"Hear" others and know yourself
May 16, 2015
Peking University, May 16, 2015: The first time I read The Enormous Radio written by John Cheever, I was reminded of a movie named Rear Window. Rear Window is about an injured journalist, who could go nowhere but stayed at his home and happened to “see” his neighbors’ life through the rear window of his house. “The enormous radio”, just as Jim said, “It’s like looking in windows”, is very much like that “rear window”, which offers us a chance and perspective to hear or see others’ lives.
What’s more, I think，in a sense, “the enormous radio” vividly represents the essence of art and Irene’s interaction with the “radio” is an emblem of human’s process of art appreciation. Just as art is like a “window” and a “mirror”, in which men can see others as well as see themselves, so is “the enormous radio”.
To some extent, art is originated from men’s psychological needs of seeing other people and knowing themselves. Therefore, the essence of art can be perceived as the self-fulfillment of human subjectivity. Radio is used to listen to radio programs for different forms of art--- music, play and opera, etc. Here “the enormous radio” is more than a passive medium of artistic forms; it can tell real life of human beings directly, which is the essential part of art. This can be proved by a detail that is Irene’s changed attitude to “Missouri Waltz”. Throughout the story, “Missouri Waltz” appeared three times in total. The first time is that, after being fixed, the radio played a recording of the “Missouri Waltz”, whose melody brought great satisfaction and enjoyment to Irene. The second time is when Irene was trying the radio after breakfast, she heard the record of “Missouri Waltz” again but at once “shifted the control and invaded the privacy of several breakfast tables”. At that time, Irene has become eager to know other people’s private life. Obviously, Irene showed more interests in knowing other people’s life than in simply listening to pure melody. The third time is when a woman, whose life has been overheard by Irene, was humming the “Missouri Waltz” in the elevator of Irene’s apartment house. The form of art, melody of music met its subject, the related people in reality. Then we can conclude that art is about human beings as it’s for human beings and what you see through that “window” or in that “mirror” of art is all derived from the reality. The materials broadcasted by the radio were all coming from real people and real events. Men would enjoy the beauty of the forms of art; but the “human” part, which can be hidden behind the forms of art, is always the necessary staple of art as well as the most attractive part for men.
In a process of tasting art there are four basic steps: excitement and eagerness to see others’ life; making connections between the fiction and reality; reflection of our own life; knowing ourselves. In the story, Irene has almost gone through all these steps in her interaction with the “radio”.
Through the “window” of art, men can “see” others. From the radio, Irene could hear others. At first, Irene felt “uneasy” with that radio. Then Irene felt very strange, as she happened to hear the voice of other people from the radio. When Irene recognized the voice of people she knew, she cried and feared that “Maybe they can hear us”. However, when Irene and Jim made sure that they could hear others’ secrets without being discovered behind the radio, they were listening to the radio till “the midnight, weak with laughter”. In this sense, the radio just plays the role of the “window” of art, which allows people to break through many constraints in reality to see others freely. And thanks to the radio, Irene and Jim’s “pry desire” were satisfied to a great extent.
In the “mirror” of art, men can “see” themselves. From that radio, Irene could know herself. Irene overheard too many “demonstrations of indigestion and despair” from people around her, which astonished and troubled her. However, she couldn’t stop but “continued to listen”. Gradually, Irene started to make connections between what she heard with what she saw and knew. It’s the same as we resonate with the characters and themes when reading a story. It’s a sense of familiarity and relevance. Irene tried once to stop a family conflict but failed. Then she found that “Life is too terrible, too sordid and awful” and she could do nothing in real life but just looked up in the sky for solace and relief. Finally, she began to question and reflect on her own life. Though there is no direct description of Irene’s knowing of herself, we can guess at least Irene would have a better insight into herself and life through her own reflection and catharsis.
So far, we have gone through a complete process of art appreciation, which goes from men’s seeing or hearing others to the knowing of themselves. And once men know themselves, they realize their subjectivity of human beings.
Written by: Wang Qian
Edited by: Choisum Kwok
