and my skateboard are the items I would choose. I’m looking forward to this class and I’m positive in the end I will expand my literary knowledge.