Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides - Epic Portrait of America in the Twentieth Century Free Essay Example, 1500 words

It is evident that the overall goal of the novel Middlesex of Pulitzer Prize-winning, Jeffrey Eugenides is painting a picture of American life and the decisions of one particular family in history. Eugenides takes the reader through the minds of each family member, allowing them a peek inside the windows into their souls. He begins with the grandmother, Desdemona, and her escape from her Greek island home and how she first fell in love with her brother lefty. Through the eyes of Desdemona, the reader can begin to understand the reasoning behind her incestuous relationship with her brother Lefty. He makes it easy for the reader to understand why the family members decide to do the things that they do, and why they have made specific decisions because the reader is allowed to see the reasoning behind it. For instance, Eugenides shows the significance and emotional meaningfulness of the silkworm box and how it brought the grandmother memories of her homeland and her first memories of love and growing up. This box stays with Desdemona her entire life, even after all the silkworms have died. We will write a custom essay sample on Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides - Epic Portrait of America in the Twentieth Century or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Cal describes the box at the end of the novel as, "The box was now so stuffed with mementos it wouldn't shut. Inside were snapshots, old letters, precious buttons, worry beads" (Eugenides). Cal goes on to say that even though he cannot see to the bottom of the box, he is sure that the clippings of Lefty's hair and Desdemona's wedding dress are in the box as well. What this silkworm box probably does not contain are references to the many different jobs that a family has had in attempts to stay afloat and to make a place for themselves in American society. If the box could speak it would tell of how eve Desdemona herself was once forced to go to work in an attempt to make money for her family. How she was willing to sacrifice her precious silkworms in order to survive. It also wouldn't tell of Lefty's desperate resorts for money and how he used to traffic alcohol during prohibitions and how he "begins to traffic secretly in the bodies of women, collaborating on nude photos for a steady side income (Eugenides).