Insanity in Wide Sargasso Sea Paragraph

Characters within the novel are not inherently mad but instead, they are driven to madness through a range of traumatic events and the propagation of hegemonic and patriarchal attitudes. Annette's descent into madness was driven by situational factors instead of a result of her disposition. The traumatic experiences Annette faces such as the fire at Coulibri which causes the death of her son placed her in a vulnerable state. From this state she was driven to madness as Christophine explains, "They drive her to it. When she lose her son she lose herself for a while and they shut her away. They tell her she is mad, they act like she is mad. " Antoinette experiences a journey into madness similar to that of her mother's. In the beginning of the novel, Antoinette's childhood shows the reader that while she may have had a troubled upbringing, she was in no was "mad". However, after her marriage to Edward Rochester Antoinette is driven insane by a period of long term exposure to her husband's patriarchal and hegemonic influence. As a result of Rochester's oppressive behaviour, Antoinette is stripped of her identity and driven to her eventual breaking point. In Part Three of the novel, the compromised nature of Antoinette's mental state becomes revealed to the reader as Rochester's treatment and abuse has finally driven her to true madness.