Symbolism and Antoinette’s Fate in Wide Sargasso Sea

Her increased sense of paranoia and the bitter disappointment of her failing marriage unbalances Antoinette's mental and emotional state.

Antoinette’s Perspective in Part Three

Part Three is told from the perspective of Antoinette, now known as Bertha. The story traces her relationship with Grace Poole. Rochester makes empty promises to come to her more, but actually sees less of her as he ventures off to pursue relationships with other women—and eventually with the young governess, Jane Eyre. Voicing her thoughts in a stream of consciousness and believing it her destiny, Antoinette/Bertha decides to take her own life.

Symbolism of the Novel

The Significance of Fire

Fire in the novel is associated with rebellion, both political and emotional. In Part I, ex-slaves set fire to Coulibri as an expression of their discontent, partly with Mr. Mason's plan to import slaves from the East Indies. Antoinette's dream of setting fire to Thornfield Hall in Part III suggests a parallel between the ex-slaves' protest and her own protest against Rochester and the patriarchal system he embodies.

Birds and Animals as Allegories

The birds and animals in Wide Sargasso Sea are usually allegories for the struggles of the individual characters. Coco isn't just a pyromaniacal parrot who ends up saving everyone's lives, but a voice for Antoinette's own conflicted identity when he calls out, "Qui est là?" Cockroaches obviously echo the term "white cockroach," a derogatory epithet applied to white Creoles, but fireflies and moths also populate the novel's emotional life. A black-and-white goat appears after Rochester speaks with Daniel, as a symbol perhaps of Daniel's racial status, his moral duplicity, or Rochester's ambivalence regarding Daniel. Like the land, the birds and the beasts of Wide Sargasso Sea are veritable actors in the drama of the novel—the extras in the background who sometimes steal the scene.

Forests, Trees, and Premonitions

Antoinette’s recurring forest dream introduces a cool, dark, unknown landscape that contrasts sharply with Jamaica’s colorful brightness. A nightmare that is also a premonition, the dream takes place among “tall dark trees” that lead to an enclosed stone garden. Following a sinister and faceless man, Antoinette finds herself in a foreign place that portends her future captivity in England.

Another forest omen resides in the name of the honeymoon estate, Granbois, which translates into “great forest.” Like Antoinette’s dream, this name foretells her move to the cold forests of England. It is here at Granbois that her husband loses himself in the woods, stumbling upon the haunting ruins of a stone house. Rochester’s eerie experience in the forest echoes his wife’s dream; in fact, it provides the second half of her nightmarish prediction. In the forest, he seems to be gazing upon the consequences of his own actions: a ruined house in the woods, a clear image of his English estate that will be burned and abandoned.