Some people believe that a character who talks to herself would be perceived as crazy (never mind that actors talk to themselves all the time). I’ve been told that at least twice about my current novel, Circle of Fire. "The people around her would notice," they say. "The servants wouldn’t be reacting that way to her."
And maybe they’re right. In the course of re-evaluating this character, I received a suggestion from my SO. Re-read Death of a Salesman and pay special attention to the Willy Loman parts. If crazy is what I want for my character, then I should take a page from Willy’s book. The character constantly contradicts himself, believing one thing one moment, and a completely opposite thing the next.
For those who haven’t read or seen Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, Willy Loman is a rather pathetic specimen of humanity trapped in a changing world that he cannot influence and does not understand. His job, that of a traveling salesman, is no longer relevant, and neither is he. So this morning, I started reading the play again (the first time in a few decades) and came to the conclusion that Willy’s insanity is evident in the first few pages. But the SO disagrees. He comes from a culture where the flexibility of contradictory thinking is a normal thing. In fact, he had to have it pointed out to him that Willy is insane.
Now, here I have a character in a position of power, being driven insane by an external influence, and I have to write her in such a way to keep the rest of the characters in the book from locking her up or thinking she’s completely pyscho. (She’s not violent. She just talks to something that no one else can hear). Historically speaking, there are a lot of people in positions of power who kept their power even after showing signs of insanity. King George III comes to mind, as well as the Roman Emperor Caligula (though he was assassinated). So precedence is on my side, but it’s lazy writing and a poor excuse for any writer to use.
"It really happened that way" doesn’t fly if you can’t make your readers believe that it happened in the world you have created for them. I hate it when people use that excuse with me. I refuse to use it in my own work.
I guess this means I need to spend some time in Willy’s head and learn how sane crazy can be. In the meantime, can someone please tell me, "How can they whip cheese?"
