Return To Babylon – Analysis Essay, Research Paper
" He
would come back some day; they couldn’t make him pay forever. But he wanted his
child, and nothing was much good now, beside that fact. He wasn’t young any
more, with a lot of nice thoughts and dreams to have by himself. He was
absolutely sure Helen wouldn’t have wanted him to be so alone."The final
paragraph in the story shows how much Charlie loved his daughter, and how much
he needs her to complete his life. I feel that in "Babylon Revisited"
Charlie was treated unfairly and should have won the custody of Honoria.
Charlie’s regret of how he lived in the past is proved repeatedly throughout
the story and even with the hardship of losing his wife and daughter, Charlie
was still able to put his life back together. The mistakes he made in the past
were not all his fault; there was a problem in the stock market that put a
heavy burden on his shoulders. He has done more than enough to show Marion that
he has changed and is capable of taking care of Honoria. However, the story may
also be a bit biased considering that the narrator may not be a reliable
person. There are also certain situations in the story, which questions
Charlie’s sincerity about how much he has changed. I think
that Charlie’s love for Honoria is the biggest reason for him to regain her
custody. Throughout the story, Charlie has expressed how much he loves Honoria
and how much he needs her in his life. Honoria also expresses how much she
loves her father and how much she misses him. She tells her father more than
once that she would rather live with him than with her Aunt Marion. To separate
a father and daughter from each other is both devastating and cruel. It is hard
to understand why Marion would not let Charlie have Honoria, when Honoria
expresses so much love for her father. "From
behind the maid who opened the door darted a lovely little girl of nine who
shrieked ‘Daddy!’ and flew up, struggling like a fish, into his arms. She
pulled his head around by one ear and set her cheek against his. ‘My old
pie,’ he said ‘Oh,
daddy, daddy, daddy, dads, dads, dads!’The
narrator does not hesitate to show how much Honoria and Charlie care for each
other. Though Honoria was just a little girl, growing up without a father is
still harsh. Still her love for Charlie is unconditional, and questions about
the past are not brought up. Their strong relationship is almost invincible,
and though love cannot always keep a family together, it is a start. Marion
does see how much love is between Honoria and her father, and seems to be
bitter about it. I think that she wanted Honoria to be as hateful to Charlie as
she was. Still living in the past, Marion just does not want to forgive Charlie
for what he did to her sister"I
try to think what she would have wanted me to do. Frankly, from the night you
did that terrible thing you haven’t really existed for me. I can’t help that.
She was my sister."However, I
also try to sympathize with Marion, she did loose her sister and is trying to
do what is right for Honoria. Though Charlie does love Honoria, he still might
not be responsible enough to take care of her. I think that Marion just does
not want Charlie to make the same mistake again and bring Honoria down with
him. Every day
Charlie has regretted his past and everyday he tries to redeem himself by
working hard. However, as I look at the situation he was in, I notice that his
actions were not all his fault. Stress from the crash in the market had a big
role on his heavy drinking. There were many people that were affected during
this depression, and Charlie was just one of them. He explains in the story how
he gave Helen full guardianship because he was in such a rut due to the market.
Everything just seemed to hit him all at once and he dealt with it in a way
many people might have. ".When
I consented to the guardianship, I was flat on my back in a sanitarium and the
market had cleaned me out. I knew I’d acted badly, and I thought if it would
bring any peace to Helen, I’d agree to anything. But now it’s different. I’m
functioning, I’m behaving damn well."Looking at
what Charlie has done in the past to make things right, I see a big
improvement. He basically lost everything important to him, his wife, daughter,
and his lifestyle. What I admire about him most, is how he learned from his
mistakes and instead of feeling sorry for himself he got back on his feet and
started making changes. He used Honoria as his motivation to put what was left
of his life back together. He has been sober for over a year, and has plenty of
money to support Honoria. Charlie understands that he messed up and I think
admitting that was a big step to take. ".It
would be silly for me to deny that about three years ago I was acting badly.
but that’s over. As I told you, I haven’t had more than a drink a day for over
a year, and I take that drink deliberately so that the idea of alcohol won’t
get too big in my imagination. You see the idea?"I still do
not get the full concept of his one drink a day stunt. I understand that he
does it to show his control, but I still think that it would be a better idea
if he did not drink at all. This is the only concern I have about Charlie’s
responsibility. But as I looked at the situation closer, I became more
confident that Charlie would not start drinking again. I noticed that when
Charlie found out that he was not going to get Honoria back, he still did not
drink anymore than his daily whisky. If he did not break down during his lowest
moment, why would he start drinking at his highest? It would not make any sense
to ruin everything that he had worked so hard for. I think
that the story shows how much Charlie has done to win back his daughter. The
narrator did an excellent job of showing the strengths Charlie has and giving
excuses to his weaknesses. The way the narrator makes Charlie seem as though he
does not miss his past, is a bit sneaky. The scenes where Charlie visited the
old bars and pubs seemed at first a bit confusing. Why did he go back to those
places? Shouldn’t he be trying to forget them? However, as I re read the story
I notice how the narrator makes it seem that Charlie was just curious how the
place was like without being drunk."He
left soon after dinner, but not to go home. He was curious to see Paris by
night with clearer and more judicious eyes than those of other days." The
narrator also makes Charlie seem as though he regrets what had happened in this
city. ".I
spoiled this city for myself. I didn’t realize it, but the days came alone one
after another, and then two years were gone, and everything was gone, and I was
gone."It made me
wonder how trust worthy the narrator was. As I
analyzed both sides of the argument, I still feel as though Charlie deserved
his daughter. The fact that the narrator might be unreliable is not a good
enough reason for me to believe that Charlie is not responsible enough. I think
that we have to give the narrator a certain amount of trust because he is the
one telling the story and we have no other sources to compare with. If the
narrator cannot be considered reliable then the story itself should not be
trustworthy enough to read. So we must deal with the facts that are given to us
and base most of the decisions on them. With this in mind I look at the
situation evenly and try not to fully believe the narrator but still consider
what he is saying. I understand that Charlie made a big mistake and hurt not
only himself, but those that loved him. There is no excuse for what he did.
However, I still believe that the strong bond that is between Honoria and
Charlie is unbreakable. Being raised in a family where the strength of love has
endured all types of hardships, I have experienced that nothing could ever
sever those connections. Loving someone does not mean that Honoria or Marion should
try to forget the mistakes Charlie had made or the heartaches he has given
them. But instead, to love someone is to learn how to understand and most
importantly to forgive.?