I have only read Chapter 1 so far, but I thought I would pose this discussion topic: names.
It is not often enough, I believe, that we really think about the names of the characters in novels, plays, or movies. Much thought goes into every aspect of well written works, including names. Thus, you get great names that say it all, such as Willy Loman (Death of a Salesman) or Lester Burnham (American Beauty). What better names for down on their luck, defeated middle-aged men? Besides their basic sound, Loman = Low man (on the totem pole) and Lester starts with less and hints at luster (such as for Mena Suvari's character) or lack of luster, and burnham sounds down and out and also conjures up the words burned out or "burn him" which although he isn't physically burned, he is somewhat persecuted in the film (okay, that last one is a bit of a stretch). Clarice Starling is the name of Jodie Foster's character in The Silence of the Lambs, and a starling is a quick, strong, direct bird who has an immense capability to recognize speech patterns, all characteristics of her character (shout out to K on that one). I don't think I need to dissect Hannibal Lecter's name, it's pretty obvious.
Another recent character name that caught my attention was Daniel Plainview, the name of Daniel Day-Lewis' Texan oil prospector in the upcoming P.T. Anderson film There Will Be Blood. The name Daniel means "God is my Judge" and is also a Biblical figure. Plainview makes me think of wide open Texas plains and the view of a landscape. Or perhaps his view of oil prospecting is too moralistically naive, thus the "plainview." The young preacher played by Paul Dano is named Eli Sunday. Eli a variant on the name of God in Hebrew and Aramaic, as well as meaning "the highest" in Hebrew and many Yiddish languages, also the name of a Biblical priest, and Sunday being a holy day and a day of rest in many religions. I have gone on a tangent here, but you get the point.
I thought Briony was an interesting name, so I looked it up online and found this entry in Wikipedia:
Bryony (pronounced 'bri-o-nee' or 'bree-o-nee') is the common name for a species in the genus Bryonia of perennial, tendril-climbing, dioecious herbs with palmately lobed leaves and flowers in axillary clusters (see photo at left). The fruit is a smooth, globular berry.
The English species Bryonia alba is known as white bryony and grows in hedgerows as far north as Yorkshire. There are eight varieties established in Europe. Black Bryony is an unrelated plant of the Dioscoreaceae. Some species find use in herbal medicine. Bryonia is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Cabbage Moth.
Variants of the plant name, such as Briony, Bryonie, and Bryony are used, in some cultures, as names for women or girls. It was quite popular in the 18th century. The name is most popular in and around Scottish regions where the plant is mainly seen and grown. This results in many Scottish versions of the name.
The Royal Navy have named two ships HMS Bryony, after the flower.
I just wanted to share that, and I welcome any analysis of this definition with regards to Briony or any other insights, comments, discussion on the names of any of the characters and how they may or may not relate to their character or evoke other images, religion, mythology, or pieces of history. Or if you just want to add to great character names with or without analysis, that would be cool too.
2 comments:
Linds, i think this is an awesome place to start our discussion and thrilled that you took the lead. as soon as i've read chapter 1 and met Briony i will comment. but i think this is a very interesting idea and do think we need to stop and think about names more than we do, because as you stated, they often do have very significant meaning and are just interesting to think about and fun to dissect. i am now also thinking of other key (and comedic)names that come to mind like Ignatius J. Reilly and Myrna Minkoff from A Confederacy of Dunces. More to come on this topic.
By the way, Saint Cecilia is the patron saint of musicians and music. She was eventually martyred by beheading (although she apparently escaped three previous attempts).
Cecilia traditionally translates from Latin as, "the way for the blind." The meaning of the name Cecilia, as given by Chaucer in the Canterbury Tales, has five interpretations: lily of heaven; the way for the blind; contemplation of heaven and the active life; as if lacking in blindness; a heaven for people to gaze upon.
Her name also recalls the Simon and Garfunkel song for me, and more recently "Entering White Cecilia" by the New Pornographers, which, true to their name, sounds fairly un-romantic, but its lyrics are more baffling than graphic.
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