Oskar, the Drum and the Nazi Party (Analysis on the Symbolisms on Gunter Grass The Tin Drum)
The highlight of the story is about the symbolism of the tin drum which he received during his childhood. This tin drum serves as the hope and luck of Oskar in his greatest battle in life (Grass, p. 25). Likewise, it does not only reflect Oskars queer life but also it successfully portrays some political and economic implications in the society from 1900 through World War II. This tin drum serves as the concrete representation for the rejection of Oskar to adulthood, his awakening to society s abuse to moral obligations such as destruction, sexual exploration and many other social issues.
The story also features important people around Oskar such as Agnes, Jan, Alfred, Maria and others who influence him in many aspects of his life.
Though it was considered to be blasphemous and pornographic by many critics which put Gunter Grass to a lot of criticisms and trials, The Tin Drum became recognized as a classic of post-World War II not only in Germany but also in most parts of the world.
The tin drum as Oskars talisman and its symbolisms
The tin drum has a significant contribution to the development of the themes of the story. This concrete object portrays a lot of symbolisms to the characterization of this work of art.
First, the tin drum is a representation of Oskars rejection to adulthood. As the common toy of the child, tin drum represents the desire of Oskar not to face adulthood and to remain in the innocence of a child. Because he does not like to be put into the chaos brought about by the society, he decided to stop growing at the age of three.
Second, the tin drum also symbolizes Oskars refusal to immorality and unfaithfulness. This was characterized when he threw his tin drum because of his anger. This means that he also came to the point of realizing that he is emulating bad things from his mother. It is because of the affairs of Agnes to more than one man that is why Oskar also tries to toy with the girl who was hired to take care of him. In the later part, the girl becomes the wife of his father but he believes that the baby of the girl is not form his father Alfred but from his own flesh and blood.
Next, the tin drum likewise serves as the talisman of Oskar which, in the later part of the story, gave him luck to become rich and famous (Grass, p. 25). It is through his tin drum where he was discovered in terms of music. Through this, he earned more money and he became rich. Hence, it can be regarded that the tin drum serves as the luck and hope of Oskar during his greatest battle in life and during when all things seem to go against him.
Furthermore, Oskars tin drum also serves as the outlet to beat out his rebellious urges to society. One of the manifestations of this claim is when Oskar hid beneath the bleachers at a Nazi rally. Oskars playing leads the band into a waltz production instead of the German hymn in which they are supposed to perform. This clearly shows his rebellion against the German society since he was indulged to the ills of the society at his very young age.
Symbolism on the rejection to adulthood, drumming and screaming
Oskars rejection to adulthood and his drumming and screaming are associated to the negative effects of Nazism which include immorality, destruction and stunted development during the World War II.
When he was three years old, Oskar decided not to become a grown up anymore which means not to grow any taller or to develop physically since he was already satisfied with his intellectual superiority (Grass, p.60). This decision made by Oskar in his life is greatly associated to his dismay to the German society during that time. The people in this era were in great chaos in terms of peace and security, philosophy and economics because of the clashing ideologies during the reign of the Nazi party.
Oskars characterization being a gnome, likewise, symbolizes the stunted growth of the society during the World War II. It is indeed that war causes great delay to the development of the society not only in the physical form but also to the economic, political and moral aspects of the society.
Furthermore, this portrayal of Oskar is largely paralleled to the dominating immorality that was happening to the society during that time. Agnes, Oskars mother, had an intimate sexual relationship with Jan Bronski eventhough she was married to Alfred Matzerath. What is more intriguing with the relationship of the two is that Agnes is a cousin of Jan. This scenario has created confusion about the real father of Oskar. Alfred is the legal husband but Agnes had also an affair with Jan.
Another immorality in the story is the conflicting love affair among Alfred, Maria and Oskar. When Agnes died, Alfred hired a girl named Maria Truczinski to help run the store. Nevertheless, this girl became a significant person in the life of Oskar as she was the girl whom Oskar has the first sexual experience. Maria married Alfred and became pregnant. But just like the issue on the identity of Oskar, the question about the real father of that child lies to the hands of Alfred and Oskar. Alfred believes that he is the father of the child. Oskar has also the same belief as of his father Alfred. In this love and sexual affairs, a real mirror of immorality is clearly characterized.
However, though Agnes is portrayed to be a disloyal and unfaithful wife, justice was served at the end of the story. Agnes guilt over her affair to two men eventually drives her to commit suicide. But her sacrifice does not make much sense as such Alfred, her husband, is also portrayed to be unfaithful which was seen in his characterization as not a loyal Nazi.
The affair of Agnes to more than one man, furthermore, has a very significant effect to the sexual drive of Oskar. He tries to emulate his mothers sexuality by toying with the peasant named Maria who has been hired to take care of him and the store. But in the later part of the story, it came to his mind that his father has already encouraged the girl to sleep with him in the bed. This is thus the reason why Maria was forced to marry Alfred when she became pregnant.
Oskars desire to return to his mothers womb
Oskar only opts to stay out of the womb of his mother because of the promise of a tin drum on his third birthday (Grass, p. 215). Nevertheless, it is also on his third birthday when he decided to stop growing as a revolution to the unseemly behavior of the adults around him.
Looking deeply at the embedded symbolism on this scenario, it can be clearly reflected the dismay and frustration of Oskar to the systems in the society that is why he chose to remain a child forever and not to become a grownup anymore. Hence, Oskar desire to go back to his mothers womb can be regarded as a form of his escape to the problems to the society. Oskar believes that he will not be affected by the conflicts in the society if he remains as a child. Nevertheless, his innocence as a child never excuses him to taste the bitterness of life.
Symbolism on art and war
Oskars art and music play significant roles in the perfect portrayal of the World War II. Through the characterization of Oskar, it was portrayed that art has the ability to defeat hatred, guilt and war. It is through his musical talent that is why Oskar managed to escape from fighting. It is also by playing his drum when Oskar managed to disrupt the activities of the Nazi party. The music from the tin drum seems to be disruptive and not a moral force against the Nazi party (Grass, p. 144).
Likewise, symbolism on the natural ability of Oskar to break glass by the power of his scream has a lot of symbolisms in the story. First, Oskars powerful scream is somehow believed to be the embodiment of Kristsallnacht in which the night of the broken glass signaled the aggression of the Nazi Party (Grass 120). Second, his terrible scream is likewise associated to his angst and anguish about the ills of the society during the time wherein there was a clash between ideologies and philosophies. His screaming voice is more of his unmasked anguish to the problems of the society.
Death as one of the central themes
Death is indeed dominating in the plot of the story. Agnes committed suicide because of her guilt to her love affair to her cousin Jan Bronski. Jan was killed by German soldiers during a resistance stand by Polish citizen. Alfred choked and died when he swallowed his Nazi pin because he was afraid to be caught by the enemies.
The death of these main characters in the story symbolizes the situation and condition of the people during the war. The death portrayed in the story does not merely refer to the physical death of the characters but it is more than that. This death is also associated to the death of the society in terms of morality, economics, politics, philosophy and the like. It is because during the war, the people seem to die due to the constraints and dilemma brought by the clash between powers and authorities.
Conclusion
There are indeed a lot of symbolisms and representations in this work of art of Gunter Grass. Nevertheless, all of them refer only to unifying elements in the society during the World War II immorality, destruction and stunted development. These are perfectly portrayed through the characterizations and descriptions of Oskar, the tin drum, the Nazi party and other main characters in the story.
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