Epiphany Literary Definition : Odour of Chrysanthemums and Shiloh

An Epiphany is a literary term that can be applied to Elizabeth Bates in "Odour of Chrysanthemums" when she realizes her husband has died. And to Leroy Moffitt in "Shiloh" when he understands that he needs to change in order to save his marriage. Both characters had an epiphany that would have meant a great change in there lives if it happened for them earlier.

The term epiphany seems to have many meanings and uses, but of coarse the literary definition is the most appropriate for the discussion of these short stories. One of the course texts describes an epiphany as a "standard term for the description, frequent in modern poetry and prose fiction, of the sudden flare into revelation of an ordinary object or scene" (Abrams 81). Simply put, an epiphany is a sudden understanding, realization or insight which, before revealed, was not thought of or understood. The term in this sense was first introduced in literature by the author James Joyce.

Elizabeth "had never seen him, he had never seen her, they had met in the dark and had fought in the dark, not knowing whom they met nor whom they fought" (Lawrence 148). She had never really known her own husband; perhaps she incorrectly assumed that marriage implied a special connection between husband and wife. Whatever the belief, this realization combined with her husband's, death leads to a sense of loneliness which is the most unique aspect of the story.

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Elizabeth didn't feel remorse about the relationship between herself and her husband; she was ashamed that it could go on with her not seeing that "There had been nothing between them" (Lawrence 148). Her mother-in-law took the death quite a bit harder then she did. Elizabeth forced herself to "weep and behave as her mother-in-law expected" (Lawrence 148). It wasn't until confronted with the brute fact of her husband's body in the parlor does she experience her epiphany. She realizes that the two of them had long ago rejected something deep within the other, and that they had lived utterly separate lives. Unfortunately this is all too late for her husband and there marriage. But at the end she is "grateful to death, which restored the truth" (Lawrence 148).

Leroy's wife Norma Jean finds her life and marriage bearable while he is traveling. But when he is injured and comes home to stay, the everyday reality of the marriage is more than she can handle. Leroy sits on the couch doing his little projects and smoking his dope, seeming content to just be a vegetable for the rest of his life. Norma tries to find Leroy a job in the classifieds but he shrugs that off. All the while he doesn't see Norma getting stronger and smarter, improving her life.

All he sees is a fairy tale future, his dream to build a cabin in the city and live happily ever after with Norma at his side. Leroy's big epiphany happens while on a picnic out at the Shiloh battlegrounds where Norma says, she is leaving him. He takes a moment to ponder that and "sees that building a log house is the dumbest idea he could have had" (Mason 160). He realizes that "the real inner workings of a marriage, like most of history, have escaped him" (Mason 160). But for Norma, this is far too late; she would rather jump from the bluff than live with Leroy.

The literary term epiphany applies to both of the main characters in these two stories very well. Both of them had the sudden realization that either there life should have changed before they had lived not knowing there partner; or spending more time on a marriage then smoking dope and making Star Trek pillows. Unfortunately these understandings only came to Elizabeth after her husband's death and maybe if Leroy had has his epiphany just a day earlier he could have saved his marriage and prevented Norma's suicide.

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