46 pages • 1 hour read
Voyage In The Dark
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Symbols & Motifs
Walls
In the novel, Anna speaks of walls that are “unclimbable” (126),placing her, in her own mind, as an outsider. She is Other, and she feels this alienation from those that have little or no understanding of her situation, such as Hester, whose Britishness is injurious to Anna, or Vincent, whose male privilege places Walter and his agenda ahead of any real concern for her.
These walls also represent ways in which Anna is confined. Her loss of stability financially, emotionally and mentally leads her to be imprisoned in her own grief and depression. Even when she tries to leave her unfavorable situation with Ethel, she is unable to make a plan, and remains stuck in her sadness, the literal walls of her room, with the curtains pulled tight, made to a makeshift prison.
Youth and Aging
Most characters are bound to the circumstances that their age brings. Further, there no such age that is perfect in the novel; every era of life comes with its own set of difficulties. With Anna, her young age is held against her as she is thought to be naïve, when, in actuality, her skills of observation are highly astute and mature. Vincent references her as “Infant” while Walter calls her a “child” despite the fact that she is old enough to have sex with her.
For the women in the novel, age can be a curse if not properly prepared for. Laurie saves for the uncertainty of the future from the money she receives from men in the present. Maudie attempts to secure a husband before it is too late. Ultimately, this pressure is created by the male-dominated society and patriarchal systems that make women feel that they are disposable. For instance, Walter refers to Germaine as “old for a woman” and that “she’ll be blowsy” (75) or unattractive in a year. When Vincent visits Anna, he notices Laurie’s picture, and although he calls her pretty, he remarks that she is “hard” (148) and that most women become like that. Ethel functions as an example of a woman seemingly too old to attract the attention of a male suitor, and, for this, she is desperately trying to get her business up and running, knowing that it’s the only way that she can stable financially. She hopes that Anna will aid this cause by being able to bring in customers through her youth and beauty, both of which function as a commodity to be traded on by the younger women.
Money
Each major character in the book has a significant relationship with money. Anna’s relationship with Hester sours on the basis of money. Her Uncle Bo cannot provide money to pay for half of Anna’s voyage because he is angry at Hester for cheating Anna out of her inheritance. Walter provides Anna an exit that relieves him of her by offering her money. Vincent’s quarrel with Germaine is because he does not leave her sufficient money before his voyage. Maudie borrows money from Anna to impress an engineer she wishes to marry. Ethel attempts a manicure business and brings Anna onboard as she assumes that a young girl can help her create money by enticing male customers.
Money is a silent yet massive influence for the plot as it dictates the lives of the characters and without it, there is no story and, arguably, no tragedy. As Anna states: “The ones without any money, the ones with beastly lives. Perhaps I’m going to be one of the ones with beastly lives” (23).
It is also important to note that Voyage in the Dark was inspired by events in Jean Rhys’s own life, and the character of Walter appears to be based on her ex-lover, a financier named Lancelot Grey Hugh Smith who after dropping their relationship in less than two years, also gave her an occasional allowance and even paid for her abortion when she became pregnant by another man.
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