"I must write. If I stop writing my life will have been an abject failure. It is that already to other people. But it could not be an abject failure to myself. I will not have earned death." Jean Rhys, 1954 Jean Rhys is the author of many short stories and novels, of which perhaps Wide Sargasso Sea is best known. Rhys is known as a modernist writer, writing throughout the twentieth century, and is often …
showed first 75 words of 930 total

showed last 75 words of 930 total
…terature. Especially in Wide Sargasso Sea, she shows that "the other" can become central and essential part of literature. By taking what has been written, ignoring the existing guidelines and structures, and creating her own rules of language and format, she has been able to make what could be a victim, into a powerful character. Obviously, despite her self-deprecating comments about herself and her life, Rhys is not a failure, and earned a well-deserved death.