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A review by erinth
A Special Providence by Richard Yates
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
A Special Providence is about the danger of using dreams to sustain oneself. They escape us, don't come to fruition, and often depend on other people. This is a recurring theme across Yates' work. In Rev Road, the characters fledgingly sustain themselves (until their ultimate destruction) with their dream of moving to Europe. In Cold Spring Harbour and The Easter Parade 'love' or the family unit is the false idol and in Young Hearts Crying, it is Michael Davenport's feeling of his own grandiosity, a false assuredness in his talent.
Once again, we see alcohol employed by the characters as an antidote to life. Like their dreams, the booze allows them to slip into self-deception. 'Everything is going to be just fine!'
Hollowness of lives and social relations is a recurrent theme. Everything's phoney. Yes, the characters, the couples are dining and drinking together at table. But in Rev Road and YHC, characters are secretly admiring their guest's or host's partner instead of their own. In relationships that just 'happen', the ones in which you just go through the motions and wake up one day and ask 'How did I get here?', you cannot even trust your own partner.
Social life and life amongst others as a masquerade. Prentice becomes sorely aware of this during his time in the army in ASP. I don't know when exactly the point was in my own life that I first began to divine this. But I'm so thoroughly convinced of this fact that I can't bear to take part in any occasion (most) that feel like this – it's absolutely suffocating.
Once again, we see alcohol employed by the characters as an antidote to life. Like their dreams, the booze allows them to slip into self-deception. 'Everything is going to be just fine!'
Hollowness of lives and social relations is a recurrent theme. Everything's phoney. Yes, the characters, the couples are dining and drinking together at table. But in Rev Road and YHC, characters are secretly admiring their guest's or host's partner instead of their own. In relationships that just 'happen', the ones in which you just go through the motions and wake up one day and ask 'How did I get here?', you cannot even trust your own partner.
Social life and life amongst others as a masquerade. Prentice becomes sorely aware of this during his time in the army in ASP. I don't know when exactly the point was in my own life that I first began to divine this. But I'm so thoroughly convinced of this fact that I can't bear to take part in any occasion (most) that feel like this – it's absolutely suffocating.