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Irony
Definition of Metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other. The comparison in a metaphor can be stated explicitly, as... read full definition
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other. The comparison in a metaphor... read full definition
A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two different things by saying that one thing is the other... read full definition
Chapter 18
Explanation and Analysis—My Religion:
In Chapter 18, Catherine uses a metaphor to compare Henry to religion:
You’re my religion. You’re all I’ve got.
Catherine is newly alone in the world following the death of her fiancée, and Henry finds her searching for balance and purpose. As a result, Henry becomes someone to which she devotes herself and in which she believes. Because her fiancée was killed in a battle, she shares Henry’s indifference and even frustration toward the war. God has never been on her side, and she is certainly not Catholic, so organized religion is not her method of community and peace. Henry becomes her replacement for all things religious. He is the one thing that she lives for—otherwise, she might crumble under her own grief.
It is ironic, though, for Henry to serve as Catherine’s religion when he himself is so opposed to loving God. Henry even tells the priest that he is "afraid of Him in the night sometimes" and that he does not love God. The only thing for which Henry turns to religion is Catherine's fatal condition after delivering a stillborn baby in Chapter 41:
God please make her not die. I'll do anything you say if you don't let her die. You took the baby but don't let her die. That was all right but don't let her die. Please, please, dear God, don't let her die.
Here, Henry embodies the religion that he represents for Catherine. Unfortunately, his desperation and prayers to God in this moment are not enough to save Catherine in the end.
Related Themes:
Chapter 41
Explanation and Analysis—My Religion:
In Chapter 18, Catherine uses a metaphor to compare Henry to religion:
You’re my religion. You’re all I’ve got.
Catherine is newly alone in the world following the death of her fiancée, and Henry finds her searching for balance and purpose. As a result, Henry becomes someone to which she devotes herself and in which she believes. Because her fiancée was killed in a battle, she shares Henry’s indifference and even frustration toward the war. God has never been on her side, and she is certainly not Catholic, so organized religion is not her method of community and peace. Henry becomes her replacement for all things religious. He is the one thing that she lives for—otherwise, she might crumble under her own grief.
It is ironic, though, for Henry to serve as Catherine’s religion when he himself is so opposed to loving God. Henry even tells the priest that he is "afraid of Him in the night sometimes" and that he does not love God. The only thing for which Henry turns to religion is Catherine's fatal condition after delivering a stillborn baby in Chapter 41:
God please make her not die. I'll do anything you say if you don't let her die. You took the baby but don't let her die. That was all right but don't let her die. Please, please, dear God, don't let her die.
Here, Henry embodies the religion that he represents for Catherine. Unfortunately, his desperation and prayers to God in this moment are not enough to save Catherine in the end.
Related Themes:
