Analysis
Joseph Conrad, in his book also addresses the issues of
Feminism during the Victorian ages. Through Winnie and her devotion for Mr.
Verloc Conrad portrayed “the perfect wife”. However, after Stevie is killed
Conrad portrays a different Winnie. Therefore, by portraying a Winnie that is
confused due to her new found “freedom”, led to Mr. Verloc’s death. The author
begins with “Mrs Verloc was a free woman”(The
Secret Agent, pg 214), this affirmative statement conveys to the reader the
“freedom” of Mrs. Verloc. The author
continues, “She had thrown open the window of the bedroom either with the
intention of screaming Murder! Help! or throwing herself out.”(The Secret Agent, pg 214). In those
times most women did not know what to do with their freedom. Furthermore, a
woman was never exactly ‘free’ from society because, society would judge her
from every move that she took. Thus this is confirmed “For she did not exactly
know what use to make of her freedom”(The
Secret Agent, pg 214). Because Winnie had always been caged throughout her
life, she would not have known what a woman would have done when she was free. The
repetition of the word “freedom” expresses the confusion and emphasizes on
Winnie’s newfound “freedom”.
Further Conrad with the help of contradictory statements conveys
the confusion created in Winnie’s head as to the steps she would take towards
this “freedom”. The author describes her confusion, as “her personality seemed
to have been torn into two pieces, whose mental operations, did not adjust
themselves very well to each other” (The
Secret Agent, pg 214). It always almost as if she had a personality
disorder due to her being unaware of which actions she would and could take. One
part of her wanted to flee, but another due to the devotion needed to stay, as
her husband was still present. The use of two different options helps the
reader to connect to the character, as the reader also goes through such a
process everyday. Further, in this setting the streets (for the first time) was
completely empty: “The street, silent and deserted from end to end, repelled
her by taking sides with that man who was so certain of his impunity”(The Secret Agent, pg 214), the
personification of the street also is a metaphor for the society. The society
“deserted” her, as no one would have helped her because of the male-dominant
society she was surrounded with. This view is confirmed in the next two lines:
“She was afraid to shout let no one should come. Obviously no one would come” (The Secret Agent, pg 214), the situation
was obvious because society had already “deserted” her. Her senses come back when
“her instinct of self-preservation recoiled from the depth”(The Secret Agent, pg 214). The use of personification portrays that due
to the confusion Winnie almost forgot of the outside world and thus when she
realizes that she will find no help, she her lost sense of control comes back
to her. The hyperbole “recoiled from the depth” puts forward the lost sense of
control that Winnie had and thus it went deep inside. And thus to free herself
she “dressed herself to go out into the street another way” (The Secret Agent, pg 214) by dressing
herself in complete black in order to make it obvious that she was mourning for
her little brother. The repetition of “she was a free woman” was as if she was
reassuring herself that was indeed “free”.
Winnie eventually gained her
consciousness, however because of the new found “freedom”, the thoughts she had
were quite drastic, which led to Winnie murdering her husband. The author implies
the sense of control that Winnie found in the line “She had commanded her wits
now, her vocal organs; she felt herself to be in an almost preternaturally
perfect control of every fibre of her body”(The
Secret Agent, pg 219). The control of “every fibre” showed that slowly she
gained a clearer idea of her intentions and actions. Furthermore,
“preternaturally perfect” and the description of “every fibre” signifies the
control she gained due to her freedom. A foreshadow of her actions is depicted
in “She did not wish that man to change his position on the sofa which was very
suitable to the circumstances.” (The Secret
Agent, pg 219) Therefore “she started at once, as if she were still a loyal
woman bound to that man by unbroken contract.” (The Secret Agent, pg 219) The “loyal woman” signifies a perfect
wife and “unbroken contract” is the metaphor for marriage. However, this line
underlines the irony in where Mr. Verloc broke the “contract”, but acts as if
she isn’t supposed to break it as she controlled her actions. And because of
this gathered up frustration, control and freedom Winnies murders Mr. Verloc.
In conclusion, the author conveys
the message of the treatment of women in the Victorian Age. Throughout the
scene Mr. Verloc is allowed to be frustrated however, Winnie is not. Even if
Mr. Verloc is wrong, he blames is on Winnie as she stitched the address on Stevie’s
shirt. (The Secret Agent, pg 216) Because
of the frustration Winnie gathered up the courage to murder Mr. Verloc because
she had nothing to lose. Whatever she had was already taken away from her. Thus,
Winnie felt as if she had no other choice but to seek justice from the person
who took away her life.
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