In ch. 1 of book IX, Tristram dwells on his father's calling out his mother for spying on Toby's romance through a keyhole, supposedly trying to satisfy her "curiosity." Tristram concludes that
The mistake of my father, was in attacking my mother's motive, instead of the act itself: for certainly key-holes were made for other purposes; and considering the act, as an act which interfered with a true proposition, and denied a key-hole to be what it was-----it became a violation of nature; and was so far, you see, criminal. It is for this reason, an' please your Reverences, That key-holes are the occasions of more sin and wickedness, than all other holes in the world put together. (546-7)
Keeping in mind all of the other references to holes, valleys, etc. as discussed last class, are key-holes just another straightforward sexual allusion to be added in to this category, or is the metaphor more complex than that? What do you believe to be the implications for the sinfulness of 'key-holes' as compared with 'all of the other holes in the world put together?' Given emphasis on the 'criminal violations of nature' and 'occasions of sin and wickedness' brought about specifically by the misuse of 'key-holes,' what can we say about their correct use?
Whether attempting to lock or unlock a door, a key hole is intended to receive a key. Any other use of the key hole, including looking at or through it, is, according to Tristam's father, a misuse of that hole. As with all of Sterne's other allusions, this works on a surface level: it is highly questionable for Mrs. Shandy to be spying on Toby and his widow during "the attack;" but I think Carl is right in drawing attention to the other implications of this scene. In my opinion, Tristam's observation that the misuse of a key-hole is equal to a violation of nature, and thus "key0holes are the occasions of more sin and wickedness than all other holes in the world upt together" definitely refers to the sexual temptation represented by women, but I do not think the allusion is quite as vulgar as some of the other allusions we've discussed in class. The key-hole most likely does refer to a woman's 'thing' as we so elegantly put it on Tuesday, and the violation then, would be not having sex. But the real issue at stake here is the occasions of sin and wickedness. I think Tristam is criticizing the methods women, like Widow Wadman, use to attract the amours of a man, namely their sexuality. Repeatedly, we've read of female characters flirting with men, soliciting inappropriate comments and behaviors, or coquettishly fending off advances; it's this "you can look but not touch" message that Tristam considers to be the violation of nature. The sins and wickedness he speaks of, then, would presumably be anything from the inappropriate solicitations put forth by male characters to the things men (and women) may choose to do by themselves in the dark.
ReplyDeleteIf this reading is correct, and I definitely think there's justification for it in the text, then it's especially compelling due to it's moral undertones (basically he is commenting on the obstacles to self-control). Granted, he is certinly not demanding that sex happen strictly within the bounds of marraige, but he does mention that Widow Wadman's methods will eventually 'undo' Toby; added to this sense that lusting after a woman is a violation of nature and a criminal offense, I think this chapter serves to reveal another, deeper, shade of Tristam's character.
See for me the key-hole scene was a commentary of the dangers of women desiring intercourse. We already know from the beginning of the story that Mrs. Shandy and Mr. Shandy have a fairly set routine when it comes to copulation. I read this as Mrs. Shandy dropping hints to Mr. Shandy about her current amorous feelings and she is peeping through the key-hole to get ideas to plan her own "attack" against Mr. Shandy. In the 18c I don't think this would be considered proper as women aren't supposed to show that they like intercourse. I think what Sterne is doing here is informing male readers that women like "it" just as much as males do and if males keep acting stuffy about "it" then the women will take matters into their own hands(no pun intended. I couldn't resist lol), and begin to make plans of attack to take what they want from men.
ReplyDeleteOf course the obvious "key-hole" sexual joke is plays a part in this, I mean this is TS we are talking about here, this novel has to be the most sexual innuendo filled novel that I have ever read.
Maybe I'm naive, but I didn't read the key-hole reference this way. However, Roby makes a good point about the dangers of women desiring intercourse. Thinking about it further, I asked myself what exactly Tristram's mother was expecting to catch through the peep hole. Any answer I came up with only referenced sex. I don't think the violation is in not having sex (referring to Taylor's response), but rather a woman seeking out sex in an underhanded way.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Roby's idea of the keyhole. I think that it might be Sterne pointing out that it is ludicrous for society to try to suppress female desire. It is a part of nature, and yet women are looked down upon if they are sexual. That is why Mrs. Shandy must be secretive about her feelings, and look through a keyhole, and also why Widow Wadman must ask Toby about his wound indirectly. The women need to discuss and participate in sex indirectly, even though thinking about sex is natural for men and women. It is possible that Sterne is saying that these problems arise because women must be indirect. If they could say how they feel, and it was acceptable, then there would be less conflict.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I didn't see the key-holes reference as a sexual desire at first. I simply didn't think too uch into the continuous references, however, re-reading the section I would have to agree with Roby. I definetly think that it is Sterne's way of showing us how to control the female desires of intercourse. We notice throughout that many women throughout the novel did not opnely state that they wanted to have sex, thus they were very indirect about their intentions. This is particularly why Mrs.Shandy, like Nathan mentioned, was quiet about her feelings and never made it a concern to be vocal about them.
ReplyDeleteGiven the other sexual allusions to trenches, holes, valleys, etc. that we discussed in class, sex was actually the first thing that I thought of when I read the key-hole scene. While I agree that the scene could be read as a sort of expression of Mrs. Shandy's sexual desire, I had a somewhat different interpretation. Given what we know about the schedule that Sir Walter has for having sex with his wife once a month and the scene at the very end of the novel in which Sir Walter talks about the dangers of lust ("wherefore, when we go about to make and plant a man, do we put out the candle?"), I read the scene as Sterne showing Sir Walter's opinion that a couple should only have sex when trying to produce an offspring, and not purely out of lust ("That key-holes are the occasions of more sin and wickedness, than all other holes in the world put together"). Given the rest of the sexual allusions in the book, I'm not sure exactly what point Sterne would have been trying to make, but this interpretation was my first reaction to the scene.
ReplyDeleteI read this scene as warning against lust. Sex for any reason beyond procreation is a "violation of nature", as Tristam puts it. As with much of the book, it is difficult to suss out what is really being said. However, I took it is a warning against women wielding sex as a way to control men. We see Mrs. Shandy spying on Toby trying to see if they are getting it on, and we find out that the widow's biggest concern is whether or not Toby can have sex. The key hole, in that sense, stands in as women who "are the occasions of more sin and wickedness" than anything else according to Sterne. It is a warning, perhaps, for men against the lusty wiles of women. This can be seen again when Walter mentions the Fall and Eve leading Adam astray.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely believe that this is another metaphor that can be added to the list of sexual allusions. The fact is that Tristram's mother was looking through a key "hole" at a sexual act. The hole can be another way of referring to another type of hole. You go through the hole to look at things you are curious about or that happens behind close doors, just like what happens when you interact with a "hole." I agree with a key hole being the most sinful of holes in all of the world. I can understand how people think that because many things go on behind closed doors that people do not want to come to light. When you close doors, you can do anything you want and no one will know about it. The fact that you have that possibility of being peered in on when you can something really severe or sexual behind closed doors, makes a peep hole a very sinful metaphor.
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